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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.
