Chapter 16
SIXTEEN
Bastian
THIS WAS GETTING COMPLICATED.
He’d never refuse any opportunity to dance with Harper, to hold her.
Any excuse to put his arms around her worked for him.
The only downside? The more he held her, the harder it became to comply with his hands-off policy.
Especially when she looked at him with that intimate adoration and pressed her body into his.
“Our families think we’re dating,” he said because they’d have to address it.
One conversation in a hotel basement had flung their lives onto a totally new tangent. Permanently or temporarily? It was no longer a one-off illusion; their connection was turning into something.
Brave and fearless, Harper didn’t shrink. “I know, you don’t have to remind me,” she said, brushing her fingers across his jacket. “Though my parents are out of town, so we’ve caught a break there.”
Standing still on the dance floor was conspicuous. Shit. He picked up the dance again. What was she thinking? Bringing up their families was supposed to start a conversation that would give him an idea of her position.
Being uncomplicated meant not pushing her. It didn’t mean he shouldn’t encourage her to share. Her home life had to be fraught, and it was his job to listen to her worries.
“You’re left at home with Adara?”
“And Carnell, Charissa, and Damon, yes.”
Every time he heard that dickhead’s name, he regretted not taking his chance to punch the jerk. Forget that, Harper was opening up, trusting him, without hesitating. This was good. Time to return the favor.
“I don’t like you staying with him.”
“Damon?” Harper asked. “He wasn’t happy that I was coming here tonight.”
No surprise there. “Damon?”
“Yeah,” she said. “I think he has a little crush on you.”
Didn’t take a genius to figure out the guy’s problem. “Or on you.”
Men like that jerkoff wanted to be important.
They strutted, wanting what they couldn’t have.
It wasn’t about love or lust, it was about control.
He’d wanted Charissa because having two women on the go made him feel important.
It was sickening. Damon probably enjoyed the idea of Harper being heartbroken and humiliated.
The recent hint that maybe Harper was over him and moving on with her life would be piquing Damon’s interest in her again.
Harper wasn’t so quick to accept the possibility Damon wanted her.
“He cheated on me.”
Like that made any difference. Screwing around wasn’t a reflection on Harper, it was another indicator of Damon’s weak personality.
“Doesn’t matter.” He slid his hands lower on her back. “He knows you’ve moved on and that makes you attractive again.”
“So I should have sex with him to prove your point?”
Where the fuck did that come from? Definitely not. What? No! The thought churned his stomach. The idea of any other man touching her was nauseating.
“You should never have sex with him again.”
Or any other man. He left that part out… for now.
“I don’t think there’s any chance of that,” Harper said.
Giving Damon airtime in their conversation would stoke the guy’s ego. Time to move it along.
“Your bruises have faded since the hospital.”
“Yes,” she agreed. “With the wonder of concealer I’m back to normal.”
Deciding to be part of her life when lying in bed in the dark was easy. Coaxing his way into her affections wasn’t as straightforward.
She wouldn’t want a scene and with success came notoriety. Protecting her from the eager attention of others was another priority. That ruled out grand romantic gestures.
Her presence might be a surprise, but it was also an opportunity to ingratiate himself, and betrayed he was still in her thoughts. Good.
It wasn’t on her to make this happen, a man should chase his sweetheart.
“I wanted to call you,” he said. “I planned to leave a respectable interval before hunting down your number. Wouldn’t want you to think I was…?”
“Creepy?” she asked. “That’s nice of you to say, but there was no need to call. I’m fine.”
That had become her catchphrase. And it couldn’t be true given how their last encounter ended.
“You ran out on me,” Bastian said. “We spent the night together, then you ran out on me. There’s something wrong if you felt the need to do that. You didn’t trust me?”
“Trust you?” she said, touching her nose to his lapel, avoiding his gaze. “I woke up on top of you, Bastian. You’re the one who shouldn’t trust me.”
During their shared night, he’d woken with her body covering his. He’d wrapped his arms around her, relishing the intimacy of the possibilities it conjured for their future. For a guy who spent most nights struggling to sleep, it was a relief to find a comfort that relaxed him.
Before Harper, he tossed and turned. Having her in his arms changed all that. Already addicted, the woman was better than any drug. She brought him peace.
“I didn’t mind,” he said in a major understatement. “You kept me warm.”
Her laugh wasn’t more than an exhale but restoring her smile was a helluva reward.
“I’ve never had a mattress with a heartbeat.”
“Any time I can help…”
“You made it!” Carolyn called, dancing closer with his father.
Great time to interrupt their conversation and shatter their intimacy. Thanks came out more like a curse under his breath. His mom had a knack for involving herself in his life at exactly the wrong moment.
As much as he loved his mother, tact wasn’t on her list of admirable qualities. Carolyn was likely to say something that would scare Harper off or give her the wrong idea. That was the last thing they needed.
“Do you need something, Mom?” Bastian asked, minding his manners while landing a glare on the smiling woman who’d birthed him.
“Don’t be rude to your mother,” Harper said, sliding one hand down from his chest to his diaphragm.
That was damn polite, acknowledging Carolyn was more than he wanted to do. Harper’s soothing hand eased some of the irritation. If she wanted him to try harder, he would.
“He was talking about leaving before he spotted you,” Carolyn said. “I don’t think he’ll worry about that now.”
“It’s a wonderful event,” Harper said.
Where did the power of that smile come from? No mistaking it had control of him. That was something he’d consolidate within himself, he wouldn’t fight it.
“This is the girl?” his father asked Carolyn.
So his mom had clued in his dad? No surprise there. Since childhood he’d witnessed his parents on the dance floor whispering, holding each other close. Shouldn’t that affinity give them more consideration for what they’d busted up between him and Harper? Apparently not.
“Oh yes,” Carolyn said, patting her husband’s arm. “This is Harper Scott. Harper this is my husband Thomas, Bastian’s father.”
“Very nice to meet you,” Harper said.
Thomas Hunt took her hand and kissed her knuckles. Man, not a nice sight. Until he had the pleasure of laying his lips on that body, no other man should have the privilege. Taking Harper’s hand from his father, Bastian laid it back on his chest where it belonged.
Thomas’ eyebrow slid up. “Jealous of your dad, son?”
“Just don’t kiss her.”
His family would have a field day with this. He shouldn’t have done something so obvious. Too late to take it back now.
Thomas Hunt’s grin spread. “Carolyn, you were right.”
“Right about what?” Bastian asked, but his parents only smiled. “Do you know what they’re talking about?”
“No idea,” Harper said, but wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation because she was frowning at something beyond them. “Why is there an art exhibit in the corner?”
Harper came to this function for him. That should’ve been obvious from the get-go.
“It’s not an exhibit, it’s an auction for the charity,” Carolyn said. “Bastian can take you over and show you the lots. It’s not just art, there are various donations made by companies and individuals. His sister has already requested the canary diamond. It’s seven carats I believe.”
His sister did have an eye for the shiny, extravagant lots.
“Keely can request all she wants,” Bastian said. Carolyn shook her head and shared a smile with Harper. “What?”
“Nothing,” Harper said, patting his chest.
“He’s already put in a bid for it,” his mom said. True, but how did she know? “Doubt anyone else will top it.”
“Why not?” Harper asked, but no one answered.
“Unless perhaps Roxanna wants it,” Thomas said. “Her and Zairn are on the dance floor.”
“First public appearance since the wedding,” Carolyn added. “Rubies are more her thing, and Zairn gave her jewels for their nuptials.”
Thomas took his wife back into his arms. “You two enjoy yourselves.”
When his parents were mingled in with the crowd again, Harper asked, “Is your sister here?”
Keely was a society princess; functions like this were the highlight of her week.
“Somewhere,” Bastian said. “She’ll introduce herself when she finds you. She has no shame.”
His sister brimmed with optimism and had all the patience he lacked.
“She gets that from your mother, I suppose,” Harper said. “Which reminds me, your mother was talking about The Faith Wish Foundation. I told her I could hook it into the Charity Launch Circulator, a newsletter shared by coordinators. If the charity gets the nod in there it will automatically be—”
“Talking about it when?” It hadn’t come up in the car on the way back from the hospital. Her mouth snapped shut and her nose touched his lapel again. Suspicion deepened his voice. “Harper, talking about it when?”
“At lunch.”
Fuck. He almost didn’t believe it. Almost. Except his mom was more than capable of sneaking around behind his back, especially when it came to his personal life.
Harper wouldn’t have sought Carolyn out, no way, of that he was sure. But his mom, yep, no doubt about it, she loved to meddle.
“You had lunch with my mom?”
Paling, she became rigid in his arms. “I thought she would’ve mentioned it.”
“Damn, what did she say to you? She told you about tonight?”
“Yes.”
The pieces fell into place. Harper was here because his mom had encouraged her to come.
Under normal circumstances, he would give his mom shit for interfering.
This time the impulse was less certain. Having Harper there worked for him.
He couldn’t be too mad about it. Not that he’d show his mom any overt gratitude, she didn’t need the encouragement.
One thing he didn’t like? A meeting occurring without his knowledge. God only knew what his mom said.
“My mom can be intense… she’s worried about me, or she claims to be. She wants grandkids.”
Harper relaxed, hitting him with a zing of pride. “Don’t worry, I told her we weren’t long-term.”
Damn, why would she have to tell Carolyn that? The conversation must’ve been more than charities and functions.
“You did?”
Some of her confidence became confusion. “Well, I tried to but…”
That didn’t bode well. Once his mom decided to hear one thing, convincing her of another was difficult.
“But what?”
Her head tilted. “I think she thinks we’re fuck buddies.”
“That’s much better,” Bastian said insincerely.
Never had those two words together entered his mind along with Harper’s name. But he had to give her credit, saying them at the first luncheon the women shared proved Harper had cojones.
Unless…
“Were you alone at lunch?” he asked. “Or was there a newly-minted Mrs. Lomond at the table?”
She winced. “They’re hyphenating.”
Bingo. So she hadn’t known Roxie before, but she did now.
“Roxie’s not my biggest fan.”
While his mom talked him up, it was just as likely Roxie talked him down.
“She thinks you’re too good to be true,” Harper explained, much to his surprise. “She doesn’t dislike you, just worried one of her girls might fall for you and be disappointed.” Another smile glittered. “I don’t think it would be possible for you to disappoint anyone.”
And she was the one person he didn’t want to disappoint. Chances were high that Harper didn’t realize she was now one of Roxie’s girls too. Mrs. Lomond—sorry, Mrs. Kyst-Lomond, didn’t take long to adopt women into her circle.
“Roxie’s as full on as my mother.”
“I like Roxie, but I am worried about your mom?”
“Worried about her?”
“I told her we were friends and that she shouldn’t make assumptions.
But she kind of cut me off and said you weren’t interested in shallow acquaintances.
I didn’t want to disappoint her by telling her straight, Bastian.
She loves you so much and I… I didn’t want to get her hopes up.
I couldn’t lie to her either. She said you cared about me, and asked if I cared about you and—”
“I’m going to kill her,” Bastian grumbled.
How dare his mom be so blatant in her questioning. Carolyn wasn’t a deceptive person, but she was usually more discreet than to interrogate his girlfriends. This wouldn’t wait.
Snatching Harper’s hand to hurry them off the dance floor, his long strides couldn’t get them there quick enough. Trotting behind him, Harper kept up without much of a choice to do otherwise.
“Stop it!” Harper said, trying to break free.
Emotions were running too high for him to just stop. His mom’s interfering was too much, he’d told her plenty of times to keep her nose out. This time she’d gone too far.
“She had no right—”
“You’re hurting me,” Harper said.
That changed the game. His fury hooked a hairpin. The whimper in her voice stopped him immediately. In apology and reassurance, he looped an arm around her, keeping her against his side.
Turned out the journey was over anyway. His mom and father approached and may not get the reception they expected. His mom had to stay away from Harper and quit interfering. He’d make that clear. Harper had enough trouble with her own family. She shouldn’t be getting it from his side too.
Without his express permission, his mom shouldn’t be anywhere near his woman. Sharing lunch with Harper wasn’t a pleasure he’d had. It was wrong his mom got to date his girlfriend before he did.
“I’m going to kill her,” he muttered with renewed annoyance when his parents weren’t four feet from his side. “Mom—”
Harper snatched his face and pulled him downward until the cushion of her lips caught his.
Awareness was instantly visceral. That sweet little body of hers bowed beneath his.
Her hands slid to the back of his neck, pulling him down to urge herself up higher as he tasted her mouth for the first time.