hey, miles. good to see you.
i'm doing good, good. you look great. did you lose some weight?
oh yeah, sunday night. you guys been out tasting today?
hi. well, nice to see you guys here. bye, miles.
walks into the bar and takes a seat a few stools down. she has changed into a black cashmere sweater and corduroys, lovely but tired.
highliner, please.
hey, guys.
sure.
so how's that book of yours going, miles? i think you were almost done with it last time we talked.
good for you.
that's fantastic. congratulations.
are you a writer too?
oh yeah? what kind of stuff?
anything i'd know?
that's hilarious. you sound just like one of those guys.
you are not.
oh. i needed that. thank you.
so what are you guys up to tonight?
yeah, i know what you mean. it's a long drive up here. where're you staying?
well, good to see you, miles. jack.
a fiddlehead sauvignon blanc.
try it.
twelve months in oak.
i know the winemaker. she comes in the restaurant all the time.
i know. i love that.
i guess miles wants it.
you choose, stephanie.
no, we're paying for the wine.
well, in that case.
i'm having the salmon.
well, that narrows things down.
are you all right?
sorry to make you get up again, miles.
hey.
oh, yeah. steph's way into pinots and syrahs. hey, steph? you sure we can open anything? anything we want?
who do you think you're dealing with here?
how about this?
nope. i don't think we know each other well enough. i'd say this guy's more our speed.
so what gems do you have in your collection?
you've got a '61 cheval blanc that's just sitting there? go get it. right now. hurry up.
seriously, the '61s are peaking, aren't they? at least that's what i've read.
it might be too late already. what are you waiting for?
the day you open a '61 cheval blanc, that's the special occasion.
i started to get serious about seven years ago.
eighty-eight sassicaia.
i think they overdid it a bit. too much alcohol. overwhelms the fruit.
yeah, siena's a sweetie.
she's with her grandmother. she's with steph's mom. she spends a lot of time over there. steph's.  well, she's stephanie.
you got kids?
yeah, same here.
let's go in there.
looks like our friends are hitting it off.
it's kind of weird sitting here with you in stephanie's house. all those times you came into the restaurant. it's like you're a real person now. almost.
yeah, weird. but great.
so what's your novel about?
what's the title?
oh. you mean.  today?
so is it kind of about death and mortality, or?
wow. anyway, i think it's amazing you're getting it published. really. i know how hard it is. just to write it even.
like me, i have this stupid paper due on friday, and as usual i'm freaked out about it. just like in high school. it never changes.
yeah. i'm working on a masters in horticulture. chipping away at it.
i commute to san luis obispo twice a week.
well.
oh yeah. who cares? i'm the queen of typos. wow, this is really starting to open up. what do you think?
can i ask you a personal question?
why are you so into pinot? it's like a thing with you.
what about me?
i suppose i got really into wine originally through my ex-husband. he had a big, kind of show-off cellar. but then i found out that i have a really sharp palate, and the more i drank, the more i liked what it made me think about.
like what a fraud he was.
no, but i do like to think about the life of wine, how it's a living thing. i like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing, how the sun was shining that summer or if it rained.  what the weather was like. i think about all those people who tended and picked the grapes, and if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. i love how wine continues to evolve, how every time i open a bottle it's going to taste different than if i had opened it on any other day. because a bottle of wine is actually alive -- it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity. that is, until it peaks -- like your '61 -- and begins its steady, inevitable decline. and it tastes so fucking good.
yeah.
i was just getting some water. you want some water?
nice.
i should probably get going.
you know how to get back to the windmill, right?
i had a good time tonight, miles. i really did.
okay. see you around.
oh, yeah. sure. of course.
wow. great.
goodnight, miles.
hey, miles, i heard you came by the restaurant last night looking for me.
i had class.
you too.
you guys should stop by the restaurant for lunch today.
about two-thirty.
did you hear about this bordeaux tasting dinner down in santa barbara saturday night? it's a little pricey, but if you wanted to go, i'd be into it. why don't you stay through the weekend?
what rehearsal dinner?
who's getting married?
were you ever going to say anything?
don't touch me. just take me home.
do you know what he's been saying to her?
oh, just that he loves her. that she's the only woman who has ever really rocked his world. how he adores siena. how he wants to move up here and get a place with the two of them and commute when he has to.
but you wanted to fuck me first.
yeah.
you know, i just spent three years trying to extricate myself from a relationship that turned out to be full of deception. and i've been doing just fine.
could i have my paper, please?
hi. it's maya. please leave a message.