Harper stood before the mirror wearing the dress I had ordered for her when I walked back into the room. When I saw her, my mind went blank. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Her hair was pinned up and she had done something classic with her makeup that made her green eyes look larger and brighter than ever before.

And that dress on her. Fuck. She was a vision in black lace. When I had seen the dress in a boutique window I’d thought she would look fantastic in it, but I never would have dreamed she would look this good in it. She wore the dress like she was doing it a favor. It was like the dress had been designed especially for her. And better still, she knew she looked good.

Harper’s entire attitude had changed now that she was wearing the dress. She carried herself with more elegance and grace than usual, and her legs were long and slender, emphasized even more by the black heels. Taking her out looking like that would turn every head in town, and I would be proud to have her on my arm.

I was always proud to have her with me, but looking like this, I was a lucky, lucky man.

Earlier, when I had put on the suit while she was out on a phone call, she had looked surprised to see me dressed up. I didn’t usually dress up like this, but I had to admit it felt great, especially when she looked so good. I liked matching her. It was clear that whatever her conversation had been about had gotten her down. I could guess what it had been about, but now she looked excited, curious and bright. When I had told her I wanted to take her out she had seemed surprised that it was her I was planning on spoiling. Like she had thought I would find another woman while I was here with her. As if any other woman would compare to her.

“What is all this about?” she asked.

“I want to take you out to dinner,” I said. “I want to give you a taste of the fancy life you and I could have.”

Harper frowned. “The life we could have?” she asked. “Caden, I don’t know if I can do this.”

“Don’t think about it,” I said. I hadn’t meant to push her and make her shut down again. “Let me say it differently—I want to spoil you.”

She relaxed when I changed my sentence and I let it slide. I wanted to show her that I could make her happy if she decided to be my wife, but it had come out all wrong. I didn’t want her to think that this was about the money. It was about Harper. I was starting to realize that I liked her. I more than liked her. I wanted to be with her and I didn’t want to fake it. But I couldn’t say that to her outright. We had known each other for a year, but it had only become more over the past week. I couldn’t just tell her that I had changed my mind about her.

I couldn’t tell her that I wouldn’t mind at all if she ended up being my wife for real.

So, instead of telling her what she was starting to mean to me, I wanted to show her.

We headed out of the hotel and climbed into the car I had ordered for us. It was a fancy car, something better than I would have ordered for any other occasion. The car was black and the driver opened the doors for us so Harper and I could slip into the backseat. The door closed behind us with an expensive clunk and a moment later the engine purred to life.

“This is amazing,” Harper said, running her hand over the leather seat.

“It is,” I said, but my eyes were on her. When she realized I was looking at her, she blushed. She was so fucking beautiful when she blushed, I just couldn’t get enough of her. I couldn’t get enough of making her blush, of making her cheeks flush and her eyes sparkle. I loved seeing her shy smile and watch her eyes slide to the side when she didn’t know how to respond to what I was saying.

The car pulled up in front of a five-star restaurant. It was one of the best in LA according to every review I’d read. I climbed out of the car and offered Harper a hand. When we stood, I offered her my arm and we walked to the door together.

We were soon taken to the table I had reserved and sat down.

“This place is incredible,” Harper said, after we had sat down. I had to agree. The place was decorated with light wood, white finishes and sunken lights that gave the dining room a romantic feel. Soft music floated from invisible speakers, and the waiters wore silver waistcoats and polished shoes.

We ordered wine and appetizers, then started talking.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” I said, after we had been on the topic of love and relationships for a while.

“I guess,” Harper said, but she seemed suspicious.

“Why have you never had a boyfriend?”

Harper took a sip of her wine before she answered. “I guess I’ve never needed one. I’m my own person. I have my own life and it seems pointless to have to answer to someone else when I’m perfectly happy on my own.”

I nodded, though I didn’t think she was telling me the full story. It wasn’t that I thought she was lying, there was no question she was an independent woman. But there had to be more to the story. Maybe she didn’t even know it herself.

“And if you met the right person?” I asked.

Harper pulled up her shoulders. “I don’t know. I guess it would be different, then. But I haven’t been on a lot of great dates, to be honest. Oddly enough, my time with you, where it’s all been fake, has been a lot more fun than anything that was supposed to be real.”

I chuckled, but I didn’t tell Harper what I was thinking. This might have all been pretending up until now, but it was becoming real to me. I had hoped by asking about the ‘right one’ that the conversation would steer in a direction where I could tell her that. But it hadn’t gone that way and I didn’t know how to do it now.

Instead, I would just have to keep showing her how I felt about her.

The rest of the night was wonderful. The appetizers were amazing, the entrées excellent, and the desserts couldn’t have been better if angels had crafted them. I had told Harper I wanted to show her a taste of what life could be like, but I was getting a feel for what it would be like, too. I really wanted that money now.

There was still no question in my mind which I would choose if I had to pick between Harper and the money. She was very quickly coming to mean a lot more to me than I had expected, and even though I wanted that money, I wanted her more. Money didn’t mean nearly as much to me as a meaningful relationship.

Harper was terrified about the contract clause about getting married to get the money. It had caught me off guard, too. I had thought that proving to Danbury we were engaged would be enough for the man to assume belief we were getting married and hand over the cash. I hadn’t thought that Danbury would think that someone might fake an engagement to collect. Maybe that happened a lot.

When I’d found out about the marriage requirement and had some time to think about what it would mean, I hadn’t freaked out about it. I realized that I didn’t hate the idea of being married to Harper. That was when I finally admitted to myself that I had feelings for Harper, and that she had become more to me than just the colleague she had always been. Harper was scared of committing to me for the sake of the money. I was more than happy to jump into it because I knew that with Harper, I would live a good life.

Finally, after a fabulous dinner, I paid the bill. It was expensive but I was happy doing it. Harper had deserved a night like this. Not only because of how hard she had worked for me the past year, or because she was doing this for me, but because of who she was. A woman as special as Harper deserved to be loved, spoiled and pampered all the time.

I called the driver to pick us up from the restaurant. Once we were in the car again, Harper looked out the tinted window at the city passing by. She was quiet, deep in thought it seemed. I took her hand in mine and she looked down at our hands before she turned her face to the window again. I noticed she’d had only one glass of wine at dinner. She had something on her mind.

“Are you alright?” I asked.

Harper looked at me and smiled. It was a beautiful, pure smile. She didn’t look worried or stressed, or like she was trying to hide something from me. Whatever was on her mind, it wasn’t going to mess this night up for us.

The driver dropped us off at the hotel and I helped Harper out of the car again. When the door closed behind us and we walked toward the hotel doors, she didn’t let go of my hand. I loved holding onto her and I loved that she was holding onto me, too.

We stepped into the elevator and finally, we were alone. She stood close to me, and I leaned down and kissed her. I couldn’t help myself, I couldn’t stay away from her any longer. I had wanted this date to be innocent and pure, but I couldn’t stop myself. Harper drew me to her, and every fiber of my being ached for her.

She kissed me back and the kiss turned urgent, fast. I pushed her up against the elevator wall and pinned her with my body. She gasped into my mouth. God, I wanted her so badly.

The elevator pinged and we stepped apart. The doors slid open and someone stepped in, nodding a greeting. Harper and I stood side by side, the sexual energy humming between us, and I wondered if the other person could feel the tension. We were in the elevator with company for only one floor.

“What do you think that was all about?” Harper asked, when we were alone again. “Riding up only one floor? That’s strange.”

“A love,” I said, with a wink.

Harper smiled. I touched her cheek, brushing it with the back of my hand. Electricity flowed between us. Harper’s eyes were on mine and they were a deep green, darker than they had been before. They were filled with a hunger for me and I felt the same.

I kissed her again. I wasn’t going to be able to behave until we reached the room. I pulled her against me and put my hand on her breast, massaging her through the dress. She gasped and ground her hips against my crotch. I was hard in my pants. There were cameras in the elevator so I wouldn’t push it, but if we were truly alone I would have pulled her dress up and pushed my hand into her panties. I loved every inch of her body and I wanted to touch it, to kiss it and taste it.

Finally, the door slid open on our floor and Harper and I stepped away from each other, breathless with desire. I wanted her so badly and judging by the look on her face, the feeling was mutual.

“Come on,” Harper said and she took my hand again, lacing her fingers through mine.