Avoiding Alpha

Chapter Ten

“Tendra, come away, don’t wash the plates, I can do them later, come and sit down. I have a bottle of wine; let’s get to know each other.”

                She bit her bottom lip, worrying a little, but when she turned to face him she was smiling.

“Okay.” She let him move around the side of her and he pulled from a wine rack a bottle of red. Opening a cupboard he took out two wine glasses and she was distracted for a second looking at just how many of them he had, all of them gleaming, shining as they looked at her.

“Lots of guests?” She asked.

“Sometimes, my mother, she’s a lovely woman but am glad I don’t live with her anymore. If she comes around I try to be sophisticated, wine, clean glasses – as you can see she’s been here recently.” She laughed. That was why they gleamed. “She likes to have friends round when she visits and before I know it I’m apparently hosting a ‘little’ get together.”

“She sounds like fun.”

“Apparently; to the women.” He replied dryly and uncorked the wine bottle.

                She was busy watching him pour the bottle, thumb at the bottom of it and everything, well practised but she didn’t noticed when his hands went around her waist and lifted her up. She gasped in surprise but by the time she had gasped he had already let go of her and she was sat on his worktop.

“This is a good one,” He said, swirling a glass and handing it to her. She took it, blinking quickly to overcome her shock at suddenly being at his eye line.

“It tastes good.” She offered, sipping at it. She had no idea when it came to wine.

“Good? Not a wine person?”

“Never really had it, I’ve not had the chance to be fair. I wouldn’t notice the difference between a cheap one and an expensive one.”

                He didn’t speak and she wondered if she had offended him.

“That sacrilege.” He said. Yep definitely offended. She went to put her glass down, to face his reaction but he came over and closed his hand over hers - the one holding the glass. It stopped her, effectively, from putting it down. “Never learnt to wine taste.” He muttered. “Guess I’ll have to teach you.”

                For one moment she was sure she hadn’t taken a breath. His hand was so warm it was sending tingles along her skin. Good tingles, she didn’t want him to move. But he did, he walked closer to her and in the end stood inbetween her legs. Their faces were inches apart.

“A red wine is always served at room temperature. Remember that, hence the wine rack and not the fridge or a cupboard.”

                He looked her in the eye as he told her that and then he moved his hand and caused her to grip the glass tighter. “No, follow the movement; swirl it.” He whispered the words, slowly moving his hands again. Inching that bit closer he put his mouth closer to her face, “Look at the wine. Colour, is the first thing to notice, look how dark it is, that deep, rich red colour, just a hint darker than a woman’s lips. But we swirl it for the aroma.”