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  AINSLEY

  Peony Pointe Series

  Book 2

  By Elsie James

  Copyright © 2020 by Elsie James

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Portions of this book are works of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places and events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblances to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Cover by Ella Barnard

  authorelsiejames.com

  Table of Contents

  Copyright © 2020 by Elsie James

  Chapter 1: Ainsley

  Chapter 2: Shane

  Chapter 3: Ainsley

  Chapter 4: Shane

  Chapter 5: Ainsley

  Chapter 6: Shane

  Epilogue: Ainsley Two Years Later

  THANK YOU

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  ALSO BY ELSIE JAMES

  Chapter 1: Ainsley

  “Dad, are you serious? You’re making Shane Sanders an Executive Director?” My sister, Amelia, is quietly outraged. “Why? He’s not even family and you’re entrusting so much of the winery to him?”

  My siblings and I sit across from our father in our brown leather wingback chairs. The boardroom hasn’t changed much over the years. We gather around the same huge oak table.

  In the last weeks, the four of us have had more and more meetings like this. We hire people for all of these tasks. But, nonetheless, Daddy comes prepared each time with a list. He covers details about our bottling lines, laboratories, and even our steakhouse. He gives us the names of the people he trusts. We review the profit and loss statements. The meetings go on and on.

  Truthfully, I’m not sure what he is worried about. As the oldest child, Daddy has been training my sister Amelia to take over Bellisima for more than a decade now. She and I are so different. Amelia loves to work alone in her office alone. When I got my position, I immediately instituted an open door policy. Anyone is welcome to bring me their concerns or ideas at any time, no matter their position. Some of my favorite people are those I’ve met when they pop into my office with a question.

  I can’t listen to her objections anymore. “Who cares Amelia? You’re getting what you’ve always wanted. In two weeks, Daddy will be retired, and you can reign over all of Bellisima.”

  She shoots me a look. “I’m asking for clarification. It’s so easy for you. Your role isn’t changing. Dad will retire, and you’ll continue throwing company parties. Very soon, the livelihoods of half the population of Peony Pointe will depend on me getting this right.”

  Daddy steps in, unsurprisingly taking my side. “Amelia, let’s not bore your sister with all of the details.”

  I give her a smug smile and she rolls her eyes in frustration. I look past her, out of the stately windows, and into the vineyard. A habit I picked up years ago, our parents always requiring us to take an active role in our family business.

  We always say business, but it’s more like an empire. Our father is a fourth-generation sommelier. It was only fitting that he and mom fell in love. As the sole heir to Bellissima Vineyards, she needed him. At the time, it was a medium-sized vineyard with a tasting room. Daddy has built it into the tourist destination it is today.

  I pet my cat, Duchy[1]. Her fluffy white tail brushes my cheek as she purrs. Amelia hates when I bring Duchy to our meetings. But, Duchy has so much love to give. She was found by one of our staff members just wandering through the vineyard. They were going to take her to a shelter, but I couldn’t stand the thought. So, I took her into the vet, got her a collar, and made her mine. She’s been by my side ever since. Duchy is the only one in my life, besides my family, who loves me for me and not my money. She’s a comfort when I’ve been burned so many times, by friends, by acquaintances, and especially by men.

  Amelia can’t let it go. “Ainsley, you of all people, should care. If Shane is the Executive Director of Logistics, you will be working with him for every event we throw.”

  “What's wrong with that?” I’ve never heard of him, but he can’t be that bad. I will tell him what to do, he will do it, the end. That’s part of why I love being the head event planner. Plus, I am Daddy’s favorite person. Who else would he want handling something so important as his retirement dinner?

  Hunter looks up from his phone for the first time. “Yeah, Dad. I’m with Amelia on this one. I’ve heard things about Shane, and I don’t think it's a great idea to give him too much power. He’s not exactly known for being a nice guy.” As the youngest in our family, Hunter never has much of an opinion on anything. The fact that he speaks up about Shane surprises me.

  Daddy moves his eyes between the three of us. “Enough. I am still the CEO for two more weeks. I’ve built this business on my intuition. That does not stop today. I’m appointing Shane to the Executive Director of Logistics position. It’s already been pushed through Human Resources. This is final.”

  Amelia opens her mouth, presumably to protest, but Daddy hits the button on his phone. “Please, send him in.”

  Shane swaggers into the boardroom, looking like a Greek god. Charcoal suit, bright white button down with a collar, and let me check the shoes… oooh, high quality leather. He smells spicy with maybe just a hint of cologne. And I love that in a man. I have always thought it takes confidence to choose a scent and make a strong commitment to it. An expensive watch adorns his wrist, which, from what I can tell, is very on-brand for him. With his piercing blue eyes and light brown hair sprayed perfectly into place, Shane looks like he just stepped off of the set of an action movie. His golden tanned skin completes the look.

  Shane looks like he ripped a page from my journal and dressed for the part of my love interest. Everything about him tells me that we will have no problem working together and hopefully more. I could look at a statue of this man all day. My mind jumps to thoughts of what his hands would feel like on my body: strong, decisive, and fiery. My skin tingles at the possibility.

  I run my manicured, soft pink nails through my shiny black hair. I flip it off of my face dramatically. “Shane, hello. Ainsley Romano.” I push my chest out just a little and make my eyes huge. “You’ll be working for me.”

  I raise my eyebrows and smile at him. Believe it baby, you just won the hot boss lotto. I lean to the side, showing off more of my long legs as I cross them at the ankles. Duchy, the ever perfect wingman, wraps herself around his feet.

  “Pleasure.” Shane says deadpan. His voice is short and clipped.

  Hmmm, interesting choice. This isn’t the reaction I typically get.

  Pulling out the chair across from me, he moves his leg away from Duchy’s cuddle attempt. How dare he! Shane turns and glances at Daddy giving him a half smile. “And to be clear, I don’t work for you. I work for the big guy here.” Chuckling, he gestures to Daddy. “If you need assistance from my department, you can contact my secretary and she’ll get you squared away.”

  With his head turned away from Daddy, Shane glares at me. What is his problem? I stare back unapologetically.

  A grimace settles onto his face as he leans back comfortably into his chair. ”Besides, I may be busy spending time with this total legend out on the golf course.” Shane nods his head in Daddy’s direction.

  I’m speechless. Stunned, actually. What is happening here? I bite my tongue and wait for Daddy’s reaction. Shane’s only been in his position for five minutes and nobody talks to me like that. Especially not on Daddy’s watch.

  But, a slow growing grin spreads across Daddy’s fa
ce. He looks…pleased. “You are an executive now. I can only hope you’ll make time for a round of golf with an old man like me.” He pats Shane on his enormous shoulder.

  Forget everything I said. My search for a leading man who loves me in spite of my money continues. Shane is most definitely not here to play my love interest from a page in my journal. He fooled me for a minute, but now I recognize him. I know his type too well. I have dated so many Shanes before. He’s smoking hot. He always knows the right thing to say. He’s kissing up to my dad.

  Shane is a gold-digger.

  Chapter 2: Shane

  The boardroom itself makes me want to roll my eyes. It’s all so typical. The leather couch in the waiting area. The wall-sized monitor for conference calls. The catering staff who make themselves scarce during meetings. The three Romano children lined up in their wingback chairs, each of them billionaires never having actually worked a day in their lives.

  That’s why I’m so cautious about who I share my past with. These are exactly the kind of people who judge first and ask questions never.

  How a generous man like Leo Romano spawned an entitled woman like Ainsley is something I will never understand. She’s filthy rich and too shallow to know what to do with it. The nerve of her, introducing herself to me like we’ve never met. In my ten years of work at Bellissima, we’ve run into each other more than a few times. But now, in a boardroom, with a suit and a new title, suddenly she sees me. I feel sorry for the dude who ends up with her. He won’t see it coming.

  Ainsley has a way about her. She’s sexy. She knows her smile is irresistible. Tall with tanned, olive skin and always in heels. Curvy in all the right places. I can’t think of a single time I haven’t seen her in a dress that didn’t hug her thick thighs or show off her perfectly round ass. It's a sight you don’t forget no matter how insufferable she is. Ainsley knows how to dress her body, and I imagine she knows how to use it. When Ainsley walks into a room, she commands the attention of everyone in it without saying a word.

  As much as I try, I’m not immune to her charms. She has an energy about her that draws me in. Today her shiny black hair almost looks purple in the light, but I refuse to take notice. I keep my eyes trained on Leo in an effort to maintain my bravado through the uncomfortable silence in the boardroom.

  Leo finally speaks. “Shane, your loyalty to this company has been unmatched by anyone other than myself. You’ve paid your dues. My children should know that you’re a valued member of this team and that my goal is to keep you for another decade or longer.”

  “Thank you, sir. It’s an incredible opportunity.” After all Leo has already done for me, my sentence seems lacking.

  “That settles it. My assistant will make sure you have access to the calendar so you can organize your teams accordingly. We have some big events on the horizon, starting, of course, with my retirement party. You’ll work directly with Ainsley on that.”

  Just what I want—my first duty in my new role is being a bitch to an entitled daddy’s girl. “Looking forward to it.”

  Amelia, Hunter, and Leo file out of the boardroom. Ainsley stays planted in her seat, petting her cat and looking at her phone. My mind races for a moment. I need to stay out in front of her, especially since she is used to getting her way. Right now, that means making an attempt to get as far away from her as possible.

  I stand up in a smooth, calculated motion. If she thinks I don’t notice the pout, the arched back, the big eyes, the huge tits shoved toward me, she is wrong. Of course I notice. She’s beautiful. Just looking at her pretty mouth makes me wonder what it would feel like wrapped around my dick. But she’s superficial, and I am not interested in being her next new toy.

  “You will meet me at three-thirty in the vineyard so we can walk the event space.” She keeps her eyes on her phone.

  Not a chance. “No. We can touch base about it tomorrow morning at eight o’clock. That’s our normal department head meet time. We’ll keep that appointment.”

  She stands up in her tall heels and walks toward me, hips swaying with each step. When she stops, she’s standing so close I can feel the heat radiating from her skin. This posturing, it’s a dare. She wants me to back up. The hell I will. I’m not going anywhere.

  I maintain my composure in the face of her perfect curves. I breathe in, deeply and silently. That was a mistake. The smell of her perfume ignites my imagination, sending a fiery tendril of lust through me. I feel an urge to draw her closer to me.

  She stares up at me through long, thick, black lashes and then exhales dramatically. “Shane is it? Hi. Yes, I am not asking you what works. I am telling you we will meet at three-thirty.”

  My body betrays me. Ainsley is round in all the right places, I can’t help but run my eyes across her chest. The heat between us is palpable. I dig deep to muster a final controlled sentence.

  I give her a casual smile and add a false chuckle. “Ainsley, I’ll see you tomorrow morning at eight.” I walk out. There’s no way I am letting her run the show. This is my time, and I’m not wasting it.

  ***

  When I arrive at my office the next morning, a furious Ainsley is pacing outside of my door. She’s wearing a suit jacket over a black dress so tight I can’t help but wonder what’s underneath. The buckles on her red heels wrap around her ankles the way I imagine her legs wrapped around me.

  “You didn’t show up.” She’s furious.

  “It’s not eight yet.” I look at my watch. “I have six minutes.”

  Ainsely stares at me in disbelief. Her hands are flying as she screeches in my direction. “I’m not going to do this with you. I waited for you at three-thirty only to discover you were already gone. I don’t wait for anything or anyone.”

  “This isn’t about you. You’re freaking out because you waited five minutes for me to come to a meeting that I never agreed to? Get over yourself.”

  “Yes! I am! This party needs to be perfect. If I have to work with you, you need to take it seriously. Daddy deserves a proper send off and I'm going to make sure he gets it.”

  “Yep. Nobody understands that more than me. And in...let’s see…” I make a show of looking at my watch. “Four minutes. In four minutes, I’ll be happy to walk the event space with you.”

  This is classic Ainsley right here, stomping around. Making demands. Using her perfectly full figure as a weapon to get anything she wants. Up close, she is every bit the selfish princess I imagined she would be. Though she does seem surprisingly committed to her father.

  We head toward the ballroom. Ainsley has thoughtfully planned for every scenario. Rain, snow, paparazzi, party crashers—no possibility was left unexplored. There is something unexpected about the way Ainsley has thrown herself into the details of planning this event for her father. She does love her dad. It’s nice to see; he deserves at least one appreciative kid.

  “This is the employee table.”

  At each event thrown by Bellissima, one table is reserved for employees. Not the executives either. They are front-line employees, including waiters, housekeepers, maintenance staff, gardeners, and gift shop cashiers. Eight people are nominated and voted on by their peers to attend the lavish events in the ballroom. The chosen group is given extra days off and provided with a generous stipend. They are treated like royalty for the night. I’ve gotten so many great insights by getting to know the people at that table over the years. It’s an incredible program.

  “It needs to be reserved. It’s very important to me.” Ainsley stares at me, waiting for confirmation.

  “It’s important to me too. Our staff retention is through the roof since your father instituted the policy.”

  “My father? Shane, that’s my program.”

  “You developed the program? Right. You mean your father made you the face of the initiative?” I can’t imagine her being the mastermind behind something this thoughtful and inclusive.

  “No, in fact, Daddy didn’t know about it until after the first one had alre
ady happened. Even then, he was a little hesitant.”

  “You came up with the idea completely on your own?” I call her out. There is no way this is true. Although, she is the only person in the entire company that could develop and implement an initiative without Mr. Romano’s knowledge.

  “You know Kelsy from the front desk? I watched her take an irate woman and turn her into a loyal customer.”

  “I know of her, but we’ve never spoken,” I reply in shock. It’s unbelievable to me that Ainsley knows the name of anyone that works at the front desk.

  “When I first rescued Duchy, she was still acclimating to her new life indoors. One day, she wandered out of the back office wing. So, I was looking for her in the lobby and I heard this woman yelling. Freaking out, all over a broken bottle of wine. It was so unnecessary.”

  An ironic statement coming from Ainsley, but I’m riveted. If she’s telling the truth, it changes everything I thought I knew about her. I detect a hint of humility as she continues, and it throws me for a loop.

  “You should’ve seen it, it was awful. This tiny, young, blond girl with huge eyes shrinking behind the counter while this older woman ripped her apart. I walked toward the counter to step in. Nobody deserves to be spoken to the way she was talking to Kelsy. I marched right over to her to tell her to leave and reassure her that we would no longer be accepting her patronage. But, by the time I got up to the counter, I didn’t need to. Kelsy skillfully calmed her down. Made her smile. Even had the woman apologizing and signing up for our mailing list. She was incredible! I thanked Kelsy at the time, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Thanks just didn’t seem like enough.”

  She’s telling the truth. I can feel it, and this side of her is incredibly sexy.

  “Ainsley, wow. That employee table has been critical in boosting morale. You know we’ve had over 150 employees sit at this table. Some of our company’s best ideas have been generated at these events.”