Page 38 of The Charmer's Gambit
“And you noticed that just by walking down the vineyard?”
He chuckled. “Experience, darlin’.”
“I’m nowhere near that good.”
“We’ll get you there. How about I demonstrate on this first one, and then you can try the next one while I watch?” He grabbed what he referred to as a shoot. “See how there are two clusters? We only want one, and it’s best to trim the excess in the summer to help the grapes grow. So I’ll trim the smaller one, which will allow the bigger one to grow.”
“And when they’re fully ripe, you pick them all by hand?” He mentioned the other day that he didn’t use machines to pick grapes during the harvest.
“Yup.”
“Wow.”
“Now you’re getting it,” he replied as he snipped the smaller cluster. “All right, shading . . .” He continued his spiel by going into a diatribe about the sun and where it hit the vines in this row. By the end, I had enough understanding to repeat his actions on the next set and only managed to make one mistake.
“It’s the smaller cluster, but it’ll be fine,” he murmured. “You’ll get it. Next time we’ll master rounding, but this will work for now.”
“What’s rounding?”
“It’s where you snip the bottom of the grape cluster to make them round. It improves the size of the fruit.”
That sounded complicated. “Uh, if you say so.”
He grinned. “I do. All right, I think you’ve got this. I need to help Joe with the netting, but I’ll be back to check on you in an hour or so. Okay?”
I focused on an overgrown leaf and clipped the stem. “Yep.”
“One more thing.” His bare palm slipped to the back of my neck before I realized what was happening, and his lips captured mine. I stood frozen with my gloved hands out to the side, worried I might stick him with the pruner. He tilted my head to the angle he preferred and gently slipped his tongue into my mouth. This wasn’t like the hungry mating of mouths on his balcony, but that didn’t make it any less potent. Because this man knew how to deliver a kiss. It left me shaking as he pulled back to stare down into my eyes. “Did I mention how much I like this outfit?” he whispered.
I swallowed. “Maybe once or twice.”
“Thank you for helping today.”
“If this is my payment, then consider me willing to help anytime.” The words were out before I could catch them. Oh well. That didn’t make them any less true.
He smiled against my lips. “Duly noted.” His mouth took mine again in a brief kiss before he pulled back. The palm on my neck slipped down to my ass, where he landed a resounding slap. “Now back to work, darlin’.”
I gasped at his retreating form. “You did not just smack my ass!” I called after him. Except he did. I could feel the burn through the fabric of my jeans.
He turned to walk backwards through the vineyards, his lips curling. “I did, and I’ll do it again.”
“Try it, and it won’t be this vine I’m pruning, Mershano.” I waved the weapon menacingly, but all he did was laugh.
“Feisty,” he returned.
“Cocky,” I threw back. “Ass,” I added as I massaged my rear end. It both stung and tingled. I’d have to return the favor later and see how he liked it.
14
Soothing, Sexy & Seductive
Will was right. Nine hours of working in the vineyard gave me a new insight into his business. It also left me sweaty and exhausted.
The early evening sun winked at me as I finished my row. Bradley, one of my fellow pruners, met me with a grin and a bottle of water. I suspected Will had given the guy orders to keep me hydrated, because he kept showing up with various drinks and food at frequent intervals.
“How ya doin’?” He had dimples like Will, but less prominent, and he flashed them at me now. I’d call him a flirt, but his mannerisms rivaled the other men I’d met today.Friendlywas a good way to describe the crowd, mingled with Southern charm.
“Good.” I wiped my brow with my forearm before accepting the water. The hat was long gone. My long hair did not need the added weight. I’d tied it back into a messy bun to keep it off my neck, but that did nothing to thwart the sun. “How pink am I?” I asked after taking a long swig from the bottle.
