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  “And don’t you dare say who!” Mira wanted to help, but she also didn’t want to miss a moment of the first one-on-one date on The Bachelor!

  “Yeah, I saw him, and that’s the problem. He was a total jackass.”

  “How this time?”

  Hopefully, the question didn’t sound as exasperated to her sister’s ears as it did to her own. Mira was mostly listening, but with her little sister, she knew she wouldn’t have to say much. Harper tended to go on until she tired herself out. You just had to wait for the pause to respond.

  “Same old thing, well, it was a little different this time. I guess.”

  Lying back on the many throw pillows on her couch, Harper proceeded to share the details of how the night reached such a volatile conclusion. Every night, she flopped on her couch and never made it up the stairs to the loft and her super comfortable queen size bed. Whenever Harper looked at her bills, she wondered why the hell she lived in a two-bedroom condo, which was treated like a studio apartment.

  “Different how, Harper? Every time you talk about him, it’s the same old thing. He’s bossy, he’s a jerk, and he acts like he knows everything. Oh, and let’s not forget he’s the best sex you’ve ever had. Was this finally something that couldn’t be solved with a quickie on the futon?”

  “Crass, Mira, but I see I have mentioned a few of his better qualities!”

  “You’re protesting a little loudly, little sister. Just tell me.”

  “The brute threatened to spank the defiance out of me.”

  Saying it out loud hadn’t lessened her outrage or intrigue. It did make her wonder which thing made her flee the building more. Only her sister’s laughter pulled her focus back to the conversation at hand.

  “¡Cállate! Oh, my goodness, you’re seriously laughing at me. You should be outraged on my behalf. You should be in your car headed out to find him and drag him to justice.”

  Mira burst out laughing again. “And why exactly am I dragging him to justice? At best, you have a case of hearsay on your hands. Now, little sister, I know you, so I have to ask, what did you do?”

  “Apparently being myself is suddenly irritating to him. I didn’t do anything I haven’t done in the past. It’s like he got a title and suddenly—”

  Interrupting, Mira said, “It sounds like maybe you did some repeated rule breaking tonight, and he was less than impressed with your choices, then he voiced that less than stellar opinion, and you gave him an opinion or two of your own. For the record, Mami and Daddy should’ve done a little more defiance spanking years ago, and maybe you would’ve outgrown some of your ways.”

  “I climbed a stupid rack for some props and I might have had open-toed shoes on in the shop, but I didn’t kill anyone.”

  Mira was doing all she could to not laugh again. She knew that just because she hadn’t killed anyone didn’t mean what her little sister had done wasn’t damn close in its ability to piss someone off. Mira had smacked her backside more than a few times, when she was left in her care, for behavior that was just shy of killing someone. There were the endless pranks in school and at home, more incidents of backtalk than could be reasonably logged, and the profoundly misguided, unsanctioned co-ed sleepover.

  “Stop reviewing my crimes in your mind. Mira, I really— Whatever. I don’t know. I don’t like him as my boss. I want things to go back to the way they were, when we were equals and had hot sex every couple of months, with no stress.”

  “That is completely untrue. Every time the two of you work on a show, all you do is think about what it would be like to really be together, as a full-time couple. Well, this is closer than you’ve ever been. He’s there all the time. You’re there most of the season. Maybe you can finally see what happens when you’re in the same place for longer than a few weeks. You can see what happens when you can’t run away and an easy exit isn’t possible.”

  Continued silence on the other end confirmed, for Mira, that she’d hit a nerve. It wasn’t her goal to make things harder for her sister, but the girl had a stubborn streak. It didn’t matter how obvious it was to everyone else in the room, if Harper didn’t get there on her own, she wouldn’t accept it. This conversation wasn’t going to be different, but that wouldn’t keep the truth from coming out like an erupting geyser.

  “Someone has to be in charge, Harper. You know that better than most. Hell, you have a job where you’re the one in charge. Your problem is you hate it when the person in charge isn’t you. We know how it goes; anyone who has the nerve to tell you no becomes the enemy. You guys have worked as partners all along. Why can’t that continue? I know you, Harper, just you remember that. I’ll let you figure out what that means on your own, but here’s some sisterly honesty for you. The real reason you’re pissed is that now he has the authority to tell you no. If you stay on, as a freelance agent, he has the power to call you to task.”

  “It’s like you’re not even listening to me. Estás no ayuda en absoluto!”

  Her phone had beeped a few more times since she’d been talking to her sister, but Harper refused to acknowledge it. Each time she glanced, though, she saw his number pop up. He certainly was determined.

  “I can hear the line interruption, too, kiddo. Deal with it now or deal with it later.”

  “I’m going with later.”

  “Never the easy way with you; you’re the one that hates a scene. If I were you, I would remember that while I was ignoring all those calls. I love you, little sister, but it might be time for you to put on those proverbial big-girl panties.”

  “You’re mean and positively no help. Go back to your show.”

  “My raw honesty is why you love me.”

  “Says you. Night, sissy.”

  Harper put her phone down and sat in silence for a moment. Deciding that food was no match for wine, she got up and poured a goblet full and grabbed a handful of chocolate covered almonds as an accompaniment. She cut on the television for some mindless viewing. Beep. Beep. Another text. Putting down the glass wasn’t an option, so she rested the remote and picked up what had to be the sixth text, at least, from Lucas.

  Have your assistant start rehearsal tomorrow.

  Come to my office immediately, when you get here!

  Well, damn!

  She blamed him for her tossing and turning all night. Truthfully, he could be blamed for her lack of dinner, subsequent hunger pangs, and onset migraine. If she could put world famine and societal unrest on his shoulders, she’d blame him for that, too. He was the great big, evil elephant in her psyche, and she was beating the hell out of her pillow like it was him in her bed. That was the thing she found most disturbing. Visions of him in her bed keep showing up unannounced. He was certainly good looking enough to pop up in any woman’s dreams, after a single mere encounter, but the problem was that Harper had far too many actual encounters to draw on. When she accepted the gig, Harper had been looking forward to some smoking hot catch-up sex, and he wasn’t playing nice at all. The last time they’d been together was enough to fuel masturbatory fantasies for weeks. She was ready for fresh material, and she didn’t care what she had to resort to so she could get it. Too many romance novels, too much wine, and not enough sex had turned her subconscious into a porn reel.

  Her go-to involved him pinning her to the ratty futon in his office after the building was locked up, their voices bouncing off the cinder block walls as their bodies shook with their intense orgasm. Sense memory had her reveling in the lingering scent of sawdust on his skin. She held on for dear life as he took her standing up in the middle of the theatre’s shop, both of them fully clothed, having forgone comfort in lieu of immediate gratification. She finally gave up on sleep after waking up in her third sticky sweat. In that one, Harper found herself once again deep into a dream of him taking her from behind as she bent over a table in the booth. Clutching the sides of the light board, she wailed as a final thrust of his hips and swipe of his finger over her sensitized clit sent her into oblivion. The sound
of her voice had her bolting upright in bed. She awoke shaking and clutching the sheets. As her vision and mind cleared, Harper flopped back on her pillows. She really needed to get laid, but thanked the Goddess for memories.

  Chapter 6

  Twenty-four Hours Later

  The next day was torture. Part of her was tempted to call him and force whatever conversation he wanted to have, while the other part of her wanted to come up with an excuse not to go in at all.

  Spending two hours at the gym was avoidance tactic number one, then Harper treated herself to a massage to relax, but nothing worked. An extra-long shower and her leisure lunch only took the edge off once the second glass of pinot kicked in. Calling her assistant and Riley, she let them know she had to meet with Lucas before the start of rehearsal and that they needed to start without her. She made sure they were both squared away on the schedule rundown and what would be required.

  It was a beautiful Arizona day. Harper was in a tank top with a long sleeve t-shirt wrapped around her waist and cropped sweatpants. She’d ditched her gym shoes for much cuter closed toed shoes that wouldn’t serve to provoke Lucas during their meeting. She had gone to great lengths to dry her hair thoroughly and flat ironed it into glossy perfection. Her bangs were growing out, so she was forced to give them a little curl. Checking her reflection multiple times, she was pleased with her final look. It was appropriate and casually sexy, which she hoped would mollify his mood. What she refused to do was think about the fact that dressing sexy for Lucas had not only entered her mind, but she had thoroughly entertained and acted on it. Those were more inner demons to tackle at a later date.

  How was it that she was still early? Shoe shopping obviously hadn’t taken long enough, and rare cooperating traffic was the enemy. There were times she could sit at a complete standstill on the I-10 at 7th Avenue, but not that day. She had zipped through there like a thief through a high-end mall. She even sat in the parking lot checking messages and making a couple of phone calls. Obviously, it was her destiny to appear far too over eager. She wanted to pull off chilly indifference. It was looking like she had a fat chance at that. At least, for once, he couldn’t give her grief for being late. Both could be considered time criminals, and if they weren’t just stellar at their jobs, both would probably be in constant trouble. When they were working together, no one realized that their lateness was usually because they were looking for thrown off clothes or straightening disheveled ones.

  Grabbing her things, Harper walked through the front entrance of the building and prayed that Riley was in her office. They could talk through some notes and prepare for the next production meeting, which would help Harper to put some distance between her and the inevitable.

  His voice had reached her ears before she cleared the lobby. What the hell was he doing at the box office? There was no way to get to Riley’s office without passing it or seeing him. Maldición! Her only choice was to play it bold.

  “Hi, ladies.” Harper leaned in through the window, not being shy about her presence at all.

  “Hey, Harper! It’s so good to see you, girl. Usually, we don’t see you until the shows are up and running.”

  “So, am I in early or are you gorgeous ladies putting in overtime? You do realize you’re volunteers, right? Just in case you were lobbying for a raise.”

  Knowing he was watching her, she refused to make eye contact.

  Suddenly, Mavis opened the office door and demanded she come in for hugs. Harper felt his arm graze her back as he slipped by her.

  “I’m going back to my office, ladies. Y’all have a good night and thanks for the info, Mavis.”

  He wasn’t speaking to her, but the message still hit its mark. She wouldn’t be able to dawdle with Riley as long as she’d hoped. It was ridiculous for her to be so nervous. How much time had they spent together? It had to be fear of the new unknown. His behavior the night before had her mind spinning and her nerves wrecked. The things he said, as taken aback as she was by them, had her hot and bothered, and had turned her good judgment into poor choices. Would he really? Ugh. She didn’t even want to think the word. She was being silly, and he was tormenting her for sport by using that salacious word. She decided, at that moment, to go in there ready for a fight and to let him know exactly what she thought of his barbaric suggestion. Saying a quick goodbye to the ladies, Harper made her way backstage.

  His door swung open before she could get her hand on the knob proper.

  “You do realize you’d eventually have to come in.”

  “I know. What, did you think I wouldn’t? I was about to knock.”

  “Um-hm!”

  The smug look on his face and the way his lips crept up on one side because he was trying to contain his smirk made her want to smile and slap him at the same time. He knew good and well that she would put off a confrontation as long as possible. He couldn’t mask the look of total disbelief he was sporting or the slight twinkle in his eyes. There was a part of him that was enjoying her discomfort.

  “Where are you going?” Harper asked.

  “The warehouse just called and said my lumber order is ready. I need the supplies for tomorrow’s project, and I don’t want the volunteers picking it up. The older guys never know what to check for, and I end up with too many warped pieces of wood I can’t use.”

  “All I heard was blah, blah, blah, lumber—blah, blah.”

  “Funny. Fair enough,” he responded.

  They were face-to-face in the doorway. Harper was running her tongue across her teeth, the way she did when she was annoyed but needed to hold her tongue.

  “Something else on your mind, Harper?”

  “You demand my presence early, and now you’re making a hardware store run. ¡Cabrón! What game are you playing, Lucas?”

  He practically lifted her into the room and closed the door behind them.

  “Keep your voice down and knock off the drama. Did you forget you’re the one who’s early? All I said was to see me when you got here before you got started. And like I said, they just called.”

  Leaning against the door, he had his arms crossed over his massive chest in a t-shirt that was only a couple of washes away from being too small. Harper, being only three inches over five feet, still had to look up at him, even though he wasn’t the tallest of men; Lucas came in at a respectable just-shy-of-six-feet height. Lord, she wanted to run her hands up and down those biceps. Pulling her focus back where it needed to be, in what was quickly becoming too close quarters, Harper willed her mind to stop her mouth from making it worse.

  “Sit your butt in this chair until I get back.” Lucas set her things down and physically put her in the chair beside his desk. He looked back at her one last time with such an intensity, Harper couldn’t help but break the connection first. “And don’t even think about pulling another disappearing act. If I have to come looking for you, you can believe you’ll regret it.”

  “Fine. I got nowhere else to be, Lucas. I’m early, remember?”

  “Right. So why don’t you take the ride with me?” Maybe a ride and some loud music would ease the tension between them sooner rather than later.

  “No. I’ll go catch up with Riley. When it’s important enough to you, you can come get me.”

  “Back to plan A, then. In the chair, Harper.” Lucas reached around her motionless form to grab his keys off the edge of the desk.

  He stood in the hall a moment when the door clicked into place. They really needed to have a talk. Harper looked fantastic, and he decided he wanted to wrap up work in the shop early that night. Suddenly, thoughts of falling asleep wrapped around her body on the world’s most uncomfortable futon didn’t seem like such a bad idea.

  She did have better sense than to disappear again. When he opened the office door forty minutes later, she was seated exactly as he had left her. Misery reflected in her countenance. Most of the defiance he’d left her with had dissipated. He could tell by the set of her shoulders, her semi-glassy eyes, and
the way her small, delicate hands rested, palms up, in her lap. The long t-shirt previously worn around her waist was now on her proper, indicating that she’d gotten cold, either from the temperature or her nerves. He was supposed to be putting his foot down with her and instead all he wanted to do was wrap her up in his arms and make everything in her world right. His dad’s advice played in his head, though. Begin the way you mean to go. He didn’t know where it was going, but now that he was more secure in his position, he was ready to settle down at least a little. Harper was the one he wanted to do that with, but the side he was getting to know better wasn’t all the fun and sweetness he remembered. Harper had some prickly edges, a hell of a party streak (rumor had it), and was way more stubborn than he realized. Maybe it was just the shift in dynamics, and her sweetness was still the dominant personality trait. He would soon find out. Sitting in his chair, he rolled it in front of her so their knees touched.

  “So, who did I replace at the top of your shit list?” He tapped her knee.

  “Nobody.” She kept her eyes focused in her lap.

  “If you’re not pissed with me, then your body language is saying something completely different. What gives? I’d really like it if you’d look at me, Harper.”

  “No. I don’t want to do this, Lucas. You don’t need to do this, whatever this is.”

  “How about I decide what I need to do? Look at me, Harper.” He hadn’t raised his voice, but there was that shift in tone again. He wasn’t in the mood for this to become an argument with her, but he was more prepared for that than her look of utter hurt.

  “Hey, have you been crying?” He didn’t think he’d been that much of a jerk, especially in response to her attitude and Houdini routine the night before. “What are the tears about?” He asked again, much more gently.

  Swiping at her eyes and trying not to smudge her mascara at the same time proved challenging.

  “You’re the one pissed with me, and you’re probably going to tell Riley to get rid of me. You’re my boss now, right?”