or 19. Steel needed a woman. A woman who knew how to please a man and would be able to endure the ferocious desires that had been boiling in him since the day he had been locked in a cage.
Curtly, he gave the girl his order and tried to ignore the look of horror on her face as she appraised his attire. Or maybe it was the vulture tattoo on his forearm that was unnerving her. Whatever the reason, he wanted to eat his dinner and hurry out of the dim, suffocating place. After only ten minutes in the joint, it already felt like the walls were closing in, and he needed to reclaim his freedom.
Voraciously, Steel shoved the sirloin and spuds down his throat, barely chewing in his haste to consume the food. He washed the meal down with a mug of cheap beer and wiped his face on a napkin. Hurrying over to the cash register, he paid and left a decent tip for the girl before shuffling out of the restaurant and into a majestic purple sunset.
Steel fought back an ambush of tears at the sight of the sun disappearing over the horizon. He had forgotten how beautiful a sunset could be. The swirl of fiery and pastel colors in the sky was mesmerizing, and he stood on the curb for long minutes just staring heavenward.
Finally, Steel started walking again, heading south randomly and peeling his eyes for a winery. A mile or so down the road, he spotted a sign for Lush Grape Winery. Licking his lips in anticipation, he followed the sign until he reached the edge of a sprawling vineyard. Inhaling the organic scents all around him, Steel again battled to prevent himself from crying. This first taste of freedom was simply overwhelming.
“May I help you?” A woman’s sweet voice inquired.
Whirling around, Steel’s heart barreled against his sternum as he gazed at the breathtaking woman. Donning an ankle length, floral patterned dress with sling back sandals, the brunette was stunning. He swallowed as his eyes couldn’t help taking the tour of her luscious curves tucked inside the feminine dress. Her breasts looked ample and round, and her hips framed a delightfully slender waist.
Steel shifted his gaze nervously to the fertile ground, fearing that he wouldn’t be able to utter an intelligible word to this sensual woman. She looked at him expectantly, but her features were absent of the judgment and disapproval he had seen plastered to so many others today.
“Sir, were you here to take a tour of the vineyard? Or just wanted a little wine tasting?” She ventured, looking directly into his eyes.
Noticing that her eyes were a bewitching shade of brown, Steel tried to formulate a coherent reply. “Uh, wine tasting,” he clipped, hating himself for the caveman reply. But it was all he could manage as he struggled to keep his eyes on her face. Even her face was a distraction, though. Her cocoa brown eyes sparkled too brilliantly, and her lips curved too temptingly.
“Great! I’m Mary Anne. I own this vineyard,” she informed as his eyes widened.
“Wow,” he said foolishly. “I mean, impressive. It’s very beautiful,” he drawled, though the only beauty he could notice now was hers.
“Thank you,” she replied, walking a few paces towards a tavern.
He cleared his throat and followed her, trying not to gawk at the sway of her hips or fantasize about clutching his hands over her buttocks. Silently, Mary Anne led him to the empty tavern.
“We usually have a bigger crowd. But you’ve come at an off hour. People usually start pouring in later at night on a Saturday,” she explained, opening the door.
“It’s Saturday?” He mumbled without thinking. Steel was no longer accustomed to keeping track of clocks and calendars. His days had been painfully monotonous in prison, each night bleeding into another morning. But with an excited shiver coursing through his body and a familiar throb in his groin, he felt that tonight would be extraordinary.
Regarding him