"Bound By The Wrong Brother"

My father gave me an ultimatum: marry a man I despise or lose my entire inheritance. I chose to run, boarding a private jet with no intention of looking back. But his reach is absolute. The phone buzzed before we even left New York airspace. "Send me a picture with Sterling now," his voice barked, "or I'm calling your pilot to turn that jet around." I faked the photo and fled to Las Vegas, my last resort. My mission was simple: find my father's illegitimate son, the one secret that could break his hold over me. My only lead was a grainy picture of a ruthless fixer, a man who cleaned up my father's messes. I found him in a desolate diner, a giant of a man surrounded by a wall of guards. I gambled everything on a single coin toss for the information I needed. He saw right through my desperate bluff. He leaned in close, his voice a low, gravelly rasp. "In my city, the house always wins." I was left standing there, humiliated and defeated. But as he turned to leave, he glanced over his shoulder. "But you're lucky. Today, I'm just curious what Howard Bright's daughter is doing so far from home." He had seen me not as a threat, but as a curiosity. I had lost the battle, but I wasn't done yet. I was no longer running. I was hunting.

Chapters

Chapter 6

"Listen to me very carefully, Sloane," Harper whispered, her tone laced with deadly seriousness.

Sloane gasped sharply on the other end, her gossip radar fully activated.

"Sterling didn't dump me. He's not even in Hawaii," Harper lied smoothly, not blinking. "He suffered a massive overdose."

"Oh my god," Sloane breathed.

"He's in a lockdown rehab facility," Harper continued, her voice tight. "The Bright family is spending millions to bury this so the stock prices don't tank."

"What is he on?" Sloane demanded, her voice vibrating with greedy excitement.

"I'm not discussing details," Harper said flatly. "If this leaks, my father will know it was you."

She knew Sloane. The threat wouldn't stop her; it would only make the secret more valuable.

Sloane promised absolute silence and quickly hung up.

Harper stared at the black screen, a cold smile touching her lips. That rumor would consume Manhattan by dinner time.

Tossing the phone onto the table, she picked up her water glass. As she lifted it, her eyes caught a reflection in the chrome napkin dispenser.

The curved metal distorted the image, but it was clear enough.

A man in a black suit was standing in the narrow hallway leading to the restrooms. One of the guards from the parking lot.

He was standing perfectly still, his body angled toward Harper's booth, staring directly at the back of her head.

Harper's blood turned to ice. The cold glass slipped slightly in her sweaty grip.

He was close enough. He definitely heard her talking about the Bright family and the stock prices.

In the reflection, the guard turned his back and walked away.

A cold sweat broke out across the back of Harper's neck, her pulse pounding violently in her ears.

Chloe waved a hand in front of Harper's face. "Hello? You look like you're going to throw up."

Harper forced a rigid smile. "The AC is just blowing right on my neck."

She grabbed her menu and held it up high, using it as a shield, peeking over the laminated edge to track the guard.

He walked straight to the dark booth in the back, leaning down to whisper directly into the ear of the towering man.

The boss didn't move a single muscle. He didn't look up. He just continued to stare at his black coffee.

The waitress suddenly appeared, slamming two massive, greasy cheeseburgers onto the table. The smell of charred meat hit Harper's nose, making her stomach churn violently.

Chloe grabbed her burger and took a massive bite, completely oblivious to the lethal tension in the room.

Harper stabbed her fork into a french fry. She couldn't hide now. She had to know if the man in the back was the cleaner.

Continue to next part