Page 57 of After the Fall
Her finger flew to my lips. “Nope. Not another word. The guestroom is yours, and it will always be yours, anytime you need it. Connor accepted that condition when he moved in. Now, was there a second part to your breakup list? Or can we jump ahead to the fun stuff, like planning revenge travel, and online dating portfolios?” She wiggled her brows and playfully threw a kernel at me.
On screen, Julia Roberts was seated at a red and white checkered table, twirling a forkful of spaghetti. “That does sound nice. At least the travel part. You already know how I feel about online dating,” I groaned. “But I think I need to take some time and figure my life out, before I jump into another relationship. I thought I liked journalism, but in some ways, the Carders did me a favor in firing me. I need to figure what I actually want to dofor a career. And…” my voice lowered to a whisper, as the pangs from earlier returned, “I need time to heal.”
She nodded solemnly. “Of course. You know I’m here for you, however long it takes to get over Wyatt.”
“Thanks. None of it matters though, if we can’t stop whatever the Carders are up to, and find my dad.”
Her buttery fingers wrapped around mine and gave my hand a gentle squeeze. “We will. Wyatt’s plans are really good. He’s going to fix everything, Harper. You’ll see.”
My chin trembled slightly. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because that man loves you.”
TWENTY-EIGHT
WYATT
Leading up to Halloween night,the hours were filled with meetings, samba parties, and workouts, though the meetings were the only thing I attended. The house felt abandoned without Harper, even though it was full of distant relatives shouting at each other in Portuguese.
I couldn’t bring myself to do anything except pore over the plans for the gala. Everything had to go perfectly. Harper and I weren’t together anymore, but that didn’t stop me from wanting to make everything in her world right again. Well, as right as it could be considering that she’d somehow been born into a family with a father who had disappeared, then turned up as a science experiment – as a sasquatch hybrid no less, while falling in love with the full version of the not-so mythical creature.
What were the odds?
Something told me that there was no way it could be a coincidence. But I couldn’t make it make sense. We had come into each other’s lives by accident. Nothing and no one had orchestrated our meeting. When we’d met, her father had been a distant memory for her. Now, Harper was alone in that littleapartment, with a missing mutant father and an ex-boyfriend who should’ve known better than to get involved with her.
The two family members I’d called in from the village had spent all day posted outside of Savannah’s apartment to make sure no one from Genocorp swooped in and hurt her – and also to report back if there were any sightings of Joe Davis.
It was as though Harper’s father had disappeared into thin air. We’d had a lot of rain, and the rivers in Stirling County had been running deeper and faster than usual, so his thoroughfare through the county was efficient, and the high water had completely masked his scent.
Lightning flashed and the power flickered as I stepped into my tuxedo pants, carefully zipping them up over my cock. Maybe I had to wear the penguin suit, but I wasn’t cramming my junk into boxers for the occasion.
A hard knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. Before I could respond, the heavy door creaked open. “Can I help you with your cufflinks?” Valentina’s eyes glowed golden in the crack of the doorway.
“I can manage.” I shoved the bottom of my shirt into my pants and buckled my belt.
Valentina ignored me and stepped into the room. To anyone else she would’ve looked stunning, her tall frame elongated in the blood-red silk gown, her tanned leg flitting in and out of view through the thigh-high slit as she walked. Her long dark hair cascaded down her bare back, and her full lips were painted the same color as her dress. While I’d never met a vampire, I didn’t doubt that they’d once walked the earth, and it wouldn’t have surprised me if one of them lurked deep in Valentina’s family tree.
I shoved a cufflink through the hole and it clattered to the ground.
“I see you’re managing quite well.” She bent to pick it up, her dress slipping low, almost revealing her nipples.
There wasn’t even a stir in my tuxedo pants. Valentina wasn’t beautiful to me. She’d never been, and if I hadn’t given in to my horniness all those years ago, Harper might still be living under my roof.
I shook my head. That wasn’t true. Harper and I weren’t meant to be together. Even if I hadn’t fucked Valentina and lied about it, I still wouldn’t be able to give Harper the life, and child, that she deserved.
The chill of Valentina’s fingertips on my skin only reminded me of the warmth of Harper’s. That was another mystery. Why had she warmed to me, something that only one of us could do? Was there more to her story?
The answers to all the questions lay deep in Stirling County, inside the brain of a man who might never be able to form complete sentences again. Joe Davis.
“Are you ready to get some answers?” Valentina asked. She finished with the cufflinks, then proceeded to do up the buttons on my shirt, then tied my bow tie in a perfect knot. “There.” She rested her hand on my chest. “You clean up quite nicely, Mr. Westwood.”
“We just have to stick with the plan,” I replied, shrugging into the jacket with the tails.
Valentina disappeared into my walk-in closet and returned with a top hat.
I shook my head. “That’s too much.”
“It’s a masquerade ball. It’s the perfect time to wear this.” She handed me the hat and took a black mask from her red clutch. “Turn around.”