Page 147 of Unleashed
I jump off the bed. “What the hell do you mean?”
“Don’t ignore me, Harper,” he says and cuts the call.
Fuck.
Acey: I think now is the right time for you to use good boy on me?
This man. He somehow manages to put a smile on my face no matter what.
ME: You’ve been a very good boy, and I’ll reward you later.
Acey: Or now?
ME: I’ll call you in a minute, baby.
I have a shit head to deal with before I can continue this. I run down the stairs to find my dad in the kitchen. “Hey, Dad. My boss is coming here; he needs to speak to me about my report,” I say, playing it off as nothing.
Luckily, I’ve already covered the bite marks that are on my neck.
“Hudson? Richard’s son?” my dad asks.
“Yeah. That one.”
“Oh, are you in trouble at work, sweetie?” my mom asks. I didn’t even see her.
“N-no. Not that I know of,” I say.
Not the kind of trouble they mean. I’m in trouble that involves being fake-engaged to your boss and trying to half lie to a mafia princess in LA because I’m protecting another mafia family, of which I’m in love with.
There's a knock at the door, and I stop in my tracks.
My dad is already moving. I'm skidding down the hallway in my socks, trying to beat him, but he's got the door open before I can get a word out.
Hudson. White shirt. Black tie. Smiling like the gentleman he plays so well. Well, lesson learned. Don’t ignore Hudson’s texts.
"You must be Mr. Jones," Hudson says, extending his hand.
"Dad," I huff out, breathless. "This is Hudson. My boss."
Hudson frowns, glancing between us, but keeps his mouth shut. My dad shakes his hand and steps aside.
"I'll make some coffee!" Mom calls from the kitchen.
I rub my hands over my face. This is not happening.
"Pleasure to have you. How's your father doing?" Dad asks, leading him in.
My dad knows his father from years back, that’s how I got the job, and probably how I got the scholarship to study journalism in LA. Small world, I guess.
Hudson clears his throat. "Not good. Declining every day. But he's strong—he's got a while left in him yet."
Dad nods. "Tell him I said hello. Now come in, we've got coffee brewing."
"We'll be in in a minute, Dad."
He heads to the kitchen. I grab Hudson's arm and drag him into the living room, shutting the door behind us.
"This is cute. Love the ranch lifestyle, Harper," Hudson says, scanning the walls. Family photos. Horseshoes above the mantle. A cross-stitch my grandmother made that saysThis ain't our first rodeo.
