I quickly looked up and was greeted with a pair of gorgeous deep blue eyes. The doorframe shadowed the man's tall and well-built frame, but I could still easily see the charming smile on his handsome face and the way his short wavy black hair was neatly styled. A much too tight black tee shirt hugged his bronzed muscular biceps, and tight beige pants clung to his thighs, with black winklepicker boots poking out from beneath the pantlegs. 

"Certainly, you must be the two American girls who have come to work over the summer." He stated with confidence, glancing back and forth between us with a conceited-looking smirk. He then kissed the back of my hand while maintaining eye contact, his lips lingering a bit too long.

...What the actual hell?

"Ehem." I pretended to clear my throat, trying not to seem too weirded out by this man's strangely intimate greeting. "Yes, that's us. I'm Isabelle, and this is Becca." I awkwardly glanced over my shoulder at her with a 'help me' expression, only to find that she looked jealous... Seethingly jealous.

Oh, lord love a duck...

"Ah, Isabelle Rosetti. The little rose." He mused with a slight chuckle. "I read your application... thoroughly." I pried my eyes away from Becca's glower and back over to his coquettish smirk. "My name is Bogdan. I help my bunica manage the vineyard... And do all the heavy lifting around here." He egotistically grinned while flexing his pectoral muscles. I leaned back a bit while shifting my eyes all around, seriously wishing that this guy wasn't still holding my hand. 

...Why the fuck didn't I go to Sicily?

"Did you read my application? The one for Rebecca Bramson?" Becca asked with an overly sweet-sounding voice. She was clearly trying to be flirtatious and practically drooling over his somewhat pretentious display of muscles.

"I did." He curtly replied, seeming to frustrate her. "Now, come in, come in. Don't worry about your bags, I'll collect them for you later. But for now, let's introduce you two to Bunica Brindusa, the owner."  

Without letting go of my hand, he swiftly dragged me in through the doorway. Becca followed closely behind as we entered a homey little living room. There was a breathtakingly beautiful hand-woven floral rug on the floor, a comfortable-looking beige sofa with two matching chairs, and a round wooden coffee table with a crystal vase of freshly picked flowers in the center. The fireplace, though not in use this time of year, was massive and very rustic, made from the same stone as the walls. A large antique bookcase decorated the far wall, while silky white curtains embellished the windows.

"It's lovely in here." I mentioned, noticing that there was wolfsbane laid along every windowsill. "I like the flowers in the window."

"I think it's stuffy..." Becca quietly grumbled.

"Yes, my Bunica is very particular about the wolfsbane. It's on every windowsill and should not be moved." Bogdan replied. The wooden floor planks creaked beneath our feet as we walked across the room. "Your room is upstairs." He pointed to a beautiful oak stairwell. "But I'll show you that and the kitchen once I'm giving you the official tour."

"Will we have to share a room?" Becca curiously inquired, as we approached what I assumed to be the backdoor.

Please say no... Please say no... Please say no...

"Yes." He shortly replied without even glancing her way.

Dammit...

He finally let go of my hand, and we exited out the backdoor, leading onto a beautiful garden patio. Much like the front yard, bees were bumbling and bugs buzzed all around a colorful array of blooming flowers. A variety of birds flitted and flapped, pecking at seeds from multiple bird feeders placed within the blooms. 

I excitedly glanced around taking note of every different species of bird. One of my two goals for this trip was to see a hoopoes, so I could sketch it into my bird journal. To my disappointment, I didn't see any, but I was hopeful that I would before the end of this trip. 

Looking beyond the flowers, there was a magnificent view of the grape fields and the vast shadowy forestland surrounding them. A few roe deer were peacefully grazing within a rather large amount of wolfsbane lining the forest's edge. The whole scene was incredibly picturesque and tranquil. 

"Ah! There they are!" An elderly woman, who I didn't immediately notice, enthusiastically exclaimed, startling me near to death. 

She swiftly placed her glass of red wine and gardening magazine on a small table beside her, then energetically jumped up from the wooden rocking chair she was sitting in. I was honestly surprised that someone of her age could move like that. Her long white hair was swirled into a big neat bun on top of her head. She wore a scarlet ornamental scarf around her neck, matching her red rose embroidered white shirt and long colorful skirt. The style reminded me of a classic gypsy.

"You must be Isabelle and Rebecca." She warmly smiled at both of us. "Welcome, welcome! And thank you for coming! I could really use the extra help around here!" She joyously laughed with a child-like twinkle in her deep blue eyes.

"It's wonderful to meet you, Bunica Brindusa. I'm Isabelle." I said with a genuine smile while shaking her hand, instantly taking a liking to her. "I'm really looking forward to learning all about the vineyard... And also to stomp on some grapes." A small laugh bubbled out of me. Stomping on grapes was my second goal for this trip. It just seemed like such a fun thing to do.

"You've surely come to the right place then!" She answered with amusement. 

Her and Bogdan both joined in with my laughter, but not Becca. She was too busy scowling. I glanced over at Bogdan and caught him very blatantly staring at me with lustful smickering eyes.

"Well, this is wonderful!" Bunica Brindusa cheered. "Oh, and you may call me just Bunica if you'd like. No need to say my full name every time. Besides, I rather like being called Bunica. It means grandmother, you know?" She said with a wink.

"Oh thank god." Becca sighed in relief. "That would have gotten real old, real quick. Also, you can call me Becca." She added. 

"Alright, Becca. So I shall." Bunica kindly stated. "Ah! One more thing!" She playfully held up a finger, then grabbed a small wooden box off of the table while saying something to Bogdan in Romanian. She had such impressive English, I'd almost forgotten that she wouldn't normally be speaking it.

Bogdan nodded, then took the box, opening it to reveal two silver cross necklaces. I quickly noticed that both Bunica and him were wearing similar ones. "Bunica is a bit superstitious, like most extremely old people are." He cheekily grinned.

Bunica hastily rolled up her magazine, then smacked him in the back of the head with it while saying something threatening sounding in Romanian. I had to bite my lower lip to help snuffle my laughter.

"Ow! Bunica!" He quickly grumbled. "So..." His voice drawled, as he glared at his grandmother. "We ask that you wear these at all times while you're here." He offered the box out towards us.

"I already have a cross, but are those ones real silver?" Becca inquired while inspecting the jewelry with greedy ogling eyes.

Bogdan chuckled with an amused gleam as if he knew something we didn't. "There'd be no point in wearing them if they weren't."

Without any hesitation, she avariciously snatched the larger of the two up, and hastily clasped it around her neck. As I less enthusiastically reached out for the remaining piece, Bogdan swiftly pulled it out for me before I could reach it. 

"Allow me." He said with a charming grin, then boldly began putting it around my neck before I could even respond, further enraging Becca.

"Oh, well okay then." I nervously giggled, unsure of what else to do. 

His large warm hands lingered on my skin as he slowly clasped the necklace into place. Don't get me wrong, he was a very good-looking guy, but his unusually bold and downright weird behavior was creeping me out a bit. Not to mention the fact that I was in no way interested in developing a romance with anyone, especially not him. I was more of the one night stand type anyways, and the thought of committing to another person made me want to puke.

"Now, you'll probably notice that there is no cell service here." Bunica began to explain. "The town library is only a twenty minute walk from here. There's internet and a landline which you can use there."

We actually have to walk to the library for that!? I knew this place was old-fashioned, but yikes!

"What!?" Becca angrily blurted out.

"If you do go into town, we ask that you return to the vineyard before sunset." Bunica continued, ignoring Becca.

Becca looked outraged, with her face turning rubescent and venom in her narrowed gaze. "Are you seriously giving us a curfew too!? That's ridiculous! Why-"

"It's for your safety." Bogdan firmly answered with a deep tone, cutting her off and shutting her up. "We have a bit of a wolf problem out here, and so, it's best to stay indoors after dark." He walked past me and dramatically gazed out towards the forest as if he were remembering something painful. "Don't worry too much about it though. I always keep my gun nearby, so if I see one I'll take care of it." He looked back at me and spoke with unsettling darkness in his voice. "I'm determined to completely rid these lands of those odious vermin before I die."

Good grief, this guy really does not like wolves...

Bunica and Bogdan continued to give us all the necessary information about staying at the vineyard and some details about our job. Then Bogdan gave us a rather entertaining and quirky tour of the property. Although I wasn't actually interested in him, I still didn't turn down his many flirtatious advancements, considering how they pissed Becca off so much.

Once our tour was done, we were allowed to relax and settle in for the rest of the afternoon. Then we were served the best borscht I'd ever tasted for dinner... Although, Becca still managed to complain about it. 

And so began my Moldavian summer work trip.