“This is so unfair…” Tina whined. “What am I supposed to do while you’re gone?”

“The mall doesn’t close until nine,” Meliza supplied as she poured through her closet.

It was date night again. Meliza felt slightly guilty for leaving Tina by herself. Not that Tina couldn’t have fun…but they were supposed to stick together.

“Do you want me to cancel?” she asked.

Tina’s eyes rounded. “No, of course not. I mean…you and I will always hang out…who knows how long Andrew will be here…It’s an unspoken rule that women should accept dates from handsome and charming men.” She picked up a brush, twirling it between her hands. “Besides…I know you want to see him again.” She lifted a shoulder. “Not that I blame you…he’s a nice guy. Cute, too.”

“He is, that’s for sure…” Meliza sighed, plopping down on her bed.

“What’s wrong?” Tina asked, sensing Meliza’s change in mood.

“It just…It just hit me that we’ll be separating soon. Sure, it’s only our second date…but…”

“You’re starting to really like him, aren’t you?” Tina asked.

Meliza nodded. “Everything is happening so fast…yet…it seems right. When I left home, I told myself that I wouldn’t get involved with anyone…relationships had too much drama and sappiness that I just didn’t want to deal with.”

“I can understand that…”

“I never was one to enjoy male company for an extended amount of time…but I get the feeling that Andrew wants to continue seeing me for however long we’re here. And I actually want to see him…”

Meliza was feeling confused. She was a fiercely independent woman who took pride in being self-reliant. The last thing she needed was a man complicating her lifestyle.

“Have you talked to him?” Tina asked. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you…he really, really likes you.”

“We both agreed that we’ll just use the time we have here.”

Tina sighed. “How romantic. When are we planning to leave, anyway? After the tournament?”

Meliza nodded. “Then we head to Europe.”

“Cool. Maybe then I could meet some guy…”

Meliza laughed, tossing a pillow at her friend. “Funny.”

“You’ve gotta get ready, what are you still doing fooling around?” Tina demanded.
 
 

Meliza gazed out onto the stretch of sand. Andrew was one hundred feet away, opening up a blanket and placing it over the sand. Meliza walked up, noting with amusement that a small ice chest, a CD file and two small speakers attached to a Discman were to the left of his feet. She hitched the basket higher with both hands as she stopped on the other side of the blanket.

“Mind if I join you?” she quipped.

Andrew grinned. “Help yourself.”

“You came well prepared,” Meliza observed, after setting the basket down to lift the ice chest lid.

“I thought of having a bucket, but I decided the ice would melt easily,” Andrew explained.

She couldn’t help but admire his form as he continued to set up. He had worn a gray buttoned down shirt made of soft cotton and blue jeans. In suits and ties, he looked very distinguished. In casual clothing, he looked more relaxed and appealing in an outdoorsy way. She couldn’t decide if she liked him dressed up or in jeans. He was one of those men who looked great in both forms. The wind picked up, and she was grateful for the red sweater and black jeans she wore, both keeping her warm.

After he had finished setting up, she sat down on the blanket. Andrew flipped through the CD file.

“What do you feel like listening to?” he inquired.

“Easy listening…”

Andrew pulled a CD out, opened the Discman, tucked the music selection in the unit, closed the lid, and hit play. The melodies of Al Jarreau surrounded them.

“Good choice,” Meliza congratulated him as she set up their dinner.
Andrew grinned, thoroughly impressed with the menu. Green salad with carrots and radishes topped with lime cilantro dressing, sweet dinner rolls, tender chicken baked with herbs and spices, steamed vegetables, rice, and slices of apple pie. While she served him, he poured them two glasses of Chardonnay.

“I never figured out your age,” Andrew began before helping himself to salad. “Or…am I not supposed to ask that?”

“When’s your birthday?” Meliza asked.

Noticing she avoided answering, he smiled slightly, “November first.”

“Ah. June twenty-fourth, seventy-eight.”

“Barely legal, aren’t you?”

“What do you mean barely?” Meliza responded.

Laughing, he shook his head. “Just kidding.”

Sipping her wine, Meliza smiled slightly. “I just realized that you’re a Scorpio. And I’m a Cancer.”

“Our Zodiac signs?” Andrew responded. “What about them?”

“Scorpios are supposed to be the best lovers,” she said, her eyes lighting with mischief.

“Oh, really? I haven’t heard any complaints so far,” Andrew responded. “Do you believe in all that, though?”

“Not really. But I find it interesting to note that they can actually classify different personalities based on when your parents decided that you would be born. I don’t think parents suddenly tell themselves ‘I want my son to be a Libra’. It seems silly.”

“True. Parents plan when they’re ready.” He refilled her half-empty glass. “So what was it like growing up at the casino?”

“Interesting,” Meliza finally said. “My parents tried their best. It was strange…waking up at seven in the morning to head down twelve floors and have breakfast in the kitchen. Then to have the driver take me to school.”

“You lived a sheltered life, didn’t you?”

“Somewhat…when I became a teenager, my family let me out more, I spent time with friends…things like that…” Meliza picked at her chicken. “What about you?”

“The vineyard back home is a great place…my grandfather had a butler named Jose. He’d take me horseback riding around the ranch…or he’d show me the process of making fine wine…”

“Are you a wine connoisseur?”

He grinned. “My teenage years there…I learned a lot about wines…but Grandpa always likes to make it known that he’s the better connoisseur.”

“I bet your grandfather likes to talk a lot,” Meliza stated, smiling.

“Does he ever…” Andrew rolled his eyes. “I think you’d like him, though.”

“Did he ever try setting you up with someone?” Meliza asked, remembering that was one of her parents’ favorite pastimes.

Andrew nodded. “All the time. Usually with the daughter of a friend or a publicist from San Francisco…That started when I was eighteen. When I was eighteen, I went to work for Jose, who owned a casino on an Indian Reservation. I’d drive to work every day.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Nope. Jose was part Native American,” Andrew explained. “And a professional gambler. He taught me everything I needed to know.”

“So where was the casino?”

“You know where Napa is?”

“I think it’s about an hour or so north of San Francisco, right?” Meliza guessed.

“Good. I lived in Napa County and worked in Sonoma County. Sonoma is about a twenty-minute drive…but the reservations are farther up northwest. So about a forty-five minute drive or so.” Andrew shook his head.

“So you’re a professional gambler as well as a vineyard owner?” she asked.

“Something like that. When I feel the need to travel and gamble, Grandpa takes over while I’m gone. He’s still in good condition to run the business. Now that I’m old enough and experienced enough in it, I run it most of the time with his help. I think excluding him from the business is wrong, considering he started it.”

“I agree. It’s nice that you let your grandfather still be a part of it. Does he still set you up with publicists?”

“Whenever I get home there’s a date waiting for me,” Andrew admitted.

“How funny. Someone could get sick of that after a while, though,” Meliza said as she packed their plates away. “I’m glad I’m away from my parents’ matchmaking schemes…”

“Yeah. I guess it’s their way of saying how much they care.”

She leaned back on her elbows, facing the ocean. “You know…I would like to see your grandfather’s vineyard one day. He sounds like an interesting man. Plus…I’ve never seen a vineyard.” She grinned.

“It was a nice environment. Quiet. Relaxing.” He moved to lounge right next to her. “Kind of like this place.”

“I always found the water a calming place to stay…I guess…growing up inland…I never got to see the ocean a lot. So whevacation here, I’d never leave the beach…” Meliza said wistfully.

His eyes shifted to her face, admiring her serene expression as she gazed out into the water. Feeling his eyes on her, she stared at him for several long moments. Andrew bent his head and kissed her gently. She responded, lying on her side to face him, the kiss starting from a gentle touch to something more heated and intense. Weight resting on her left elbow, Meliza reached up with her right hand to grasp his shirtfront. They broke apart, her head bent and staring at her hand as it rested on his chest, breathing hard. His lips brushed her forehead tenderly.

“It’s been a long time…” he murmured.

“Since you’ve been with a woman?” she asked.

“Since I’ve felt like this around a woman,” he clarified. And it was the truth. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt like this.

Inside, she was happy to know that she affected him as much as he affected her. “I feel like things are happening too fast…” she took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart.

“Yeah...”

“We only have two weeks until I leave…” she reminded him gently.

He averted his eyes. “I…normally try to stay out of relationships…no matter how short they are. Work…and gambling…can get in the way…but…I like being with you.” His brilliant eyes met hers. “I can’t promise anything…but I know that these two weeks will be worth it.”

Her eyes softened. “I know…”

Suddenly, light flashed onto the sides of their faces as a nearby hotel erupted into flames, turning the night sky into an eerie orange and black. They looked at each other in shock.

“Let’s see what’s going on…” he suggested, giving her one last kiss on the lips.

They immediately packed up their belongings and headed over to the hotel, but were stopped a distance away, by yellow tape police officers were unraveling. Sirens wailed into the night and panicked guests ran out of the hotel, covering their heads, screaming. Several guests still remained in the hotel, fear etched on their faces as they gazed out their windows, trapped by the flames below that were slowly beginning to rise.

“Oh…my…” Meliza whispered, horror evident in her voice.

Placing an arm around her shoulders so he could pull her against him, Andrew watched as firefighters began to hose down the complex with pressured water.

“I don’t think that was an accident,” a spectator said aloud to no one in general. He stood about two feet to Andrew’s right side. “That was the second hotel this week. Who knows which will be next.”

Meliza swallowed and glanced at Andrew, her eyes wide and afraid. He squeezed her shoulder gently, assuring her, trying to mask his own fear. He really, really hated fires.