Friday was going by pretty quickly as everyone worked on the finishing details of the preliminary construction plans. Thankfully, I didn't need to sit in on all the meetings. However, that meant that I spent a good portion of my time responding to emails from Mrs. Turner and the other assistants with updated forms, blueprints, and contracts.

I was grateful when our lunch break came. I excused myself and went to a nearby cafe. I wanted to eat lunch alone so I could call Eric. I hadn't had a chance to talk to him since before we went clubbing, and I wanted to let him know about the delay in coming home.

I placed my order with the server and swiped right on his number in my cell to call. I looked at my watch and figured it would be in the mid-afternoon there, so he should be at his desk.

"Hey, babe!" Eric greeted me immediately. My heart swelled, hearing his loving voice in my ear. I didn't realize how much I missed it.

"Hey!"

"I can't wait to see you tomorrow night. Do you need me to pick you up from the airport? Or is Ryan going to have a driver drop you off?"

"Well, about that..." I paused a moment to take a sip of my cucumber-infused water. "One of our clients, the Upton's, has invited us to their vineyard in Napa Valley for the weekend."

"The Upton's? Harry and Barbara Upton?"

"Yeah. Mrs. Upton mentioned that she knew you at dinner the other night."

"Wow, I haven't seen them since I don't know when. They were, well, are, really close to my parents. It makes sense that they'd be going into business with the Herman family. What are they building this time?" Eric asked with interest.

"They want us to help redesign their old mall that has lost business over the years. They want to make it into a mix of trendy apartments with high-end boutiques and stores that will attract people back into the area. This is a massive partnership between the Upton's and two other clients."

"Sounds like a good move. So will you be at the Upton's all weekend and then fly home from there?"

"That's the plan. Mrs. Turner changed our tickets, so we'd fly home Monday morning," I stated as my food arrived.

"Well, have a great time in Napa. You'll love the Upton's vineyard. They have some of the best wine."

"Thank you for being so understanding, Eric. That's why I can't wait to be your wife." I smiled.

"I can't wait for you to be my wife too," he said so softly and lovingly. "I have to get going though. I have a meeting in about an hour that I need to finish preparing for."

"Okay. Well, I'll call you tonight when we get to their place."

"Okay. I love you," Eric said, and the phone disconnected.

I finished eating my lunch, paid the bill, and rushed back to the office to close up all the forms and paperwork that we had worked on. By the time it was 4 o'clock, we were about done. All that was left was getting the permits, plus the contracts finished and submitted, for phase one of the construction project to begin.

We had already checked out of the hotel that morning. By 4:30, we were heading straight from the office to the airport. Hank dropped us off at a private jet check-in terminal. I hugged him goodbye and thanked him for all he'd done for us over the week.

I had never seen a private plane in person, let alone be on one, and I was impressed. The Upton's plane had a cute name painted on it, 'Up-Ton in the Sky.' Harry and Barbara Upton were already on the plane, drinking champagne by the entrance as Ryan, Adam, and I boarded.

There was a long, plush-beige couch on one side of the plane and two, single leather seats across from it. They were turned to face each other with a wooden mini-table between them. Behind that was another four individual seats. The floor was carpeted with an off-white diamond printed pattern. Being on this plane made me feel a lot less nervous than I was during the commercial flight, only days before.

Mr. and Mrs. Upton took the front two seats and urged us to sit in the seats behind them during take-off.

I sat in the seat that faced the front of the plane, Ryan sat facing me, while Adam sat across the aisle from me, next to the other window. Within minutes of being buckled in, the pilot came through the intercom and announced they were prepared to take-off.

The plane backed out almost immediately, and within five minutes, we were lifting off into the sky. I didn't even have much of a chance to panic, which I was thankful for. Soon the pilot came over the intercom again and instructed that we were free to move about the cabin.

"Ms. Ashcroft, I'm dying to hear more about your wedding plans. Would you like to tell me about them while we have some champagne?" Barbara Upton asked, standing from her seat.

I stood up and went to head towards her when the plane jolted. I lost my footing and stumbled into Ryan's lap before I knew what had happened. His hands instinctively wrapped themselves around my waist to stop me from falling to the floor. My hands planted themselves on his white suit shirt, and I could feel his peck muscles flexing.

"Oh my, dear! Are you alright?" Barbara asked, bringing my focus back to reality. How long did I stay on Ryan's lap? I apologized to him, and he smiled back lightly as he helped me get back on my feet. As I approached, she jokingly said with a wink, "Mr. Upton would have loved it if I did that to him."

*****

Two sedans were waiting at the airport for our arrival. As we disembarked the plane, I admired the sky as it darkened from deep orange and purple hues to blackish-blue almost instantly. I could see the mountains in the distance were sprinkled with house lights and street lamps turning on.

Adam volunteered to ride in the car with Mr. and Mrs. Upton. Ryan and I got in the second car without saying much to each other. I still felt embarrassed about falling on him earlier.

As our car followed the Upton's through the winding roads, I introduced myself to the driver to be polite but was too tired to converse much. I was grateful he sensed that and let the drive fall into a peaceful silence. I turned my focus to staring out my window and watching the streetlamps come and go past my vision.

My right hand was resting in the middle of the seat. I hadn't paid much attention to it until I suddenly felt something graze it. I didn't think much of it at first and ignored it. Then it happened again, and this time the weight stayed heavy on my finger. I looked down and saw Ryan's pinkie resting casually on mine.

Part of me knew I should move my hand and draw it into myself, but I didn't. The chemical reactions just between our pinkies made me feel butterflies in my stomach. I looked up from our hands to his face. Even in the darkness, with only the intermittent light passing over him, I could feel the intensity of his eyes as they locked with mine. Ryan didn't give it a second thought, as he purposely shifted his hand to my leg and lightly caressed his fingers from my knee to my thigh, then back.

I leaned my head back on the seat and closed my eyes. Do I stop this now before it goes too far? Do I let it continue and see how it plays out? So many questions crossed over my mind as my body still enjoyed the sensations it was feeling from head to toe. I hadn't noticed that Ryan had inched himself closer to me while I was lost in my thoughts and feelings. I didn't know it until I felt his hand move from my leg up to my neck. As he swept my hair to the side, I opened my eyes just as he brought his lips to where my neck and shoulder met.

My reaction was instant as I let out an uncontrollable moan. That was one of my favorite spots where Eric would kiss me. As soon as the thought of Eric crept into my mind, the signals in my body shut off. "Ryan," I said, softly so the driver wouldn't hear, and gave him a light budge to encourage him to stop.

He backed up without resistance but asked with his face mere inches from mine. "Do you want me to stop?"

"No. I mean, yes. I mean, we shouldn't. It's not right," I said, feeling confused.

"Okay. I don't want to do anything you don't want to do yourself." He pulled back further and moved back to his side of the car.

"I'm sorry," I said, feeling guilty for leading him on in any way.

"You don't have to be sorry. You didn't do anything. It was all me." His tone was gentle and genuine.

I fixed my hair and straightened myself up. I brought my hands together and looked back out the window, replaying what had just happened the rest of the ride to the Upton's vineyard.

*******

Eric was right, the vineyard was beautiful. While I couldn't see the grapevines clearly, I could see endless rows in the shadow of the hills their mansion sat on.

Barbara gave us a tour of her home and said she'd show us around the vineyard and winery the next day. The house tour alone seemed endless. I tried paying attention, the best I could, to the details she was giving about various artwork and statues that were placed around the mansion. Still, my mind kept returning me back to that moment in the car. It didn't help that I could feel Ryan's eyes on me when he didn't think I'd notice.

Mrs. Upton ended the tour by showing the three of us to our rooms, which were doors apart. We all thanked her for her hospitality as she bid us goodnight. I said goodnight to the two brothers and closed my door. I tried calling Eric's phone, as I had said I would, but it went straight to voicemail.

While taking a quick shower, thoughts of Ryan and Eric kept running through my mind. What was going on with Ryan? Why was he suddenly so interested in me again? I started getting frustrated at my own thoughts as I wrapped myself in one of their heavenly bathrobes and put my hair up in a towel. As I was putting on a pair of black panties, a light tapping sound came from my bedroom door. I looked at it, wondering if I was hearing things. Then the tapping sound came again.

I threw my bathrobe back on, tied it tight, and answered the door.

It was Ryan!

"Oh! I'm sorry I didn't mean to interrupt you. I can come back," he started, noticing me in my bathrobe.

"No, it's fine. What's up?" I asked, trying to sound casual.

"May I come in for a minute?" he asked in a bashful tone, which wasn't like him.

I looked him over. He, too, had just taken a shower. His hair wasn't slicked back anymore, and he was wearing sweatpants and a mere gray undershirt. I couldn't help but think that he looked even better dressed down. I stepped to the side as I held the door open wider and gestured that he could come in. I closed the door behind him and walked over to the vanity to brush out my hair.

"Did you want something, Mr. Herman?" I tried to keep it professional.

"Yes," He said simply as he watched me braid my hair. "I think I need to explain my actions earlier."

I turned my body around to give him my full attention. "That'd be good."

"Damn it, Vicky! Why did it have to be you?" He sounded almost frustrated.

"Excuse me?"

"You of all people were picked to be my assistant. Why did it have to be you? I swear the universe is seriously testing me."

"Is this your idea of an explanation?"

"I lied to you," he said. I couldn't keep up with him, his thoughts were going everywhere, but I was doing my best to hear his words clearly.

"About what?"

"I do remember, telling you that every girl I've ever fucked, I always imagined they were you. And the reason I said it, was because it's true." Ryan paused, took a deep breath, and sat down at the corner of my bed. I was frozen in my seat at the words I was hearing. I started wondering if he was drunk again, even though I knew he hadn't had a drink all day. "I don't know if you remember this, but you and I have met before. In fact, we were in a lot of the same classes during our freshman year at N.Y.U."

I was pretty sure I'd remember him. I rattled my brain through some of my freshmen memories, but nothing was coming to mind.

"You probably don't remember me," he said as if he heard my thoughts. "I was always sitting towards the back of class, and since you were always in the front, you never really looked back at me, but I could always see you. Not to sound creepy or anything. It was just how the class seats were." He tried to justify himself.

"So, if you sat behind me, how did we meet?"

"Well, on several occasions during our freshman year, you and I attended some of the same dorm parties," he pointed out. "You and I actually talked for hours the night of Walter Mattson's party. We both got pretty high and wasted, so I don't know how much you remember about that night."

As soon as he mentioned Walter Mattson, the memory came flooding back. I couldn't remember who I had talked to, but I did remember having the best conversation with someone. I stared at Ryan in disbelief. "That was you?"

"Yeah. And the same thing happened a few months later at Sydney Whats-her-name's party when we got back to school, after winter break," he added. "Vicky, you were the only girl that I felt so comfortable to be around, to just be me and to tell you everything and anything. You were such a great listener, and you gave me such great advice that got me through a rough time with my parents."

"I did?" I asked, shocked that I did all that, but couldn't remember any of it. "Why didn't you come to talk to me during class, then? I am sure I would have talked to you."

"I tried. Many times. I'd say hello to you as we'd walk into class, and you'd give me a generic hello back, and then turn away from me to go hang out with the other guys around you or your friends. I figured that was you giving me the signal that you weren't interested in me. So I just left you alone. 

"Then I spent Sophomore year studying abroad the whole year, in London and Italy. And by the time I came back to N.Y.U. to finish my junior and senior year, I found out you had a serious boyfriend, who went to Columbia University. I didn't realize it was Eric until I saw him at the bar. Which was one of the reasons I shoved him that night."

"Ryan, I never knew." I moved to sit next to him. "I am sorry if I hurt you in any way back then. I was young and on my own for the first time when I got to N.Y.U. I did a lot of stupid things, and not getting to know you then, seems to be the one to top the list."

"Well, thank you," he said, standing. "And thank you for letting me talk and getting this off my chest. I think we'll have a better working relationship now."

I stood up too, to level myself with him, even though I was still a few inches shorter than he was, without my heels on. "I'm glad to hear that."

At the door, I bid him goodnight and followed it with a friendly hug. Chaste as the embrace was meant to be, once those strong arms wrapped around me, I didn't want it to end. I pulled back to look up at him, our eyes locked, and I knew I was lost. This was wrong for many reasons, every one of them flashing a warning in my mind, yet it was all overshadowed by one thing. The desire I felt for Ryan, that I'd denied since that first kiss.

Without hesitation, I leaned up to touch my lips to his. A tentative kiss at first, as my gut finally overruled my head. Ryan didn't respond for the briefest of moments. Though my tongue slipping past his lips was all the affirmation he seemed to need. His arms wrapped tighter around me, walking me backward toward the bed as we continued to kiss.

I let him untie my robe. It slid itself off my body to pool at my feet, exposing my near-nakedness beneath, to his lustful gaze. As he laid me onto the bed, his mouth wandered from my lips to my neck, finding that same sweet spot that he had kissed earlier. It made me moan and grip the bed cover, with pleasure. One by one, my senses ignited as he made his way down my body, mouth, and hands, exploring all the way down to my thighs, making me moan and push up against him wantonly.

When he stopped, I groaned my displeasure. Looking down to see his fingers rimming along the trim of my underwear. His darkened by desire eyes looking up at me, expectantly. I bit my bottom lip nervously, as I read the unspoken question in his eyes, answering it with a simple nod. My eyes never left his as Ryan's fingers curled around the band of my only scrap of clothing and peeled it off me, slowly.

He got up, hastily removing his clothes. I sucked in a slow breath as I took in his body for the first time, every glorious inch of it. I could see the ripple of muscles as he moved back toward me. He certainly was a beautiful man, even more so with the fire of desire in his eyes. All thought was abandoned the moment his body touched mine, speaking only with hands and lips, our bodies on fire with the passion rising between us.

"Ryan," I whispered his name, needing to be filled completely, making his name sound more like a plea.

His head lifted to look down. "You're sure about this?" he asked, his voice heavy with desire. "Vicky?"

I tried to speak, but all I could manage was a breathy gasp as my name on his swollen kiss lips sent another jolt of desire through me.

"You really won't regret this? Or hate me?"

My only response was to wrap my legs around him and push up against his aroused body. We lost ourselves to each other after that, no thinking, only feeling. My body luxuriated in every touch as we rode out our desire together. And it was heaven.