by Tara Rose
“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have been so naïve.”
“No,” they said together.
“It’s not your fault,” said Mason “It’s his.”
She looked so conflicted that Lee wanted to hold her and never let her go. How could any man not want to be with her? “He’s right. This guy never should have treated you that way. He used you to scratch an itch.”
She nodded. “I know that now. Whenever we did something outside of work, the dynamics were entirely different. At first, I talked myself into believing I was imagining it, but I wasn’t. And then when I found out there were others, I felt dirty, cheap, and totally stupid for having fallen for it.”
He and Mason exchanged a quick glance. Lee had to ask. “Were you the one who turned him in to HR?”
She looked genuinely surprised, and he sent up a silent prayer of thanks. “What? Hell no. I would never do that. I simply stopped talking to him. But what I didn’t know for a few days was that at least two of the others found out about me as well.”
“How did you discover all this?” asked Mason.
“The wrong person caught him with one of the other women. Word spread, and the gossip mill was alive and kicking within days. It was actually pretty damn scary to watch happen. That’s why I didn’t want to do anything with you two up here. Too many bad memories.”
Both men nodded, and Lee gave her hands a squeeze. “Totally understandable now. So he was caught, and then he was fired?”
She nodded. “Yes. Within a week. It all happened so fast. I left right after that. I couldn’t even do my job. The other women he’d been screwing around with shot me dirty looks whenever I passed them in the halls or on the elevator, and I had nasty notes slipped onto my desk. Insulting things…you know. I didn’t go to HR because really, I had no way to defend what I had done. I think if I’d stayed, I would have been let go as well. I was so stupid…”
“It’s okay.” He brushed a finger along her face. “You were caught up in it. We all do things we wish we hadn’t done.”
“Really? For six months? Knowing it was wrong, and knowing it was jeopardizing your job?”
“Well, yes. People do. He used you, Harper. He hurt you. And right now, we need to figure out why he’s harassing you.”
“Nothing has happened since I blocked him.”
“But why did he start after two months of silence?”
She averted her gaze, and Lee couldn’t pretend that whatever was going on with the harassment, it wasn’t entirely over or she hadn’t told them everything. The look on her face and her body language told him that. “I honestly don’t know the answer to that.”
“Okay. You know, if there’s something else about this you haven’t told us, we’re right here. All you have to do is say it. We’ll help you figure out what to do.”
The hopeful look that passed over her face told Lee he had been right. There was more to it. He gave her hands another squeeze, silently trying to communicate with her. She looked terrified. There was no pretending it was anything else he glimpsed in her big blue eyes. What the hell had been in those e-mails and Facebook posts? And who was this asswipe Dennis Avery? Lee had some searching online to do later.
“Thank you. Getting all this out helped a lot. And I really should get back now.”
They stood. “We should, too. But think about what I said. We’re right here.”
She embraced them each, clinging for long seconds, and when she started down the stairs toward three, he and Mason stood in the landing and waited until she’d opened the door to her own floor. He glanced at his friend. “Something else is going on. You know that, right?”
Mason nodded. “Let’s do some digging.”
They high-fived each other and returned to their own floor.
Chapter Eight
Harper waited until she’d returned to her desk, then reread the e-mails and Facebook posts she’d found this morning, right before lunch. She would delete the posts when she got home and had access to her personal laptop. She’d also save them, along with the ones Dennis had posted, in a Word document, just in case.
They were from two of the women who had also been fucking Dennis at work, and she had no idea how they had found her. Harper hadn’t been friends or even work acquaintances with either of those women. She’d already blocked them, but she still didn’t know how they had found her e-mail address. Facebook was easy, but not her e-mail. It wasn’t posted publicly, even as part of her social media profile.
Would filing a police report help? She had no idea. Maybe she should ask Lee and Mason if their friend list included cops? Hadn’t they mentioned that a couple of detectives were Doms? She should have told them everything just now, but she didn’t want these people to start harassing them as well.
What the hell was going on here, and what was she going to do about it?
She jumped when her desk phone rang with an incoming call from an Indiana number. “Hi, Harper. This is Annalise Kerr.”
“Oh, hi there. Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. Did Maggie contact you about her appointing me as liaison for this joint project?”
“Yes. I’m thrilled that we’re going forward with this, and I can’t wait to get started working with you. Are you free to have dinner tonight with me, Gina, and Olivia? We can get started right away, and this way you can meet some of the residents in your new town.”
“I’d love to.”
Annalise gave her directions to the house she shared with Chad and Dustin, and then Harper texted Lee and Mason to let them know where she’d be tonight. She was busy the rest of the day, and when it came time to drive her home, she was more relaxed with Lee and Mason than she’d been after lunch. They didn’t bring up the e-mails again, and she was grateful for that.
They offered to drive her to Annalise house’s, but she told them she wanted to learn her way around Racy, and they seemed satisfied with that answer. If they were bothered by what she’d told them earlier, it didn’t show in their kisses before they left.
They were so perfect. If only she didn’t have this hanging over her head, everything would be better than she’d ever imagined it could be.
Before she drove to her dinner meeting, she deleted the Facebook posts from her wall after first saving them. She’d had this Facebook account for years now and she didn’t want to start over with a new one before she understood how Dennis and his girlfriends had found her. This account was how she kept in touch with her childhood friends. It would be a pain to start over with a new one, but she realized that might soon be her best choice.
But for a few hours at least, she’d have to try and put this out of her mind. There was work to be done, and new friends to meet.
The farmhouse was on the outskirts of town on Elm Parkway, but she found it easily. She smiled when she spotted the wind turbine on the property. It wasn’t as tall as the ones that lined US 231 or Interstate 65, but it was big enough to power the house. She wondered if Chad had worked for Notus at one time.
Annalise was gorgeous, and Harper was immediately jealous of her dark, curly hair and brown eyes. She gave her a hug, which surprised Harper, but then as soon as she started talking she understood. Annalise was one of those people who simply loved her life and everyone in it. The house smelled like heaven inside, and Harper immediately felt at ease as Annalise led her to the living room to introduce her to Dustin and Chad.
Dustin stood and shook hands with her, explaining they weren’t staying, but had wanted to meet her before they left. “We’re meeting friends for dinner so you girls can have the house to yourselves.” His dark hair and eyes reminded her of Lee, but Dustin’s face was more angular.
“Lee and Mason told me you’re a vet.”
If he was surprised at the mention of Mason and Lee, his face didn’t show it. “That’s right. I own the Racy Animal Clinic, right around the corner from where you’re living.”
Annalise must have told him where her apartment was, or maybe Lee and
Mason had?
“Nice to meet you, Harper.” She shook Chad’s hand, her gaze traveling over his blond hair and blue eyes. “I’m one of the detectives on the police force.”
“Nice to meet you both.” The urge to tell Chad what was going in with the e-mails and Facebook posts was suddenly strong, but this wasn’t the right place or time. Still, it was good to have finally met one of the cops in town.
“We’ll leave you to your dinner and meeting.” Both men kissed Annalise, and they weren’t chaste kisses.
Harper averted her gaze until they left, then she walked around the cozy room, admiring all the pictures of the three of them. “How long have you been with them?”
“Almost a year. You heard about the tornado last year, right?”
Harper nodded.
“That was the night Dustin’s ex-wife came into Luke’s Bar at the prior location on Market Street. She’d returned to town and kept contacting him, wanting him back, but he told her that night in the bar, in front of half the town, that he loved me. Chad did the same, and then all hell broke loose when the tornado hit.”
“What a story. Were you afraid?”
She laughed nervously. “I still am. I hate the damn things.”
“Let’s hope it’s a mild spring.”
“Lee and Mason told us they’re dating you. I hope that was okay.”
Harper turned to smile at Annalise. “Actually, it’s wonderful. I’m glad we have it all out in the open now. I’m not in the lifestyle, but I am interested in learning more. They’re taking me to Maddox’s club on Friday.”
“I wasn’t really in it either. In fact, none of us were that into it when we met. Dustin’s ex-wife and my ex-husband both used it as an excuse to cheat, and Chad was married to his work.”
Harper shook her head. “What is it with men and cheating? Why do they do that?”
“Women do, too. But you’re right. It does seem that more men than women do it. I wish I knew.” Annalise looked like she was going to say something else, but they were both distracted by the sound of the back door opening and voices in the kitchen.
Harper followed Annalise to greet a dark-haired, dark-eyed woman and a redhead with green eyes. The dark-haired woman extended her hand first. “Gina Santori.”
“Harper Montgomery. Nice to meet you. I had dinner Monday night at your brother’s restaurant. Fabulous food.”
“Thanks, but wait until you taste Annalise’s pasta. Vito has been bugging me for the recipe for almost a year, but she won’t give it up.”
Annalise winked. “Family secret. My great aunt Petronella would kill me if I gave it away.”
Harper laughed, then shook the hand of the other woman who introduced herself as Olivia Kelly. “I love your hair color.” It reminded Harper of a brilliant sunset.
“Oh, thanks. And yes, it’s real.”
“People ask me that all the time, too. I guess no one believes a blonde can be a true blonde.”
Annalise eyed her hair. “I always wanted blonde hair.”
“Really? I always wanted dark hair like yours.”
Annalise chuckled, and then pointed toward the stove. “The sauce is almost ready.”
Gina headed for one of the cupboards and took out plates while Olivia opened a drawer containing silverware. Clearly these two women were at home here.
“I noticed the wind turbine out back. Does it power the entire house?”
“Yes,” said Annalise. “Chad grew up here. His parents are both gone now, but his mother used to work at Notus.”
She nodded.
“Do you like it there?” asked Olivia.
“Yes, very much. Maggie is a great boss and everyone is friendly.”
“Where did you earn your marketing degree?” asked Gina.
She followed the women into the dining room, wishing they’d give her a chore so she didn’t have to simply stand there, watching them work. “Cleveland State. I’m from there, originally.”
“I earned mine in Cincinnati,” said Annalise. “I worked for Compass.”
“Oh, wow.” Compass was a top PR firm with offices in Ohio and New York City.
“It was so high-pressure, which is how I ended up here, working for Maggie’s brother Luke at his bar. But eventually I missed the work, and that’s when Giolanna Design Solutions was born.”
“Fueled by the scandals in town,” said Gina. “Just think. If Bernie hadn’t been a crook, Olivia and I would never have quit our jobs, and we wouldn’t have started this company.”
“Things have a weird way of working out, don’t they?” asked Harper. Would her cyber stalking situation eventually work out as well?
“Every time,” said Gina.
Annalise returned to the kitchen and Harper followed, asking if she could help.
“Sure.” Annalise handed her a colander. “The pasta is ready.” Annalise took out a large bowl and a slotted spoon placing them on the sink. Harper turned off the stove and drained the pasta while Annalise took garlic bread out of the oven. “I have a salad and wine in the fridge.”
“Thank you again for this.”
“No, thank you. I was so excited when Maggie said she got the okay from corporate to do this, and even more excited when she told me who I’d be working with. We all heard you were a star at Tray Industries. Maggie is quite proud she stole you away from them.”
“You’re too kind.” Harper carried the bowl over to the counter so Annalise could pour her red sauce over it, and then she took the salad and wine bottle out of the fridge. She carried the salad into the dining room where Gina and Olivia were bent over Olivia’s phone, cooing over pictures.
“Oh, come look at Cassidy, my baby. She’s a month old today. Storm and Cameron are watching her, and she just started lifting her head. They took a hundred pics.”
The women laughed as Annalise came in with the bowl, and then all four looked at the pictures Olivia’s Doms had sent her.
“I’ll be right back,” said Annalise. “I need to open the wine.”
Olivia put the phone down, and they began to distribute the food. When Annalise returned and they’d all taken their seats, Olivia put up a hand. “Oh, before I forget to tell you all this, guess who is pregnant?”
Gina’s eyes grew wide. “You again?”
“Oh hell no! Trent responded to a fire last night…” She glanced toward Harper. “Trent and Wyatt Rohan are Ria Rodriguez’s…” She blinked a few times, clearly unsure how much to say.
“It’s okay,” said Annalise. “She’s cool with it. She’s dating Lee Parker and Mason Sinclair.”
“Oh,” said Gina and Olivia at the same time, drawing out the syllable.
Harper laughed. “I’ve been here less than a week and I’m quite the topic of conversation already.”
“In this town?” asked Gina. “You have no idea.” She glanced toward Olivia. “So tell us the rest. What did Trent say?”
“Okay. So Trent is a paramedic, and Wyatt is one of the public defenders. They’re Ria’s Doms. Ria is one of your boss’s sisters. Anyway, Trent responded to a call last night at a house fire where Storm and Cameron also responded. Storm is the fire inspector and Cameron is the fire chief.”
Harper didn’t see the point in telling Olivia that Lee and Mason had already told her that.
“Trent told Storm that Ria found out yesterday that’s she’s pregnant.”
Gina shook her head. “Wow. That was fast. They’ve only been together what…a couple of months? Oops.”
Olivia poured them each a glass of wine. “No, it’s okay. Storm said Trent and Wyatt are thrilled. She was on the pill but they asked her to go off of it. They want kids with her.”
Annalise passed around the pasta bowl. “That’s so sweet. And that will mean her baby is the first Rodriguez grandchild. This should be interesting.”
Gina passed the garlic bread and spoke before Harper could ask Annalise what she meant. “I’m surprised Maggie didn’t say anything. Then again, if Ria ju
st found out, she might not have told her family yet.”
“Maggie doesn’t talk about her family at work. The others in my department said she keeps her personal life private.”
Annalise laughed. “Unlike most of the people in this town. But seriously, Ria’s parents are going to freak.”
“Why?”
Gina leaned forward and lowered her voice, even though they were the only four in the room. “Let’s just say her parents think we’re all degenerates and are going to hell. And that includes how they feel about their sons, and now Ria as well.”
Did Maggie know that? She must. “That’s so sad.”
Olivia nodded. “It really is. My parents are Irish Catholic and they have no problem with me or Harrison being in the lifestyle. Harrison is my brother. He’s a detective, like Chad, and is one of Gina’s Doms.”
“Zach Kincaid is the other,” said Gina. “He’s our mayor.”
Harper nodded, again not telling Gina or Olivia that she’d already heard that about the men.
“Was it like this in your town?” asked Annalise. “I mean, where you lived before coming here?”
“It’s much larger than Racy. People really didn’t know each other this intimately. This is fabulous pasta, by the way.”
“Better than my brother’s?”
Harper stared at Gina, unsure what to say, and then the women laughed.
“I’m just messing with you. I would never ask anyone to compare.”
“Thank you. I wasn’t sure what to say for a second there.”
“Harper is going to wish she’d never moved here if we don’t stop with the gossip,” said Annalise. “So let’s get this project outlined.”
The more they talked, the more at ease Harper was all of them, even Gina. These three women were smart, articulate, and funny. When they finally rose from the table and started to help Annalise clean up, Harper was shocked to realize she’d been there three hours.
As the three walked out to their cars, Gina took Harper aside. “I can’t wait to work more closely with you. I hope you know I really was just kidding with the pasta remark.”