Page 112 of Ruthless Heir

“What are you going to tell me?” Her gaze intensifies. “That I’m the fake girlfriend so I should feel nothing? Or that I should betotally finewithAlexisturning up here, there, and everywhere to throw herself at you?”

“I told you I didn’t know she was going to be here.”

“It doesn’t matter. You like her. You told me. So why the hell am I here? Why the hell am I here, Asher? She’s not exactly hard to get. Why didn’t you just pick her from the start if you like her so much?”

There it is. The question of the hour. It seems more pertinent now that we’re three weeks into our arrangement.

“I needed more time.”

“Well, I think you’ve had quite enough time. You obviously want to be with her, so let me make things easier for you and back out now.”

God, she has everything all wrong. “No.”

She presses a hand to her heart as if she’s in physical pain. “I can’t do this again with you.”

Her words grab my attention and I instantly think of the past. She saidagainand it didn’t sound like she was talking about weeks ago.

I gaze into her eyes. “What do you mean byagain, Harper?”

“Years ago.”

My stomach knots then clamps and my heart stops beating in my chest.

Years ago. The night of the accident.“You remember?”

“I never forgot.” Her voice lowers to a cautious whisper.

I stare back at her in disbelief, my heart beating again but faster than normal while my lungs lock.

Harper never forgot what happened. God. I want to rip into her and trash her out for keeping such a secret, but reasoning stops me.

Because didn’t we both take the easy way out? She pretended to forget and I never mentioned it. It was like the incident never happened so neither of us had to face it.

Pretending to forget is such a Harper thing to do but unlike her other antics, I understandwhyshe did it. At the same time I want to hear it from her lips.

“Do you remember everything else?”

“No. How crazy is that? When I woke up from that coma I remembered that night with you but nothing from the six years before that. I didn’t even remember that my mother died. But I remembered that night.”

“God… Why didn’t you tell me?”

“It hurt less to pretend.”

“Harper—”

“Don’t. I already feel bad enough and I can’t take any more. Please go be with Alexis so I can be over you.” A tear slides down her cheek. The sight pulls on my insides like a thick rope.

I stare at her, taking in her distress and the wealth of hurt in her eyes. That hurt does something to me, pushing me to be theruthless man I normally am who takes what he wants. It’s time to become that guy again. The real me. Fuck the consequences.

“I can’t be with Alexis,” I rasp. As soon as I speak those words I feel free. They feel like the first right thing I’ve said in years.

Harper stares back at me, confused. “Why not?”

“Because… I want you.”

Her lips part and she stares back at me in shock. She seems frozen in my confession. The slow rise and fall of her chest is the only thing moving.

“What?” Her voice is small and soft, her tone careful, as if she’s scared the question will change the moment.

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