Page 71 of Unforgettable

“It’s Harper’s roommate, Alyssa.”

“She’s amazing,” Hayden says with wide eyes.

I have a feeling Hayden isn’t just talking about Alyssa’s dancing skills. He hasn’t blinked since the spotlight covered her with golden light. I hide my smile. Hayden never gets distracted by a woman—choosing to focus only on his daughter and career. The last woman I saw him with was Lily’s mother. I may spend most of my time living in London, but if there were women in his life, Lucas would have told me. Unless Hayden is dating in secret, which I doubt. It took a lot of effort to get him here tonight even though Lily is at a sleepover.

The music ends and the stage goes dark. Alyssa’s performance is over. I know from coming here the last three nights, she’ll have another two dances later.

Harper props her forearms on the counter and leans toward me. “Isn’t she amazing?”

“Who’s amazing?” Lucas, with a huge grin, takes a seat next to me. I don’t have to guess how his lap dance went. His unzipped fly is proof it went well.

“You missed my friend Alyssa dance on stage,” Harper informs him.

“Did she get her gear off?” Lucas asks.

I turn back to Harper, and I catch her eyeroll. “No. She’s a performer, not a stripper.”

“Then I had a better time with Lady Cherry,” he says to Harper. To me, he whispers with a wink, “Hercherrywas delicious.”

I shake my head. When will Lucas grow up? All he wants to do is go out and fuck women until his dick falls off. Wait…wasn’t that what I was doing before Harper came back into my life? How quickly things can change when you’re happy and with the person you love. Glancing over at her smiling and chatting with a customer, all I want to do is drag her home and make love to her over and over again. Make her a permanent part of my life.

“I think I want to marry Harper,” I say to Hayden and Lucas.

“What?” my brothers say at the same time.

Making sure Harper is still serving customers and out of earshot, I say again, “I think I want to marry Harper—no, IknowI want to marry her.”

Hayden’s eyes narrow. “I thought you said there was something not quite right. Like maybe she was holding something back.”

It had crossed my mind. Lately, I’ve been so wrapped up in her, I haven’t visited that thought again. Well, except for the nanosecond I thought she was working with Matteo. Surely if she’s hiding something, I’d feel it, right? I flick another glance at her wiping down the counter. Like she feels my gaze on her, she lifts her head and smiles at me. The smile smashes into my chest. God, I love her.

“I think she’s told me everything,” I say.

“You think?” Lucas raises an eyebrow.

I spin the glass in my hand. “What more can there be?”

Hayden scratches the side of his neck and shrugs. “Who knows? But if you are thinking something is off, trust your gut.”

Trust my gut.My gut is telling me I want Harper permanently in my life.

“Why do you want to get married anyway?” Lucas waves a hand in the direction of the stage and the women chatting up customers. “When you can have a variety of women who will suck your dick until your eyeballs pop.”

Choking on a laugh, I shake my head. I don’t want a variety of women.

I only want Harper.

Chapter Thirty-Six

HARPER

Theshrillsoundofmy phone on the nightstand wakes me from a deep sleep. I groan at the interruption, cursing myself for not putting it on silent before I went to bed. Working late nights at The Temple has me sleeping in longer in the mornings than I normally would. I place a pillow over my head and try to ignore the annoying sound. Finn has already left for work, and I’m hoping for a couple more hours of sleep.

When the ringing stops, I sigh with relief and nuzzle my face in the pillow. A few seconds later, it rings again. Pushing my hair from my face, I crack my eyes open and glare at the offending device. I better answer it. It could be important. Picking the phone up, I see Finn’s name on the display.

“Finn,” I answer. “Is everything okay?”

“No, everything is not okay.”

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