Chapter Eleven

Harper's POV:

My hands were shaking and I shoved them in my pockets so Jenny wouldn't see.

"Hi Jenny." I turned away from her and walked back to the driver's side, bending down to check the front bumper and the headlights and thank God there was nothing, not even a scratch. The damage was all on her car, that expensive white thing that probably cost a lot, but I don't care.

"Coward, so you're just leaving?" Jenny's voice got louder and sharper. "I know you want me dead because if not you won't attack my car like this."

I slid back into the driver's seat without looking at her because if I looked at her I'd say something I couldn't take back and I didn't have time for this, not today, not when I was already late and my entire future was waiting inside that building.

I started the engine and backed away from her car and she was still yelling but I couldn't hear the words anymore over the blood rushing in my ears. I drove into the Novare Group garage and parked and my chest was so tight I had to sit there for a second just breathing.

Today isn't for Jenny or Connor. It's for me.

I grabbed my bag and ran to the elevator, the one Hardin had told me about last night, the private one that went straight to his floor. The doors opened and I stepped inside and pressed the button and watched the numbers climb while my heart hammered against my ribs.

The doors opened to his floor and his secretary looked up from her desk.

"President Hardin is waiting for you." She gestured toward his office door and her voice was professional but her eyes traveled over me like she was trying to figure out what made me special enough to use his private elevator.

I didn't knock because I had seconds left and I needed to meet the time, needed to prove I could do this.

The door swung open and Hardin looked up from his desk and his face shifted fast, anger first like who the hell would barge into his office, then something softer when he saw it was me.

"Oh my, you look gorgeous."

Heat flooded my face and I moved further into the room because standing in the doorway felt too exposed.

"I'm sorry for just barging in, I was running late." My voice came out breathless and I hated how flustered I sounded.

"You can barge into my life Harper." He was already on his feet moving toward me and the way he looked at me made my stomach flip.

"Come here."

I stepped back and hit the edge of a chair.

"Hardin I'm a minute late from meeting my team so please let's do that now." The words came out harsher than I meant them to and his eyebrows went up.

"Hey, calm down." He grabbed my wrist gently and pulled me toward the leather couch against the wall. "Are you good?"

"I'm fine I just need to—"

"Sit down." His voice was firm but not mean and he guided me onto the couch and sat next to me, close enough that I could smell him. "I own this company and I choose when I want to introduce you to your team. My time, not theirs."

Something in my chest cracked and a tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it.

"I'm sorry." I wiped at my face but more tears came and I couldn't make them stop. "I guess I was being hard on myself, wanting to be perfect and seeing Jenny again just outside your company added to everything and I didn't mean to snap at you."

His thumb caught another tear and wiped it away slow and careful like he was afraid I'd break.

"Harper you can't be this hard on yourself, it'll break you." His hand moved to cup my jaw and his eyes searched mine. "Take it step by step, you don't have to be perfect on day one." He paused and his expression changed. "Wait, did you say you saw Jenny outside my company?"

I told him everything, the car turning into my lane, the crash, Jenny screaming at me while I checked Hardin's car for damage.

"I'm not that kind of person, Hardin." My throat was getting tight again. "I don't ruin people's things."

"You didn't ruin anything, Jenny bashed into you." His jaw tensed. "And we can get another car, that's why they're things. But I need to get a restraining order against Jenny and Connor coming anywhere near Novare Group, and we need to get one for you too."

"Thank you but I'm fine, I can deal with Jenny." I straightened up and wiped the last of the tears away. "But for Novare Group that's a good idea, I don't want my drama here."

"I won't argue even though you deserve protection." His hand was still on my face and his thumb brushed my cheekbone. "Just know you deserve the best, always."

The words hit me harder than they should have and before I could think about it I pulled him into a hug, pressing my face against his chest and breathing him in. He went still for just a second like he was surprised and then his arms came around me and he kissed the top of my head.

"Okay." He pulled back and his hands went to my cheeks, squeezing them gently like I was something precious. "I'm glad you're feeling better now, let me introduce you to your team."

"Give me a moment." I stood up and walked to his bathroom and closed the door behind me.

My makeup was a mess, mascara smudged under my eyes and my lipstick faded. I grabbed a tissue and started fixing it while staring at myself in the mirror. This was my new chapter and I needed to bring my best to it.

A part of me had wanted to let the Blake Industries thing go this morning, to just move forward and forget about Connor and Jenny. But what Jenny did outside just now proved they wouldn't back down until they destroyed me completely.

Connor isn't smart enough to fight me and win.

The thought made something dark and satisfied curl in my chest and I smiled at my reflection, the kind of smile I'd never seen on my face before but I liked it. I adjusted my top and smoothed down my pants and opened the door.

Hardin was waiting and he held out his hand.

"Ready?"