“You said you were going to get right on it. How long will it really take for you guys to take care of this?” I resist the urge to shout into the phone, knowing there’s only a door separating me from Harper.

That girl is too nosy for her own good. Knowing too much will only put her in danger.

“Look, Logan, it’s not as simple as you seem to think it is.” Caine Foster, Robert’s spawn, speaks as calmly as he usually does.

The guy is taking on more and more responsibility within the family, and I’m not sure I like it. There’s something about him that makes him seem out of place among his father’s friends.

He looks too slick in his pressed, wrinkle-free suits. He speaks too smoothly, like a manager at a high-end hotel.

“They showed up at my house, Caine,” I say in a lower voice, partly to make sure Harper doesn’t hear my conversation and partly to make myself seem sane to Caine.

“Who? Enzo Guerriero?” he asks, obviously alarmed and in disbelief.

“Not the old man. His daughter, Rosa.”

“Oh.” Caine pauses. “Well, what did she say?”

“I don’t know. She was here with some guys. I didn’t open the door. I don’t have a death wish. And even if I did, that’s not really the way I’d want to go.”

Caine chuckles. I’m having a crisis here, but he seems to find it entertaining.

“I also thought that maybe you have straightened things out with the Guerrieros.” I rap my fingers on the surface of my desk.

“I’ve tried.”

“What does that mean? You’ve tried, you’ve failed, and you won’t try again?”

“I spoke to Enzo. He told me his daughter had legitimate problems with you and it has nothing to do with us.”

“What the fuck? You’re just going to hang me out to dry?” I ask.

“No. Of course not.” Caine pauses, probably trying to measure his next words carefully—he’d better. “It would be better if you could resolve things peacefully, directly with Rosa.”

“And it would be better if we could have world peace, but that’s not happening either.” I massage my scalp. “Look, when I started to work for your father, he assured me that he’d provide me with protection. That was the only reason why I accepted the job.”

“Oh, I thought it was the fat paycheck,” Caine says jokingly.

“This is no laughing matter,” I remind him. “You know words are everything in this business. If nobody can hold you to your word, you have nothing.”

“Here’s the thing.” Caine takes a deep breath on the other end of the line. “Enzo believes that you got Rosa drunk at the party and took advantage of her in his own house. Under his own roof.

“You know what kind of guy he is. He’d never stand for that kind of disrespect.”

“Of course, I know what kind of guy he is,” I say, almost shouting as I forget the fact that I’m not home alone like I usually am. “And that’s exactly why I’d never do anything that stupid. What kind of an idiot do you think I am?”

Caine is silent for a few seconds. “Nobody thinks you’re an idiot, Logan. It just would be easier for everybody if you resolved this with Rosa directly.”

“Yeah. Easier for everybody except me.”

“I know this puts you in a difficult situation. I’m sorry about that,” he says in his usual diplomatic way. “Believe me, my father meant it when he said he’d look after your safety. We value your contribution as a physician and we want to keep you on the team.”

Jesus. The guy talks like a corporate manager.

“So, what are you going to do about this problem?” I ask. I need an action plan; not empty words.

“I’ll talk to Enzo and ask him to talk to his daughter. Perhaps get more details about what happened.”

“That’s not good enough. I didn’t even sleep with her,” I say.

“Can anyone at the party vouch for that?” Caine asks.

I go through my memory. “Maybe.”

“Okay. I’ll try to smooth things over with Enzo. Meanwhile, you call up anyone who can give you an alibi.”

Damn it. The fact that I don’t like people has come to bite me in the ass more than once.

I thought working for the Fosters meant I wouldn’t have to worry about socializing with my co-workers, but I guess I was wrong.

But at least, now there’s some kind of a plan.

Caine can be an unsympathetic asshole, but if anyone can smooth things over through diplomacy it’s him.

And everyone was at the party. Surely someone must’ve seen me leave on my own at the end of the night.

* * *

It’s dark outside when I’ve finally exhausted the contact list on my phone.

I’ve got no hits so far but there are a few people who didn’t respond so I’ll try them again tomorrow. It’s late, and I’m tired.

When I open the door and look at the living room, I find myself scanning the space, looking for Harper.

She hasn’t been here long, but somehow this house feels bigger now that there are no signs of her.

My heart starts to race.

Is it possible that she . . .? No, she couldn’t have possibly left the premises.

Like she said, she still had questions she wanted me to answer. Plus, she knows it’s dangerous out there now. I saw the fear in her eyes.

If it weren’t for her, honestly, I probably wouldn’t be this anxious to resolve the problem. I can take care of myself, after all.

In fact, if Harper weren’t around, I would’ve opened the door and talked to Rosa. As annoying as it is, Caine was right; it would be easier to get Rosa to admit she was lying than to get Enzo to believe us over his own daughter.

But I couldn’t risk Rosa coming inside and seeing Harper—in only a towel, too. She’d get the wrong idea. And if me refusing to sleep with her got her this upset, who knows what she’d do if she saw a naked woman in my house?

As I climb up the stairs, the silence is deafening.

Where is Harper? Doesn’t she want to ask me even more of her irritating, intrusive questions?

And more importantly, when did I become so clingy? I haven’t seen her for a few hours and she’s likely just hanging out in her room. There’s no need for me to get all agitated. And yet, I am.

I stop in front of her door and ball my hand into a fist, ready to knock.

But then, I hear something.

Is that . . . a moan?

That’s definitely Harper’s voice. There’s no mistaking her sweet voice.

Except, she sounds a little hoarser. And a lot more sexy.

I start to press my ear against the door, but . . .

Is she going to burst out and find me listening in on her like some creep?

That’s unlikely. There’s an ensuite in the guest bedroom, so she has no reason to come out. It’s late, and she’s probably about to sleep.

When I hear another breathy moan, my hand goes straight to the hard cock tenting my jeans.

I can’t believe it. So far, she has gotten me rock hard with just a kiss and a moan. What is it about this girl? My hormones are raging like I’m just a teenage boy.

I imagine Harper lying in her bed, naked like she was earlier today. Those full tits and ass jiggling as she writhes in ecstasy. Those long legs spread open as her juices stain the bedsheets.

Quietly, I unzip my jeans and pull my cock out. It’s throbbing almost painfully.

I’d love to slam the door open and plunge myself to the hilt in Harper’s wet, warm pussy. I assume her offer from this morning still stands. Besides, even if it has expired, judging by how responsive she has been to my touch, it wouldn’t be hard to persuade her.

But at the same time, there’s something about secretly eavesdropping on her that turns me on. The fact that she has no idea I’m here gives me a thrill.

I grip my shaft and stroke myself. Every time Harper moans, my cock jumps in response. She makes more and more of that delicious sound as she nears the peak, and I speed up, too.

Then, she gasps. In my mind’s eye, I can see her shaking on the bed, her tight little body quivering out of her control. “Mark,” she says, clear as day.

Mark?

Fucking Mark?

Anger courses through my veins, and I stuff my cock back into my pants, then walk away.

If I don’t get some distance, I swear I’ll kick the door open and scream at Harper when clearly she has done nothing wrong. It’s not like I own her. Hell, I’ve never even fucked her.

That will change, though. I swear it will. I’ll make her mine.