Chapter Eight
Mason
I sat across from Avery, looking at her curiously from behind my desk. It had been almost three weeks since I last saw her, since everything with Jake had gone down. Her face revealed nothing, not even as I leaned forward. Her eyes traveled up to my scalp, where the scar I had gotten from my run-in with Jake had begun to heal.
“You do know that when I told you to go find Harper, I didn’t mean for you to get yourself killed.” A wry smile formed on her lips as she crossed her legs, laying her hands across her lap. Today she wore a neat black dress, her hair pinned up to stave off the summer heat.
I shrugged. “I’m still alive, aren’t I?”
She scoffed as a reply, looking pointedly at my healing head.
“So what are you doing here, Avery? I have to admit, I was a little surprised when Natalie told me you had scheduled an appointment to meet with me.”
Avery’s grin grew a little. “Let’s just say I thought about what you told me, how the right guy might still be out there.”
I arched an eyebrow, sincerely impressed that she had come back. Avery didn’t seem like the type of person to ask for anyone’s help, especially from the man who had broken her best friend’s heart. Maybe Harper had talked some sense into her.
I grinned inwardly as I thought of Harper. My Harper. We had finally reached a point that I had always dreamed about having with a woman. Harper had simply cured me from my incessant fears about ending up with someone who constantly wanted something from me, as my relationships had been in the past. She wanted nothing but my love, and I had plenty of that to give her.
“So, you want to attend another mixer?” I guessed, snapping back into reality.
“No.” She sat up a little straighter. “I want to be a bachelorette.”
I almost laughed. I should have known. Avery certainly wasn’t the type of person to ask for help—she liked to be in charge. “Well, typically our bachelorettes pay us a good sum to find them the men of their dreams.”
Avery raised her eyebrow as she half-smiled at me. “Well, maybe we can just say that you’re repaying the favor I did for you.” Her smirk widened. “You know, pushing you to go after Harper instead of doing nothing?”
I sighed. She did have a point.
Finding someone for Avery would be an interesting task, at least. And I knew it would make Harper happy, to see her friend find someone.
“That’s true,” I admitted. “I suppose we could make this work.”
She grinned. “As soon as possible?”
“Of course. Assuming we can find a group of men that meet your expectations.” I couldn’t help but goad her a little as I watched her smile quickly turn to a scowl. “I’m kidding, Avery. I’m sure we can find the perfect man for you.”
A satisfied grin took over her face as she got up, making her way to the door. Pausing for a moment, though, her lips pursed and she turned back to me. “You make her happy, you know. I’ve seen the changes in her.”
“She makes me happy, too.” I smiled, standing now to shake her hand.
Avery tilted her head with a half smile as she stared at me. “Treat her right. Or else.”
“I will, I promise.” I extended my hand and was immediately met with a warm hug, catching me off guard. I laughed, having no doubt that I would indeed hear a mouthful from Avery if I ever treated Harper with less than what she deserved. “You don’t have to worry on that account.”
“I certainly hope not. Though, I would like to see my roomie every once in a while. Maybe we could work out a visitation schedule?
“She’s free any time,” I smiled.
She nodded. “I’ll expect a call from Natalie in the morning about my interview and mixer.” I watched as Avery made her way out of the office.
Sitting down at my desk, I traced the swirls of wood with my fingers as I grinned to myself, thinking about how Natalie was going to respond to us taking on Avery as a client. First Harper had invaded Natalie’s space, now her much more high-maintenance roommate.
It was probably time to give Natalie a raise.
Rubbing my temples, I knew it wasn’t as simple as just that. I hesitated as I dialed Natalie’s office extension. “Have a minute? I’d like to talk.”
She slid into the office, moments later, shutting the great mahogany door behind her. “What’s up Asher?” There was still a slight distance between us. Something we hadn’t felt in our relationship ever before.
“We need to talk,” I said, my mood dampening a little.
It had been a few weeks since the attack, and Harper had stayed over at the mansion multiple times now, but I hadn’t seen Natalie speak with her at all. I respected Natalie—she was like a sister to me, and I didn’t want us to be enemies because of my relationship.
“I don’t see why. It seems you’ve already made your decision, and I have no say in the matter.” Her voice was icy, and the glare that she gave me chilled me to the bone. Usually, she respected me enough as her boss to keep silent about my personal affairs, but today was different. Today we spoke as equals, as friends.
“Nat, come on, talk to me. I don’t want this to be a battle forever between you and Harper.”
She crossed her arms over her chest, purple hair trembling just a little as she stared me straight in the eyes, trying to control her temper. Natalie had always had a bad temper. I usually tried to stay away from her wrath when she got into moods like this.
“Asher, her ex-boyfriend clubbed you over the head. You could have been killed.”
“Trust me, I know.” I rubbed my head where the stitches once were, remembering that night all too clearly. “But Jake is in jail, and Harper is the one for me.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’ve said that before, about other women.”
I stood up so I could be at eye-level with her. “She’s different, Nat. I love her.”
“I don’t trust her.” Natalie quickly snapped back at me.
“I wouldn’t expect you to. You’re always looking out for my best interests, and I love you for it. But you don’t know Harper. I need you to trust me on this one. She’s the one for me.”
Her eyes studied me. I didn’t look away from her gaze, or flinch from her critical stare. Finally, she sighed, throwing her hands up in the air in exasperation. “Fine. If you think this is what’s best, I’ll go along with it. But I swear, Asher, if she or anyone she knows hurts you like that again...”
I didn’t hear the rest of her sentence as I walked around to her side of the desk, sweeping her up in a hug. “She won’t. They won’t. Thanks, Nat.” I breathed a sigh of relief as I felt her give in to the hug.
“And by the way,” I hesitated. “We just took Avery on as a client.” I smiled to myself as I felt Natalie’s body tighten, but she didn’t say a word.
That only made me hug her tighter.