Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 119942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Thinking it was best that she knew, Knox said, “She has a mate and two sons now. The oldest is twenty-three. The other is sixteen.”
“Yeah, I know, I saw her with them a few times.” Harper sipped at her wine. “Enough about my life.”
Inwardly, he tensed, expecting her to start asking about his life. But she didn’t, she turned her total attention to her meal. And he realized it was because she didn’t see the point in getting to know him as she had no intention of forming the anchor bond. Knox had to wonder if – maybe even on a subconscious level – it was because she didn’t trust him not to leave her. She’d been abandoned by both parents, never had many fixed people in her life thanks to her years of traveling, and quite possibly lacked the ability to trust that anyone would want her bad enough to stick around.
It was then that he recalled what she’d said in the car; that he’d change his mind about bonding once he knew her. So it could be that he was right and she expected him to leave her – maybe not now, but eventually since, to her, people came and went all the time.
If that was the case, he would need to gain Harper’s trust before he had any hope of getting her to form the anchor bond. She would need to be certain she had his complete loyalty, confident that he would be a constant presence in her life. And he would be a constant presence. “You’ll come to know me. You’ll come to trust me. And you’ll see that I can be relied on. Then we’ll bond.”
“Yeah, in your imaginary world.”
Her unimpressed, flippant, elusive air was like a challenge to his demon, who was currently fixated on Harper – and not because she was its anchor. It liked her quiet confidence, her refusal to be intimidated, and the strength that allowed her to withstand Knox’s forceful personality. Knox could admit the demon had good taste, and he made his decision there and then – he’d have her. But one thing he could sense about the guarded creature in front of him was that she wouldn’t be easy to seduce.
He’d been around many women, had thought he knew her gender pretty well. He’d found that the majority had some sort of agenda. Some wanted him because they found a thrill in being so close to danger. Some wanted him because of his wealth and status. He’d also found that seduction itself was one big game. A lot of females played coy and hard to get, while others were very forward.
Harper, however, was like no female he’d met before. She didn’t have an agenda and she wasn’t playing a game. Not once had she flirted with him. He knew she was attracted to him – he could detect the lust building in her, could clearly see the glint of need in her eyes. A need he knew was in his own. But it was as though she’d dismissed their attraction as unimportant, meaningless. Something was holding her back from him. Neither he nor his demon liked it.
Pausing in his meal, he said, “You strike me as someone who prefers it when people are upfront.”
It was true that Harper had no time or patience for mind games. “So?”
Knox leaned forward, wanting her to see the resolve in his expression. “I want you.”
And Harper nearly choked on her steak. When she’d finally swallowed it down with the help of her wine, she shrugged. “Thanks for sharing.”
“You want me.” She cast him a glare but didn’t deny it, which soothed his demon slightly. “But you’re going to fight it, aren’t you?”
Every step of the way. It wasn’t that she had any hang-ups about casual sex – and that was all it would be if she got involved with Knox Thorne. Demons were very sexual creatures, so casual sex among their kind was pretty much the norm. But that was the thing. “I don’t get involved with our kind – not even for a single night.”
That was the last thing he’d expected her to say. His demon was just as shocked. “You don’t date demons? You’ve never been with one of our kind?”
She took another sip of her wine. “No.”
“Why?” He wasn’t all that surprised when she didn’t answer him. Shamelessly using his most compelling voice, Knox said, “Tell me.” But, of course, she shook off the compulsion.
“No.” Didn’t he understand yet that she was a very private person? Harper was also a person who preferred to avoid complications. Like parking tickets, speed restrictions, and red lights – which was why she no longer had a driver’s license. When it came to relationships, male demons liked to make things complicated. They were extremely possessive, annoyingly demanding, and incredibly intense. Human relationships, by contrast, could be simpler. Most human males wouldn’t demand everything from a girl, whereas demons would accept nothing less.