the wine maker.

"Oh there's an official relationship handbook now? Have you been holding out on me?" His brows raised curiously and playfully in her direction. "Ah, that's my girl." Sanjit breathed, knowing that a full day of pampering her was just what she needed. As their lips met, he felt his stomach flip as it often did. His heart skipped a few beats, pulling back slightly to meet her gaze with his own. A smile touched his lips and he nodded his head in agreement. "I know. I've been all over the world searching for the best of the best," though it was in terms of wine, "but I never thought I'd find it right here in Kismet Harbor after all." @lailaxmir

"I got that vibe the second I met you." Marin started talking, nodding as she looked up at the other. "Don't get me wrong; I respect people that can talk about wine regardless, however, I do think it means a lot more when you're the one creating the drink." Marin stated, eyes focusing on the other. She listened as he explained, taking a second sip of the wine, letting the liquid sit on her tongue for a minute before she spoke again. "Okay, I'm getting -" she paused. "Green apple, a cedar." she paused. "The slightest hint of cherry too -" another pause. "No that tastes more like lavender or maybe rose than it does cedar." she spoke. "At least I think so." @sanjitxgupta

Sanjit slowly nodded his head along to the woman's words. People who created wine had a certain fondness for it. "Now we are getting somewhere. The green apple is there. That's the type of flavor that likes to show up first." He continued, listening to her hesitation between cedar and floral notes. "You're closer with the lavender than the cedar." His smile softened against his lips. "I will say, that is something nice about wine. It's not about being right. It's how five people can taste and all find something a little different." @marincole

"You will have hoped correctly," Sanjit's lips curled into a playful smile. "My list is extensive, all inclusive and has something for everyone but only for those that ask." His tone was threaded with tease. "A long time, longer than one would expect. When it comes to a vine, the first three years is all about the vine establishing roots where there are no grapes growing. From years four to seven, the vine produces grapes but they're relatively average. It's prime, though, is a long time. From eight years old to twenty-five years old, the vine is in the region that someone would call its prime. After that, it's considered old. Usable, but not the best. But that can go on for another twenty-five years." Sanjit's knowledge was limitless. "I don't remember exactly the first time I got interested in wine making but once I did, I never really got uninterested in it." @zeynepaslan

"Hm, is it now?" He teased back in return, unable to help the smile curling against his lips. "I will take any opportunity to spoil you that I can." His head gave way to a nod as she said she would take care of work. "If you can't, I will spoil you in between." Sanjit's tone was playful still, watching as she placed her phone on Do Not Disturb. His smile grew, the corners of his lips curling upward. "Well, Ms. Mir, I will always be your safe space. Whatever you need, I am right here. Ready to be there for you." @lailaxmir

As the other admitted that he couldn't in good conscious let the general public try them before he had because he was the wine maker made her smile. Something she probably should've clocked when she arrived and he was the one so eagerly advertising the event to begin with. "Ah." she nodded. "I should've figured that out." she admitted, offering the other a small smile, though happy to hear that he was happy with her description. "It was truly the best way I knew how to describe it." she stated, taking a moment to look at the glass she'd just sipped from, then the one he pointed at. "Okay, I do love a good Sauvignon Blanc." she added. "Is it a special flavor?" she paused. "I guess that's for me to figure out though, right?" @sanjitxgupta

"I'm passionate about the wines but it doesn't take long for anyone to figure that out once I start talking about them." He laughed softly with a shake of his head. His gaze dropped to the Sauvignon Blanc that he pointed out. "It was a great way to describe it, more than some people do. They'll say something like crisp and expect me to decode what that really means." And in time, Sanjit had become quite the expert at doing so. "I can tell you the notes you're supposed to get," he said, fingers lightly tapping against the table, "but I think that skews how people taste the wine when they're trying hard to find the flavors I mentioned. "When you sip again, just let me know what you taste not what you think you should taste." @marincole

"You know your wines, then." To him, Chave was a respectable answer. A quiet laugh left his lips. "Honestly, most people often say cabernet because it's really the only red the know." His smile lingered easier now. "It is obvious you actually drink wine." Not that Sanjit was particularly judging the others. Part of why he did the job was to help others find their niche in the wine industry. Gravel shifted underneath his feet as he slowed near an older section of vines. His fingers lifted and he brushed them lightly against a leaf. "Older vines, like these," he continued, "produce far less grapes than new ones but the grapes that come from these vines have more concentration. More character." His gaze shifted from the vine to her for a moment. "When I experiment," Sanjit's tour kept going, "I have done different fermentation techniques, smaller batch varietals with blends we will never release commercially. I've been too attached to some of them." His laughter was soft once more. @zeynepaslan

"Run down might be putting it lightly." Sanjit murmured with a quiet understanding. From what he had been seeing, it had felt like Laila was carrying the weight of a couple people on her shoulders. He adjusted the heat beneath the pan, turning it completely off before leaning against the counter beside her while she sipped on her coffee. "Your savior, huh?" He repeated with a soft laugh. "Now that's the kind of title to give a man before breakfast is even finished if you want him to have an ego all day." Sanjit's lips twitched with his amusement. "I also fully intend to spoil you all day today." @lailaxmir

Her hair was slightly tousled, her face bare, but there was a softness to her now, a kind of ease she hadn’t felt in a long while. “Hey,” she greeted, her smile immediate when she saw him. The scent in the air made her close her eyes briefly, savouring it before she looked back at him. “Honestly?” she said, a quiet warmth in her voice. “I slept better than I have in weeks… maybe even months.” A small smirk returned to her expression. “Your bed is kind of incredible.” And while she didn’t say it out loud, it wasn’t just the bed. | @sanjitxgupta

Sanjit's gaze lingered longer than necessary, seeing her in his shirt. Her hair tousled, face bare. She wore the shirt like it had always belonged to her and no part of Sanjit hated that. "Yeah?" The corners of his mouth pulled upward. "I'm glad to hear it." He slept good in his own bed, but there was no sleep like sleep when Laila was there. When he was able to sleep with his arm draped around her, their bodies curled together like they were one, he was able to drift into the deepest of sleeps. "You needed the rest." Sanjit knew how hard she had been working, how hard the both of them had been working. "The coffee is already made if you want some." He said, nodding toward the coffee pot. "And I'm always done with breakfast." @lailaxmir

Marin gave the other a nod, smile widening as her eyes landed on the table he'd referenced and she allowed herself to take a step forward. "I'll be there whenever you get the chance to get back out here." she nodded. "And trust me, I'll have as thorough of notes as I can manage to get before you get back." Marin laughed. Making her way to the table, she was greeted by someone else who placed the flight in front of her without asking, causing her smile to widen as she nodded at the fast service. "Thank you." she smiled, looking at the other, picking up the first flight and giving it a small sniff before she took a sip, letting the wine sit on her tongue for a moment, trying to see what she thought of it. "Okay." she replied only once Sanjit had replied. "Thank you for this." she spoke, knowing she'd need it as a palette cleanser in a bit. "First one - and only one - I've tried is this local Rose'." she started. "And right off the bat it's reminds me of sipping summer." she exhaled. "I'm getting hints of strawberry, a bit of watermelon, very light flavor. Have you tried them all yet?" @sanjitxgupta

Returning to the table with the platter, he sat down across from her. He studied her as she spoke. When it came to wine and tastings, he came prepared to listen. To take mental notes. To see what the people liked and what they wanted. "Sipping summer," his lips curled with her words. "I like that." He'd make a mental note to use that when advertising, if he hadn't already. "I have." He answered with a nod of his head. "I'm the wine maker. It's my job to try them before they are tasted by the general public. I couldn't, in good conscious, not try them beforehand." Sanjit admitted with a smile curling against his lips. "This next one," he tapped in front of the second glass, "is a Sauvignon Blanc, a crisp white." He pulled his hand back, "This will pair well with the small bites of food here." He leaned back, not rushing her to try the citrus-y wine. @marincole

"Ah, now that's a question." Sanjit adjusted the sleeves as they walked. "I would have to say VIK in Millahue, Chile." His focused narrowed, in a good way, for another beat. "You want to think it's just good marketing when they say it embodies the perfect fusion between humans, experience, land, climate and technology. It's one of the most impressive vineyards I've ever been." Though it had been quite a few years since Sanjit traveled to Chile, but he made a mental note to place it back on his list. "White grapes are a much common variety for us in Oregon." He nodded his head once as they walked. "A favorite," he hummed softly to himself as he pondered. "I'd have to say our Sauvignon Blanc. It's an easy one to overlook but I appreciate the subtlety and restraint it has. That's a classic, I do usually end up with a new experimental favorite every year. Do you have a wine preference?" @zeynepaslan