Page 10 of The Vineyard Crush

Ethan: Dinner at the vineyard tonight. We’re trying out some new menu items, need as many critiques as possible.

I sighed and typed back a simple ‘Okay.’

An hour later, I sat in my office trying to work but my mind just wouldn’t focus. My mind kept wandering back to the fact that I’d left Avery over at the vineyard all day with Emma. It was her first time looking after Avery, and I couldn’t help but worry she might get overwhelmed.

The thought of Emma potentially feeling in over her head made my chest clench with anxiety. I didn’t want her to panic and make a run for it like Melissa had…

No. Stop right there, McCords. You’ve only known this girl for half a day - there’s no relationship here at all, period. Don’t go projecting all your baggage onto her.

Except…I did feel this odd connection to Emma, a gravitational pull I couldn’t quite explain. Even after such a short time, just the thought of her made my pulse pick up, my throat go dry with longing.

She was everything Melissa hadn’t been - soft and warm, with a gentle strength that called to the deepest parts of my soul. Looking into those emerald eyes, I felt like I was drowning in their endless depths, the rest of the world fading away until there was nothing but her.

And Christ, when she smiled…it was like the clouds parting after a storm, bright and radiant and so fucking beautiful it damn near brought me to my knees.

I groaned, scrubbing a hand over my face as I tried in vain to push those dangerous thoughts aside. Getting hung up on some girl was the last thing I needed right now. Avery was my priority - end of story.

Still…I couldn’t quite shake the nagging sense of guilt at having left her with Emma all day. For all I knew, Avery could be running my poor neighbour ragged, testing every last ounce of her patience. The kid was a handful on the best of days; asking someone with zero childcare experience to wrangle her might have been too tall an order.

The more I lingered on it, the more convinced I became that I needed to go check on them, if only to ease my own mind. Emma had done me a huge favor today, after all - it was the least I could do to make sure she wasn’t in over her head.

Yeah, that was it. I was just being a good guy, doing my neighborly duty. Definitely no ulterior motives at play here, no sir.

With a huff of determination, I heaved myself up off the desk and headed out, making the short trek over to the vineyard. When I arrived, Ethan’s mom pointed me towards the back garden, letting me know that’s where Emma and Avery had been working.

As I pushed through the gate and rounded the corner, I damn near swallowed my tongue at the scene that greeted me.

There, in the middle of a large tub filled to the brim with plump, purple grapes, was Emma - and holy hell, she looked good enough to eat.

Her sundress, which I could have sworn had been a pale, dusty blue when I dropped Avery off, was now soaked through with grape juice, turning it a deep, sinful maroon that clung to her lush curves like a second skin. Her chestnut hair was tousled and wild, a few loose tendrils escaping the messy bun she’d tied it up in, framing her face in a way that made my mouth go dry.

I watched, transfixed, as she threw her head back with a peal of delighted laughter, the column of her throat bared in a way that had me itching to run my tongue along its length. Christ, she was a temptation, all soft and sweet and utterly irresistible.

The sight of her, coupled with the realization that she was covered head to toe in sticky, sugary grape juice, had my blood heating in a wholly different way. Visions of licking every last inch of her, tasting that sweet nectar on my tongue as she writhed and whimpered beneath me, began to fill my mind unbidden.

I let out a strangled groan, shifting in a vain attempt to ease the strain in my suddenly too-tight jeans. Goddammit, this woman was going to be the death of me, and I’d only known her for a matter of hours.

Just then, a sticky glob of squashed grapes came sailing through the air to smack me square in the chest, shattering my heated reverie. I looked up to find Avery giggling madly, her hands cupped around another handful of ammunition.

“What in the name of holy hell is going on here?” I growled, trying in vain to stamp down my simmering arousal. Because seriously…a goddamn grape fight? Now I had to bathe and change not only Avery, but myself as well, all because these two couldn’t be bothered to act like responsible adults for five goddamn minutes.

Emma whipped around at the sound of my voice, her cheeks flushed a pretty shade of pink as she took in my no-doubt thunderous expression. Ethan, on the other hand, just grinned at me, one eyebrow cocked in a look of pure, shit-eating glee.

“Heya, Grumpy,” he called out cheerfully, reaching down to scoop up another handful of grapes. “Care to join us?”

“Don’t you dare…” I began warningly, but it was too late. The squishy projectiles were already sailing through the air, splattering against my face and chest with a nauseating plop.

I sputtered, scrubbing at my eyes as thick rivulets of purple juice trickled down my shirt. “For god’s sake Ethan…” I growled, leveling a murderous glare at my so-called best friend. Oh, he was going to get it now.

Before Ethan could so much as blink, I was diving into the tub, sloshing through the sticky sea of grapes until I was right in front of him. With a feral grin, I grabbed two handfuls of ammunition and let them fly, pelting him squarely in the face and hair.

“Hey!” he protested, swiping the juice from his eyes with the back of his hand. “No fair, man! Two against one?”

I scoffed, already reaching for another round of ammo. “Should’ve thought of that before you decided to make me a target, jackass.”

And just like that, the battle was on.

Grapes went flying in every direction, splashing and splattering until the whole garden was a sticky mess. Peals of unrestrained laughter filled the air as we ducked and weaved, taunting each other like overgrown children.

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