Page 72 of The Cask

“Of course,” I griped. Forcing a pleasant look on my face, I shooed her away. “Go check it out. See what all the hype is about.”

She nodded. “I’ll report back tomorrow.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

Alexis walked across the street and almost immediately, I lost her in the crowd. Standing under the awning, I took in the scene. There were hordes of people not only inside but outside of Luxe. Due to the projection screen outside, I saw a glimpse of a scantily clad woman on a stage.

My time to strike.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket to send a text message to Omari. I knew just the thing to get him to come running.

“Ebony.”

Startled, I almost dropped my phone as his voice sliced through my thoughts. My eyes widened as I took him in. He looked good when I saw him earlier in his jeans and polo shirt. But standing before me in an all-black suit and a hat that looked like a mix between a crown and a black feather headdress, he was a vision. He had my undivided attention and though I knew I had a plan to execute, damn.

He stepped closer to me as a group of people attempted to pass us on the sidewalk. “Hey,” he greeted me again.

“Hey,” I replied, slipping my phone back into my pocket. “What are you doing here?”

He coughed. “Excuse me.” He coughed again and then cleared his throat. “I noticed your lights go out and I was hoping to catch you before you left. I didn’t have time to grab my phone or my wallet. I didn’t want to miss you.” He looked around. “Did you get your car out of the shop?”

I shook my head. “No, I didn’t have time. I ended up having a meeting and then I needed to be here.” I scanned his body from head to toe. “You changed.”

“Yeah.” He smoothed his hand down his lapel. “You like it?”

“I do.” I stepped closer, reaching up to touch his crown. “Especially this.”

He chuckled lightly. “After a couple of drinks and everything going on tonight, I forgot all about it.”

“Well, it’s a good look.”

“Youare a good look,” he returned. “And I’m sorry about earlier.”

I shifted my weight from one foot to the other. “Which part?”

“I’m sorry if I made you feel like your feelings didn’t matter.” He took my hand. “Because they do matter.Youmatter.”

“Thank you,” I said quietly. “I appreciate you saying that.”

He brought my hand to his mouth and kissed it. “Why are you standing out here? Do you want to come watch the contest?”

I twisted my lips and looked down to the ground for a moment. “I can’t.”

His brows furrowed. “Why not?”

“You know that meeting I was telling you about?” When he nodded, I continued. “It was with a wine collector that I’d only worked with once before. He was able to get me a bottle of Amontillado and it was delivered here earlier. With everything going on, I didn’t get a chance to taste it. But now that it’s been sitting in my cellar for half a day, my thoughts have been running wild.”

“What kind of Amontillado?”

“It’s a bottle of what passes for Barbadillo Versos 1891 Amontillado.” I made a face. “But I have my doubts…”

“How?” His eyes bulged and his jaw dropped. “A bottle of Versos 1891? Impossible! And in the middle of the festival?”

“I have my doubts.” Closing my eyes, I covered my face with my hands for a moment. “And I was silly enough to pay the full Amontillado price without consulting anyone. Samuel Joseph is on vacation because he hates how crazy Richmond gets during the festival. And you weren’t available earlier. I was scared of losing a bargain, so I went for it without a second opinion.”

Omari scrubbed his face with both hands. “Amontillado?!”

Giving him a look, I restated, “I have my doubts.”

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