Why can’t Max move me to another department? I just didn’t get it. It was as if he liked seeing me squirm. The thought of not completing my internship at the Brunetti Hotel Resort and Spas was, however, unfathomable.
“I want to talk to Zane alone for a minute, Mia. Go take a break, okay” I saw something in Max’s expression that worried me. He’d had the same look in his eye when I was teased in the fifth grade by the class bully and I came home and cried it all out to my big brother Max. I had no idea what Max did, but the next day, the so-called bully gave me a public apology in front of the whole class.
Oh, shit! I didn’t want to get Zane in any trouble; that was never my intention. I simply wanted to ask Max if it was possible to transfer me elsewhere, anywhere as long as I wasn’t in such close proximity to the infernal man. A sense of incredible guilt rushed through my body.
“Oh, no, Max, that’s not necessary, honestly,” I said, unable to hide the worry in my voice.
Max looked down at his watch then back at me. “Mia, I said I need to talk to Zane alone, now go!” Max wasn’t letting up; I’d get nowhere with him. I sighed and stood, but as I took one last look at Zane, I was surprised to notice he didn’t seem at all concerned. What the hell? Did the man have no shame or self-respect?
Zane winked at me and perused my entire body. Even though I was modestly dressed in my black pencil skirt, blouse and jacket, I felt naked under his scrutiny. I wanted to throttle him. “See what I mean.” I threw my hands in the air. “I give up!”
I yanked the office door open, wondering why I thought I could handle working with Zane. Surely I had been under some sort of spell when I’d accepted Max’s job offer.
There simply wasn’t any other explanation.
***
ZANE
Hot damn, that woman’s got me going. I tried my hardest not to laugh as I watched Mia stalk out of Max’s office. I’d gotten to her, and she was running scared. It was only a matter of time before I made good on my promise to her. I’d been lusting after Mia for far too long; she’d had me hot and bothered from the very first time I met her at one of Max’s family barbeques.
I’d tried to stay away from her for years out of respect to Max, but after she propositioned me at the wedding, she started a fire inside me. Damn, I regretted letting her go that night. For three weeks, my charm and flirtatious ways had gotten me nowhere. She’d shot me down every single time. The more I worked with her, the more I’d come to realise Mia used sarcasm to keep me at arm’s length. She’d never done that in the past. I‘d made her wary of me and she was damned good at holding me off.
I wanted her and I was getting desperate. If I didn’t get her to submit to me soon, I’d explode.
“Quit thinking about her.”
Max’s voice dragged me back to reality. “I wasn’t,” I lied.
Max rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair. “What the hell is it with you two? I can’t figure it. It’s as if you like fighting with her.”
“The truth?”
“No, I’d rather you lied to me,” Max ground out. “Yes, I want the fucking truth.”
“Just remember, you asked,” I warned him. “Fighting with your sister Mia is like foreplay. It turns me on. Actually, I think it turns us both on. She wants me as much as I want her.
Max shook his head. “You do remember I am her brother and your boss, right?” I recognised Max’s overprotective mode.
But I had no intention of staying away from Mia. Not now, not ever. After working so closely with her the last few weeks, I wanted her more than ever. I didn’t care what Max thought. I didn’t want to risk my friendship with him after all these years, so I thought it would be best to be honest and upfront.
“Is this the part where you warn me away?”
“Look, not only is Mia my sister, she is my employee, and I protect my employees. You’re in dangerous territory, flirting with her. Sexual harassment isn’t something I take lightly.”
I went rigid. “Did she say I sexually harassed her?”
“That’s not the point. The point is I protect what’s mine.”
“Fuck, Max, you know me, I would never hurt Mia.”
“But you are making her uncomfortable. She seems stressed and upset, and I can’t have that. Either back off, or I’ll move her to a different department.”
Max had just tossed down the gauntlet at me. I knew I could be an arsehole, but if I pushed the issue, I could lose her and probably my job, not to mention my friendship with Max. Still, I wasn’t about to make a promise I knew damn well I wouldn’t be able to keep. I rubbed my jaw and decided to lay it all on the line.