Pretend You're Mine(50)

“After I had been there a week the mom left and things got ugly fast. The man had a nasty temper, especially when he drank. Every payday we’d all do everything we could to stay out of his way. But someone always got noticed. And once or twice it was me.”

Luke felt sick to his stomach. “How old were you?”

“I was twelve. I was the oldest in the house.”

“Did he ever do anything ...” Luke couldn’t get the words out without choking on them.

“Sexual? No, just regular run of the mill physical abuse.”

“What happened to him?”

“Jail.”

“Is he still there? Is he any kind of threat to you?”

“He’s still there.”

He kissed the top of her head and held her close, forcing himself to be gentle when the rage pounding through his veins wanted to destroy something.

“Thank you for telling me, Harper.”

When she didn’t respond, he nudged her chin up. “I’m sorry. I hate that that happened to you.”

“Me, too. Let’s talk about something less depressing. Like maybe another shower?”





CHAPTER NINETEEN


Three Weeks...

Harper worried that her confession to Luke would make him see her as damaged goods, or worse, feel sorry for her. However, nothing slowed down their need for each other. They spent more time in bed than out of it. She kept waiting for the intensity to fade, to not ache to have him inside her. To get used to the sight of his naked body. To not feel that pitter pat in her chest when he said her name.

Maybe it was the fact that their time together was expiring that fueled the intensity. Whatever it was, it left her breathless.

She watched Luke as he seamlessly folded preparations to leave into his already busy days. At work, Frank and Charlie would be stepping up in Luke’s absence. They had done it before, and Luke trusted them with what he had built.

At home, Luke would count on James for property maintenance and check-ins. His brother also had access to Luke’s accounts and made sure bills were paid. While Luke double checked his auto-pay bills, changed the oil in his truck — and her car — and checked the level in the propane tank, Harper started a list of things she needed to do before leaving.

She and Beth worked long hours trying to get everything around the office caught up and organized.

“Thank God you’re here.” Beth puffed as she hauled a towering stack of papers to the shredder. “Otherwise, I would have been stuck filing all of this crap.”

Harper staggered behind her under the weight of her own load. “Scanners.” She gasped. “Best invention ever.”

Between the two of them, they had managed to scan the last eight months of paperwork and invoices into an online system that was backed up daily. Going forward, all paperwork would be done electronically and stored in the system. But that still left all of Garrison’s old paper records.

“I think we should get an intern this summer to do all the scanning and shredding.” Beth dropped the papers in an unceremonious heap next to the shredder. “And washing our cars and picking up our lunches.”

Harper felt a little twinge with the realization that she wouldn’t actually be here this summer. Who knew where she was going to end up? But it was probably past time for her to bring up the subject to Luke.

With only two weeks until his unit deployed, she needed to strategize a graceful exit. She had every intention of using this month for résumé polishing and job-hunting, but she had spent the majority of her time working or naked.

She didn’t feel particularly remorseful about her priorities. However, she was dangerously close to getting carried away with their faux romance. A little shot of reality, however painful, was a healthy reminder of what she needed to focus on.

Guiltily, Harper thought about the handful of emails her friend Hannah had sent her with job postings in Fremont that she hadn’t even opened yet.

Thanks to the generous salary Luke gave her and the fact that he refused to let her pay rent or utilities, her savings account was being rebuilt, and she would have plenty for a security deposit and rent on a new apartment. She’d even have a little left over for some furniture.

A little place of her own would be a good thing to focus on when it came to getting over Luke.

Harper sighed and dumped her files on the floor. “Let’s go grab some lunch before we tackle the shredding. My treat.”

***

When Luke came home that afternoon, he found Harper perched on a barstool squinting at his laptop. Harper lifted her face for a kiss, and he caught a glimpse of the screen.

“Looking for a new job on your boss’s computer? Classy.”

Harper wrinkled her nose at him and pulled him down for another kiss. “Very funny. And yes.” She turned her attention back to the screen. “I’m also trying to figure out how to make being in this position for only a month not sound flaky on my résumé.”