Collateral Damage

I greeted him with a smile. ‘Go get washed up. Dinner will be ready in another five minutes.’ He pecked me on the cheek like we were husband and wife, then he went upstairs to change. ‘I didn’t know you can cook.’ He threw his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my shoulder. ‘I took culinary classes in college. By the way, I invaded your wine cellar and dug out a bottle of Grenache. I hope you don’t mind.’ ‘The Châteauneuf-du-Pape?’ ‘That’s the one.’ ‘You have expensive taste.’ He slapped my butt and smirked. I brought out the dishes. We sat at the huge dining table and shared a cosy meal. No candles, though. Kieran was busy eating. I polished off almost the entire bottle. The wine had been decanting for about an hour. The fruity notes of raspberry and strawberry made it easy to forget I was drinking alcohol, not juice. Kieran put away the dishes after dinner. We curled up on the living room sofa and channel-surfed. An insipid romance drama was playing on the TV. ‘Are you leavi