by Ellie Danes
“Are you mocking me?” I asked, hurt.
I had never felt more embarrassed or vulnerable in my life. I couldn’t tell by his expression if he was amused by me or if he had simply labeled me as the silly, foolish girl I felt like. Certainly he couldn’t have enjoyed sitting there listening to me ramble while my mind had its fun.
“Not at all,” he said, looking at me seriously. Trust me, his eyes said. I didn’t know what to do.
“I think I’m done pretending for the day,” I said meekly, my voice cold. I didn’t want him to think I had enjoyed myself, that I was simply a girl like Avery, looking for a quick fix and a guy to fulfill my every fantasy.
He got up, switching off the camera with one, fluid movement. The red light flicked off. Suddenly the room seemed very quiet. I relaxed, knowing I wasn’t being recorded anymore.
“You’re going to delete that, right?” I asked him as he walked over to me.
He held up a hand, looking at me sincerely. “Scout’s honor,” he said, smiling.
I gulped. He was so attractive standing there, staring down at me, that my cold, hesitant demeanor melted instantly. But what was he thinking? “I should probably go,” I said, even though my mind didn’t want me to move a muscle.
He looked down at his silver watch, which I hadn’t noticed he was wearing. “It is getting a bit late. Wouldn’t want you to have to drive home alone in the dark.”
“Don’t worry, my Camry and I can take care of ourselves.” I teased, standing up, unsticking my dress from the bottom of my thighs. Flirting, I could do. Now that we weren’t talking about my deepest fantasy, I felt slightly more comfortable, even though I couldn’t forget the embarrassing episode I had just experienced in front of him. .
“I’m not sure your car will last much longer to help take care of you,” he said, frowning.
I wondered how he would know that. My mind flicked to the security camera on the terrace. Surely there were other cameras hidden in the mansion.
He laughed at my silence. “I saw it when you drove up here,” he said, reading my mind. “No cameras involved.”
His words put my mind at ease again. Holding out his hand, I took it, flicking my eyes up to his arm, the outline of which I could see through the thin white material of his shirt. My gaze traveled up to fall on his face. Our eyes met, slowing time instantly. I was sure my face must have given away every secret thought I’d had about him. But his face revealed nothing so I didn’t know if he had noticed.
“Let me,” he began, and my legs grew rubbery, “walk you out.”
Idiot! I was such an idiot. What had I thought he was going to say? I nodded.
He led me through the dark hallway out into the light again. Glancing out the window, I noticed that the light of day was already beginning to fade. The mansion was still abandoned, security and mixer furniture still out of sight. I turned to Mason as we reached the door, looking up at him, puzzled. “Mason, this wasn’t some type of experiment for whatever love game you guys have going here, was it?”
A small laugh escaped him as he tugged on my hand and brought me a step closer, allowing me to smell the scent of his cologne. It was a musky, manly odor that I had been drawn to since we met.
“You’ll be great at this job,” he said, shaking his head and laughing again. His smile lit up his face, especially when he laughed. “Don’t be suspicious of me, Harper. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you.”
I looked down at our intertwined hands. His was larger and fit perfectly over mine, with strong fingers, which only added to the rugged manliness he naturally portrayed.
“Speaking of that job,” I said, trying to stall walking out the door. He didn’t seem to be in any rush, either. “When do I start?”
I saw his other hand move before I felt it on my face, brushing up against my cheek as he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. I brought my face up toward his, staring at the slight stubble on his face, the way his lips were set so perfectly to receive mine. I wanted to step closer and press my body up against his, to feel his warmth and kiss. I wanted to feel his arms wrap tightly around me as he took control of that kiss like I knew he would, his lips hungrily tasting mine. Time stood still for a moment.
“Two days,” he breathed, his voice little more than a soft whisper. “Don’t be nervous. I’ll be here to help you. It’ll be perfect.”
His eyes, smoldering, flickered down the entire length of my body and back up, resting on my face once again. The look was more than suggestive, and instead of feeling disrespected, I felt flattered. I hadn’t been able to tell earlier if he had noticed my body at all, since he had only looked at my face throughout our entire conversation. Now, though, his blue eyes told me something that gave me the comfort I needed in the midst of this embarrassing afternoon.
He desired me, at least a little. Or perhaps, the other half of my mind told me, he’s like this with all women.
I broke away from his gaze first, as always. “I should go,” I said, stating the obvious.
He gave me a crooked grin, letting go of my hand to open the door for me.
“Goodbye, Harper. See you in two days.”
I swore I could feel him watching me as I walked away, but when I turned around to wave goodbye, he had already closed the door.
Chapter Six
Mason
I watched through one of the monitors in my office as Harper made her way to her beat-up car. Hoping the piece of junk would make it all the way back to her place, I decided I’d have to get her to consider investing in a new vehicle. The hungry flame in my chest leaped at the thought of her getting hurt from a safety hazard that was so preventable. I felt oddly, fiercely protective of her, as I had from the first moment I had seen her. But even more so now that I knew what she was like, who she was.
Leaning back in my chair, I laughed at myself. I wasn’t the type of man to fall in love with every girl I met. I hadn’t even fallen in love with Harper Browning, but her personality drew me in, making me hungry for her.
More than hungry, actually. Starving.
I could still see Harper sitting in front of me in my mind’s eye, talking nonsense with her eyes closed. She had given me some details of her fantasy, but it had been her posture and tone of voice that had told me the most about what she truly imagined when thinking of the perfect man. She had sat so still, her legs—those sexy, long legs—crossing and uncrossing, fists clenching and unclenching. When she had bit her lip, I thought I would go crazy, imagining how those lips would feel beneath my own, imagining her silky hair looping between my fingers as I tugged on it...
I had to stop my mind from going on as heat filled my groin again. I rolled my eyes, feeling foolish. The woman had driven me crazy, without so much as noticing. Although I was good at hiding my desire from her, I had felt myself slip a couple of times. Her embarrassment told me she hadn’t noticed just how much I had been affected by her description, though; she had been defensive of herself, and understandably so.
What she didn’t know was that her blush had only turned me on more. Had she been embarrassed to have told me her fantasy, or did she desire me nearly as much as I desired her?
I knew it was the latter. I hadn’t been in the matchmaking business for years for nothing. I could read body cues, and Harper wasn’t as closed off and cold as she pretended to be.
Stepping back into reality, my eyes moved to watch her again. I pressed a lever on the desk, making the camera zoom in on the Camry. I could see her blurry figure through the lens.
She had gotten into her car, pausing for a few seconds before starting it. She looked into the rearview mirror, running a hand through her hair, touching up her makeup. I laughed a little at that. I knew she must have felt flustered and out of place after thinking about her fantasy in front of me, perhaps from being so close to me when she had left.
I resisted the urge to run back down there to give her a proper goodbye, one she wouldn’t forget. Again, heat flared inside of me. And again, I pushed it do
wn. I would have to put Harper out of my mind for a couple of days; that was the only way to cure myself of this and actually be productive.
I zoomed out as she began to pull out of the driveway, watching as her car rolled down the hill, sputtering but miraculously still running. A flash of another car caught my eye, and I zoomed in again. My heart stopped for a moment. The same car the security team had seen earlier started up and followed a ways behind Harper. Only a few seconds passed and it drove out of view, in pursuit of her.
I rustled through the papers on my desk and came up with the pixelated picture of the car. A man, wearing dark clothes, sat in the driver’s seat. What exactly did this man want with Harper?
Standing, I called for Natalie, trying not to let my voice reveal anything. Harper, I thought, speaking to her in my mind, What sort of trouble are you in?
It Takes Two
The Matchmaker Series, Book Four
(A Billionaire Romance)
By
Ellie Danes
www.EllieDanes.com
Chapter One
Harper
I squinted as the sun’s rays hit my face full force on the freeway. Pulling down my visor, I was glad when it blocked out the huge ball of light so that I could actually see the road in front of me. It was getting late, but I had almost made it home, miraculously. My car groaned beneath me, as if she knew how far the apartment was from her current position and was ready to settle down in the parking garage for the night.
“You can do it,” I told her, laughing.
The sound of my own laugh startled me. Butterflies still fluttered in my stomach, although I had been out of Mason’s presence for a while now. I couldn’t get the image of him out of my mind; the way he had stood there, holding my hand, telling me I’d be perfect at the job he was offering. Completely oblivious to the fact that I was fantasizing about him the entire time.
Had he even noticed how much I had been affected by that fantasy? He’d hardly given any indication of emotion other than curiosity as we had sat in that parlor room, with the camera rolling. But the look he had given me right before I had left; I couldn’t wipe it from my memory. The way his blue eyes had quite literally danced in anticipation as he looked down at me, the warmth of his smile and the smell of his body encompassing me even from where I had stood by the doorway.
I had to stop myself, already feeling my leg muscles tighten. I kept both hands firmly on the wheel, happy to have something to hold onto, this time. What I would have given for him to move his hands to my waist, to press the length of his body against mine.
My phone rang with a synthetic tingle of bells that echoed throughout car. I looked down briefly to grab it, then back at the road. Most of the cars had gone for the day, leaving only a few stragglers like myself to navigate back home down the road.
I attempted to stay focused on the road as I glanced down briefly to find a text message from Sandra, one of my co-workers at the bar.
Hey, can you take my shift 2nite? :) ;)
I sighed. This wasn’t the first time Sandra had wanted me to cover for her, and I was sure it wouldn’t be the last. For over a year I had dealt with waitressing to the patrons at the small, smelly bar, bringing dirty men their drinks and avoiding the glares of some of the women who went there regularly.
Yes, but now you have a new job. I smiled to myself as I thought about working with Mason and leaving it all the rest behind for something better. Something pleasant.
It was true, of course. I did have a new job, one that would probably pay more in one night than what I could make in a week toting drinks and beer from the dirty bar to the half intoxicated patrons. Plus, I’d be around Mason.
Although I hated to admit it to myself, the prospect of having his eyes scanning me again, looking my body up and down like he had at the doorway to the mansion, exhilarated me. More than exhilarated me, actually.
He had said we’d be working closely together.
I smiled to myself, throwing my phone onto the passenger seat and gripping the steering wheel tightly with both hands again.
My smile faded a little as logic began to settle in. Of course, I couldn’t quit my job completely. As much as I wanted to believe working with Mason would be perfect, I knew from experience that things rarely went according to plan, and losing my job could set everything back. I hardly knew Mason, after all.
I wouldn’t fill in for Sandra, at least not tonight, but now wasn’t the time to quit either. This new job would be a calculated risk; I had to make sure I was making the right move.
Taking the exit toward Birch street, I sped up a little, wanting to get home and relax for the night. Avery was on her date, so I would have the place to myself. As much as I loved her, being alone in our apartment was one of my favorite things; a chance to catch up on things and take a break without having to listen to her talking about men and drama.
The stoplight that Avery always called the “dickhead dud” was, as usual, red. I smiled as I remembered her using that phrase. “It’s such a dick!” She had complained to me once. “It’s always red, I swear to God.” As I approached the stoplight, I shifted the Camry into neutral, revving the engine a little, my spirits still soaring after my date-thing with Mason, or whatever it had been.
Bright headlights blasted into my rearview mirror, even though it wasn’t completely dark out yet. The familiar shape of the lights on the late model Mustang gave me an immediate sinking feeling.
Jake. How long has he been following me?
Thoughts raced through my head as I began to panic. Why was he following me? What did he want? I had already made it clear I didn’t need him in my life. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with him, and going home to an empty apartment suddenly didn’t seem like such a good idea. I glanced at my phone, but didn’t know who I could call. I considered Avery, but I didn’t want to mess up her date.
Realizing I’d have to deal with Jake on my own, I took a deep breath and stepped on the gas pedal as the stoplight turned green.
I pulled into the parking lot, taking the first available spot I could find. Every other night there seemed to be plenty of people around the complex and in the parking lot, but not tonight. It was virtually empty. I fumbled with my purse, phone and keys, attempting to get out of the car as quickly as possible. But it was too late. As I turned to get out of my car, I froze, the dark hoodie filling my vision through the window.
Jake stood over the car, bending down slightly to open the door for me. “Hey!”
“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked. I didn’t know if I was more afraid or angry, but suspected that the sinking, hot feeling of adrenaline in my chest was the product of both emotions.
“I was just wondering where you were hurrying off to earlier today. Now I know. Quite the mansion, isn’t it?”
“Why were you following me? I told you we were done. It’s none of your business.”
Jake didn’t say a word and only stared. He moved so his entire body blocked my way out of the car. I felt trapped as the lump formed in my throat. I could feel the scream building deep inside of me, but I held back for the moment.
“It’s been a whole… what… two days? And you already have a sugar daddy?”
“What?” I asked, dazed. I felt as if I couldn’t breathe. “Move,” I ordered, my voice raw. “Please move, Jake.”
I stared at him hard, meeting his harsh glare with my own until he finally backed up a little, still holding onto the door, but leaving me enough room to get out of the car. I stood, but he continued to block my way.
“I’m sorry, Harper, I made a mistake.” Jake shut the door to the car as he stood in front of me, making it impossible to move passed him. “I never meant to compare you to my ex, you have to believe me,” he said, shoving his hands in his pockets and stepping to the side. “I just want you back, baby. That’s the reason I followed you. I had to make sure you weren’t seeing anyone else...”
“So what if I was?” I snapped, feel
ing a little stronger now that he wasn’t blocking my way. “In case you forgot, you were still sleeping with your ex while we were together.”
For just a moment, he seemed unsure of what to say.
“We’re through.” I hissed. “Get the fuck away from me.”
“Harper...” he muttered, coming a little closer. I took a step backwards bumping into the car. The thought of screaming and then running to my apartment crossed my mind, but it was too late; he was on me. Grabbing me roughly around the waist and tangling his fingers into my hair, he pulled me close. “Baby, please,” he whispered.
I pushed at him, hitting his chest with the flat of my hand, loosening his grasp on me a little. “Get the fuck off of me!” I yelled as I clutched my purse, ready to use it as a weapon. It didn’t stop him. He only moved in closer, this time more aggressively.
Squeezing my purse, I prepared to swing.
Chapter Two
Mason
I didn’t have time to evaluate my car options as I jumped into the first vehicle I could get to in pursuit of Harper. The new 6-series BMW was simply the closest, and that would have to do. The wheels squealed as I darted out of the garage and down the short driveway, pulling into traffic. I was desperately trying to keep an eye on the Mustang following Harper’s Camry. Weaving in and out of traffic, I tried to stay close, but not too close, as I wondered exactly what her pursuer was after.
My heart pounded when we stopped briefly at the stoplight and then continued into Harper’s apartment complex. I watched as she quickly slid her car into the first space and attempted to jump out of it. Everything was moving in slow motion as I jerked the BMW into an adjacent space and made my way over to the ensuing action.
By the time I had made it over to where the stranger had Harper pinned between her car and his body, the rage had boiled over, seeping through my very being as my fingers wrapped roughly around his arm, tossing him aside easily.
I looked at Harper, analyzing her appearance. Her face, flushed, her hair, a little tangled and falling in front of her eyes. She looked scared, frustrated, and angry all wrapped into one. But otherwise, she looked safe.
