Tempted by Her Boss: The Renaldis, Book 1

by Karen Erickson

  Slowly she shook her head. “I don’t understand what made you change. I’m scared you’ll push me away again and your continuous rejections slice a piece away from my heart every single time they happen.”

  “I promise I won’t push you away.” He pulled her close to him, their mouths brushing, a little whimper escaping her at first contact. “You’ve made me change. Your bravery, the fearless way you declared how you felt toward me. While I was running like a little boy with my tail tucked between my legs, you stood strong and proud, pouring out your heart to me. I can’t forget that.”

  Her fingers bunched the fabric of his shirt, brushing against his chest, and he shuddered at her innocent touch. He’d give anything to gather her into his arms and take her back to his bed. Undress her slowly, kiss every inch of her skin before finally taking her, filling her body over and over again with his.

  Not yet, though. He needed to approach her slowly. She didn’t trust him. He had to earn it back.

  And he would. Of that, he hadn’t a doubt.

  “Promise me.” She tugged on his shirt and he met her gaze straight on. “Promise you won’t run away from me. Promise that you’ll face whatever happens between us head on.”

  “I promise.” He kissed her again, keeping it purposefully simple and soft. Her lips were plump and damp, her taste sweet, her accelerated breathing matching the rhythm pounding through his blood. She wanted him. He wanted her.

  But not yet. This would be a courtship, the ultimate proof of his sincerity for her.

  Even if it killed him.

  Chapter Eight

  “Mama told us something and we’re worried.”

  Matteo frowned at his two brothers. Leave it to Rafe to blurt it out, no subtlety involved. “What did she tell you?” he asked carefully.

  His youngest brother, Vincenzo, crossed his arms in front of his chest. They’d come for the annual meeting and had returned to the villa with him, the entire family—minus Stasia—would be in attendance for dinner. Well. Not including Vince’s wife either, who was working back in the States. The woman always worked. Matteo wondered more than once if their marriage was little more than a sham. “She said you’ve fallen in love.”

  Ah. Leave it to their dramatic mother to declare he’d gone and fallen for a woman. “She exaggerates.” He wasn’t in love with Paige. They hadn’t even had sex yet. He was merely enjoying her company.

  And falling for her more and more as each minute passed, not that he would tell them that.

  “We hear it’s your nanny.” Rafe shook his head, his eyes narrowed as he studied him. “Really, Matteo. The nanny? How much of a cliché could you be?”

  Anger pulsed through his veins and he clenched his hands into fists. “What does it matter who I spend my time with?”

  “Haven’t we had enough sordid stories about our family? First our father dies and disinherits Stasia because of Mama’s affair. It’s not just a simple affair, but she goes and sleeps with one of our father’s greatest enemies in the business. Then we must deal with your wife’s untimely death and the doctor’s discovery that she was pumped full of meds. Now you’re screwing the nanny and don’t give a shit who knows? You’ve lost your damn mind and you’re supposed to be the practical one,” Rafe said, the irritation in his voice clear.

  The anger turned to white-hot fury. “I’m not screwing the nanny.”

  “Oh, so you’re just holding hands and reciting poems to each other? Please,” Vince sneered. “We’re your brothers. You’re allowed to confess to us that you’re banging the help.”

  That did it. Matteo lunged toward Vince without thought, grabbing hold of his shirtfront and jerking him close. “Watch what you say about her or I’ll bash your face in,” he murmured, his face in his brother’s, their gazes locked.

  Vince had the nerve to laugh, the asshole. “Wow, you must really care about her if you’re ready to beat me bloody.”

  “Let him go, Matteo,” Rafe said, his voice full of irritation. “We don’t want to fight with you about this. We just have some…concerns.”

  Matteo let go of his baby brother, giving him a shove for good measure. His hands shook, he was so agitated. He hated hearing them say anything detrimental about Paige. “What sort of concerns could you have? I’m not an idiot. I didn’t sign over the company bank accounts to her, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

  “We know you’re not an idiot. It’s just…do you really know her? Mama said she’s young. She might be interested in you only for your money,” Rafe explained.

  “So she couldn’t be interested in me as a man, then? There are dollar signs in her eyes and she only wants my money?” Christ, everything they said irritated him to no end. Thank God they were outside on the lower terrace that overlooked the ocean, far enough away from the house so no one could hear them arguing. Such as their mother.

  Or Paige.

  “We’re not saying that exactly. It’s just—you shouldn’t mess with the help. That’s what we’re trying to tell you.” Rafe shook his head. “It’s dangerous.”

  Matteo glared at Rafe, who glared right back. They were his brothers. He could understand their concern for him, couldn’t he? He’d express the same sort of worry for one of them if he felt the need to. Hell, he had in the past. He hadn’t been supportive of Vincenzo’s marriage to that model who he rarely spent time with. He wondered why they were married at all.

  And he hadn’t understood Rafael going along with an arranged marriage that their father and the girl’s father had set up years ago. It was downright archaic, yet Rafe seemed perfectly content with the prospect of marrying the girl. Matteo had even tried to get him out of it once their father had died, just so he wouldn’t feel forced to make such a major change in his life by marrying a girl already chosen for him.

  Rafe had outright refused the offer, which baffled Matteo to no end.

  “Things happen,” Matteo bit out, pissed that he had to explain himself. “People have feelings for each other they can’t always control. That I’ve developed feelings for Paige and she just so happens to be Matty’s nanny, well, it couldn’t be helped. We’ve spent a lot of time together these last few months.” Not enough for his tastes, he realized now.

  “Playing happy household in the city is not the way to grow a relationship, Matteo,” Vince muttered.

  “As if you can judge me. When was the last time you slept in the same bed as your wife, hmm?” Matteo sneered, hating that they pushed him to this.

  Vince’s cheeks turned ruddy. “Shut the fuck up.”

  “Stop, both of you.” For once, Rafe was the voice of reason. Strange. “We just don’t want you to end up with a woman who’s not good enough for you, Matteo. We watched it happen once. We don’t want to see it happen again.”

  No one would ever forgive him for marrying Lucia. Settling heavily on a bench that overlooked the ocean, he studied the majestic view, the rays of the sun warming his tense shoulders. His thoughts were jumbled, full of his brothers’ concern and worry.

  Countered with images of Paige. The last few days had been wonderful with her. He’d taken her all over the city, exploring the mountains, the historic buildings and secret alcoves that only natives knew of. He took her and Matty to the beach, where they splashed on the shore, Matteo’s gaze unerringly going to Paige’s slender body in the skimpy two-piece swimsuit she wore again and again. She stood out with her pale, freckled skin amongst a crowd of olive-hued, sun-bronzed Italians, her fiery red hair in stark contrast amongst the mostly dark heads that surrounded her.

  She was beautiful. Sweet, and with lips that were ripe for kissing—which he did plenty of, never in front of Matty, of course. They didn’t want to confuse him, not yet. But at night, after Matty went to bed, they left him in Matteo’s mother’s care and Matteo would take her out for a late dinner, where they would talk and eat and drink plenty of good wine. Her cheeks would turn rosy and she’d become more open with him, reaching across the table to clasp his h
and. Reaching beneath the table to run her bare toes against his leg.

  And when they would return to the villa he would kiss her in the car, in the front alcove of the house, outside her bedroom door. Long, drugging, deep kisses with plenty of tongue and whispered words filled with promise. Wandering hands slipping beneath clothes, though he never took it too far. He needed to gain her trust. Make her believe he wanted her and that he wasn’t going to push her away.

  He needed to convince himself of this as well. Old habits died hard. He’d grown accustomed to pushing all women out of his life after Lucia’s death, with the exception of his mother and sister. That he was slowly letting Paige into his life and his heart was a monumental event.

  “Paige isn’t Lucia,” Matteo finally said when he realized they were waiting for his reply. “She’s a completely different type of woman. And we have a completely different type of relationship.”

  “I should hope to hell so,” Vince retorted as he settled on the bench beside him. “I know my marriage isn’t perfect, so I probably have no room to talk, but we worry about you. You weren’t the same after Lucia’s death.”

  No, he wasn’t. He’d withdrawn from the world almost completely, throwing himself into his work even further, if that was possible. Only giving what little precious free time he had to his son and no one else. He’d moved away from Italy, moved far away from his family and never looked back. He saw Stasia on a frequent basis only because she wouldn’t let him get away with hiding. Thank God for her stubbornness.

  Now, he was full of regret. His brothers’ concern made him realize just how much he needed them around, in his life. Matty needed his uncles and especially his grandmother, as well as his aunt. The little boy needed his family.

  But if Matteo were to move them to Italy permanently, they would be away from Stasia. And also…Paige.

  Would she come and live in Italy with him? Hell, did he want her to come to Italy and live with him? She would go as his nanny, but would she live with him as his…lover? That sounded so ridiculous. Girlfriend? That sounded too juvenile.

  He didn’t know what to call this…thing he shared with Paige. As of this very moment it felt like a friendship that included plenty of kissing with the potential for more. It was far too soon to define it any further.

  “I’ve changed,” Matteo answered. “Despite how distant we had become, I was in mourning over my wife’s death. Sorry that we lost her so soon and that Matty hardly remembers her. Our relationship might’ve been tumultuous, but I never wished death on the woman.”

  “Of course not,” Rafe said. “I understand. We both do. But you need to know where we’re coming from as well. Let us investigate this girl. Look into her background.”

  “Hell no.” That was a complete invasion of privacy. He was walking on shaky ground with her still. He wasn’t about to tear apart the trust he was building with her.

  “Why not? Afraid of what you might find?” Vince asked.

  “She’s twenty-three. From the Midwest. Worked for a real asshole before she came to work for me. That’s it,” Matteo explained. There wasn’t any need to investigate her. She was as innocent as they came.

  “She could be lying.” When Matteo glared at him, Rafe shrugged. “It’s true. Everyone lies. Anyone can make up whatever they want about their past when they move to a new city. It’s easy.”

  “Paige isn’t a liar.” He stood, sent them both a scathing stare. “Watch her at dinner tonight. Talk to her. You’ll see.”

  “That’s our plan,” Vince called after him as Matteo strode back toward the house. “We’re going to dig as deep as we can tonight, Matteo. Hope you don’t mind. And if she has nothing to hide, she won’t mind either.”

  He gave them the finger in answer.

  The table was filled with a total of four Renaldi men, from Matty to Matteo along with Matteo’s two younger brothers. They all looked so similar. The almost black hair, swarthy skin and dark-as-sin eyes, those terribly handsome faces. Though of course, to her, Matteo was by far the most handsome of all.

  She sat across from Matteo, Matty to her left and Claudia to her right. The three Renaldi brothers sat across from them, intimidating in their silence as they all waited for Renzo, the gentleman who worked at the villa along with his wife, to bring the giant plates overflowing with food that would be their dinner.

  Tension seemed to come off each of the brothers in obvious waves, and she didn’t understand it. Tried to ignore it, but it was no use. She caught them studying her. Their gazes hard, their mouths firm, contemplating her as if they didn’t like what they saw.

  Paige wanted to shrink into herself, pretend she didn’t exist. Maybe if she went away, they wouldn’t think about her any longer. They’d forget all about her.

  Foolish. She was a grown woman with nothing to hide. Maybe they were upset that she was—seeing?—their brother. If that’s what she could call it.

  She didn’t know what to call what was blossoming between her and Matteo. The last few days had been romantic, exhilarating, passionate.

  He hadn’t lied to her that first night they arrived, when he confessed being in Italy changed him. He was much more relaxed, at ease with himself and his surroundings. As if all the worry and stress of his job and life wore off and he could almost act carefree.

  A carefree Matteo was rather intoxicating. She couldn’t resist him. The late evening dinners at intimate restaurants were her favorite part of the day. Just the two of them at a tiny table in a crowded bistro, how their knees brushed and the flickering candlelight cast them in a soft glow. The way he would look at her, reach across the table to touch her, grasping her hand, caressing her fingers.

  The kisses in the moonlight, in front of her bedroom, his hands roaming all over her body, his heated breaths when he finally broke the kiss and pushed her into her room. She wanted more. Her body would ache for his but she knew what he was doing.

  He was trying to win her over. Slowly but surely. And it was working.

  “What in the world is wrong with you three?” Claudia finally said, breaking the silence. “You all look so blessedly angry.”

  That was a mild way of putting it. The Renaldi brothers looked as if a thunderous storm had crossed their faces all at the same time.

  “We’re fine.” The middle brother, Rafael, smiled at his mother. And boy, was it a beautiful smile. He was very good looking, with longish, dark hair that brushed his collar, intense brown eyes and an almost pretty face. “The meeting was rather long, but productive. I know I’m exhausted.”

  “Same,” Vincenzo agreed, sounding bored. His gaze zeroed in on Paige. He looked more like Matteo than Rafael did, though he was shorter and stockier. “So. You’re Matty’s nanny, hmm?”

  “Um, yes.” She nodded, clutching her hands together in her lap. Fear slithered down her spine and she told herself to grow the hell up. She could handle his questioning. “I’ve taken care of Matty for almost six months.”

  “Taking care of my brother now as well, I hear.” Vincenzo’s brows rose, as if defying her to deny it.

  Paige’s mouth dropped open. She didn’t know how to answer. Luckily enough, she didn’t have to.

  “Shut the hell up,” Matteo growled. “Leave her alone.”

  “What?” Vince shrugged. “You said basically the same thing when we talked about her earlier.”

  They talked about her? What did they say? What did Matteo say? Her cheeks burned with embarrassment and she ducked her head, wishing she were anywhere else but here.

  “You boys need to leave Paige alone, and I mean it,” Claudia chastised. It was almost amusing, how she called her three grown sons “boys”. “This is the first time we’re all together in months and you instantly start fighting, picking on this poor, innocent girl who does nothing but take good care of my grandson and your nephew. You should be ashamed of yourselves.”

  “We’re sorry, but we’re worried about Matteo, Mama,” Rafe said. Paige glanced up, confused by th
e meaningful glance Rafe shot in her direction. “We discussed it earlier in the meeting, but I thought it best if I bring it up in front of you. We want Matteo to come home, to live in Italy, where he belongs. The business needs him here.”

  Paige’s heart fell into her toes. She couldn’t imagine Matteo leaving her, though she’d been just as eager to escape him not even two weeks ago. But she wasn’t planning to now, was she? No. Now that they’d spent the last few romantic evenings together, she knew his heart—and his mind—was finally in the right place. He acted as if he really wanted her. And she didn’t want to leave him—or Matty—ever, if she could help it. In fact, she was now more convinced than ever to fight for what she wanted. And she wanted them both.

  But if he remained here in Italy, she certainly couldn’t assume he’d bring her with him. Did she? That would be a major move. She had no real place here. She didn’t quite know what her place was with Matteo’s family.

  Or his heart.

  She might want to fight, but how much ammunition was really at her disposal? If he didn’t really care for her, nothing she did would ever hold weight with him or sway him in any way, shape or form.

  “Well, I would love to have you back home again, but what do you want?” Claudia asked her eldest son.

  Matteo’s smoldering gaze never strayed from Paige. “I’m not quite sure what I want.”

  “You’d be most welcome here,” Claudia continued. “Though we cannot ignore how you’ve actually grown the business within the global market and made it bigger than ever. Your father would be so proud, Matteo.”

  “It was the prudent thing to do, me relocating to New York.” He jerked his gaze away from Paige and she wanted to sigh with relief. All that intensity locked on her rendered her breathless. “And after this meeting today, I realize just how smart of a move it really was. Profits are up by a considerable margin.”

  “I am not surprised.” Claudia smiled. “You’ve always been an innovator.”