Chasing Tide (A Merman's Tale And The Human Who Desired Him)

THE WINERY.

Chapter: 116.
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Easton noticed this and furrowed his brows in confusion, he could see the battle swirling around in the man's face through the mirror. "It's alright, you can speak, I'm sure there is no one in the State who hasn't heard of Michael what's funny is people never found out he has a twin and worse an identical twin but that's only understandable considering that I worked at Falcon for four nearly five years and not once did I see the man himself, I'm telling you I could have walked past my own Boss and not know who he was. I would say he only started frequenting Falcon ever since he got involved with my best friend." Easton finished with a soft chuckle.

A burst of nervous laughter left the chauffeur's mouth and Easton smiled. "You seem to know a lot about the family."

"Oh, my father worked for the late Mr. and Mrs. D'Aureville, I was born in one of their employee's homes, I grew up knowing all four siblings and I saw the mess Michael created for his parents while they were still alive, he nearly killed his mother with heart attack, he was always on the run, only coming home to steal whatever he could and off he goes, his parents were ashamed of him so they placed him in the invisible list, only Matthew attended executive meetings with their parents and only his face was known to the business world." His voice shook at the end of the statement.

"He sounds terrible." Easton breathed out, taking another sip of his drink.

"Yes, he was." His voice was soft when he replied. "But, he is a changed person now, all that was in his youth, ever since his brother drew him back into his bosom after the death of their parents, he became a changed person, not entirely, but mostly, and after he married Maria, a lot more changed, I think she brought out the best in him."

"You think he changed for her?"

"It might not be for her, maybe he did it for his brother, but one thing is for certain, Mr. Michael loves no one but himself and his twin, so saying he changed before he fell in love would sound like a tale drawn from the bottomless pit, but after his marriage, the only place you'll find him doing his dirty work would be in one of his membership clubs."

"What about Amelie?" He asked, sipping from his glass.

"She's very reserved, she hasn't visited in years, I heard she's fully committed to her modeling career and she hardly ever visits. I for one haven't seen her since the death of their parents, but I'm sure Matthew would keep a close tab on her, he is like that with all of them, only Michael cared only about himself."

The more Easton learned about Michael the more mixed feelings he grew toward the man. Although the driver was right about one thing, the man he talked about was a man far from the past and the man who he had kissed seemed like a very different person, he could have sworn he saw a side to him he was sure no one else has ever seen before and for that side, he was willing to take a long leap and uncover more. His thoughts wandered and only returned when he heard the distant call of his name.

"Mr. Easton?" The driver was standing outside his door, "We are here." He was beaming down at him.

Easton exited the vehicle, stretching tired muscles and scanning his surroundings. While he took in the view of the place, the driver proceeded to gather his bag and drinks, and with hands full, he walked down a little dirt lane.

"You're leaving without me?" Easton called to the departing back of the man.

"Oh, no, no, Mr. Michael will pick you up from there, just wait."

"What?!" But the man was gone, disappeared into the fields, grunting he caught a sign for the winery in front of a tree buried in the dirt. Breathing loudly, he looked more closely at the many grapevines, he's never seen so many before, they seem to span on forever. There is a building farther down, surrounded by barns and so he took one look at the car and began walking toward the building instead. It was a different part from the one the driver took. Easton realized the closer he got to the building the more he was filled with both nervous and excited energy. It didn't take long and soon he was face to face with a huge door, he knocked but there was no answer.

Shouldn't there be workers around? He wondered, assuming this to be the winery. He should have just done as the driver said and stayed by the car. He turned to look at the part he came and signed when he saw the car parked at what seemed like a billion miles away.

"Hello, Easton."

Easton jumped around to see Michael hurrying over to him. He looks flushed, and he caught him weeping back his dampened hair. He was wearing a linen shirt with a jacket. A scarf is wrapped around his neck. Easton found himself staring too hard and coyly chewed on the side of his lip.

"I apologize for keeping you waiting, there was a barrel emergency." He says apologetically.

"No worries," Easton waved off his apology. Looking into his eyes Easton finds himself lost for words. Michael leans forward and gently but firmly grips his arm. His touch seems to vibrate through Easton's body and he looks up at him with a longing smile.

"Let me show you around." Unable to form words, Easton nodded in response. "Please, don't be nervous, I am barely keeping my cool and if you get any more nervous I might just run away." He chuckled slightly and Easton smiled.

"Again?" Easton teased and Michael grinned.

"Again." He agreed and Easton felt a tingle in his stomach and goosebumps erupted along his skin. The two walk around the grounds. Michael places his arm across his back and leads him toward a grapevine full of reddish-black colored grapes.

"The pride of the winery, they're notoriously hard to grow." He explained proudly and his voice sounded husky and breathy. "These ones flourished too late. This humid temperature won't compliment their flavor." He gently traced a finger over one of the grapes.