13. Hannah

Working on the corporate side of Rossi Vineyard is unlike any job I've ever had before. Normally, I'm on my feet all day and running around like a mad woman, trying to please customers at the diner, most of them cranky and cheap tippers. But the office environment here is laidback and everyone is so nice.

Well, everyone except Vin. For whatever reason, every time I come around—which is a lot because I'm his assistant—he gets a pole up his ass. It's not that he isn't professional toward me. He is. Very much so. But I can't help but notice he's getting grumpier and grumpier every day. I've been working with him for three weeks now and have done everything to be the best assistant possible to him. I answer his phone, schedule his appointments, talk to the distributors, make coffee and do lunch runs, and so much more. He even told me he's giving me a bonus. Yet something seems to be bothering him.

Today, I'm not sure what crawled up his ass and died, but he's in a mood. A very sour one. No matter what I do, he's getting annoyed and seems vexed about every little thing. I'm not sure if it's me or he's got something else going on that's upsetting him. But, I've never seen him so…bothered.

The truth is I miss the relationship we had when we first met. But sleeping with the boss isn't who I am. So, instead, I'll do my best to keep up with his mood swings.

My phone buzzes and I see Vin's number flash on the screen. "Hi," I say, not meaning to sound so out of breath. But he makes me feel all so sultry and sexy. "What do you need?"

Shit. The double entendre isn't lost on me. I pull my lower lip into my mouth and meet his eyes through the glass. My desk faces his office and his blinds are wide open. He's staring at me…hungrily?

"Can you come in here?" he rasps, shifting in his chair.

"Sure." I hang up the receiver, stand up and smooth my skirt down. It's important that I dress up for work now and, since I'm making way more money than ever before, I treated myself to a shopping spree. It was so nice not to stress over having to buy new clothes and to simply enjoy picking out a whole new wardrobe. I really enjoy getting to dress up in skirts and dresses every day. High heels, too. It makes me feel more sophisticated and I do not miss my apron or old shoes I used to wear at the diner. I feel so much fancier now and the fact that I'm helping Vin makes me happy.

Although, he doesn't look very happy at the moment. He looks almost uncomfortable. Stepping into his office, I breeze up to his desk and smile at him. "What do you need, Mr. Rossi?" I ask, trailing my fingers along the edge of his desk.

Okay, so maybe I'm taking the formal thing a little too far. But this is my first professional job in the workforce. I want to give a good impression.

Something flashes over his face and I notice his hand tighten around the pen he's holding. "You don't have to address me so formally," he reminds me. "I've told you that."

"I know, but it's fun."

"It's not fun," he grumbles. "It makes me feel old and sounds like we barely know each other. Call me Vin."

"Okay, sorry…Vin." My attention zeroes in on the stack of papers in front of him. "Do you need any copies of anything? Or, how about anything mailed? I could walk down to the post office?—"

"Actually, I could use another coffee."

"I'll run down and grab you one."

He reaches for his wallet, pulls out a twenty-dollar bill and hands it over to me. The moment our hands touch, it's like a shock zips between us, jolting through me with electric force. I yank my hand back then automatically meet his intense gaze. His eyes are like two swirling pools of green heat and I squeeze my thighs together because I remember that look only too well.

Vin Rossi wants me. And, I mean as more than just his assistant. But it's not a line we can cross. That's what I keep telling myself anyway.

Vin clears his throat. "When you get back, I need your help with some marketing decisions."

My brows shoot up. "Marketing decisions?" I echo. That's placing a lot of trust in me when I don't have any experience other than running errands and simple tasks.

"You have a good eye and I want to hear your opinion on some things we're rebranding."

I can't help but stand a little taller. "Okay. Be back soon." Turning around, I walk out of the office with a pep in my step. This is exactly what I was hoping for—a chance to prove I'm smart and a quick learner. One day, I'd love to move up and take on a more challenging position. But, for now, I enjoy working so closely with Vin even though he hasn't smiled at me much lately.

There's a coffee shop located right in our building on the first floor, so I take the elevator down and grab Vin his usual espresso and myself an ice-blended mocha. It only takes less than ten minutes before I'm back upstairs and handing him his drink.

"Thank you. C'mon, let's go into the conference room."

I take a sip of my drink and walk with Vin down the hallway. Once we're inside the conference room, he shuts the door. The large glass wall that faces the lobby is covered by blinds and they're pulled tightly closed. It's just me and him in here, and I walk over to the long, dark wood conference table which is covered with artwork and logo designs for several of the bottles of wine. I pick a picture up and study it.

"Is this for a new line?" I ask.

"It is." He steps closer, his shoulder brushing mine. "I'd like your opinion on all the images and I want to know which ones are your favorites. And, of course, which ones don't work."

The amount of trust he's putting in me is thrilling. After another quick sip, I set my drink aside, away from all the artwork, and lean over, examining each picture closely. I can feel Vin's gaze on me as I study them all and make comments about each one. We go back and forth, pointing out the pros and cons, debating over what works best for the Rossi Vineyard brand. In the end, we're on exactly the same page and we both like the design with a sun setting over a vineyard.

"It's perfect," I say, elbows on the table. Vin is standing so close, his thigh practically touching my hip, and I briefly close my eyes and pray for strength. We've been so close for the past hour and it's getting too hard to ignore his tempting citrus scent or the way his warm body brushes against mine or his low voice in my ear. I have a feeling he's struggling, too, and when he moves behind me and grasps my hips, I whimper.

He's about to pounce.

"Vin…" I try to protest, but the words are stuck in my throat. I'm still bent over the table, propped up on my elbows.

"I need you, Hannah. Christ, I can't stand being this close to you and not being able to take you in my arms. It's killing me," he rasps.

Suddenly, I have no control over my actions. I push my ass back against his pelvis and feel how hard he is, how badly he wants me. My hips circle of their own accord, pushing against his straining cock. Teasing him until he's rocking against me, too. His warm hands reach for the hem of my skirt and begin sliding it up. Then his hand moves between my legs, shoves the damp fabric of my panties aside, and his finger sinks deep inside me.

"Oh, God," I moan, pushing back, my hips gyrating as I ride his hand. He slips another finger inside my slick channel and his other hand reaches around to play with my clit. "Vin!"

He's leaning over me, kissing and licking the side of my neck, and it's all too much. I'm aching for him and the tension is building hard and fast.

"Please," I moan.

"Please, what, Angioletto?" he whispers, circling his tongue over the crest of my ear.

"I want you inside me."

He speeds up the thrust of his fingers, increases the pressure on my clit and I go hurling off the edge as a powerful orgasm rips through me, making my entire body shake. With a gasp, I drop my forehead against the table and shiver as delicious waves of pleasure ripple through me.

I'm so wet and half-delirious for Vin's cock when, suddenly, there's a rap at the door.

"Fuck," Vin hisses, stepping back and hurriedly re-zipping his pants.

I'm still dazed as he pulls me up off the table and smooths my skirt back down. "Hang on. I'll get rid of whoever it is." He presses a quick kiss against my temple and I drop down in a chair, utterly spent.

I watch him hobble over to the door and open it a crack. His low, yet quite audible swear, hits my ears and I try to see who's there. With great reluctance, Vin opens the door all the way up and three of the best-looking men I've ever seen come striding into the conference room.

Oh, God.I sit up straighter and try to look like I didn't just get finger-fucked by Vin on the conference room table. So much for being professional, I think dryly.

"Well, hello," the one in a sharp designer suit says, smiling from ear to ear. "I'm Vin's brother Enzo and, I assume, you're the lovely Hannah I've heard so much about."

My eyes widen and Vin growls a warning, but they don't seem to pay any attention. Has Vin really been talking about me? I wonder.

I stand up and shake Enzo's hand.

"I'm Miceli," the tallest, biggest one of them states in a gravelly voice.

"It's nice to meet you," I say and shake his hand. Then I look at the last one who has a wicked-looking grin on his handsome face.

"And I'm Angelo." As we shake hands, I try not to flush as he looks from me to Vin. "You two are looking awfully…satisfied."

My face turns beet red and I hear Vin mumble under his breath, "Not really."

Oh, God, how embarrassing. They must know we were right in the middle of messing around. How? We're both flushed, I suppose, and then my gaze drops to the way Vin is standing, his suit jacket now buttoned up and covering his crotch. Oh. He's clearly hiding a massive erection. But they wouldn't know that. They must just know their brother too well.

Still, it doesn't make the situation any less humiliating for either of us.

What I really appreciate, though, is nobody dwells on it. After that very minor teasing, the brothers sit down at the table and, to my surprise, Vin invites me to join them. I sit down beside him and he immediately starts talking about how we came up with our top picks for the rebranding project. After some minor debating, they all agree on the design we chose.

Honestly, I feel so good, so useful, and I sit up taller beside Vin. He gives me all the credit and tells them I have an amazing eye. Then he mentions placing me in a position in the marketing department in the future.

"But, I'm not ready to give her up as my assistant quite yet." Beneath the table, his hand brushes against mine then his fingers wrap around my hand, squeezing.

All I can do is smile. He makes me feel so worthy and such an important part of this team. I appreciate it more than words can say and I squeeze his hand back in answer.

"Okay, I don't know about you fools," Angelo says, "but it's 12:30 and I'm starving. Are we ordering lunch or what?"

"I can grab it," I immediately offer, slipping right back into assistant mode. I suggest a nearby deli and they all agree. After getting their orders, I tell Vin I'll be back shortly.

I enjoy getting out of the office and doing errands, especially when it's a beautiful day out. Today, it's warm and sunny, so I put my sunglasses on, grab my purse which holds a company credit card, and head outside. My heels hit the pavement and warm sunshine touches my skin. It feels so good.

Even though we only just met, I decide that I really like Vin's brothers. They seem fun and flirty. I also like his younger sister a lot, too. It would be nice to have such a large family and my heart yearns for the kind of relationship they all seem to have. A close-knit group who can joke with each other or have a serious conversation. I can feel the way they support one another and I have a feeling they'd go down swinging and fighting til the death for each other.

I'm almost to the deli, completely absorbed in my thoughts and the beautiful day, when a car pulls up to the curb. Before I realize what's happening, a man grabs my arm and pushes me inside. Dropping down on the backseat, I'm about to scream when I find myself face to face with Caleb Durant. Instead, my skin crawls and fear washes over me, absolutely paralyzing my vocal cords.

"Hello, Hannah," Caleb says, his leering gaze dropping to where my blouse sags open, revealing the tops of my breasts. "That is your real name, right?"

I don't say a word to confirm or deny it. Instead, I quickly fix my shirt and toss him a cold glare. "Let me out," I demand. I hate that he knows my real name, but I suppose he could've easily found out from Dexter Creed.

"That's not a very nice greeting. Why don't you try that again? I'm sure you can be more polite."

"Let. Me. Out." I'm not playing games with this asshole.

"Fine. Be a bitch," he snaps. "Let's skip right over the pleasantries and get down to the nitty gritty."

"What're you talking about?" I ask, confused.

"I'm coming over later to pick you up for dinner."

"No thanks."

He chuckles. "It's more of a fact than an invitation, sweet Hannah. You see, I'm still annoyed about what happened at the White Auction. You should've been mine that night. But, Rossi had to swoop in and steal you from right under my nose. So, now you owe me an evening."

Is he crazy?I shake my head. "I don't owe you anything."

"See, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. It's really all up to you how we move forward."

"I'm not going to dinner with you."

"Fine, we'll do it the hard way." His face flushes with anger. "Last chance, Hannah. If you don't accept my offer then your life is going to get very difficult."

I press my lips together in answer, refusing to give in to this jerk.

His gaze ices over and his eyes narrow into slits. "Since you're being difficult, I'm now forced to play hardball. My first target will be Rossi Vineyard."

Shock fills me. Wait, what did he just say? "What?"

"That's right. I'm going to take it over."

"You can't do that!" I exclaim feeling the first waves of panic. Can he? How is that even possible? Rossi Vineyard belongs to Vin and his family.

"Oh, I can and I will," he assures me smugly. "Especially since they have no idea how much of their stock I've bought up recently."

Oh, no.My stomach sinks. "Please, don't," I plead. This is all my fault. If I hadn't inadvertently caught Caleb's attention at the auction then none of this would be happening right now. Vin and his family shouldn't lose something so important to them because of me.

"Agree to go to dinner with me tonight. And maybe I'll think about reconsidering my takeover. No promises, though," he adds pleasantly.

The idea that Vin and his family could lose one of their most important companies because of me makes me feel sick. I'm so upset, but what choice do I have? I don't have any option except to say yes and prevent this from happening. "Okay," I finally mumble, not happy in the least.

"Good. I'll pick you up after work. Five o'clock?"

I nod miserably.

"Look for the BMW." He winks at me and I throw up a little in my mouth. "See you soon, Hannah dear."

Ugh.I open the door and slip back out. If Vin loses Rossi Vineyard because of me, he'll never forgive me. There's nothing else I could've done. Nothing except agree to the dinner date to protect the Rossi family and their interests. To protect Vin.

Pulling my shoulders back, I continue down to the deli and wonder how in the hell I'm going to get through dinner with Caleb Durant. Even worse, what if he begins demanding more from me? How can I say no, but also make sure Vin, his family and their company remain safe?

I truly have no idea.