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I glare back at her, wondering if she’s screwing with me. “Did you seriously go swimming in the sea at this hour?”
“Yeah.” She giggles. “It’s actually quite refreshing. You should try it.”
And she thinks she doesn’t purposely go looking for trouble?
She is going to be the death of me. If she keeps on like this I’ll have a full head of gray hair by Christmas. Between the craziness and the constant arousal it’s going to do me in.
“Why do you need luck? Can’t you just buy a rabbit foot like everyone else? Or a horseshoe?”
She looks more serious, as if she’s going to tell me something important. “I think I’m going to need a little more than that to get the PR job.”
I intensify my stare. “You did that for the job?”
“I did. Now I just have to see if it worked.” She gives me a coy smile and lifts her shoulders into a sassy shrug.
I breathe out a haggard sigh, feeling as worn as the air expelling from my lungs. After talking to Layla earlier I thought about the job a little more and decided to give Harper a chance. It would be silly not to. I also thought it would be selfish to stop her from getting a job simply because I was worried about seeing her at work.
“You can have the job.”
Her face brightens instantly and her eyes become more alive with hope. “Oh my gosh! Thank you so much. I swear I won’t let you down. When can I start?”
“Come by the office Thursday and Layla will walk you through everything.”
“Thank you and wow, I’m going to be working at Le Blanche Global.”
I smile back at her. “Looks that way. And now you have a job does that help solve some of your worries?”
She looks serious again but nods. “It does. It means I can… get my own place soon.”
My heartbeat slows and something inside me twists from the thought of her leaving. “We agreed you could stay.”
“Yes, but I can’t exactly stick around if you’re getting married.”
One thing about Harper, she’s not the kind to beat around the bush when she either wants something or finds out a secret. I guess it’s not really a secret, though.
“I heard you on the phone last night,” she explains. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Because I don’t even know who I’m getting married to yet.“There was a lot going on. I wanted you to settle in first. I also didn’t want you to feel like this—like you had to move out.”Nice save, Asher.Thank God my mind never fails me.
“I understand but you still should have told me. Am I the reason your fiancée hasn’t been by to see you? And I guess that’s why Olga used to look at me like I was here to cause trouble.”
“No, you’re not the reason my fiancée hasn’t been here.” It feels so weird and wrong saying that word. Probably because I’m lying. “And Olga is always like that. She just takes some getting used to.”
Shit, this is a fucking disaster. Harper thinks I have an actual fiancée, my father thinks Harper would be a great option for apotential wife, and Layla wants me to fake date Harper. How did things get more complicated than they already were?
“I’m glad I’m not the reason. I would have felt worse for the upheaval I’ve caused in your life. But… I’m happy for you. Congratulations.” Although she smiles her eyes carry a wealth of dullness and regret.
I want to say something—even thanks—but all I can do is stare at her as everything rushes back to me.
I think of all the years I’ve known her and that disastrous night when I nearly lost her. That night I rejected what I desperately wanted—her.
Now, like some cruel twist of fate, she’s here congratulating me because she thinks I’m getting married. And she can’t remember how she feels about me.
“Thanks.” I finally speak. Sayingthanksis the best thing I can think of because it’s what you say when someone congratulates you.
It’s also best that I don’t make her any the wiser that Idon’thave a fiancée so that when I do get one, I won’t have to give any unnecessary explanations.
Harper gives me a small smile, picks up her book and walks around to me. Then she stands on the tips of her toes and plants a little kiss on my cheek.
