Page 76 of Unleashed
"Yeah." Harper looks at me. "This is also kind of how I ended up in my other situation."
I swallow. "How? Is Gianna making you?—"
"Ace…" Hunter warns.
She shakes her head.
"No, Hudson needed a favor. His father is terminally ill, but Hudson is—" She searches for the word.
"A man child," I offer the first thing that springs to mind. He’s the kind of asshole who has to manipulate a woman into being his.
"Yeah. That. His father won't sign over LA Press until Hudson proves he's changed. Settled down. So he thought a country girl like me might win them over." She twists her thumb ring. "It was meant to be one date. Except after Gianna got involved, I knew I had to take this case off Hudson. So I agreed to be his fiancée in exchange for working this and keeping Gianna off his back."
I rub my hands over my face. "Jesus, Harps."
Our fuckin' mess put her in this position. Our secrets, our enemies, our blood—it all rolled downhill and landed on the shoulders of a woman who's been trying to shield us from it.
"So what exactly do they want from you? What do you know?" Hunter asks.
She straightens up. The nerves are fading now. She's in her element. The journalist. The woman who gathers information for a living. And that passion is exactly why she left. So I’m kinda glad she loves it. But I need to buck my ideas up, figure out a way to make sure I can give her the world right here so that she doesn’t have to run again.
"I need to give Gianna the intel. I need to find out exactly what the Greeks are doing at Ranch 42. And I need to find out who killed Gianna's brother and report it back to her."
Hunter nods slowly. "Okay. We want to know the same thing. We can work with you."
She continues, "My plan was to avoid even referencing Sterling Ranch. Your ties. Your organization."
I arch an eyebrow. "Sweetheart, how much do you know, exactly?"
She grins. The first real grin I've seen in hours. We never hid it from her back then, but didn’t flaunt it either.
"I know enough. That Sterling Ranch is involved in a huge organized crime group. I know that Reese and Beau are… missing." She raises an eyebrow. "I know that Hunter did not kill his ex—the Greeks did. I know that we need to bury this and give Gianna what she needs before she finds out there is something here in New Falls worth coming after."
Good fuckin' girl.
"And how are you suggesting you get Gianna this information?" Hunter asks.
"My first idea is to go to the town hall and bribe my way into the sales documents. I've never known a ranch to sell off parts of its land that fast. There was no deal when I was last here, so this is recent." She taps her nail again. "And then finding Gianna'sbrother's killer? I was kind of hoping you guys could assist me there. That’s what she wants the most."
I rub my hands together. "You want us to start interrogatin'? Shame we just killed one of them."
Her eyes go wide. "Ace," she hisses. "Remember, I don't need to know that shit. If it ain't in my brain, no one can get it back out of me."
Hunter chuckles. "Smart girl. Ace could do with some of that common sense you've got."
Her cheeks redden. She ducks her head. And I swear, in that moment, every man at this table falls for her a little bit. Not like I do. But the way you fall for someone who's brave enough to walk into a room full of dangerous men and offer to fight alongside them.
"How long are you here for?" Colten asks, looking directly at me when he says it.
Harper shrugs. "I don't know. I'm probably going to have to split time between here and LA. Depends how long it takes. Gianna doesn't seem like the kind of woman to wait around. I'd rather get her the information so she's off my back. Then I can deal with Hudson."
I slide my arm around the back of her chair. "Deal with Hudson how? Because I have an idea…"
She laughs, shaking her head. "Ace Sterling, you are not going to LA to kill my boss. Once I've got the information, it sounds like Gianna is going to start a war in LA. You have to keep your ranch protected. Maybe let her just kill the Greeks?"
I nod. It fuckin' hurts my heart how fiercely protective she is. Not just of me. My family. My ranch. Everything.
"So you're going to end your fake engagement?" Hunter asks, glancing at me.
