PROLOGUE
Harper
Was there a more romantic scene than standing on the balcony of a four-star hotel, taking in fragrant warm air while staring out over the twinkling lights of Mexico City? It was a moment created for romance.
Too bad I was alone.
I'd gotten used to being alone after my brother angered me so much with his overprotectiveness and controlling ways that I'd broken away from him.
While we'd since reconciled, there was still a part of me that didn't trust him, and so our connection that had been so close since our parents died when I was fifteen, hadn't fully mended.
I liked being alone. To begin with, I felt independent and in control of my life for the first-time. But I hadn't realized how lonely I sometimes felt in my independence until I met Noel.
Now he and I were estranged, although, to be honest, I don't think we were actually ever together. I wanted to be, but the problem was that he was probably still hung up on his ex, the mother of his baby, Mo.
I pressed my hand over my belly. "I'm not sure this was such a good idea," I told the child growing in my belly. But what choice did I have? I needed answers, and Noel wasn't talking.
The wall around Noel was closed up tighter than Fort Knox.
Granted, I'd been guarded too, but ultimately, I opened up to him. He didn't care. Not only did he continue to keep his secrets but also, he continued to look at me like he didn't trust me.
We had off the charts chemistry and spectacular sex, but the fact that it was always the result of an argument combusting over into passion was an indicator that we weren't meant to be. Sex wasn't love. Afterwards, he always pushed me away, which was all I really needed to know about how he felt about me.
And yet, I'd flown down to Mexico City wanting to know the truth about him. Indulging the kernel of hope that maybe Noel could love me. And not just for his child I was carrying, but for us as a couple.
As I stood on the balcony taking in the lovely scene, I tried to guard against that hope, knowing that I was on a fool's journey.
I sighed, turning to enter my hotel room. I stopped short at the menacing figure standing in the living area of my suite.
I wasn't afraid. I wasn't even mad. Mostly I was shocked. "Noel. How did you know I was here? How did you get into my room?"
"There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Harper. A lot of things you don't want to know."
My heart thundered in my chest, hoping this could be the moment he opened up to me. "I don't know anything because you don't share with me. I do want to know about you."
His dark eyes hardened even more, and he stepped forward, gripping my arms. "What sort of game are you playing here, Harper?"
God, I was such a fool. I stared up at him defiantly. "It's not a game."
"You and your stunts. They can get you killed."
I hated how he referred to me trying to live my life as a stunt. Yes, I had a stalker a while back, but I wasn't going to be locked away like a damsel in distress. Neither did I want a bodyguard attached to my hip, involved in everything I did.
"I'm here to find out the truth about you, Noel."
"You're a petulant child. Not a very bright one at that."
His words gutted me, but I wouldn't let him know it. "It's hard to be bright when everyone around me, from my brother to you, keeps me in the dark." I tried to pull away, but his arms only gripped me tighter.
"You put yourself in danger by coming down here to play Nancy Drew Detective. And because of it, I had to find someone to watch my son, Mo, so I could fly down here and drag you back home to safety."
I jerked again, this time freeing myself. "I'm not going with you. I finally freed myself from my brother's controlling ways. I'll be damned if I'll let you take his place."
"Fuck." He glared at me with his hands on his hips, raw energy radiating off of him in waves. "I'm tired of this back and forth between us, Harper. It's giving me fucking whiplash. I came down here for you."
The woman in love wanted to believe that his words meant that he cared for me, but the practical side of me warned me against it.
Hell, it questioned my sanity for falling for a man who didn't want to be loved and clearly didn't care for me.