Chapter Sixteen

Harper

The cotton weave of a white pillowcase greeted my eyes as they fluttered open on the first day of the rest of my life. I’d done it. My dirty thirties virgin shame was a thing of the not so distant past. I could move forward with my life without this cloud hovering over me. Now, I was free to not be embarrassed to be in a relationship. Maybe even get married. Start a family of my own.

Pale, pre-dawn light filtered across from a curtained window to my right. Consciousness struggled to the surface of my brain, and the muddled seconds of unfamiliarity were replaced with delicious clarity.

I was lying in a strange bed. In Reed’s bed.

My one uncovered ear listened to the sound of his deep, even breathing, and my skin became aware of his body heat as it warmed the small distance between us. God, it had really happened. I was almost afraid to turn my head and look, for fear it was all an illusion and the heat of my stare would make him evaporate.

Instead, I entertained myself replaying the events of last night in my mind. At least, those that occurred after we arrived in Reed’s apartment. The others could go straight to hell. My thoughts filled with the taste and touch of Reed’s lips, his strong hands caressing my quivering body. A pleasant ache lingered between my legs where his cock had split me in half. Damn. If I had really known in advance how good it would feel, I would have hired an escort ten years ago.

A smile tugged at my mouth over that last one. Melodramatic much, Harper? The last thing I remember was falling asleep in his arms, spent and overcome with emotion, nodding and running my hands over his chest when he asked me to stay with him. As if there was any other place I wanted to be. I was going to hold on to the fantasy as long as possible before it exploded into confetti of regret.

The room grew brighter with the oncoming daylight. I hadn’t worn a watch but estimated it must be nearing eight or so, judging by the brightness. Mild panic interrupted my lusty thoughts to strategize the next steps in this surreal scenario. How did one behave after one’s deflowering at an embarrassing age? I had no idea how to play this. At home, all the trappings of my cushioned life would have been there to soothe me. At home, I would feel competent. In control.

But here I already felt clueless, clumsy, and completely out of my element. I probably looked like hell, too, with smudged makeup and my hair standing on end in six different directions. What if Reed woke up and looked at me like he’d discovered a tattoo with a woman’s name on his ass the morning after a bachelor party? It would crush me. I couldn’t take it, and I couldn’t court it. I had to get the hell out of here.

As much as I wanted to stay in this bed forever, I equally wanted to make a clean escape to avoid the discomfort that wouldn’t allow me to walk away unscathed. But I couldn’t leave without at least gazing upon his face one more time. I intended to burn it in my memory. That way, I could take it out and cherish it anytime I felt alone, remembering last night and how he’d turned turmoil into perfection.

He laid on his back, one brawny arm thrown above his tousled head and the other resting across his six pack. His head lay to the side, affording a view of his strong, chiseled profile. I exhaled a sigh. He was still the most gorgeous man I’d ever seen, or probably ever would. My gaze traveled along the sculpted landscape of his chest and down to the sheet, everything underneath the thin fabric hidden from my hungry gaze. My hands itched to rip it off and see if round two would be just as incredible or if all of it was just a fluke.

He stirred, and I quickly turned my face away toward the window again. I didn’t want his first look to be my morning face. I saw the crumpled heap of my red gown on the floor, and my shoes next to it, but where the hell was my clutch purse? I had lipstick and a comb in there at least, as well as my phone and keys. Hopefully, it was in the other room. My memory of leaving the hotel and arriving at this apartment was more of a blur than anything else. My emotions had been so high, and I’d been in a fog of pain from Olivia’s antics.

Reed’s body shifted toward me as I lay on my stomach. I kept still, feigning sleep as his hand began to stroke a gentle path down my spine. My nipples contracted into throbbing spikes of flesh even at his gentle caress, stabbing into the mattress beneath me. My pussy clenched and ached. More. Damn it.

I want so much more. More than he can ever give. Because I want everything. I want it all. And if I can’t have it all, I can’t have any. Crumbs would only kill me inside.

I closed my eyes and relaxed to the feathery sweeps of his fingertips up and down my skin, when suddenly the obnoxious buzz of a cell phone against a tabletop became an unwanted, thieving intruder.

I heard Reed grunt at the sound as he rolled over to reach for the device on the nightstand. Without answering it, he rolled gently off the bed and walked away. I heard a door creak closed and guessed he’d gone into the bathroom since my brief visit hadn’t exactly included a grand tour of the place.

I sat upright and glanced around the room. I saw my discarded thong lying atop the folds of my dress and picked it up, unsure whether to get dressed or not. As I debated my options, I heard Reed’s voice. My God, the walls in this place were so thin his words sounded as clear as if he were still lying next to me.

“Why are you calling at this hour?” A pause. “Yeah, it’s done. I didn’t think you needed a progress report about how many times I fucked her. She seemed to like it.” Another pause, longer. “It’s not like that, Irene. Don’t get your pearls in a twist.”

Irene Sutton.

My brow creased in puzzlement. What was so important she had to call him at this early hour? It’s ‘not like’ what? My ears honed in on the conversation even though I felt a little dirty to be straining to hear something that didn’t involve me. Or did it? It could hardly be called eavesdropping when the bathroom was practically a broadcast booth.

“A job’s a job,” Reed continued in a bored tone. “The rest doesn’t mean anything.” Another excruciating pause. “Of course I won’t get personally involved. I’m a professional. I thought I’d proved that to you already. Fine. Three o’clock. I’ll be there.”

The small, sparsely furnished room began to shrink around me, cutting off my air supply as my mind raced. Is he talking about me? Doesn’t mean anything? Just a job? Oh, how the tables had turned. The sharp pain crushing my chest rendered me immobile for only a millisecond before I stood and picked up my soiled scrap of underwear, grabbing my dress and shoes before scurrying into the living room. Thank God. My missing clutch lay on Reed’s rent-to-own monstrosity of a sectional.

I stepped into the gown, nearly tripping myself on the draping folds of the skirt. Damn, why had I chosen such a fussy, impractical rag to wear last night? Because I was trying to impress someone. A man. No. More like a fucking Benedict Arnold. I seethed inside. Mad at Reed but way angrier at myself for my warped fantasies. How could I have been so stupid?

Halfway was the best I could do with the zipper before I stuffed my ripped underwear into my bag, scooped up my shoes and clutch and bolted for the door. Reed wasn’t the only one who wouldn’t get personally involved. I wasn’t about to wait around for the trite platitudes that were sure to come on the wings of his check in with his boss. This time, I’d be doing the dumping. No matter how much it sliced my heart in two.

I’d made some mistakes in my time, both personally and professionally. But this… this faux pas took the fucking blue ribbon at the county fair. I’d been a monumental fool to think Reed’s words and actions were a product of anything more than on-the-job training. “You’re so beautiful—trust me—let me take care of you…” I’d been so overcome by raging lust that I hadn’t even noticed the rote clichés that could apply to anyone. I racked my brain, trying to remember if he’d even called me by name. I knew that pet names were used by players because they couldn’t keep all their women straight. He hadn’t. He’d never said Harper. I was just a job. A fuck for money. And since he’d just made arrangements to meet Irene at three o’clock, his plans clearly didn’t include spending the day with me, basking in the warm afterglow.

Maybe a gratitude fuck with the boss was on the agenda, as I recalled her comments about vetting his physical assets. A wave of disgust washed over me at the thought. How could he go straight from me to someone else?

I slipped quietly out the front door, and once inside the cold sanctuary of the elevator, I called up the GPS app on my phone, realizing I didn’t even know the address of Reed’s building to give to Uber. Then again, where would I wait? I couldn’t very well hunker in the entrance vestibule dressed like this, and where Reed would be sure to find me. I glanced around the seedy street, feeling very unsafe and very unlovable. Through teary eyes, I blindly punched the number for my only other option. I’d have hell to pay in explaining my predicament, but then again, I already paid Julie well enough not to question my motives.

Unlike some people, at least mine were honest.