Inevitable (Key West #2) (3 page)

Chapter Five

Harper

I sat on my couch staring at the television. It had been playing the same thing over and over.
Die Hard
. Yeah, the last thing my ass wanted to watch was any girly shit.

I was sick to my stomach every time I thought about Ian or his cute little family. It broke my heart that he didn’t value what he had. How could anyone risk breaking up such a sweet gift? His wife seemed so nice, and his kids were adorable.

Kids. That was the part that made me the most nauseous. I couldn’t get over the fact that I was the other woman. Yeah, I had no idea I was, but it didn’t change the end result. That poor woman, she had no idea she was married to a scum bag.

My mind wandered off for days, questioning if I was the first one he had cheated on his wife with. Somehow I doubted that. Now that my eyes were open, I could see Ian taking every chance he got to sweet-talk his way in to any bed. I remembered the times I had looked the other way when he winked at another woman. I was never jealous. Why was that?

“Harper.” I rolled my eyes at the sound of my brother’s voice as he began beating on my door. It was only a matter of time; I was aware of that. Jett was not only my older brother, he was overprotective and extremely nosy. He felt like he had to protect me from the harmful events of life. He was overbearing, arrogant, demanding, and cocky, but I loved him. He meant well, I knew that. He has always been that way with Alexis and me. We were his little sisters that he would do everything he could to keep safe.

The knocking continued right along with him demanding I let him in. For the first time in two days I smiled to myself. My big brother to the rescue.

When I opened the door and took in his angry expression, I knew I didn’t need to explain what had happened. Mr. Nosy had already found out the details of Ian’s hidden life. I was more than positive that Easton Black was the source of his information.

Easton was worse than Jett. That man had no boundaries. All he had to do was flash his smile and throw a few hundreds around, and voila—instant information.

I stepped aside, allowing Jett to enter. When he pulled me in for a hug, I choked up. That was Jett. A protective brother but also an amazing friend.

“You already know, don’t you?” I asked. “Do you feel better now, knowing that you were right?” I stepped back from him, placing some distance between us. I didn’t want to cry. I wasn’t sad, I was angry. I wanted to make Ian’s life miserable for his lack of respect, for not only me, but for his family.

“No, I don’t feel better. I don’t like seeing you upset.” Jett shook his head in frustration. “That’s why I tried to figure him out before he could hurt you. I guess I took too long.”

“You can’t save me, Jett. You can’t stop all the bad in my life. You can’t stop me from being broken.” I sat on the couch and motioned for him to join me.

“I can try,” he said as he took a seat next to me. Brutus huffed as he flopped down on the floor and placed his paws over my feet.

“You can, sure, but it’s still gonna happen. It’s all part of living, and you can’t stop me from living. Look at Alex. Look at what she went through and what she has now. She has everything.” I smiled, thinking about the life my sister was living. She’d gone through torturous events to get there, but she was happy now. She had an amazing husband who adored her, two gorgeous children, and a ton of great friends.

“And you,” I whispered. “You have Quinn.” At the mention of her, his face lit up. I loved seeing that look on his face. Quinn was the center of my brother’s world. He found her when he least expected it, and the love he had for her gave me hope. I wasn’t a sappy girl, but I did think—or more like hope—that one day I would find a love like both my siblings had.

“I really want to get ahold of this Ian guy.” His voice was full of hate.

“I know you do, but I got this,” I assured him.

The corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk. One I recognized as his vengeful, deceitful smile. “What do you mean ‘you got this’? What are you planning, Harper?”

“Don’t you worry, big brother.” I winked and stood from the couch. “I’m not done with that lying bastard yet. I just let him think I was going to walk away without another word. I wanted Ian to feel as if he got away with it. Now I’m gonna make him squirm.” I paused, running the things I had planned through my mind. This man was going to learn his lesson, one way or another. “I can’t wait to make him piss himself. He is so going to regret the day he made the choice to play with my mind.”

Ian Wilson was going to be taught a lesson. His wife deserved better than he was giving her. Once a cheater, always a cheater.

“Why should I sit back and allow him to move on to the next innocent girl? You know I’m not like that. It wouldn’t be right of me to turn the other cheek. I have to leave my mark on Ian’s life.” I was a firm believer in payback, and I was so ready to feel the satisfaction of breaking him down. Oh the sweet revenge.

Jett looked back at me with an unreadable expression. I almost laughed as I thought about what he may be thinking. I was more than sure he thought I was losing my mind.

***

A few days after I last saw Ian, I felt it was time to make my first visit. Wearing a sexy number, one that showed a lot of cleavage and more than enough leg, I pulled in to the parking lot near his sleek Mercedes. He loved his car. I smiled to myself, feeling all sorts of sadistic.

I straightened my skirt, pushed up my breasts, and unbuttoned just one more button. Let the torture begin.

The elevator dinged as the doors slid open on the third floor. I stepped out and focused my attention on the cute blonde behind the reception desk. I had no doubt that Ian had probably slept with her too. She was too cute and young for him not to have sunk his claws into her.

“Good morning.” She smiled. “Is there something I can help you with?”

I smiled in return. “Yes, I’m here to see Ian Wilson.” She looked down at the computer, scanning over his schedule I was sure, before looking back up at me. Her expression was now one of distaste.

“He actually has cleared his schedule for the next two hours. He has a very important conference call, and I’m afraid I can’t disturb him.”

Suddenly I disliked this girl. Her eyes were narrowed in on me, and she actually thought her explanation would make me leave.

I smiled and leaned forward just slightly, looking at the nameplate on her desk. “Laney,” I said, looking back up to meet her gaze once more. “I can guarantee you, without a doubt in my mind, that Ian
will
want to see me.”

She rolled her eyes and picked up her phone. “Yes, Ian, I’m sorry to bother you, but I have a…” She looked up and me.

“Harper.”

“I have someone named Harper here to see you. She insisted that you would be okay with the interruption.” Laney, Little Miss I Think I Have a Set of Balls, spoke in a condescending tone that made me want to reach across the desk and smack the arrogance right out of her mouth.

Her lips twitched and her smile fell from her lips. I fought the urge to laugh. I knew Ian wouldn’t turn me away. Not when I had his life in the palm of my hand.

“He said to send you in,” she snarled with her nostrils flaring.

“Why thank you, Laney.” I pushed off the desk and sauntered toward the door just beyond it. I didn’t even knock before pushing it open.

Ian was already rounding his desk as I entered. Tension was written all over his face. “Harper, I’ve been meaning to call you.”

“Sure you have, Ian. I completely understand. I mean, leading a double life…” I fanned my hand out, exaggerating the motion. “It must be so rough. Definitely time-consuming.”

I brushed past him and took a seat in his chair. I leaned back and placed my feet on top of his desk, knocking papers to the floor in the process.

Ian stood frozen in the center of his office, taking me in. I watched the moment his eyes roamed over my bare legs and eventually zeroed in on my exposed cleavage.

“My marriage sucks,” he confessed. “I plan on leaving her.”

I smiled, “Is that so?”

He was falling for it, going to the exact place I needed him to before I could attack. He nodded as he took a step toward me. “I’ve been unhappy for a very long time. I just haven’t found the right way to end it.”

I waited for him to reach out and attempt to place his hand on my leg. “Uh-uh,” I said. His gaze shifted to meet mine. He cocked his head to the side, questioning my response.

Slowly and very skillfully, I lowered my legs to the floor and stood up. I brought my chest within inches of his, pushing out my breasts just a little more. I watched as his eyes shifted downward.

“Why don’t we take a little walk, Ian?” I asked. That cocky, confident smile I had grown accustomed to spread out over his lips. His tongue darted out to wet the lower one as his eyes roamed over me once more. The pig actually thought there was hidden meaning behind my offer. Boy, was he in for a rude awakening.

He followed me closely as I left his office. I could feel his eyes on me. I waved spitefully at Laney as we passed her desk. She had been giving me the evil eye from the moment I stepped out of Ian’s office, so I couldn’t let her get in the last jab. My mind didn’t work that way.

Ian stepped into the elevator beside me and his hand grazed my hip. “What is it you have planned?” he asked.

“It was just feeling a little stuffy in there, thought we needed some fresh air.” I stared forward as the doors closed. I knew in that moment I had the upper hand. He was still trying to figure me out, and that was fine, but I was more than certain he wouldn’t expect what I had in mind.

As we exited the building, I walked toward his car and trailed the tip of my finger along the top of the fender. He narrowed his eyes, watching closely. “So I’ve been thinking. You need to fill your wife in, on all your conquests.” He chuckled like he thought I was kidding. “I know I’m not the only one. I’m not that naïve.”

“I’m not telling my wife,” he stated sternly.

I nodded. I honestly didn’t expect him to agree, but I had to throw it out there. “You do know that I could tell her.” I grabbed my keys from my purse “In fact, I know exactly where she takes her yoga classes every Tuesday and Thursday morning. I also know that she has coffee with her sister Marissa on Fridays.”

The color began to drain from his face.

“Molly seems really sweet. The way she volunteers her time at the nursing home shows that she’s kind. She doesn’t deserve to be married to a selfish bastard like you.”

I dug my key into the fender of his car, and he lunged forward, but I held up my hand to stop him. “Yeah, I wouldn’t consider that if I were you. I mean, you wouldn’t want to add assault charges to your list now, would you?”

“Bitch,” he muttered.

“Yeah, I know.” I placed my palm flat against his chest. Tapping it lightly, I smiled up at him. “But let me just clarify something. You truly haven’t seen how big of a bitch I can be. Not yet, anyway, but we have time.

“I also know that your wife owns everything you have. She had it all prior to your marriage. The fact that her father is responsible for your success has a lot to do with the reason you string her along. Molly should know that all you truly love about her is her money.” The look of panic on his face was extremely satisfying.

I stepped around him, and I swear I heard him growl. “This could be fun, Ian.” I waved over my shoulder and crawled into my Nissan. Playing head games with him was better than I thought.

Chapter Six

Easton

“So why did you need all that information about Molly Wilson anyway?” I asked Harper as she flopped down on the couch in Jett’s office.

She shrugged, leaning forward to pull off her heels. My eyes wandered down to take in the view I currently had of her breasts.

Someone clearing their throat caught my attention, and Kade laughed when our eyes met.

“You may want to redirect your eyes, Easton.” He chuckled once more when Harper looked back and forth between the two of us.

“Easton Black, you wouldn’t happen to be checking out my tits, now would you?” Harper fluttered her eyes innocently. She knew the view she was giving me—in fact, she was still hunched forward.

“They are really nice tits.” I relaxed back against the chair, staring directly at her. I was never one to back down, and I was a very honest person, the one thing I got from my mother.

“Dude, seriously, do you have a death wish?” Kade asked.

Harper and I still held one another’s stare, neither willing to cave. She bit her lip, and damn if it didn’t go straight to my dick. Harper was definitely not innocent. I could see she was a dirty girl inside, one I was dying to get a glimpse of.

“How can you tell from all the way over there? You may need to get a closer look just to be sure.” She was taunting me.

I could hear Kade mumbling, “Oh shit,” next to us. He was such a little bitch. Jett may get pissed, but I was thinking a few hours with Harper may be worth his wrath. He would get over it eventually, and I would always remember those hours.

“Yeah, I’m thinking a closer look may be necessary.” I slid forward in the chair to sit right on the edge and darted my tongue out to wet my lips.

Kade still mumbled his disapproval, yet all I could see was Harper.

Just then the office door opened and Harper sat up straight. Jett strolled in and paused as he took us all in. “What the hell is this, the community hangout? Don’t you people work?”

Harper stood and hooked her heels over her finger. “I’m here to have lunch with Callie. Kade’s trying to keep your friend from ogling my tits, though Easton just asked if he could get a closer look so he could give me his honest opinion.”

She winked at me just as she walked out of the office, shaking her ass a little more than necessary. Jett glared at me and I shrugged. “Sorry, man, but I’m not blind. Your sister is fine as hell.”

His mind was working in overdrive. He wasn’t sure which way to go. Kade observed us both quietly.

“I’ve got too much shit going on right now, and you need to be checking in on my money for the Miami opening,” he said at last. “Sitting around dream-fucking my sister ain’t getting me what I need.” Jett chose to brush off our flirting, but I was having a harder time allowing the last ten minutes to escape my mind.

I was shocked when Harper called last night to ask me for help. She wanted some information on Ian’s wife, and who was I to deny her? In fact, I was more than happy to have the chance to help. I asked a few times what she needed it for, only to have her shrug it off.

I still had no idea why she wanted it, but being able to spend a little time with Harper made it not matter as much. Now she was the only thing I could think about. Those legs of hers made my mind race.

***

Last night I dreamed of Harper. Her long, blonde hair was intertwined through my fingers, and her mesmerizing blue eyes gazed up at me, begging for more.

The things I did to her during those dreams only left me aching when I awoke. Suppressing a hard-on all damn day while working with financers and potential investors was sure to be interesting. I had a job to do, and Harper was keeping me from it. Well, not technically, but the idea of her was leading to an uncontrollable hunger.

***

“Are you still coming tonight?” Jett asked.

I had just pulled into the driveway of my place in Miami. I had stayed here the last few nights, something I generally avoided doing, trying to settle everything for Jett’s newest location. My house felt empty; it was too big and entirely too quiet. Unless I had business in Miami, I generally stayed in West Palm Beach.

Partnering with Jett to open not one but eventually two more locations kept me busy. The nightclubs I inherited from my father ran themselves. I only needed to visit them occasionally. Most of my income came from sources I was unaware of, and investments my father made over the years continued to fill my accounts. It was better that way. My father hadn’t always been the best role model, but he did what he had to do to survive. In the end, he was a man that many envied, including myself.

I was the typical rich kid. I had more money than I knew what to do with, so investing in one of my best friend’s businesses, a place that was already thriving, was a no brainer.

“Yeah, I’m just gonna grab a few things from the house, and then I’ll head over. I’ll see you in a few hours,” I assured him.

Quinn had planned their first party since she moved in with Jett, a get-together of all their closest friends. Jett wanted it to be perfect, so he hadn’t stopped hounding me all week. A happy Quinn guaranteed an even happier Jett.

I would be staying in my condo just up the road from Jett’s house. I felt more at home in Palm Beach. Here in Miami things just felt lonely.