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"Well, go on and tell me. Please."
He sets a hand on the cask and taps one finger while he shares his secrets with me. "Sweet cicely, wild damson, wild garlic, and elderflower---for a start. Then there's a touch of elderberry and rose hips, not to mention meadowsweet."
"You crammed all that into one type of whisky? No wonder it tastes like nothing I've ever drunk before."
"My newest variation has a few of the elements in Triple Threat. But it also offers one final, top-secret ingredient." He raises his hand when I'm about to remind him of his promise. "I know, I know. You wanted to learn about everything, and I will tell you my secret ingredient. But I think I should show it to you rather than describing it."
"I'm fine with that."
He leads me down to the last row of casks, then gives me a small amount of whisky to drink. This must be his new ultra-secret variation. Thane asks me to close my eyes while I taste it so I can "let the flavors and aromas take hold." I see no reason not to follow his suggestion, so I do it.
My first sip makes my eyes fly open. "Wow. That's...unusual."
"Do you like it?"
I take another sip and shiver a little. "Holy cow, this is amazing. It makes me feel... Oh, never mind."
"You can tell me, lass. Nothing shocks me."
"Let me try one more sip first." When I do that, I shiver again. And I experience the same bizarrely good sensation. "The first time was not a fluke. I actually do feel...um..."
"Aroused?"
"Yeah."
"In what way?" He touches my arm. "Relax, gràidh. I'm only interested in whether you like the whisky. This isn't an attempt to seduce you."
"Uh-huh." But something about this variation is arousing me in more ways than I would have expected. And I suddenly find myself confessing all of that to a man I met this morning. "It arouses my taste buds for sure, with many of the same flavors as the previous version but with hints of other things too. It's almost spicy and also not. It's almost sweet yet also not. It feels like my nerves have been sensitized in the best way, and I feel turned on by the complex array of flavors."
"You have described it perfectly. Rebecca, you might be a whisky savant."
I laugh, but it comes out as a snort. "Please don't go overboard on praising my taste buds. I'm no savant. But I am wondering what your secret ingredient is."
"Time to show you."
We exit the dunnage warehouse at the opposite end from where we started, then make our way down the trail into the woods. I can hear the river, but we're clearly heading upstream and away from the main complex. Thane turns down a narrower trail, taking us away from the river. Within a minute at most, we've reached a small hothouse.
Thane opens the door for me. "Lasses first."
I have never met a man like him before. He's polite and deferential toward women but also strong and virile too. Now, I'm also realizing he's creative and determined to make his company a success. Those are all traits that make him very attractive---as a business owner and a lover. Not that I ever plan to have sex with him again.
But I accept his chivalry and enter the hothouse first.
He shuts the door behind us. "Take a look around, Rebecca. Tell me what you think my secret ingredient is."
"I see plants. They seem to be growing some type of crop." I inch down the center aisle, studying the plants, but I still can't figure out what exactly they are. "I would guess these are some kind of peppers or chilies."
He grins. "You have a brilliant mind. Aye, you are correct. But these aren't simply 'some type of peppers or chilies.' They are a unique hybrid created by me after years of trial and error."
"What species went into this mix?"
"Cayenne Buist, a milder yellow pepper. Aji Dulce, another milder one that's somewhat sweet. It's a Caribbean variety. And finally, African Bird's Eye which is moderately high on the heat scale."
"I'm not normally a fan of hot peppers, but the way those flavors mix with the other ingredients really turns me on."
Why do I keep using words like "turns me on" and "aroused"? It's inappropriate at work, but then, I'm only describing the chilies.
Thane gives me a sneaky smile. "Want to taste the peppers? Then you'll have the most information possible about my newest whisky."
