Don’t Poke The Bear

Chapter 2 The Wolf/Francessca

How it all started 5 years earlier..

POV The Wolf/Francessca

I hadn’t even been thinking about dating since I split up with my ex Oscar and here I was having s*x with a hot stranger in my office with my assistant just outside the door. But who could blame me? This guy was absolutely gorgeous and incredibly sweet. I hadn’t even looked at another guy since I called off my wedding and it wasn’t because I was heart broken, it was because I was so busy with other s**t in my life. But as soon as I seen this gorgeous man it had ignited my s*x drive, so here I was on my desk riding his c**k like my life depended on it and he looked just as shocked as I was.

Sex with my ex Oscar had never been mind blowing and we were only engaged for a few months when I realised that he wasn’t the kind of man I wanted to be with. Don’t get me wrong he was handsome and fun, but we were too different to make it work. Firstly he didn’t have my work ethic. Oscar floated around spending his family money because he only worked a couple of days a week. He preferred to spend his time on the golf course and although he was a nice guy, I wanted a real man and my idea of a real man was hard working and self made, not someone that had to ask his father if he could buy him a new car. I had only agreed to marry him because I had just turned 25 and all my friends were settling down. His proposal wasn’t even romantic. I went up to his office to meet him for lunch and the restaurant had cancelled his booking so he just went down on one knee right there by his desk, I said yes but I started to lose respect for him when I realised that he was a selfish brat. The final straw came when he told me he didn’t like how close I was to my family. He was an only child and I was one of 10 kids. We were brought up to share everything we had with each other and when our mother died when I was a teenager it brought us all even closer together but my ex fiancée Oscar was brought up spoiled and it wasn’t a good trait. We finally split up because he said I put my brother Teddy’s needs before his and I lost my temper and told him that I didn’t want to be with him. My siblings were my whole world especially my brother Teddy and Oscar was shocked when I threw him out of my house. He text me later that week to apologise and asked me to take him back but even that irritated me. I wanted the kind of man that would show up at your door and beg for another chance but he just sent a sad little text and I knew it was really over between us.

A few months passed and I had thrown myself into work. I worked with my brothers for our family company Archer Hotels. We built and owned hotels and we were incredibly successful. We bought land and built hotels all over the world but our head office was in London so I spent most of my time there and let my brothers travel for work. One afternoon I had a meeting about some land I wanted to purchase in Italy, but this land was different because it wasn’t for us to build on. It was a very sentimental place for me and my siblings and we wanted to make it a memorial site for our mummy. She had always said it was her happy place and I could see why because the view of the Mediterranean sea was breath taking. I was in my office before my meeting about us purchasing the land with my assistant Gill, she was rubbing her huge pregnant belly as we drank cups of tea. She still had two more months left before her maternity leave began but she looked like she could have gave birth at any moment. Gill was more than an employee to me because we had become good friends over the years. She was just a little older than me and although I was happy for her, it made me feel a bit sad that I was no where close to settling down and starting a family of my own. I confided in her that I had become a bit lonely since I split up with my ex Oscar and she said that I should get out there and start dating again. I knew she was right but I felt like I didn’t have the time to go on date’s because I worked so hard for my family business and I had lots of family commitments. I was in bed every night by 7.30 pm because I was so exhausted. I actually went to see my doctor to ask if there was something wrong with me and he told me that I was burning myself out and that I had to relax. I often thought about buying a holiday home in Italy where my mother had grown up but I knew that I would never have the time to use it. My oldest brother had built a home there when he semi-retired and I could immediately see a change in his mental health and I wondered if it could be the same for me. Gill and I finished our tea and I asked her where she had put the files I had asked her to copy for me. Gill pulled a face and I knew that she had forgot to do it. “I’m so sorry Frankie, I must have baby brain I totally forgot” I couldn’t help but laugh “Oh Gill, don’t worry, I’ll go to the copy room and do it now. You should stay here and rest for a while” She lay back on the small sofa in the corner of my office as I headed along the hallway to the copy room. I walked by two men that worked for us and they both looked rather panicked “Hello Miss Archer” one of them said and I could tell that he was intimidated by me, so I politely nodded my head at him and carried on down the hallway. I knew I had a reputation for being cut throat in our negotiations which I thought was rather unfair because my brothers were worse than me, but because they were men they were respected for it and because I was a woman I was known as being a b***h. I knew I could be demanding but it was because I was a bit of a perfectionist not because I was a controlling b***h. I opened the door to the copy room but before I went inside I noticed a young guy talking to my receptionist at the top of the hallway. He was strikingly handsome with his blonde short hair, broad shoulders and sharp grey suit. I could see my receptionist flicking her hair and smiling at him and I couldn’t blame her for flirting because he was s*x on legs. I looked him up and down taking in his fantastic physique before I reminded myself that I had a meeting to prepare for. I went into the copy room and flicked around with the machine before it finally came to life and started to spew out more copies than I needed. I couldn’t help but swear out loud as the copier ran out of paper. I pulled up my pencil skirt a little and climbed up the step ladder to grab a fresh pile of paper. It was difficult to move in my tight skirt and high heels and I let out an over the top sigh and swore again as I tried to get down. I hadn’t realised that I had left the door to the copy room open so when I heard a voice ask if I needed a hand I almost jumped out of my skin and I dropped all of the paper onto the floor. I was livid at my own clumsiness but I was also mad at whoever it was that had gave me a fright. When I darted my eyes to the door to give them a piece of my mind my mood immediately changed because it was the very handsome man that my receptionist had been flirting with. He stepped into the room and bent down to pick up the paper I had dropped “I’m sorry Ma’am, I didn’t mean to scare you” he said and I was surprised by his sexy Texas accent. “Let me help you with these papers” he said and I stood half way up the steps staring down at him. When he had collected them all he stood up straight and I hadn’t realised how tall he was before but now I could see him up close he was tall and I could tell he was muscular under his suit. “I’m sorry I gave you a fright ma’am.. I’m just a little lost” His sexy accent and his beautiful perfect white smile and huge dimples had me lost for words. He stared down at my skirt that I had pulled up to climb the stepladders and I was horrified that he could clearly see the top of my stockings and suspenders. I quickly adjusted my skirt and as I climbed down he put out his hand to help me. He really was a southern gentleman and you don’t find many of them in London. “Thank you” I said as we both stood smiling at each other. I noticed that he was slightly blushing and I wondered if it was because he had seen up my skirt or if it was because I had been swearing my head off before he came in the room. “The copier ran out of paper.. so I had to climb up there to get some more.. it’s a bloody health hazard. I should speak to the boss about that. Someone could break their neck” I said with a smile because I was the boss and he let out a hearty laugh. “It always tickles me when a beautiful girl swears…you’re as cute as a bugs ear with the mouth of a trucker” he said and I could feel that I was the one that was blushing. I couldn’t believe that this unbelievably sexy man said I was beautiful. I stared into his gorgeous green eyes and batted my eyelashes and he immediately looked away and I wasn’t sure if I made him nervous or that he just wasn’t that interested in me. He looked at the copier and said “no wonder you ran out of paper, this here says you need 500 copies” I felt my cheeks burn with embarrassment “oh no, I’m such a f*****g i***t. I only needed 5 copies” He looked at me and laughed again. “You and that potty mouth” he said staring at my lips. This guy was like a wet dream come to life. He turned his attention back to the machine and pressed a few buttons “that’s it cancelled for you ma’am. Have you just started working here?” He asked and I could tell that he thought I was an i***t that couldn’t even make a few photo copies but I didn’t care because he was out of this world. “No I’ve been working here since the very beginning” He gave me another one of his gorgeous smiles. “Well I don’t think you should be hiding away in here, I think a beautiful girl like you should be out there at the front desk. The women out there are friendly.. but I think people would smile a little bit more if you were out there” That was the second time he told me I was beautiful and I had to remember to breath because he literally took my breath away. “And what is it you do here? I don’t think I’ve seen you here before” I asked. I was trying to play it cool but I thought he could see right through my bullshit. “I don’t work here ma’am, I’m here for a meeting with the owners of the company about some land I’m selling in Italy. I heard the owners are a tough bunch of sons of a bitches. Is it right that they all are family and that they have animal nicknames? My brother Jack warned me not to be too intimidated by them, but to tell you the truth I’m nervous to face them on my own” I let out a little giggle because I liked how open he was about how he was feelings and that he clearly just thought I was the copy girl that couldn’t work the copier. “I’m sure they won’t be too hard on you. They’re always nice to me” His lip curled up into a smile “who wouldn’t be nice to a beautiful girl like you?” That was the third time he told me I was beautiful, but it wasn’t in a sleazy over the top way. He seemed like a really nice guy and within the few minutes of us chatting he had broke eye contact with me at least 5 times. He didn’t know who I was and he still seemed nervous to talk to me and I liked that I had that effect on him. “My brother Jack couldn’t make it today but he said I should stay clear of the Beast and the Wolf. I thought he was pulling my leg but I spoke to the receptionist out there and she said the same thing. Apparently the Wolf is the worst one. I hope he’s not here today” I had to stop myself from smiling. My mum had gave us all animal nicknames when we were babies. There was The Beast he is the oldest and the head of the family. His twin brother (Teddy) Bear, who was my absolute favourite. Then there is Lion, Monkey,Tiger, Fox, Wolf, Mamba and then our little sisters Kitten and Bunny. I still treated Kitten like a baby but they were only a few years younger than me. This beautiful man looked terrified to face us and I couldn’t blame him because we could be a lot to handle especially when we were all together. He was lucky that The Beast was in Italy with Teddy Bear for a few weeks because my oldest brother would have ate him for breakfast. “You don’t have anything to worry about. Let me show you to the meeting room, they will be waiting for you” he glanced down at his watch and he looked alarmed. “Oh Jesus, my brother warned me not to be late for them. He’ll kill me if I mess this up” I could see his hands tremble and my heart went out to him. “Come on, let me walk with you, I’ll explain that you are late because you were helping me” His smile faded a little as we walked along the corridor together. “So I’ve heard some stories about this family, and you say you can just walk in there and tell them that you’re the reason why I’m late? They must really like you” I nodded my head. “I’m sorry, I haven’t even introduced myself” I said as I opened the huge glass doors into the board room. My brothers Lion and Monkey both turned to stare at this gorgeous man and they looked like they wanted blood. This was our way of negotiating. There was no good cop/bad cop. We just all ganged up together and we always got what we wanted. “This is Lion and Monkey” I said and I turned to my brothers “wipe those f*****g looks off your faces” I said as I pointed at them both and they dragged their eyes off him. I turned to him and said “and I’m Wolf but you can call me Frankie” His face was suddenly pale as he stuttered out an apology “I’m sorry for what I said back there.. my brother told me The Wolf could be intimidating.. I automatically thought it was a man.. Jesus.. I shouldn’t have told you that..” I walked around the table and gestured for him to sit down across from me. “Please don’t apologise, my brothers aren’t staying for the meeting. They are just about to leave” Lion and Monkey didn’t need any more encouragement. I loved them both dearly but I could tell that they had already started their weekend of drinking at lunch time and I wanted to be alone with this hot stud because I didn’t want to flirt with him front of my brothers. “We’re going to the bar Wolfie, come and find us when you’re done here” said Lion as they both merely left us alone. As soon as they were both out of ear shot I turned to him and said “I’m sorry I didn’t catch your name?” He sat forward and put his hand out for me to shake it. “Where are my manners Miss Archer? My mama would slap my head if she could see me now. I’m Ashton Owen. I’m here representing….” I shook his hand and then I put my hand up for him to stop talking and I was surprised by how quickly he obeyed me. “It’s nice to meet you Ashton. So how much would your brother accept for this piece of land?” His eyebrows shot up because he clearly wasn’t expecting me to get right down to business but I wanted to get it out of the way as soon as I could. He stuttered and squirmed in his chair before he finally spoke. “He told me to let you tell me your opening offer first.” His face broke into a small smile and when I didn’t smile back he immediately broke eye contact with me. I leaned across the table “Ashton, let’s cut the bullshit. Your brother must have told you a minimum offer that he’s willing to accept and I don’t have time to sit here going back and forward, so tell me and I will make this as painless as I possibly can for you” He took a deep breath and said “£750,000 is the minimum” I had to congratulate myself for getting the information out of him so easily. “Well I’m willing to offer £800,000, that way we will both be happy and if I ever meet your brother I’ll let him know that you wore me down until I gave into you” He gave me a huge smile and leaned across the table. “Well, Miss Archer you have yourself a deal. But I don’t think he’ll believe you” he said as we shook hands on our agreement. “And why is that?” I asked “Because you are a spitfire Miss Archer and he knows I’m as soft as Georgia peach” He finally looked me in the eye and I couldn’t help but say “I’d love to try a Georgia peach” He blushed as his mouth hung open. The s****l innuendo was not lost on him. “Well Ashton, I will have my people draw up the papers and send it to over to your company. And if that’s all for today I will let you go.. enjoy your weekend” I stood up and smoothed down my skirt and a look of panic crossed his face as he stood up too “I hope you don’t find me too forward Miss Archer, but you are by far the most beautiful woman I have ever met and I would love it if you could accompany me to dinner tonight…or tomorrow.. or whenever you’re free” I loved how shy he seemed and it tickled me that this incredible man was asking me out because that never happened to me. I knew I could be a bit intimidating and I don’t think that most men liked a strong women. “As a date?” I asked and his face was red from blushing as he nodded his head “Well Ashton, it would be my pleasure” I said imitating his southern accent. He threw his head back and laughed and when he regained his composure he looked me dead in the eye and said “get your coat love, let me take you for a pint” in possibly the best London accent I had ever heard. I was stunned for a moment, had he been pretending to be American the entire time? “That was good, you sound just like me” He shyly smiled “well my daddy is from the east end of London ma’am. He moved to Texas to be with my mama. I think that’s why I like it so much here. I only moved here recently after a bad break up but everybody sure are friendly here” I looked him up and down to take in just how gorgeous he was. He was shy and he obviously didn’t know the effect he had on women. “I’m glad you like it here.” He c****d his head to the side “it’s a great city, but I can’t get used to all the rain, but you sure have brightened my day…. So are you free tonight?” His face looked so hopeful and I was relieved that my brother Teddy was away in Italy so I had my whole house to myself for a change. I planned on letting this handsome young man take me out for a free meal and then screw his brains out. The lack of s*x over the past few months, mixed with him being possibly the most handsome man I had ever met had stirred my hormones up into a frenzy. I walked around the table towards him and he watched my every move. “Yes I’m free tonight” I said as I stood in front of him. I started to play with his tie and the expression on his face made me want to laugh but I managed to suppress it. He looked shocked and turned on and I decided I couldn’t wait another minute. I wanted him there and then.