Page 37 of I Want You

“You’re unbearable.”

“I know. That’s why you pay me,” Solange says. “Now have your coffee and take a deep breath to face the rest of the day.”

Harper flashes a bitter smile. Fear creeps back in through the cracks.

“The only thing I’m sure of is that I don’t want to go through that same hell again. If I let her cross that line again… if I let this turn into something more… I don’t know if I’d have the strength to get back up.” Harper rummages through the bag and finds one of the candies her best friend brought. “And no, I don’t want to be the typical idiot who confuses amazing sex with something more. No matter how much I admire her.”

Harper sees in Solange’s eyes that she’s about to say, “And love her.”

“Right now, you shouldn’t put a label on what you’re feeling. I’ve already told you,” Solange points out. “Enjoy what you have, and let the rest sort itself out over time.”

Harper narrows her eyes and looks at her skeptically.

“Is that your brilliant advice? ‘Do nothing’?”

Solange smiles, takes a bite of the candy Harper offers her, and wipes her lips with a napkin.

“The only thing I’m sure of is that you’re in this up to your neck. And I’m sure Victoria is feeling exactly the same way.”

Harper doesn’t have time to answer, because at that very moment, Victoria walks into the office. And she looks anything but happy.

“Eleanor has tried to scuttle the budget,” she announces. “She wants to cut several pages to make room for a cosmetics advertorial, to give the international edition more breathing room.”

Harper instantly forgets the conversation she’d just had with her mother—and the one she’s having with Solange, who’s watching them with a smug smile on her lips.

“What did she do?” Harper exclaims, jumping to her feet. “I’m not going to let her…”

“Calm down,” Victoria interrupts her. “I’ve already reminded her of what the contract with Beaumont requires. And I’ve also shown her how things are shaping up.”

Harper looks at her, and pride flashes in her eyes.

“I can’t believe you stood up to her.”

“I know how to navigate these waters,” Victoria replies. “Especially when I’m standing up for something I believe in. And I strongly believe in what the two of us are doing.”

Solange sips her coffee, never taking her eyes off them.

Harper stares at Victoria, her pulse racing and her mind replaying her mother’s and Solange’s words. “What if things actually work out this time?”

“Well, we’d better get to work, because time is running out.”

“You’re going to nail it,” Solange says, giving Victoria a kind smile.

“Challenge accepted,” Victoria replies. “And we’ll have to eat dinner at the office. We’ve got a very long night ahead of us.”

Chapter 13

The deadline demands an exhausting night of work. Past midnight, with the building silent and the lights dimmed, Victoria enters Harper’s office to review the final cost breakdown. The dim light from the desk lamp creates a stifling, intimate atmosphere.

Harper runs her hand wearily over her neck, and Victoria instinctively steps behind her chair to give her a gentle shoulder massage.

“We should go now; I don’t want to arouse any more suspicion,” Harper says, tilting her head back.

“Let them say whatever they want… Right now, this is all that matters to me,” Victoria whispers, leaning in to kiss the line of her jaw.

The touch of their lips sparks an uncontrollable passion. Victoria lifts her out of the chair and sits her on the desk, sweeping the documents aside with one motion of her hand.

Proofs, cost sheets, and a couple of folders fly off the desk, hitting the floor with a sharp thud that muffles Harper’s first gasp. The desk is cold, but Victoria’s skin is burning hot. Victoria settles between Harper’s open legs with fierce possessiveness, pressing her body against Harper’s as if she wanted to reclaim, in a matter of seconds, every inch that physical distance and the passing years have taken from them.