Page 28 of The Truth of Us

I laughed so hard that I nearly spilled my drink.

“Harper, who the hell have you been dating?”

“You don’t get personal details.” She added.

I pulled my phone out. “Dates.”

She blinked. “What dates?”

“The agreement.” I opened my calendar. “We need official start and end dates.”

“You’re actually scheduling this?” She questioned, but moved closer.

“You wanted rules.” I shot back.

She shook her head softly, as if she were both amused and disturbed by me.

“The Northwell holiday event would be the final public appearance,” I said.

A strange expression crossed her face before she schooled it, saying, “I have a prior engagement that weekend.”

“With whom?”

“That would be personal, Elliot.”

Right. There it was again. That wall. Something about it irritated me more than it should have.

“Fine,” I said lightly. “It would still mark the end of the agreement.”

The words landed strangely in my chest.

End of the agreement.

Thirty days suddenly felt both incredibly long and nowhere near long enough.

I pushed the thought away immediately. “Well,” I said, locking my phone. “Now that business is settled.”

Harper eyed me carefully. “That tone concerns me.”

“It should,” I said with a wink.

I set my glass down and loosened my cufflinks. Her eyes tracked the movement.

“I am going to fuck you now,” I said with all the confidence I did not feel in that moment.

Her lips parted. “Are you?”

I started unbuttoning my shirt. “Harper Vale…”

Her eyes widened instantly.

Fuck, that was entertaining and also what was I doing calling her by my last name?

I continued, “... will you grant me the pleasure of letting me fuck you tonight?”

She stared at me for a full second, and then laughed.

I moved toward her slowly, watching her carefully now. Because beneath the banter, beneath the elegance and the rules and the careful control… she wanted this too.