Boss I Love to Hate: An Office Romance(69)

Coos and awws echoed from the women in the room. It wasn’t a reaction I had expected or wanted because all that mattered was Sonia’s reaction.

She pulled my hand down from her face and tilted her head to look at me. “All’s forgiven.” Her eyes bled with sincerity, with forgiveness, and I eased up. “Just don’t be an asshole to me anymore, and I’ll no longer throw darts at your head at home.”

I smiled a little and nodded. At that moment, I promised to never give her a reason to forgive me. “I kind of like that picture of me. I was thinking I could practice, too, and get better at my aim.”

Sonia’s face broke into an irresistibly devastating grin. “We can work on that. I’ve actually become very good at playing darts. Constant practice and all.”

“See, all’s forgiven. Now, go shake his hand, Vinny.” Lydia gave her husband’s shoulder a shove. “If they end up getting married, you’re going to regret being a dick. Remember how my father hated you. You want to be him?”

Vinny flinched.

“Mom,” Sonia yelled, her cheeks turning a shade darker. “We’re not getting married.”

“Yet,” Aunt Chelsey finished, her eyebrows waggling.

Sonia groaned. “I hate all of you.”

Vinny stepped forward, and I took in his stature. His chest was three times the size of mine. He reminded me of one of those WWE pro wrestlers, and judging by the size of his fist, I’d bet he could knock me out cold. Still, I straightened and met his gaze straight on. I wanted him to know that I was sincere, but more than that, I wanted him to believe I was worthy of his daughter.

And the realization pushed through.

I wanted to be worthy of her because I wanted a future with her.

And because it was Sonia, and I wanted more of her. More than our platonic relationship now. I wanted all of her dislikes and likes. I wanted every one of her future kisses and arguments and annoyances. I wanted it all. All in.

“Vinny,” he spat out, sticking out his hand.

Great, a mob boss name. I wouldn’t doubt it if Vinny was connected with the Italian mob.

“Nice to meet you, sir. I’m Brad.”

I tried not to wince when Vinny squeezed the living shit out of my hand, smiling as though he didn’t want anyone to know. When he released me, I wiggled my fingers to get the blood flowing again and reached for Sonia, who was right beside me.

“And so, everyone, sit. Dinner is ready and needs to be served because Mama is hungry. Girls?” Lydia disappeared to the kitchen, followed by a trail of females.

“Take a seat. We’ll be right back.” Sonia pointed to a seat at the far end of the table, and then she about-faced and followed the other ladies.

The women all filtered out of the room, toward the kitchen, leaving all the men at the table.

Their dining room was not big by any means, so each chair was right next to the other. The normally twelve-seater dining room table now sat sixteen, some chairs in the corners of the table.

I took a seat as far from Vinny as possible. Oddly enough, I craved confrontation, didn’t show fear and was never intimidated by others in the boardroom. This time though, this was different.

An uneasy feeling crept up my spine, forcing me to sit straighter even though I wanted to cower.

Vinny was talking to one of Sonia’s uncles, who was equally as tall and as muscular as Vinny. Other males were scattered around the table, but no one paid attention to me. In the boardroom, from the opposing team, I never felt welcome, but at least I was acknowledged. Here, it was as though I weren’t even in the room.

“Hey.” A hand clasped my back, and then a chair was pulled out. Down sat a lanky male with hair that flopped over his eyes. “Marco.” He stuck out his hand.

And, boy, was I relieved to meet someone who didn’t radiate hostility.

“The younger brother,” I noted.

He nodded. “I see Sonia has been bragging about me.” He eyed me with curiosity, the once-over that other CEOs would give me when I stepped in the boardroom, wanting to decipher what my intentions were with a friendly smile.

I shrugged one shoulder. “I told her to give me the four-one-one on your family before we arrived.”

“And let me guess; she didn’t tell you about Dad.” He tipped his chin at his father, who was at the head of the table, in deep conversation with the uncles.

“She did, but I guess I wasn’t expecting a full-on war.”

There it was again, the curiosity in Marco’s stare, and it was as though the words had been spoken out loud; he wanted to know my intentions with his sister.

“I like Sonia,” I said, bluntly, answering his silent question. “I was a dick before because I didn’t realize it, and now, I’m trying to set things straight.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “Hmm.” As though to say, So what? He added, “Just so you know, I know Sonia allows you to run your business smoothly. She also runs this family smoothly. She is our go-to person for problems, to divert confrontation, for anything.” His tone was heavy with pride. “She’s our girl, so you can see how we are all protective of her.”

I didn’t miss his emphasis on all, and I wasn’t surprised by his admission. Sonia was selfless; she gave herself fully to her job. I had no doubt she did more than that for her family.