Page 20 of Brutal Bond

CHAPTER

FIFTEEN

HARPER

This is absurd.

One hundred percent not real life.

People do not actually live like this.

I'm in complete awe when I take the last of the steps into the plane. It’s lavish. Fully decorated in dark wood and cream linens. It looks nothing like any plane I’ve been on in my life, flying coach rubbing arms and thighs with the people seated next to you.

“Champagne?” The flight attendant extends an already-poured glass toward me, and I hesitate to take it.

“Go ahead,” Edmund grants me the permission I didn’t realize I was waiting for. “Just go easy.”

I take a small sip, heeding what was definitely a warning, and I take a seat on the plush cream sofa. Suddenly acutely aware of the plug in my ass, I shift my weight on the couch. Edmund sits beside me, close enough that his pants brush against my calf. My heart begins to race a little faster, only intensifying when the crew shut the plane door.

I’m letting a strange man fly me across the country…

“You aren’t going to kill me and bury me in the desert, are you?” My nerves get the better of me, and the words blurt from my mouth.

“No.” He cracks a smile. “There are way too many animals in the desert. Encased in concrete is the way to go.”

“Wow,” I laugh and take another sip of my champagne. “And I thought I watched a lot of true crime television.”

“Harper. I’m curious.” He shifts on the couch so that he’s facing me. “Your apartment?—”

“I know.” I roll my eyes. “It’s absurd. But Nikki lets me live there with her practically for free.”

“So, she comes from a family with money?”

“Um,” I stall, trying to carefully word my answer. “She has a few wealthy Daddies.”

“And you?”

“Do I have a Daddy? No, definitely not.” I begin to ramble. “The other night. That was a one-time thing for me. Nik talked me into it, but that’s it for me.”

“And why’s that?”

“I can handle what happened in Adelaide Cove. It was a transaction. No false pretenses.” I take another sip from my flute. “What she does…it’s too much acting. Too much pretend.”

“Interesting.” He places his hand on my knee, and my thighs clench involuntarily. “You intrigue me, Harper.”

You fucking intrigue the hell out of me, too, Edmund Parker.

“Is that what you’re looking for?” I ask sincerely.

“A Daddy?” he jests.

“No, silly,” I laugh. “To be someone’s Daddy? I mean, you are almost twenty years older than me.”

“I lack the ability to care and nurture required to be a Daddy.” His hand slides along my thigh.

“But here you are, flying me across the country for dinner.”

“One of the best beef wellingtons you’ll ever have.”

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