Page 7 of Silver Fox's Secret Baby

“And you remember my sisters? Plural?” Harley says, stepping aside.

“How could I forget the famous Solace brood?” I ask and immediately regret my choice of words. Sounds creepy and antiquated.

We all exchange hellos and then settle into another silence. My eyes can’t help but gravitate toward Harley. Her eyes are decorated with swipes of eyeliner, catlike and tempting.

“Why don’t you invite them in? Like they’re our guests or something?” Gillian whispers at a volume loud enough for all of us to hear.

“Gillian!” Dana scolds, but immediately picks up the torch. “We’re so glad you could make it, Grant. Come in and let’s get you a drink.”

I nod more vigorously than I’d like. “Please, that sounds wonderful.”

Dana puts a hand on my arm and starts to guide me inside. I give one last glance to Harley and, to both my delight and chagrin, she’s looking right back at me. Her brown eyes are sweet and sticky, just like honey. I could die in those eyes.

She breaks eye contact first, attending to Victoria. My heart falls slightly, but I know there’s nothing here. Nothing but vicious, impulsive attraction. Desire. Want.

All of that is fleeting.

However, as Dana guides me inside, talking to me in a gentle, friendly voice, I can’t hear a word she says. Because there is only one thing on my mind. One voice, one image, one touch.

Harley Solace.

3

HARLEY

From the moment Grant walked in, I haven’t been able to stop looking at him. Watching him.Studyinghim.

There’s something about the way he moves. With purpose and grace, but not with pride. It should elude a man of his status. After all, heisthe CEO and founder of Infinium Entertainment, only the biggest name in television and film for the past several years.

But I’ve known him my whole life. Probably before that. He’s been friends with my parents since they were in college. It’s wrong for me to be…attracted to him.

And yet, I can’t look away.

It should be easier now that the party is in full swing and the backyard is full of people. The grill is churning out hot dogs and hamburgers (and tofu dogs and bean burgers for the vegans and vegetarians that come with the territory in LA). Music is blasting, people are laughing and splashing in the pool, the sun is just starting to grow orange, anticipating its set in the west.

After the way his eyes met mine, though…for that briefest second.

Well, how can I look at anything else?

“Close your mouth. You’ll catch flies,” Gillian whispers, tapping my chin softly.

Oh god, have I been staring? With my jaw dropped? So much for being subtle.I close my mouth tight. “Sorry.”

“I know you’re bored, Harley, but at least try to look interested,” she teases, bumping me with her hip.

“Yeah, I could just…die of boredom,” I affirm nervously. I can still see Grant in my periphery, in the middle of a group holding a boisterous conversation. He looks so fucking good in that thin, linen suit and airy white button-down. As if he’s stepped right out of a resort in Mexico. Absolutely divine.

Ignore him, Harley.I pull my attention with all of my might away from Grant and immediately clap eyes on two familiar faces emerging from the kitchen onto the back patio. “There’s Lola.”

Gillian grimaces. “And Axel.”

“Well, don’t sound too happy about it…” I tease. Lola is Gillian’s best friend and has been since they were kids. They even run their vegan bakery together in Silver Lake. Axel is Lola’s brother and, from the tone of her voice, Gillian’s worst enemy.

“I told Lola not to bring him,” my sister says.

I scoff. “She’s your best friend.”

“Yeah, that doesn’t mean her siblings are a package deal. We don’t take each other everywhere we go.”

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