Chapter 9
Mia
Italy is like a breath of fresh air. Better than I ever could have imagined. I’ve always dreamed of visiting Italy, just never made it here.
Mainly because my life is dictated by my father. He never lets me travel. Keeps me under lock and key at home with security always watching.
My only reprieve is at work, but then I feel like I’m always under Sebastian’s scrutiny there.
Here I’m free.
Being here under the ruse as Sebastian’s daughter is strange. All during dinner I had to watch Lucia thrust her big breasts in his face. I had a hard time keeping my pasta down watching him flirt with her while Enzo told me all about his boring life.
“So, this house has everything you both should need while you’re here,” Enzo says, turning the key into the lock of the charming little cottage home. He opens the door with a grand gesture, moving into the entryway of the house and flips on the light. “Gorgeous, right?”
It is. The cottage is bigger than most people’s homes. The entryway is large and breezy, and a staircase ascends up on the left.
“The kitchen is back there. It’s fully stocked.” Enzo points toward the back of the house. “Anything you need, just call me.” He pulls out a card and places it on the entryway table.
“Thank you. We can take it from here,” Sebastian grumbles out.
“Right, ok, sure.” Enzo fumbles with the key as he hands it off to Sebastian. “Thank you, sir.” Enzo smiles at me as he steps through the door. “Bye, Gia. It was nice meeting you.”
I smile, although hearing someone call me by the wrong name takes a bit of getting used to. “Night, Enzo. I enjoyed meeting you, too.” I walk him out and once he’s headed back to the main house, I shut the door.
“Thought he’d never leave,” Sebastian says, yanking at the tie around his throat. “What are you doing trying to flirt when you know we have shit to do?”
I park a hand on my hip. “Flirt?” I step closer. “I’m just trying to be nice. I figured I could cozy up to Enzo to get some info about Oliver.”
Sebastian makes me so angry sometimes.
Sebastian’s face looks like he’s in pain at the thought, but then he relaxes, blowing out a deep breath. “Yeah, ok. I guess that’s smart.” He tosses his tie onto the entryway table, right next to Enzo’s card. “I didn’t enjoy watching him paw all over you.”
“Paw? He had his hands nowhere near me.”
“You know what I mean.”
Sebastian’s obvious frustration confuses me. Is he mad because he thinks I like Enzo?
“No, I don’t know what you mean. You were flirting with Lucia.” I know my tone sounds like a naive girl who sounds jealous. And maybe I am a little.
Sebastian laughs. “Not my type.”
“Desperate isn’t your type?”
Sebastian steps closer, our noses nearly touching. “I’m not looking to get laid while I’m here. I’m here to clear my name, and to sort shit out because that’s the only thing that matters right now.”
“You’re right.” I move to the kitchen, tossing my purse onto the granite countertop. “This place is really nice,” I add.
Sebastian follows me. “It’s ok.”
“Someone sounds grumpy. Maybe you should rest up. We have lots to do tomorrow.”
Sebastian doesn’t move a muscle as he stares at me.
It makes me nervous and I fumble with my hands as I grab a water bottle from the fridge. “I’ll take the master bedroom.”
Sebastian crosses his arms over his broad chest. “And why would you do that?”
I pop the top of the water and take a sip. Once I’m done I smile. “Because.”
“No, I’m taking the master.”
“Master? Why do you get it? I think I should get the master. I mean, you abducted me.”
Sebastian’s eyes narrow as he corners me between the counter and fridge. “Let’s get something straight. This isn’t up for discussion. We’re playing a part here, and what father do you know who wouldn’t take the master?”
“You plan on having someone in your room who would notice?”
Sebastian lifts his hand, running his finger down my cheek slowly. “Don’t test me, Mia.”
“Or what?” I challenge him with my eyes.
“Or I’ll bend you over my knee and spank you.”
“We start with a grape. A single Sangiovese grape that breathes life into the wine.” Enzo smiles, staring off at the rolling hills of the vineyard.
It’s breathtaking here. The green hills, the mountains off to the east of the property ricocheting the breeze from the ocean back to us.
Enzo plucks a light-berry from its vine. “Try this.”
I take it from his hand. “Ok.” I pop the grape into my mouth and bite down on it. “Wow, so good.”
Enzo laughs a little. “No, suck the juices, feel the flavor. Like this.” He plucks another grape, and instead of handing it to me, he brings it closer to my lips. “Take a bite, slowly.”
I suck on the grape, feeling awkward as I do. “Yes, you’re right. Delicious.”
“Let’s move on,” Sebastian says.
Mario laughs a little, slapping Sebastian on the back. “I’m the same way.”
“What way is that?”
“Overprotective of my daughter.”
I try not to roll my eyes, because Mario had no problems watching Lucia throw her boobs all over Sebastian. Last night when I went to bed, I couldn’t get the image of the way he stared at me out of my mind. The way he brushed my hair aside. Even how he’s looking at me right now. He licks his lips and I glance away, trying my best to look anywhere else but at Sebastian as we continue our tour of the vineyard.
“This is the tasting room,” Enzo says, as we head inside a wooden structure.
A couple of steps inside the wide space, and I feel like I’ve time traveled. There are a few high-top tables inside with barrels of wine, and a stone wall and iron candelabra add a special aura to this place.
Even though this is a typical winery/vineyard, I can already see the possibilities of the types of events I could run here.
Weddings. Birthdays. Anniversaries. I can see it all so clearly with twinkling lights and red wine flowing into high-priced stem glasses. The place breathes sophistication and class, and my overactive event planning mind conjures up special occasions and other reasons to throw a party.
I know it’s not the reason we’re here, but for some reason I picture it with Sebastian at my side, sipping red wine as I greet guests like a hostess at any extravagant party would.
I shake my head slightly, putting a full stop to the images playing around inside my head.
“Try this. It comes from the same grape as outside.” Enzo spins some wine around in a glass and hands it to me.
“Ok.” I take a sip. Everyone’s eyes are glued on me, and I glance at Sebastian as I hand the glass back to Enzo. “Delicious.”
Sebastian licks his lips, like he can taste the full flavors of the wine on my lips.
“It’s got a bold flavor. A naughty flavor,” Enzo says with a little laugh.
I dart my eyes away from Sebastian’s, smiling along with Enzo’s joke. “I love it.” I’m trying to be a bit flirty with Enzo so I can pump him for information later, but it’s hard with Lucia and her shrill laughter piercing my ears every time Sebastian says something.
She’s so obvious, and I wonder to myself if her flirty antics ever work on other men. I have to believe that Sebastian wants something more in a woman. Something more relatable.
Something more tangible.
Like he wants a woman he can talk to.
A woman who understands him.
Like I do.
I push the thoughts away as Mario smiles. “Tonight, we’ll have a party with some very important guests.”
“Who?” Sebastian asks, stepping away from Lucia and closer to Mario.
“Government officials, local police, and some of the other members in my family.” The way Mario says ‘family’ doesn’t mean actual blood. He’s talking about his crew. The men who work for him running the operation.
Sebastian understands what Mario means as well, and we need to make sure we’re on top of our game to figure out where Oliver is, and what he knows.
We finish the tour, and later in the afternoon, we make it back to the guest house to get ready for the party.
“I’m going to take a shower,” I tell Sebastian.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” I say, stopping on the first step that leads upstairs.
“I think Enzo is being highly inappropriate with you, and I’m ready to kick his ass.”
“So chivalrous.” I smile, but Sebastian’s not joking. “I’ll be fine.” I rest my hand over his on the banister.
He stares straight through me, like he can read my thoughts. “Go shower. We’ll need to head out in an hour.”
“Always business, no fun.”
He raises a brow and lowers his voice into a seductive husk. “You couldn’t handle my fun.”
The way he says it, the way his gaze drops to my mouth, makes me think he means something more than I did. “What’s your idea of fun? Being bossy?”
“Actually, yes. What’s yours?”
Does he mean in the bedroom? Warmth spreads low in my belly, rising and burning hotter, searing an inside path to my breasts, hardening my nipples. And I’m out of my league. My cheeks heat as he stares at me, waiting on an answer.
“You couldn’t handle it,” I lie. “Maybe Enzo can.”
His eyes narrow, and I head up the stairs, pulse racing, rushing into the bathroom to get ready.
Once I’ve showered, I wrap a white towel around my body and head out the door.
Sebastian is there, leaning against the wall of the hallway, arms crossed over his chest, and I jump a little. “You scared me,” I say to him. “What are you doing?”
“You need to find me tonight if Enzo tries anything with you.”
Unsure why I’m continuing to poke the bear, I step closer, swaying my hips a tiny bit. Sebastian clocks my movements. “I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”
“Mia, I mean it. I won’t have you getting yourself hurt because you think Enzo is something he’s not.”
“What do I think he is?”
Sebastian pushes off the wall, pinning me to the spot with his stare. “You think he’s a nice guy.”
“No, I can tell the difference between a nice guy and a bad guy.”
“Do you really know the difference?” he asks.
I swallow. “I think so.”
He dips his head and whispers against my ear, “What am I?”
“You’re the hero of the story,” I manage to get out.
“You sure about that?”
I’m not sure of anything right now. Sebastian’s so close, I can smell his fresh scent. My body burns with a white-hot fire it’s never felt before. “Yes,” I peep out.
His hot breath hits my cheek as he eliminates any space between us, his palm braced on the wall above my head. “Why do you think that?” He presses his hard body into mine. “Mia, answer me.”
“Because you’re looking to rescue me.”
He shakes his head, breathing me in as he does. “No, that’s not true.”
“It’s very true.” I stare into his intense eyes. “You want to save me from Enzo.”
Sebastian growls slightly. “I hate that fucker, and the way he looks at you.”
I swallow. “How does he look at me?”