Alex cautiously entered Arianna’s room. She was hunched on her bed, holding a stuffed toy. Her room was not very large, but had a huge window that opened to the vineyard. It was a stunning view. The grape vines looked surreal under moonlight. There was an overgrown rose bush just outside the window and the room smelled of roses.

“Hey, how are you doing?” Alex sat beside her. “The room smells wonderful. Did you plant the rose bush?”

“Yeah,” She walked to the window and bent over. Alex stood up and tried to gauge how deep the bush was. But it didn’t take Arianna long to pluck a few red roses. She sniffed one and sighed contentedly.

“Here, this one is for you.” She handed one rose to Alex. Alex’s heart jumped. She handed me a red rose?

“I think I planted this bush with Sophie around the time I left for college.” She smiled. “I forget where I got the idea; I mean, I don’t know if I saw a rose bush in another winery or whether it was…” She suddenly stopped, as if she remembered, and blushed.

“What was it?” Alex asked. Arianna blushed even more, shook her head, and bit her lip. Alex’s mouth went dry. He stroked her face with his thumb and she smiled.

“Whether it was someone who kept giving me beautiful red roses all the time,” she whispered. Alex turned beet red as he remembered giving her several big bouquets of roses when they went out. He didn’t know it had left such a big mark on her.

I just gave her roses because the other guys gave roses to their dates, and she held on to that love for so many years? I didn’t know something that I considered so insignificant could have such a big impact on her. How can I stop myself? I’m falling for you, Arianna. Falling harder than I ever have.

Alex needed her; no, he wanted her. He wanted to show her just how much he had fallen for her. He wanted to tell her just how beautiful she looked when she blushed like that. Instead, he pulled her close and kissed her.

He ran his hands slowly through her hair, taking his time to explore. She responded eagerly, surprising him with her intensity. He had thought she would go slow, but she was urgent in her need, and Alex was only too glad to comply.

His hands roamed over her body. She pulled his hair and he bit back a groan, because if he lost control, he would have her right there.

This isn’t the time; it’s probably the stress of the day.

He slowly withdrew from the kiss. He stared into Arianna’s eyes. Liquid pools of desire looked back at him and he felt his self-control slipping away. He groaned.

“What? What?” Arianna was breathless.

“Arianna,” he called out, his voice husky.

“Kiss me, Alex. Kiss my worries away,” she said. Alex softly kissed her forehead and pulled her close. He held her in his arms and they sat, snuggled into each other. Alex ran his hand down Arianna’s back.

“This feels so soothing,” Arianna mumbled. “You always know what I would like.” She reached for his face and kissed him softly.

I could stay in his arms forever. This feels so, so amazing. I’ve never felt like this.

She caught her thoughts. She wasn’t falling for Alex, was she? A voice inside told her it was far too late to be asking that question.

But we live far apart, and we’re two different people. Are we compatible?

She groaned inwardly. She had faced a similar conundrum when they were dating ten years ago.

I thought if we came back and picked up after or in college, it would be alright, my feelings would be more mature, but they’re as raw as they were back then. Does it ever get any different? Is this what it feels like?

Alex moved after a bit, as if to get up and shift to another room. It was getting quite late and Alex was here to make sure nothing else happened.

No! Where is he going? I want him to stay. I want to stay like this. Don’t go, Alex.

“Alex, Stay.” She stared at him, hoping he would. He sat still for a while, thought about it, nodded, and took his place on the bed.

“Hey, do you have some clothes I can borrow? I didn’t pick up any from home,” Alex asked.

“Yeah, there must be a t-shirt and some shorts somewhere,” she replied.

Where can I find a pair of shorts? Alex will fit into Papa’s shorts, but where does Papa keep them? Sophie would have known.

Arianna stopped and gulped. It was too painful thinking about her sister.

No, no, no. I promised I wouldn’t think about her. There’s nothing I can do about this. Snap out of this funk.

She picked an oversized t-shirt from her cupboard and handed it to him, and picked another one for herself. She walked to Sophie’s room and checked out the cupboards, hoping to find a pair of shorts that would fit Alex. She searched among the clothes and finally found a pair she thought would fit him.

Gotcha. I bet Alex would look so sexy in these. She squeezed her eyes, trying to get that thought out of her mind.

“Hey, here’s a pair of shorts. Go change,” Arianna said, walking into the room. She stopped. Alex had taken off his shirt and was changing when she walked in. Her mouth turned dry looking at his toned body.

OMG, he looks better than I thought he would. And I asked him to stay!  She groaned inwardly. This night was going to test her control.

Alex put the t-shirt on, turned, and took the shorts from her hand.

“Thanks,” he said, his eyes twinkling. Electricity shot through her when their eyes met, and it took all the control she had to not jump into his arms and kiss him deep.

He did this on purpose. Look at those eyes. He’s enjoying this.

She picked up her clothes and dashed out of the room. I’m going to change somewhere else. She almost walked into the room and then smacked her forehead. I forgot the water. Let me get it now.

With a water jug in hand, she walked in the room and swallowed. Alex was on her bed, and he looked so good, it hurt her to stand there and not do anything about it.

“Come here, you,” he said, looking at her. Arianna felt a dull ache in her chest. Alex was so sweet, she wanted to spend all her time with him. She kept the jug on the side table and slid into the covers. Alex put his arm out to her, and she came in to snuggle.

This feels so good. His arms feel so familiar.

A random thought popped into her head and she frowned. All the euphoria she felt a minute ago drained out.

“Alex, tell me about the Moretti’s. Tell me everything you know. I want to help with the investigation. I want to, no, I need to give it back to them, for hurting my sister.” Her eyes flashed.

Alex was stroking her back. He stopped and looked at her. There was no surprise or judgement in his eyes, only understanding. And so he told her all that he knew about the two men the Seattle PD was tracking. He told her all about his almost year-long efforts with the Fraud Investigation department.

“I...I was suspended before I came here, Arianna.” His eyes lost their shine. “Please believe me. They suspect I leaked information to the Moretti’s and they covered their tracks. I had nothing to do with it.” His eyes pleaded.

“I believe you. But is your firm investigating the data leak? Even though the data leak happened from your computer, it is possible to find out if the computer was remotely accessed or not. That means the person responsible may not have necessarily operated from your computer while leaking the data.”

Alex was stunned. He had not considered this possibility at all. Had his firm thought about it?

“Judging by your surprised expression, you didn’t think about this at all.” Alex shook his head. “It’s something your team can find easily, if they want to, that is.” She looked at him. “This whole episode reeks of sabotage, and if it is, then your firm has no reason to be impartial in their investigation. Chances are, they’re looking for a scapegoat. It happens so many times. A cover up,” Arianna said.

Alex gulped. Is my company using me as a scapegoat to hide something else going on?

Arianna was deep in thought. “It’s so weird that you found a connection to your case back in Seattle to a sale here in St. Helena. There must be something your team missed entirely. I’m going to help you clear your name,” she stated.

She said it so simply, but her open support to Alex warmed his heart. He sighed. The whole situation kept getting trickier and trickier. There were so many questions to which they had no answers. The deeper they dug, the more questions that came up unanswered.

Arianna distracted Alex’s line of thought when she softly kissed him on his cheek.

“Let’s sleep? It’s been a long day.”

Alex nodded and closed his eyes, hoping the beautiful woman in his arms would decide to stay there for as long as was humanly possible.