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Harlow sighed. "I tried. Many times, I tried, but Grant would always emerge from one scrape, only to fall even more deeply into another, until the night that ill-omened raid got him killed. I tried to save him then, too, but I never saw the shooter until it was too late. Too late for him, and too late for me."
"Wait...someone shot you? And your brother? Were they ever charged for it?"
He lifted his shoulders in one big shrug. "I do not know. I've had little time to consider who killed us, let alone whether justice was done. More important is my responsibility to help and protect you." He shook his head. "The past is not important."
Octavia didn't agree. Then again, Harlow's killer was likely long dead, whether they'd been arrested or not. They'd probably turn over in their grave if they knew the men they'd killed were alive and well in the present day, protecting and possibly even seducing modern-day women.
Wait...was that what Harlow was trying to do to her? First winning her over with all the history she wanted, then defending her against all those bikies, and now taking her up to the roof to romance her under the stars?
At some point, he'd released her, so he no longer had his arms around her, but it still felt intimate, being alone with him up here where no one could see them. Well, except maybe the gargoyle statue on the roof across the street, that seemed to smirk at everyone.
"What about you and my...virtue?" Octavia asked. No fucking way was she telling him she was a virgin. She'd made that mistake with other guys in the past, and it had only made them more eager to get into her pants. Like there was some award for being first...
Harlow drew himself up. "I am your protector. As long as I am with you, you are in no danger."
Yeah, but that was what made the idea so intriguing. He was obviously built to protect, with all those muscles, so it stood to reason that he'd never hurt her. He might be the best lover a girl ever had – perfect for your first time, if you were a bit nervous and a lot worried and plainly terrified of pregnancy after what happened to Tacey...
But she barely knew him. And he had horns. He wasn't even human.
She bet he'd be amazing in bed, though...
Octavia shook her head. She couldn't believe she was even considering it, but now her mind had gotten hold of the idea, it wouldn't let go. Her eyes skimmed down to the low-slung waistband of his track pants, then dipped lower. There was a definite bulge there, visible even in those loose pants. So if he was proportionate everywhere, that meant down there he'd be...
Octavia swallowed. No way he'd fit. Shit, he'd probably hurt her, if he was that big. No. No, no, no, no, NOPE.
Harlow took a step toward her, his hand outstretched, palm up. "I promise you have nothing to fear from me. I will not hurt you, and I will not let anyone else hurt you, either."
Octavia recognised the truth when she heard it. And it was – as long as she kept away from his cock, she'd be fine. So she took his hand, and said, "Can we go back down now? I should check to see if my computer's done."
"As you wish."
Strong arms pressed her against his muscled chest, but it was the bulge nudging her belly that held her attention. Would it really be so bad? Callie and Tacey both said that bigger was better, and Harlow was huge. If there was a way for them to do it without hurting her, maybe...
She'd known the guy for a matter of days and already she was thinking of taking him to bed? She might not be seeing hallucinations, but she still might be going mad. Octavia gave herself a little shake, looking around the studio desperately for something to distract her.
"Oh, look, the software's installed. Now all I need to do is set it up..."
He released her and stepped back. This time, she noticed, and felt the loss, even if only for a moment.
History was what ignited her passion, and bringing it to life. Not hot, hard men with enormous cocks. Or at least they hadn't before...
Octavia cursed under her breath. She'd gone and fallen for Harlow, hadn't she?
SEVENTEEN
"Gah, this is impossible!" Octavia exclaimed, running her hands through her hair in frustration. She must have been doing it a lot, seeing as there was little resistance and she vaguely remembered braiding it earlier. The braid and whatever she'd tied it with must have come loose hours ago.
"May I be of assistance?" Harlow asked.
Always with the good manners and polite words. She wondered if he even knew any swear words – she'd never heard him say any.
"I need two things – Sean Bell, and the mill, and there's practically nothing about either of them! Not a single picture or record I can even use as a reference, except for a note on the original deed for the Bell estate that he arrived on theHooghly, and that this was his land grant, given to him by the Governor in lieu of the one promised by Peel. But he's not on the passenger list, or the passenger lists for theGilmoreor theRockingham, or any other ship that arrived before 1835. Yet his name is on a land grant and a marriage certificate when he married Carline Steel!"
Harlow froze. "He married Carline Steel?" He paused for a long moment. "I suppose if Stan died and didn't get her, some other man must have. I just never thought..." He shook his head. "Call me a coward, but I have no desire to be the man to tell Stan the woman he loved married another man."
Octavia had to admit she wouldn't want to, either. Then she realised... "Stan is the cousin who's protecting Alethia, right? The girl who isn't living at Bell House with us?"
Harlow nodded. "He claimed her first."
