Raffi took a step closer to her, breaking Ani’s doom cycle. “You look like you’re about to either solve world hunger or pass out. Care to share which?” he asked.
Ani put her hands on her hips. She was not about to confide in him about her innermost thoughts, despite the cuteness of his joke. But she did have quite a few things to say to him. “Did you really say yes to the landscaping thing?”
Raffi shrugged. “Why not? They’re paying for it. Would probably improve the place, make it more attractive for future weddings.”
“Of course it will, but that timeline? I know Kami’s taste. She’s not going to want an out-of-the-box fountain from Wayfair; she’s going to want a custom design, something grand and eye-catching and, most importantly, extremely time-consuming.”
“Grand and eye-catching is my style,” he said. She took in his expression of pride as he gestured around the winery and then himself. “Can’t believe I changed out of that wet shirt. Nothing more eye-catching than a massive matcha stain.”
Despite herself, Ani smiled. His tone didn’t seem antagonistic; he was making a joke about what he’d previously been snippy about. Still, part of her wondered if he was making a reference to his hotness. Those high cheekbones were really something. She said, “Leave the designs to me.”
Ani began to walk away, toward her car. The day was more than wearing on her. She needed silence to process everything. She didn’t want to have to continue proving herself in front of this spoiled man.
“About that,” he called, and she could hear him stepping quickly behind her.
“Ani,” he said when she didn’t turn around. She sighed. He sounded pleading and earnest, not demanding. And she really, really didn’t want to admit that a tiny part of her liked the way he pronounced her name perfectly. Ani faced him.
“What about that?” she asked.
“This winery, you know, I told you, it’s very important to me.”
Her eyebrow began its ascent. “And?”
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He was actually nervous. “Do you, I mean—do you have the experience to take on a project like this?” he asked, finally. He had the good grace to look a bit embarrassed by his question.
“Doyou?” she shot back.
He glanced away, a cheeky expression on his face, giving her a view of his jawline. So fucking sharp.
“I asked first,” he said.
She didn’t say a word, and there they remained in deadlock while the wind showered them in cherry blossom glitter.
“Aren’t you a doctor?” she said at last, remembering this point. “Pretty sure I am more qualified than an MD for this particular job.”
Now Raffi sighed. “I was a doctor. Almost. I was in my residency when I quit.”
Ani was taken aback. She was not expecting this answer or the sad expression that briefly crossed his face.
“Another story for another day,” Raffi said in a way that intimated he was not interested in sharing it another day, either.
“Sure, sure,” Ani replied.
“I am one of those rare combinations of MD and MBA, though.”
Ani couldn’t stop her eyes from widening. “You have an MBA, too?”
“From Stanford.” He smiled, as if knowing she wanted to ask. His teeth glimmered, a wolfish smile that made her breath catch. Just for a moment.
“You’ve been busy this past decade,” Ani gibed.
“You could say that,” he said, his eyes darkening, and Ani couldn’t help but wonder what was behind them.
She decided to steer them back to the issue at hand. “So, what, you’re going to fire me from the job Kami hired me to do? You think you, Mr. MD and MBA, know better than the Bay Area’s most ‘quaint’ wedding planner?”
He groaned. “You ever considered getting into cooking? Your roasting skills are on point.”
Ani put her hands on her hips again, trying to fight her smile. “Takes one to know one.”
