Fallen (Stolen, Book Three) (An Alpha Billionaire Romance) (4 page)

“Stop defending him,” he growled. “No more talking about him or anything except for us.” He moved his hands until he held her face between them then lowered his mouth and took her lips. His tongue snaked out, stroked and fed the fire that had started licking through her veins.

“Fine,” she whispered. “It’s just us, then.”

She melted against him and let the feelings coursing through her take over.

“I take care of what’s mine, Harper, and you’re mine now. And anyone who tries to make you feel bad is going to have to go through me first.”

It wasn’t until that very minute that she realized how badly she needed to hear someone say that. That she was worth fighting for. Everyone had abandoned her even though she had nothing to do with what her father had done. And because she had finally had enough, she didn’t even have her parents anymore.

Knowing that Ethan wanted her, that he wanted to take care of her filled the hole that had been growing inside her chest. She could make it through anything as long as he was there beside her.

“Even though everything is a mess around us, I’m really glad you saved me in Tahiti, Ethan. I’m glad it was you.”

“Me too.” His arms tightened and he slid his tongue into her mouth, cutting off any more talking. When his lips trailed down over the column of her throat, her knees went weak. Fire licked through her veins and she didn’t care if the whole world was standing in the shadows, she wanted him.

Without moving his lips, then slid his hands down and gripped her ass through the thin material of her dress.

The hard bulge in his pants ground against the thin silk of her panties and she groaned. Her heart thundered against her chest. Laughter exploded somewhere down the beach and Ethan took her hand before walking back toward the house.

“As much as I would like to fuck you right here, I don’t want anyone else seeing what I get to see.”

They crossed the patio and Harper saw that his parents were gone, thank god.

He led her to a large bedroom, opened the door and then kicked it shut as he took hold of her with determination.

The dress he had picked out closed with a tie at the side and with one deft pull, he had it open. She was wearing a matching soft grey lace bra and panty set, also picked out by him. His gaze roved over her and hunger burned in his eyes when she shrugged the dress off her shoulders and it pooled at her feet.

“So fucking beautiful. So fucking mine,” he growled. He reached out and cradled the back of her head, pulling her in so that he could take her mouth again in a demanding kiss. He owned her mouth, taking what he wanted from her every time their lips met.

A whimper escaped from her throat and he swallowed it down as if he were a starving man. The hard tips of her nipples strained at the lace and she moved restlessly against his chest. She dug her nails into his sides, urging him closer even though nothing separated them.

If he did nothing but kiss her, she would die happy. But she wanted more.

So much more.

“Ethan, please…”

He pulled back enough so that he could look into her eyes, and the hunger she saw reflecting back took her breath away. His pupils were so big, so black, that there was hardly any color left.

She slid one hand down to caress the bulge in his pants and his jaw tightened. Lust flared in his eyes. “You want that?” he asked, his voice low and gravely.

“Very much. Please.”

She knew he loved it when she said please.

Raw desire crossed his face and he growled. “Tell me again.”

“Please,” she exhaled on a low groan. “I need you now.”

“Anything you want.” He swept her into his arms and carried her to the bed. His gaze bore into her and what she saw there took her breath away. And then she was falling again, falling with Ethan as he took her in more ways than one.

S
un filtered
in through sheer curtains as Harper’s eyes opened.

Ethan had his arm draped over her waist and she had one leg over his. Last night had been unbelievable. How every time with Ethan got better was beyond her. He’d wring out more orgasms than she could remember and when he finally sank into her, he took his time.

It had been different than their usual hard and fast, though it seemed much more intense. If she didn’t know better, she would swear that Ethan had made love to her last night.

At times, they’d made enough noise that she’d worried his parents might hear, even though they were in a distant wing of an enormous mansion.

Now she lay in his arms, curled up with him as long as she could before she really had to use the bathroom. As gently as she could, Harper slipped out from under his arm and padded to the en suite. The guest room was even more beautiful in the daylight, and the bathroom. God, she could live in there.

She eyed the walk in shower that could easily fit five people. Covered in mosaic stone tiles it had six jets and two huge rainfall showerheads in the ceiling. Plush white towels sat on the warmer and she ran her fingers over the warm cloth. Maybe Ethan would be up for a long shower when he woke up.

With a smile she took care of things and brushed her teeth. Her hair was all over the place and she couldn't fight the grin. Every minute she spent with Ethan was better than the last. And she had survived the grueling q&a with his father. Okay, maybe by blurting out that she was pregnant, but still…

They hadn’t kicked her out yet, so that had to be a good sign.

It occurred to her that maybe, maybe in time…things could even be okay between them. After her father did his time and there was some justice, and the baby was born, and time healed the fresh wounds…

Harper lifted her tank top and turned sideways. Her stomach was still flat and there was no sign that a life grew inside her yet, but already she knew she loved their baby. God, her life had completely fell apart and then when she least expected it, Ethan came along and put it all back together.

And she couldn’t remember being happier.

The huge window in the bedroom called to her and she stepped in front of it, pulling back the curtain to stare at the endless glittering blue ocean. The sun sat just above the horizon and she was lost in the beauty for several long breaths.

Movement below caught her eye and she saw Robert Wentworth sitting on the patio, sipping from a cup of coffee. He looked deep in thought.

Her feet were moving before she realized it.

She wanted to talk to him before Ethan woke up. Wanted to assure him that she was not supporting her father in any way—that her intentions were good.

She and Ethan were separate from their fathers and the only way this could work was if it stayed that way.

A few minutes later, she’d made her way to the door leading outside.

“Am I interrupting?” she asked softly, stopping on the threshold to the patio.

Robert looked up and a ghost of a smile crossed his face. “Not at all. Please, sit. Would you like some coffee? Or maybe orange juice instead?”

Her stomach lurched at the thought of either. “No thank you. They both make me a little queasy.”

He nodded and seemed to consider the horizon. “Well, let me know if there’s anything at all I can get you.”

She sat down and tried to smile as she launched into her speech. “The only reason I came down here was to tell you that I really do care about Ethan. As hard as it may be for you to believe right now—“

“Do you think bringing a child into all this is really the best option?” Robert suddenly asked. There wasn’t any anger or contempt in his eyes.

Harper could see the question was genuine.

She was momentarily taken aback by his interrupting her, but she decided to answer in kind. “It wasn’t planned, obviously,” she said carefully. “I had no idea who Ethan was in Tahiti. It was one night and then I came back to Boston thinking I’d never see him again. Then...I did. And it honestly could not have been a more confusing situation, but we’re figuring it out. Together.” She desperately tried to make him see the depth of her feeling. “Ethan wants this,” she told him, her voice strained with emotion.

“I don’t doubt he does,” Robert agreed. “He’s a fine man, upstanding character. Did you know that he was planning on going overseas? He went to college for International Policy specifically so that he could head our London office.”

Harper sat back. She had no idea. Actually, she didn’t even know what Ethan did for a living besides race car driving. “I thought he was putting together a race team?”

Robert chuckled. “That’s how he blows off steam. Everyone needs a hobby.”

She wondered if Ethan felt the same way or if he saw it as more. She should know that about him though, shouldn’t she? If they were going to have a future together, she ought to know what he did for work. “I suppose I’m not as up to date on these things as I should be,” she admitted, feeling suddenly on unsteady ground.

“You’re a lovely young woman despite everything that is happening between our families. Of course I can see that. I consider myself a good judge of character, Harper.” He paused and then continued his friendly onslaught. “But this entire situation is coming out at a very inopportune time. For Ethan I mean. His reputation thus far has been stellar. For someone young and wealthy, he has managed to stay out of the tabloids, he’s got his head firmly on his shoulders.”

If he was trying to make her feel like shit, he was getting damned close. Harper tried to go on the offensive. “What does all of that have to do with me exactly?”

Robert obliged her with an answer. “I only want what's best for my children. You'll understand soon enough how that feels. You are a lovely young woman but the truth is, you’re a liability to Ethan’s career, to his life. To his future. No one will understand that you met anonymously. You'll be branded as having tricked him into a relationship once the baby is known. Your father stole millions from me and indirectly, from my children, and now he is suing me for defamation in order to drag us into the mud alongside him. I won't let that happen.”

Harper leaned forward. “I don’t want that to happen, either. I never want to see Ethan hurt because of my father’s bad behavior.”

“I believe you when you say you don't support your father, Harper, but you are a Matheson and it is that simple fact which will make everyone question your motives. From the outside it appears as though you are looking for yet another way to steal from my family.” He looked out across the expanse of the ocean before once again pinning her with his gaze. “I can see my son cares about you and you about him, but it doesn't matter that we know the truth. Do you want to bring an innocent child into the middle of all of this? To have an infant dragged through a media shitstorm and have everyone question his or her very existence?”

Tears burned her eyes and she dropped her gaze to her hands that were now clenched in her lap. She wanted to tell him to go straight to hell, and she would have if he had said one single word she didn’t agree with.

“I see your points, but…what would you have me do?”

He sighed. “Far be it for me to tell you what to do. You’re both adults and the situation is what it is. But let’s be very frank. You and Ethan would face long odds just by virtue of your age and the fact that you conceived a child when you hardly even knew one another’s names. Add to that, the very serious legal and financial battles that are going to drag on for years between the families…” Robert Wentworth shrugged. “I can’t see how this will be a good situation to raise a child and nurture a relationship. Can you?”

“I’m not sure what you want me to say,” she said honestly.

He sighed. “I can’t tell Ethan to leave you alone. He’s been raised to do the right thing, regardless of the circumstances or consequences to himself. All I ask is that you consider his future. How much this will affect not only Ethan, but everyone around him. Consider what my family has already been through, the harm that’s been done to us. Would you really put us through more torment, force us to endure even more indignities, more public mockery? If you truly care about what will happen to Ethan, please consider walking away now before it’s too late.”

Tears burned her eyes. So there it was. He wanted her gone.

All of her fantasies of the two families healing, of old wounds fading, the baby bringing everyone together—they were just that.

Fantasies.

And fantasies would do nothing against the harsh and brutal reality of the world that she and Ethan inhabited. Nobody would want them to be happy, nobody would ever let them alone.

Her realization of the odds she and Ethan faced was sobering.

No, heartbreaking. Utterly devastating.

They would have no support. In fact, they would have the whole world hoping to see them fail and come apart at the seams. There wouldn’t be a single friendly face rooting for them or trying to help them make a good life together.

Harper looked up and saw Robert watching her, his face almost sympathetic. She took in a deep breath and wiped at the tears streaming down her face.

“I’ll do it,” she whispered brokenly. “I’ll go. But I need to leave now.”

She needed to leave before Ethan woke up. Before he could talk her into staying, because she had no doubt he would. She would only have the willpower to do this once, and looking into his kind eyes would strip her of the ability to do what was right and necessary.

Robert Wentworth was cruel, but he was honest—unlike her own father. And the elder Wentworth’s counsel had been brutal, like being mugged and stabbed and left for dead. But it was better to have faced the truth now then to have dragged things out and dealt with a thousand such beatings by the media and tabloids day in and day out—to see Ethan’s life and happiness snuffed out.

To see their relationship crushed under the weight of all of this outside hatred and fear that would be heaped on them from every direction.

No, she decided, sniffling. It was better to do it now and make it a clean break.

Robert seemed to have accepted her at face value. “I’ll have a driver bring a car around and he will take you wherever you need,” he told her.

She nodded before the sob building in her chest could erupt. It took her ten minutes to sneak back to Ethan’s room and pull on some clothes. She grabbed her purse and stood next to the bed, letting the tears fall freely.

She didn’t need to memorize the lines of his face or the curve of his lips. They were burned into her heart. He shifted but didn’t wake up.

She had to go now before she didn’t have the courage. She wouldn’t ruin his life. He deserved everything.

Goodbye.

Outside the car waited for her and the driver opened the door as she walked closer. She couldn’t look at the man, wouldn’t see him anyway with the tears filling her eyes, spilling down over her cheeks.

Just as she lifted her foot to climb in, a voice broke the stillness of the morning.

“Harper?”

She didn’t have the strength not to turn. Not to take one last look at the man who owned her heart. He stood in the open door, lounge pants hanging low on his waist, his chest bare. Even with the confusion on his face, he was the most beautiful things she’d ever seen.

“I have to go,” she stammered. Her heart beat at her ribs, her feet frozen.

“What the fuck is going on?” He hadn’t moved, only stared at her until his father moved behind him; put a hand on Ethan’s shoulder.

She met Robert’s eyes and he gave her a slight nod. She inhaled a deep breath and broke her gaze away from Ethan. He was fierce and beautiful and he wanted to protect her, but at what cost to him? Her heart ached.

“It’s for the best,” she said. “This was never going to work, not really.”

Something crossed his face and she watched his throat as he swallowed. “What about the baby?”

“This is over,” she said, waving her hand between them. “I can’t do this anymore. I’m sorry.”

There were so many more words stuck in her throat but she had to get away before they spilled free and made it impossible for her to walk away. If she told him that she’d fallen in love with him, it would only hurt that much more when he was forced to walk away from her.

And he would eventually walk away, because them being together was never going to happen. Not when they’ve been on opposite sides since before they even met. It had to be now and it had to be her so that she could retain a semblance of dignity. Her father had stripped everything from her, but it wasn’t until Robert Wentworth had spelled it out in black and white that she realized how much her father’s actions had hurt her own future. Her own happiness.

Expecting Ethan to overlook it was bad enough, but dragging an innocent child into all this? What kind of mother would do that? Harper’s mind drifted to her own mother. The way she expected Harper to play her part; expected her to be used as a smokescreen. That was the kind of person who would do that.

She wasn’t like that. Couldn’t be.

Harper slid into the seat and the door closed, echoing in her head.

An ending.

She let herself have one last glance and saw Ethan trying to push out of his father’s grasp. The man said something and Ethan stopped struggling. She saw his mouth open and the way his jaw hardened. Anger hardened the lines on his face and he looked like an avenging angel, ready to destroy the whole world.

The sob that had been building finally burst free and her entire body shook. She pulled her knees to her chest and curled up on the seat. Pain gripped her muscles. Air lodged in her throat until she was gasping for every breath.

It hurt.

It hurt so damned much.

“Where to Miss?” the driver asked.

She met his gaze in the rearview mirror. There was nothing in his carefully blank expression as he waited for her reply.

Where to?

A broken laugh fell from her lips. Where the hell to?

She had nowhere. Nothing.

The clarity of just how alone she was surrounded her and another sob broke free. Breathing seemed possible with Ethan by her side, but now? There was nothing left. Her parent’s hadn’t called, her friends were long gone and now, she didn’t have Ethan.