Chapter 11: Private Tasting

NOW

Every year, several area businesses went together to host an after party for the Breast Cancer Awareness Run. This was one of the first events my company had handled after I expanded beyond the wedding circuit and we had been booked for it ever since. Personally, it was one of my favorites of the year. It was always fun to work with the various companies involved plus my sorority's collegiate and alumni chapters were involved as part of their philanthropic work. This year, I had handed the event off to April so I was there purely as a participant. It gave me a chance to hang out with old friends as well as network for Elena Gilbert Events. I was sipping the Pink Ribbon Martini that we had formulated especially for the evening when someone walked up behind me and hugged me from behind. "It has been entirely too long since we have hung out but seeing you in that little pink dress just made up for it, Miss Gilbert!"

"Tyler! I didn't know you were back in town!" Tyler Lockwood was a philanthropist who dealt primarily in real estate though he wouldn't turn away from any business deal that would thicken his already bulging wallet. Born into money, Tyler had gone to college primarily to party but while he was there he earned a degree in English. We were thrown together by a college professor for a group assignment when I was a freshman and he was a sophomore and had been buddies ever since. He was the type of guy that you never actually dated but could count on for a date when you needed one but wasn't involved with anyone special. He had been my escort to many weddings and dinners through the years. He was one of the backers for the party but I was surprised to see him since the last time we spoke he was headed out of the country for an extended business trip. "When did you get back?"

"Last week. I'm sorry I haven't called. It's been a crazy week. The party looks amazing but I can't say that I'm surprised. Everything about you looks amazing." I forgot to mention that he is a shameless flirt who is good for my self esteem.

"Thanks but I didn't do the party this year. April, my assistant, is heading things up. She's phenomenal. I'm lucky to have her."

"April? Oh yeah, she's the one that I met at your birthday dinner last year. So, anything new while I was gone?" This was the first day without contact with Damon and I didn't want to get into that right now. I had thought I'd see him here since Saltzman Consulting was one of the backers but so far Damon had been a no show.

"You know, I don't really want to talk. Let's hit the dance floor."

"Sure." Grabbing my hand, Tyler led me into the crowd and pulled me into a close embrace as we started to move to the music. People had asked me for years why I didn't just pursue a relationship with him. We had a great time together and he was the kind of guy that got second looks from girls where ever he went. Though we had shared the occasional alcohol induced kiss, there were no sparks there. Of course, we knew each other so well that flirting came naturally and anyone watching us would never know that our relationship was simply a close friendship. "Elena, do you know the guy who is checking you out?" Tyler asked.

Looking over my shoulder, I spotted him standing on the edge of the dance floor. So, Damon had finally shown. "Don't you recognize him? Oh, wait! You graduated before I met him. That is Damon my old college boyfriend."

"Damon? What the hell is he doing here? "

"He is the new VP at Saltzman."

"What? You don't actually have to interact with him do you?"

"Oh, better than that—he's my direct contact. I have to work with him on all events. Actually, we've been trying to be friends. He's hired me to handle a wine tasting event that he's hosting and we met for coffee last Saturday morning. It's not easy but I'm trying. I figure it's the least I can do since we have to work together." I purposely left out the fact that I had bought the new dress and heels so I could feel confident if I ran into him tonight.

"He wants to be friends? Is he insane? I may have been abroad that year but I remember talking to you after you guys split and you were practically catatonic. You never told me what happened but whatever it was he doesn't deserve for you to give him a second chance," Tyler said as he protectively wrapped his arm around me.

"Excuse me. Hope you don't mind if I cut in." Damon had just walked up looking positively mutinous.

"I don't think the lady wants to dance with you," said Tyler as the testosterone level in the room spiked.

"Ty, it's OK. I don't mind."

"If you're sure," responded Tyler. He headed off the dance floor but not before giving Damon a long, hard stare which Damon returned. The DJ started a slow song giving Damon just the opportunity he needed to pull me into his arms.

"I thought you weren't seeing anybody," Damon growled into my ear. I could feel his breath on my neck and when my breathing sped up it made me more than a little upset with myself.

"I'm not."

"You could've fooled the hell out of me."

"What made you think I was seeing someone?"

"What else am I supposed to think when the first thing I see when I walk in is you looking hot as hell in this dress and that guys hands all over you on the dance floor?"

"That's just Ty. He's an old friend."

"Where I come from, old friends don't get to grope each other."

"He wasn't groping me and what would it matter to you even if he did?"

"Because I can't stand seeing another man's hands on you! That's why it matters!"

At this point we had stopped moving and looked pretty awkward standing in the middle of the dancing crowd.

"Damon, I'm trying here, believe me, I am. And I want us to have a good working relationship. But you do not get to play the jealous boyfriend. You gave away that right a long time ago. Now, please excuse me but I need to go." And with that, I decided it was time to head home. The next day Damon sent a bouquet of pink roses with a note apologizing for being out of line. I had to give him credit since the Damon I knew didn't normally do apologies.

Saltzman Consulting represented several of the area art galleries and they had decided to plan a gallery crawl. Damon and I had been working together on the account since it presented a great marketing opportunity for the involved parties. The two of us had been working together more and more and slowly barriers were coming down. We had not, however, discussed what had happened at the party. I think we both realized that it would be better not to bring it up. We were actually becoming friends and neither of us wanted to jeopardize that. After the meeting, we were chatting over a cup of coffee in his office.

"Elena, I was thinking. I need some help narrowing down the wine selections for the dinner. Would you mind coming over tonight and doing a tasting? It would give you a chance to check out the kitchen and see if it's going to work out OK the night of the party. So, what do you think? Will you come over?" He looked nervous to the point of bordering on frightened. I almost felt sorry for him.

"Sure. You're right. I do need to look at the kitchen."

"Great. I'll throw together some appetizers to go with the wines. You can just come on over after work."

Several hours later we were standing in his kitchen sipping wine. His house was just as he described. The bones of the classic craftsman were all there but there were also modern updates. The kitchen was divine. It was a huge eat-in kitchen which opened to an attached hearth room. It was somehow roomy and cozy at the same time. "Damon, this place is unbelievable."

"Thanks. I was hoping you would like it. After dinner I'll have to show you the library. There's floor to ceiling bookshelves and it has a fireplace too." He was as happy as a little boy on Christmas morning.

"How many fireplaces does this place have?"

"Let's see, there's this one, the one in the library, it backs up to the one in living room and then there's one in the master suite. I'll be glad to take you on a tour of my bedroom if you're interested." He grinned and gave me an exaggerated wink.

"Oh, you are so full of the charm, my friend," I laughed. The wine had me relaxed just enough to laugh at his lame attempts to be flirtatious.

"You can't blame a guy for trying. So, what do you think about the wine?"

"It's delicious. And so is your food. Where did you learn to cook something besides your famous Salvatore spaghetti?"

"I've been travelling all over the world for years now and a guy can eat out only so much before that gets old. I was bound to pick up a few ideas from the countries and their cuisines. Which of the white wines do you think I should serve? I was thinking about doing two whites and three reds."

"My votes would go to the Sauvignon Blanc and the Pinot Grigio although I'm sure most people would prefer the Chardonnay. I've just never been a huge fan of Chard."

"I don't care what the other people prefer. I asked you. Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio it shall be. For the reds, I was thinking maybe the Pinot Noir and a Merlot. I'm just having a hard time choosing between the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Cab Franc. What do you think?"

"It depends. What are you planning to serve with it?"

"Well, there will be some beef and they will both stand up to that but there will also be chocolate with dessert and I know some people like to have a red wine at that point. There will also be coffee and an ice wine offered."

"Will the chocolate be milk or dark?"

"I thought you would never ask," he grinned. He went to the stove and pulled a pot off and poured a beautifully rich looking dark chocolate sauce in a bowl. He put the bowl of chocolate on a tray along with a bowl of strawberries. "Obviously, I'll have a larger selection of desserts that night but I thought this might be a nice option. Here taste this." He dipped one of the strawberries in the chocolate and held it for me to take a bite. I was embarrassed to realize that I actually closed my eyes and moaned. "I'll take that to mean that you do still love dark chocolate," he laughed.

"What's not to love? Ordinarily, I'd vote for the Cabernet Sauvignon but, with that sauce I'd go with the Cabernet Franc."

"That's kind of what I thought. Maybe I'll offer one with the regular food and one with this."

"Because, this is definitely not regular food!" I added. He was opening the bottle of Cabernet Franc.

"What do you say we take this into the library and sit by the fire?" He put the wine glasses on the tray. "I've got this if you'll just bring the wine bottle."

"Sounds wonderful." When Damon opened the French doors onto the library I had to wonder if every room in this house just got better. He had not been exaggerating when he said that it had floor to ceiling bookcases. It also had a raised fireplace and a large portrait window that looked out over the backyard. "Damon, this just blows my mind! This room is perfect. I think I could be locked in here for life and be happy! " He had put the tray on the coffee table and was propped against the wall with his arms crossed smiling while he watched me scan his book selection. I was a kid in a candy shop in this room and he knew it. "You know what would be perfect in front of that window?"

"A baby grand but that would be a bit frivolous since I don't play. Of course, if you're going to lock yourself away in here, then maybe I better go buy one." From the look on his face, I could tell that he was pleased that I liked it. As I settled myself on the rug in front of the fire, he walked over to one of the shelves and pulled out a leather bound box. "Do you still play backgammon?"

"Goodness! I haven't played in years but, if you want to play, I'm game."

"Cool." He sat across from me and started setting up the board. "Would you like to put a little wager on this?"

"I don't know. It's been forever since I played."

"That's OK. We can play best out of three. We'll keep the wager low. Let's see. If I lose, I'll wash your car. That's easy. Now, what about if you lose?"

"I don't know. Don't you have any ideas?"

"Oh, I have plenty of them," he gave me that wicked smirk that I remembered so well.

"Damon, be good," I warned but only half heartedly.

"OK, if I must." He rolled his eyes up to the ceiling, tapping his lips as if in deep thought. "I know. My shoulders have been so stiff ever since I worked out at the gym. If you lose, you can give me a shoulder rub."

"I can do that. Besides, you're going to need one worse after you finish washing my car," I teased.

"Oh! So it's going to be like that, huh? Well, we'll see about that, Missy. You talk mighty big for someone who has not played in years."

"Are you trying to back out?"

"No way," he said and rolled the dice.

At the end of two games, we were tied. At the end of three, I was limbering up my fingers to give him a back massage. Damon was facing the fire and I was behind him sitting on the ottoman rubbing his shoulders.

"You were always so good at this. I remember it always felt so good when you gave me a back rub after the lacrosse games."

"Yeah, those were some good times." They were. As much as he had hurt me, my senior year of college held some of my best memories. And it was because of him.

"Do you remember how long you held out before you would go out with me?"

"Four months. I couldn't understand why you wouldn't just give up?"

"I always believed that, where you were concerned, persistence would pay off."

"And did it?" We were treading on thin ice. This was the closest we had come to talking about what happened.

"It did. The time I spent with you were the best months of my life." Damon reached up and caught my hands where they were on his shoulders.

"Mine too," I had barely been able to whisper the words.

He turned towards me and pulled me down onto his lap. He gently ran his hand through my hair and looked directly into my eyes. "God I've missed you," he breathed.

"I've missed you too." I felt one tear slide down my cheek as, after ten long years, we kissed. This was going to be more complicated than I had planned.