6. ENZO
6
ENZO
“It doesn’t make sense.” I hold a glass that contains a sample of the wine batch that has gone bad.
I swirl the liquid, bringing it up to my nose to take a whiff. “We’re tight with our safety protocols, perhaps the best in the region. There’s no reason why the wine should have gone bad like this.”
Valentino nods next to Micah. The three of us have gathered in my office to discuss what to do next.
“I agree, Dad.” His brow furrows. “It’s one of those one-in-a-million types of odds.”
Micah nods. “Unless it was done deliberately.”
“When do you think we’ll get the results back?”
Micah sighs. “They said a couple of weeks, so it will be some time yet.”
“Maybe you and Valentino can go there in person. It might help. We have no evidence of foul play at the moment, only conjecture, but we need to be sure, one way or the other.”
Micah nods.
Valentino groans. “If only this event wasn’t going on, I would have had more time to spare. But I’m all tied up because of it.”
Seeing how dedicated he is to his job warms my heart, and I put my hand on his shoulder.
“Valentino, the event has been a great success so far. Our sales are already up, and it’s not even halfway.” I beam at him. “If you keep going at this rate, you’ll be more than ready to take over soon.”
Valentino’s face lights up. “I won’t let you down.”
“You’re making me very proud. Now, go with Micah. I’ll handle the event for today.”
As Micah and Valentino leave my office, I go over the scheduled events for the day.
Valentino wasn’t lying when he said it was a packed schedule. There’s something planned for nearly every hour of the day. Wine tasting, bottling demonstration, music night…
As I read through the items, my mind trails over to Quinn.
Playing host again means I’ll have to interact with her again.
Our kiss flashes in my mind, stirring heat inside my veins.
I exhale, sharply.
It’s all so vivid. The lingering taste of her lips, the warmth of her petite body pressed against mine.
Shaking my head, I gulp down the glass of water sitting on my table.
But my thirst isn’t quenched so easily.
The effect that woman is having on me surprises me.
It has been nearly a week since we kissed now, and I have gone to great lengths to avoid interacting with her in hopes that I’ll forget about her if I stay far enough.
But she’s tattooed to my mind.
I sigh. Forbidden pleasures always do appear to be that much sweeter. But I have to endure and ensure I stay away from her.
I head out without wasting any more time.
“Hosting again today?” one of the girls comes over to me, grinning.
I remember her from earlier. She’d been rather obvious in her attempts to hit on me. Too bad I cannot remember her name for the life of me.
“You know it…” I try to eye her badge for her name.
She smiles. “Mary.”
“Right, sorry.” I smile and move further along, focusing my attention on the group of influencers that have gathered for the activities.
We’re standing in the area near the pond now, and the sun is casting its brilliant glow over the grass.
Inadvertently, I scan the crowd for Quinn.
Our gazes meet for a second before she drops it.
“Today, we’ll be spending some time out in the sun. I hope you have your sunblocks ready. You’ll be making your own customized wine labels.” My eyes scan the crowd, and I have to make a concerted effort not to focus only on her. “At the end of this, you’ll get the keep the customized label and your very own bottle of wine to go with.”
The group murmurs.
I already knew that the idea would be a hit among them. There’s nothing that gets an influencer better than something that has their name slapped on.
“Can you please help me out here,” Mary asks as I walk past her. “I could really use the extra creativity.”
“Sure, what do you need?” I examine her label, which so far just has a lazy heart drawn on it.
“E and M,” she whispers in a sultry manner. “Do you think that’ll make for a good label?”
I resist the urge to laugh. “Depends. Is E your boyfriend’s initial?”
“I’d sure like it to be.” She winks.
This young girl is practically throwing herself at me. Perhaps she’s the distraction I need to get Quinn out of my mind.
But the thought is as appealing as watching paint dry.
I shake my head. “I think you’re better off just writing your own name there.”
Her mouth falls open. But I swiftly move on to check on the rest of the group.
When I finally reach Quinn, she seems to be distracted.
In fact, she hasn’t even touched her label-making supplies yet.
Odd.
She’s usually one of the most enthusiastic participants in most activities.
Her blonde hair covers the front of her face like a waterfall.
When she notices me hovering around her, she tucks the hair back, and her face is up close for the first time that day.
I’m stunned.
She appears paler, more drawn than her usual self. As though she’s been draped by a shadow.
I wonder if it’s because she’s not gotten any sleep the night before. And then immediately, I wonder who it was that was keeping her up.
She meets my gaze for a second before I move on quickly, not wanting to linger around her for too long.
But even as I move out of view, I’m filled with concern as I begin to ponder over the reason behind her looking like this.
The activity goes on, and I keep stealing glances in her direction. At this point, I’m sure its not just sleep deprivation that’s causing it. She seems almost… sad.
Why do you even care?
The plan was to ignore Quinn, not obsessively wonder what has gotten her down.
The influencers will be okay if leave them to their own devices for a few moments, so I flee over to the thick cover of trees that border the perimeter, close to the pond.
Immediately, I feel lighter just being there.
This was my favorite area in the entire Estate. I find my way over to a tall pine tree, my eyes searching the front of its trunk.
There.
V loves E.
I touch the carving with my hands, closing my eyes for a moment.
Valentina and I would come here, sneaking moments alone with one another. She’d carved this for us.
For the first time ever, the thought of Valentina does not immediately overwhelm me. Instead, it’s a distraction from what I’ve been feeling toward Quinn.
I realize that it’s been years since I felt something even close to what I had with Valentina. The thought unsettles me, and I don’t know what to make of it.
My phone rings, and I pick up immediately, happy for the interruption, and wondering if it's Micah calling back with news.
“Enzo, you busy man.” Michael’s throaty chuckle fills my ears. He’s one of my friends from the United States. “Picked up on the first ring today, didn’t you?”
“You caught me at the right time.” I turn so I can start walking back to the group.
“Well, I guess it’s my lucky day. You’re still down there in San Gimignano?”
“It’s the one place I know to be home, Michael. Where else do you think I’ll be?” I laugh.
“Just checking to make sure. I’ve been thinking of coming down there soon. You know it’s been a while, and I haven’t forgotten that you promised me a tour of the region.”
“You’re welcome to come anytime.”
If there’s one thing I’m known for, it’s my hospitality. It’s unmatched. It’s something that I learned from my mother, to always honor your guests, no matter how busy your own life is.
“You best believe I’ll be hunting down the best deal on flights.”
“Want me to send you a ticket?”
Michael laughs out loud. “Only if it's first class.”
I shake my head, laughing with him.
We continue talking about business, but soon I say goodbye.
I should be getting back to the activity. I almost forgot all about it.
When I get back to where the activity is happening, while some of the influencers have made some stunning labels, others could only be described as children’s drawings as best.
I smile and encourage everyone, nonetheless.
But there is one person who hasn’t made any progress so far.
Quinn sits in her corner, away from the rest of the influencers. She’s looking even more frail now, even though I didn’t think that’d be possible.
I cannot help myself anymore and march up to her.
“Quinn, is everything okay?” I frown.
She looks up at me, passing me a smile that seems fake.
She looks like a shell of the person she was when she arrived. Looking at her up close again, I’m reminded of our kiss, and I wonder if she’s reacting this way because I left her hanging immediately after.
The guilt wants to eat me up alive.
“Everything is…uh… Great.”
“You can tell me if something happened, you know?” Not buying her half-baked excuse, I’m surprised how insistent I’m being, a strange feeling of protectiveness washing over me.
I want nothing more than to restore the smile on her face.
“No, really, Enzo. I’m fine. Nothing to tell.”
Although I still think she isn’t telling me the complete story, I am momentarily disarmed when she smiles at me again—a genuine smile this time.
“But thank you for caring enough to ask.”
My heart skips a beat, and I curse myself at the reaction. “Right, just checking.”
My departure is abrupt as I cannot be around her longer.
It’s ridiculous. I’m running around, trying to dodge her like a schoolboy. What’s the worst that can even happen?
My thoughts darken, and desire stirs inside me once again.
I picture her naked in my bed, pinned underneath my body, mouth open and eyes rolled back.
Yep.
That’s the worst that can happen.
I flee to my office, locking myself inside.
My thoughts have gone too far this time. I don’t even know if she’d be willing to indulge me like that.
It’s time I either decided to do something about this or forget about her altogether.
This game of chess between us has gone on for far too long.