Silver Fox's Secret Baby

The night of my life with my father’s best friend…may cost us both everything.

After my mother ran off with one of my father's friends, she nearly ruined him.

I made a vow to myself: I would never cause him pain like that.

But here I go falling for his best friend.

A man who should be totally off limits and utterly untouchable is the only thing I can think about.

I might as well be a hormone ravaged teenager instead of the grown boss girl I am, the way my body craves his.

I didn’t mean for things to turn out this way.

It was only supposed to be one drunken night.

But one touch from him is all it took for my heart to never want to let him go.

As much as I fight it, I can’t get him off my mind.

Just as I’m gathering courage to tell my dad suddenly my mom returns throwing everyone’s lives into chaos.

I guess ruining our lives once wasn’t enough she had to come back for more.

Now with love, family, and businesses on the line the path forward doesn’t seem to clear.

And just as I thought things couldn’t get any worse… those two little lines turned blue.

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

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, he is the 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.” 

Gillian and I exchange a look. 

“Okay, maybe we do sometimes…” she says, rolling her eyes. 

I look back to Lola and Axel. They’re both scanning the crowd with
their matching green eyes. “They’re looking for you.” 

“Mhm,” Gillian hums and sips her kombucha. 

“Are you seriously going to be an asshole about this?” I ask. 

Gillian glares. 

“What?! Stella’s playing in the treehouse with her friends,” I say,
gesturing over to the treehouse that’s halfway up the hill behind our house,
almost completely obscured by trees and greenery. We can hear the giggles of
kids running, jumping, and climbing if we listen closely. 

My sister crosses her arms. “You’re always picking on me.” 

“What?! No, I’m not,” I go to sip my beer but realize that it’s
nearly empty, just foamy backwash. “I pick on everyone.” 

Gillian ignores me and turns away from Lola and Axel to avoid eye
contact with them. “She just doesn’t respect my boundaries with him.” 

“What boundaries?! He’s just her brother!” 

She huffs. 

“What’s your problem with him anyway?” 

Gillian hesitates and then eyes me. “He’s a property developer.” 

“So?”

“So?! Do you know all of the natural ecosystems he has interrupted
and destroyed in the name of infrastructure?” 

I resist rolling my eyes. It’s not that I don’t agree with her.
Erecting buildings for the sake of capital gain is not the most admirable
job. I’m just realizing I’ve never had a property developer on my show. Maybe
it’s time. “You should be wearing your ‘Hug a Tree’ T-shirt today.” 

Gillian
grunts angrily. “God, Harley. You’re such a–such a–”

I laugh. She can’t even say it without getting red in the face, “An
asshole?” 

“No!
I wasn’t going to say that! You’re always putting words in my mouth and–”

“Girls, girls!” Suddenly, Dad wriggles in between us, a hand on each
of our shoulders. “What in the world is there to fight about on a day like
today?” 

Gillian sniffs the air. “She’s antagonizing me, Daddy.” 

“I’m not antagonizing
you.” I am totally antagonizing her. Just a little. 

“You know how important today is for our family,” he says with a
soft smile. “Can we just let bygones be bygones?” 

Gillian and I glare at each other. I love her to death, but goddamn,
does she get on my nerves. 

“Or at least…wait to fight until after all the guests are gone?” 

“I can do that,” I say, subtly glancing over my shoulder to spot
Grant once more. God, why should I care about egging on my tree-hugging sister
when I could be ogling that work of art? 

Guilt shoots through my bloodstream. My dad is right here. I
can’t be looking at his best friend with hearts for eyes. At least not while
he’s around.