“Sanan, oh my goodness, of course. Don’t even worry. We can head back.”
Ani was slightly sad about having to leave, but she was not about to keep Sanan from her family.
Raffi’s head perked up at Ani’s words.
“You’re heading out?”
“Sanan’s got to go; we carpooled up here.”
Raffi nodded, thinking. “You know, I’m going into the city later. I could drive you back after running through the task list.”
“Really?” Ani asked. She did have more work she needed to get done here. And they came in Sanan’s car anyway. Sanan had insisted on driving because she obeyed the speed limits more judiciously than Ani—“No offense, boss.”
“It’d be my pleasure,” he said, and Ani’s body warmed instantly at his words.
Sanan gave a string of apologies, which Ani dismissed and assured her everything was completely fine. She asked Sanan to keep her updated, then Sanan gave her a quick, tight hug and ran off.
Raffi and Ani were left alone in the kitchen, where they had been alone months ago, Ani laying her dress out and doing her best not to flash her cheeks. There was a heaviness in the air, something charged, ready to spark at any second.
“We—we have to check the number of outlets,” Ani said.
“Seventeen,” Raffi responded immediately.
Ani shook herself from her shy stupor. “What? Really?”
Raffi smirked. Oh, there was that devilish smile of his. “I’m kidding. I don’t keep tabs on the number of outlets in all rooms of the winery.”
“I was going to say: Add savant to your list of skills.”
Raffi stepped closer to her, and her breath hitched. “Oh yeah? What are my other skills?”
Ani’s throat felt like she’d never had a drink of water her entire life. “Don’t make me list them.”
A moment passed between them, and he appeared to be fighting a smile. “Just checking to see if you…remembered.”
Of course she remembered. She’d thought about that kiss every single day, if not every single hour, since they’d been apart. And now he was standing close to her, so close, and she could step up on her tiptoes and feel that kiss again, his arms around her, drawing her in.
“I remember,” she whispered. Then she added, “But I havea big to-do list. I wasn’t expecting to discuss the, uh, situation at the engagement party so soon.”
Raffi shrugged. “Hey, I was just riffing off you bringing up my skills. Seemed a shame not to mention it with such a great setup.”
She really had teed that one right up for him.
“True, true. Okay, step one—help me count these outlets, and let’s do our best to, you know, remain professional.”
Raffi put his hand on his heart, and she remembered the beat of it, so hard and fast. “I am the soul of professionalism.”
She took a chance and bumped him playfully with her body. She loved seeing the surprise on his face, loved the feeling of his body against hers.
“Mm-hmm,” she said, then got to work.
They spent about an hour going through Ani’s checklist, and it was easier to keep their eyes on the tasks at hand when they were outside because Chris and his team were there, hammering, sealing, polishing.
When they were nearing the end of their discussion on electricity, Ani’s stomach gave a great angry growl so loud it could be heard even over the sounds of the construction crew. Damn, that was humiliating. Ani gave a half smile to cover her embarrassment.
But instead of smiling back or brushing it off, Raffi’s face appeared concerned. “When’s the last time you ate?”
She had to think aloud on this one. She wasn’t sure. “I don’t know, I guess I had an egg for breakfast and meant to have more but got distracted.”
