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“We’re having dinner, Tessa,” I say, leaning in to press a kiss to her cheek. Damn, she smells good. “That’s all.”
I slip my hand to the small of her back, urging her inside before closing the door. Tessa stands in the huge open space, her eyes moving around as she takes it all in, her mouth hanging open in a tiny O shape.
Grinning, I walk past her and head toward the kitchen area that spans one side of the space, separated from the living area by a long island bench that’s lined with stools. “Drink?” I ask, as I open the fridge and grab a bottle of white wine.
Tess hasn’t moved, her gaze still taking in my loft, a shocked look on her face. “This…” she stops, swallowing hard before trying again. “This is where you live?”
“Uh huh,” I say, reaching for some wine glasses.
“But, how, I mean…what the hell, how?”
I laugh, walking over to her and grabbing her hand as I lead her back to the kitchen, gently pushing her onto one of the bar stools. “First up, what would you like to drink?” I ask, pointing to the glasses. “I have red too.”
Tess blinks once. “Shit,” she mutters, shaking her head as though to clear it. “I’ll take white, thanks.”
I nod, twisting the cap off the bottle as I pour us both a glass, sliding one toward her. I lift mine, holding it out as I wait for her to do the same. “Cheers,” I say, tapping our glasses together before taking a sip.
Tess lifts her glass to her mouth, taking a large gulp before she puts it on the counter. “Seriously, Dylan, this place is amazing. How the hell do you live here, the rent must be insane?”
Chuckling, I give my loft a quick once over, knowing how this must look to her. “Who says I rent?” I say casually.
“What?” she blurts out, her mouth hanging open a little
Chuckling, I can’t resist leaning over and gently closing it. “I don’t rent, Tessa,” I tell her. “I own it.”
Her eyes widen. “Oh my god, you own this place?”
Grinning, I give her a nod. “I do.”
“How?” she asks, instantly slapping a hand over her mouth as though she realizes how that sounds.
I smirk at her before answering with a vague, “I worked hard.”
Tessa blinks once as though she isn’t sure what to say as her eyes wander over my apartment again. I get it, it’s an impressive place, which is why I bought it. But I also know I don’t look the part, don’t fit in with the whole vibe owning a six figure loft in the heart of Napa gives off.
“Not what you were expecting, huh?” I ask, taking another sip of my wine, secretly glad I’ve managed to surprise her so much.
“No,” she says, shaking her head. “It’s…wow. I can’t believe we never…”
“Hooked up here?” I ask, grinning when she shoots me a look. “Well, maybe if we hadn’t stopped, we might have,” I add, smirking when she rolls her eyes at me. “But yeah, I guess I figured you felt more comfortable at your place,” I continue, even if part of me knew that bringing her back here would invite questions as to how I came to own such an impressive place. Questions I didn’t want to deal with when this was just a hook up.
“I’m pretty sure I would’ve been comfortable coming here,” she murmurs, almost like she’s talking to herself.
I let out a chuckle, leaning my elbows on the kitchen island as I stare across at her. “Well, you’re welcome to drop by anytime now that you know where I live.”
Tessa takes a sip of her wine, narrowing her eyes a little. “I thought this was just dinner?” she says as she waves her hand around.
Grinning, I reply with, “It is…for now.”
I hit her with a quick wink as I take another sip of my wine. I’ve no doubt she’s wondering how the fuck someone who works maintenance at a winery could afford a place like this and I got to admit, it’s kind of fun having her this intrigued. I know she pegged me as some dumb gym junkie who was only interested in random hook ups and while that might have been true once, it isn’t anymore.
I’m not sure exactly when things changed or why this woman is the one to change them, but they have and she did and right now I’m enjoying the fact that I’ve intrigued her enough that she’s sticking around to find out more.
Tess says nothing, just watches me, a curious expression on her face as I’m sure a million different questions run through her brain. Just as she opens her mouth to ask them, I hear the sound of the water boiling and I turn to the stove and grab the lid, lifting it off before it boils over.
“So, we’re not going out for dinner?” she eventually asks.
“Nope, I’m cooking you dinner,” I say, finishing off my glass as I reach for the bottle to top us both up.
“You can cook?” she asks incredulously.
I chuckle. “Guess we’ll find out, won’t we?”
Tess lets out a slow breath, her eyes never leaving mine as we face each other across my kitchen counter, a weird tension now crackling between us. I wish I knew what she was thinking, what she thinks about me now because of all the things she’s discovered about me in the last twenty minutes.
“Tell me what you’re thinking?” I eventually ask, my words so low they’re barely audible.
Tess takes another sip of her wine, her eyes never leaving mine as she swallows, before eventually saying, “I don’t know. You’re…this…it’s all so different to what I expected.”
I grin, giving her a wink as I say, “Good.”
