Page 95 of Nothing to Tell

Short lived though it may be, she appreciated the breathing space.

When they stopped, a valet was there ready to take Carnell’s keys.

Azame, what kind of name was that for a restaurant?Wait, was this the place in… Shit.A salad in this place cost three figures.Wow, talk about eager to please.How did her father get a reservation at an exclusive place like this?

Her party congregated, straightening skirts and cuffs, exchanging mumbles about the journey.Okay, maybe not mumbles, but she had no interest in listening to Damon more than was absolutely necessary.Blah, blah, blah.Her father could shoulder that burden.Charissa and Adara were clearly excited about the exclusive location, and her mother wasn’t far behind in joining their glee.

And she was—whoa, brother.

Forget the family.

There was the yummiest prize she’d ever seen: Bastian.He emerged from inside and she went to meet him halfway.

Her eyes drifted shut when he kissed her and traced a fingertip down her temple.

“You’re here,” she whispered.He looked amazing.So him, so cool, so exactly what she needed.“I didn’t know you’d be here waiting.You’re a nice surprise.”

“I had to be early,” he said.“No need for you to enter alone.”

“Bastian,” Davis announced from their side.Where had he appeared from?Almost petulant, she resented her father shattering their private moment.“I must introduce you to the family.This is my wife Bea, my daughter Adara and her fiancé Carnell.”

“We’ve met before,” Adara said.“Let’s get inside, it’s freezing out here.”

So inside they went.Table, seats, order, all went like clockwork.The staff were more attentive and informative than she’d ever known.And she knew exactly why.Her father would like to think it was for his benefit.It wasn’t.Bastian was the one they fell over themselves for.“Yes, Mr.Hunt.”“No, Mr.Hunt.”“Whatever you want, Mr.Hunt.”She couldn’t blame them, pleasing him gave her a buzz too.

As her father explained something to Adara and Charissa, Harper leaned in closer to Bastian, locking their fingers together on the table.

“I’m coming home with you tonight,” she whispered, grazing her lips on his jaw.“Will you let me come home with you?”

When their eyes met, his shimmered with a carnal heat she wanted to bathe in.His fingers slid beneath the table to rest on her thigh for a single heartbeat before they snuck under the hem of her dress.

“If I made the rules, you’d spend all your nights in my bed.”

Boosting up, she touched her lips to his.“Who makes the rules?”

“It’s all you, baby,” he answered.“All you.”

Her laugh silenced the table.Was she that interesting?Her head fell to his shoulder and he kissed her hair, joining their hands beneath the table again.

“I’m glad we have this opportunity to get together,” Davis said.“I suppose we’ll have many chances now that you and Harper are an item.”

“You’re very handsome,” Charissa said.“Do you carry a lot of cash?”

Adara and Carnell laughed like it was a joke.

Damon frowned.“Do you always buy your way into people’s lives, Mr.Hunt?”

“We’re family.This is family,” Davis said on a gruff laugh.For the first time, her father would want Damon to shut the hell up.Welcome to the club, Daddio.“We would be very interested to hear about your recent partnership with Sporta.”

Bastian shook his head while sipping water.“It’s not a partnership,” he said.“We’ve got them treading water, so now we can bail them out.”

“It’s a takeover?”Damon asked.

“That’s what they wanted in the beginning,” Bastian said.“They approached us about the acquisition fourteen months ago.”

“You refused?”

“Grand Holdings isn’t a charity,” he said.“Fourteen months gave our finance division time to carry out a complete historical audit.I know what I’m doing.And this is small potatoes.Sporta only blipped on my radar because my aunt knows their CFO.”