Page 54 of The Neighborhood Witch

His heart skipped a beat as he took in a breath and held it. Her every curve enthralled his eyes. Time disappeared. He couldn’t look away. He was enraptured by her beauty.

Have I been holding my breath for eternity?

He didn’t know.

Hugo relinquished the breath to ask a question, “Have you ever made wine the old-fashioned way?”

Alice paused her work and turned around. She leaned back against the edge of the workbench. Her hands placed on her hips accentuated her curves. Hugo held that breath once more.

She tilted her head. “The old-fashioned way? No one’s ever asked me that.”

“Yeah.” Hugo peered into the vat closest to him. “You know. Stomping the grapes. With your feet.”

“Why would I do that when I have the stompers do it for me?”

Hugo locked onto her emerald green eyes. He never took his eyes off of her as he descended the platform steps with the confidence and swagger of a tango dance enticing his partner. Each phrase lingered as he took the next step.

“You know. For fun.”

“For fun?” Alice smirked.

“Yeah.” He grinned back. “Fun.”

She paused and crossed her arms. “Would you like to make wine the old-fashioned way, Hugo Dodds?”

He arrived at the bottom of the platform steps. His gaze wasunrelenting. Hugo pulled his shoulders back, tightening his shirt against his muscular chest. “Sounds like fun to me.”

She stood upright and beguiled him with her swaying hips as she moved closer. She was inches away. He could feel her aura. Her presence. He wanted it to last.

“It can be messy,” Alice pleaded in a hushed tone.

“I’m not afraid to get a little messy,” he answered as he matched her volume.

She pulled away, never breaking eye contact with him. “You might want to put on some shorts. It’d be a shame to stain those pants of yours.”

The belt buckle echoed against the stone floor after Hugo unzipped and dropped his pants. Alice watched him remove his socks, toss the clothing aside with his foot, and stand there in the cold, damp cellar, with his boxer briefs and black, long sleeve T-shirt. She smiled at him and bit her lip.

“I’m okay like this,” he replied. “That is, if you don’t mind.”

Her leggings dropped to the floor with a snap of her fingers. Alice stood there in the chilly dampness of the cellar in her gray, long sleeve shirt and black underwear that exposed enough skin to indulge Hugo’s desires. She moved closer.

“Not at all.” Their bodies barely touched as she leaned to whisper into his ear. Her breath teased Hugo with tantalizing delight, as if she was enrapturing him under one of her spells. “I like it when it’s messy.”

“I have a feeling it could get very messy,” he whispered back to regain control.

Alice stood there in silence and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Hugo backed away and took her left hand with his. Firm, yet gentle. He cupped her fingers and steadied her hand with his thumb against her knuckles. Alice opened her eyes.

He led her up the steps to the top of the wooden platform to the waiting vat. One step at a time. He was cautious, methodical, and teasing. He dared not rush her, lest she slip and fall. His eyes lockedand focused on hers. She gazed at his icy blues. He guided her with the fingertips of his other hand placed on her back. They slipped down to the small of her back with each step. She let out a small moan as his fingers glided along her spine.

They made their way to the top of the platform. She snapped her fingers with her free hand. The stompers lifted and exited the vat. They took their normal resting place, free of any liquid. Hugo firmly placed his hand on the small of her back. He led her toward the wooden vat.

He slid his hand across her back to let the fingers graze over the shirt. He grabbed onto her upper arm to support her as she stepped over the vat wall and into the murky liquid. Hugo let go of Alice and joined her as they sloshed around in the frothy wine must. His toes dug into slippery chunks of smashed grapes. Bits of grapes squeezed under his feet. An odd, slimy sensation.

“I feel silly,” Alice said.

“That’s okay,” he replied. “We can be silly together.”

Alice pulled her hair back behind her ears. “Now what?”

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