A Six-Pack & a Shot at Love (Love on the Rocks #1)(8)
He squinted at her as he walked closer, giving her body the once-over as he smirked and then went straight-faced so quickly she thought she’d imagined it. She was glad she wore the slim-fitting black dress that hugged her curves and also showed off her red hair. She felt she looked good, but she shouldn’t care. The man was going to kick her out of his office. She just lost the biggest potential job she could have hoped for because of her quick fiery tongue and her distrust in men.
“I’ll go call them to come down.” Lisa left the room.
“A photographer? You’re the last woman I expected to come into this office today.” He stared at her.
The door opened, and two other men came strolling in, just as attractive as this one. She was in a heap of trouble, and she’d screwed up big time.
“Listen, I’ll just show myself out and we don’t even need to continue this meeting,” she said, thinking it was the best option to disappear with her tail between her legs and then cry the rest of the day for being such an idiot. All because of her fears and distrust in men.
“This is Vin? I thought it was a guy,” one of the guys said.
“I’m Roman Corbias, and this is my brother Garvan.” Roman stuck out his hand, and she shook it as she stared way up at the guy. He was breathtakingly handsome, with crew cut brown hair, thick, wide muscles bulging from the navy-blue designer T-shirt he wore with dark dress pants. He had a gold watch and thick, hard fingers. She felt her belly quiver, and every feminine part of her reacted to him. When Garvan shook her hand next, she felt faint. He was just as good-looking, older, and very salon finished. His dark hair was slicked back, and his brown eyes bored into hers before they gazed over her body.
The other man from the bar smiled.
“This is a pretty interesting situation, Vin.” He looked her over.
“I suppose you expect me to apologize for the other night.”
“The other night?” Roman asked.
“I met Vin at Carlyle’s the other night, and we had a bit of a misunderstanding.”
Immediately her defenses were up as was her radar when it came to wealthy, controlling men.
“It wasn’t a misunderstanding.”
“You refused a ride in my car with me and made accusations stating that I only like bimbo whores and was out to get laid.”
She felt her cheeks turn bright red. She had to look away but then heard Roman and Garvan chuckle.
“You hit on her and used one of your lines and she declined?” Roman asked.
His brother looked insulted and angry.
“She didn’t know who I was, and here we are now, thinking of hiring her.”
“There’s no need to. I have the feeling this isn’t going to work out.” She reached for her portfolio, only for Roman to take it from her.
“I want to see this.”
“I think we should start over. I believe we both made assumptions,” the guy from the bar whose name she still didn’t know said to her smirking.
“What assumptions did you make about me?”
“That you were a stuck-up bitch who probably hadn’t gotten laid in a long time and were uptight. Perhaps a man-hater because some dick with no clue did you wrong and now all men are lumped into the untrustworthy * department.”
Her lips parted. She was shocked at his evaluation of her.
“As I said, Vin, I’m willing to put aside the assumptions you made about me if you’re willing to put aside the ones I made about you, and we can go on with this meeting as planned. We’re on a tight deadline, and you came highly recommended from someone we all trust.”
She eyed him over and then glanced at his two brothers, who seemed to be staring at her strangely.
“The name is Apollo Corbias, and you are?” he asked, reaching his hand out for her to shake.
She hesitated a moment, wondering if this was a smart move or not. She didn’t trust him per se, but she also needed this job, and she loved being a photographer. She shook his hand and had not expected the same instant attraction she had when his brothers shook her hand. His eyes widened, and he quickly smiled.
“It’s a pleasure meeting you, Vin. Let’s get started.”
Garvan watched the PowerPoint presentation along with his brothers and Venetia. He was immediately impressed with her and the fact that she’d declined his brother’s advances at Carlyle’s and wound up being the same woman highly recommended by a friend of Lisa’s. The woman was exceptionally beautiful and reserved. She wore a very conservative dress, but her curves were abundant, and there was no hiding them behind the dark clothing. Her hair was a brilliant deep red and wavy and thick and smelled incredible. So did her perfume, which was light and appealing. He couldn’t get over the instant attraction he felt, and knowing that Roman and Apollo felt it, too, he now worried about what might come of this situation. She’d declined Apollo’s advances.
Who was this woman? Was she playing some sort of game and perhaps knew it was him at the club and had purposely declined him, or was this something more? He wasn’t certain, but as the PowerPoint presentation ended and they turned the lights back on, Apollo and Roman went into business mode.
“Here’s the deal. We’re impressed with your work, and you came highly recommended. However, we’ve been screwed over before. The company, a hell of a lot bigger and more experienced than you, handed over slop. We don’t want to repeat that mistake. So, in considering you for the job we’ve been looking to fill, we’d like a trial run with you on something a little smaller.”