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“Thank you,” I respond with gratitude.
He nods and walks away.
Fifteen minutes later, Harper walks into my office.
“Please sit,” I gesture.
She does.
“The launch party is only a month away. How are things going on your end?” I ask.
Harper gives me the okay sign with her fingers. “Right on schedule. I should be done in a week and then have enough time to run through the systems to make sure everything is tight. I’m also looking into the other aspects, so you don’t have to worry your pretty, little head.”
I sigh and scrub my face in frustration. “I’m afraid that this pretty face has to worry about a lot. Someone is snooping around, and there are chances they might stumble on this project.”
Her eyes widen. “What? Who? Why?”
As someone who understands. I tell her everything Arnold informed me of, not leaving out the issue with my ex.
“So,” Harper rubs her temple, “you don’t have any reasons to be in the headlines, and now someone wants to find one? That’s ridiculous. Why don’t they go looking for someone or something else?”
I shrug.
“I don’t know. But this is the other side of the coin for someone who has a reputation as being a playboy and socialite. I don’t want them finding out about our project, and I know it is also important to you.”
She nods. “It is. The solution is to get the reporter off your back, isn’t it? Some sort of diversion.’
“Yeah.”
Harper snaps her fingers. “I know what to do, then. My parents are very well-connected. One call to my mom, and she’ll have them fired. He won’t know what hit him, and then we can carry on like there was never a threat.”
There’s a scheming smile on her face the entire time.
“Who are your parents?” I question. “The mafia?”
She laughs, throwing her head. “If I had mafia parents, I wouldn’t be here. I’d be running an empire. No, my mom is a celebrity divorce attorney, and as such, she has to make sure certain information doesn’t get to the public. My father owns an e-commerce chain, which means he knows somebody everywhere.”
I am impressed.
And pleasantly shocked. “How did I not know that?”
“Because we’ve never talked about our parents? It was only when my mom was in the hospital, I said anything about them.”
“Right,” I smack my lips. “So that you know, mine have passed. They died a long time ago.”
Her eyebrows lift, and she purses her lips. “I’m sorry.”
I laugh softly, waving my hand. “It was a long time ago. I turned out okay, didn’t I?”
She stands up, leans over the table, and puts her arms around me. “Yeah, you did. You turned out just fine.”
Her hug brings warmth I did not know I needed, and I hug her back. Seconds pass before Harper gently removes her arms, and I have to let go.
“Was that out of line?” she asks. “The hug, I mean.”
“There’s no rule saying we can’t hug, is there?” I respond with another question.
Her eyes brighten with her smile. “All right then. I should get on with calling my mom.”
