contracted member to handle all special occasions.
Konstantine was so goddamn proud of her. He could say that. He wanted to say that. Instead, he snatched her cap and put it on his own head. “Show me where I’m laying my head tonight, wench!”
Harper stared up at him until he replaced her hat before he nicely asked, “Could you please give me a tour of your lovely home?”
“Having you here for three weeks is going to make me crazy, isn’t it?”
“Aw c’mon! Its gonna be great!” Konstantine threw an arm around her shoulder. “Like one big slumber party!”
She rubbed her temples. “Does that mean I’m gonna catch you in my underwear drawer...again?”
“Are you still wearing training bras?”
“No...” Harper answered slowly.
He shrugged. “Then, yes, you’ll probably catch me in your underwear drawer again.”
She gave him an extreme amount of side-eye, which just made him laugh. By now he was used to that look—had been receiving it for about twenty-six years now. Picking on Harper had always been easy. There was something about her that just made him want to prod her as much as possible.
Konstantine could still remember how, days after he and Owen met when they joined the same little league softball team, his friend had invited him over for dinner. They’d stood in the kitchen doorway, watching five-year-old Harper playing Indiana Jones and the Last Cookie.
Eventually, her attempts to do everything in her power to reach a cookie tin her mother had purposely left out of reach were just sad. He and Owen took mercy on her and got it down. They were six at the time, so it wasn’t exactly an easy feat since the tin was sitting on top of the refrigerator.
To hear her parents tell it, she’d been a sugar fiend from the time she was conceived. As the years passed, he’d gotten to witness it for himself. Not only that, but how close she and Owen were amazed him. As an only child, he’d never seen that kind of camaraderie in his own household. And because his parents had separated when he was young, his mother moving on with her life, Owen was the closest thing he’d ever had to a brother.
When Ivan—Konstantine’s father—had first signed him up for little league, he hadn’t been really interested. It wasn’t that he hated the sport; he was just awkward around other kids, quiet. He knew Owen would be his best friend when he purposely pitched a piece of dog shit at one of the kids playing against them who had been picking on Konstantine.
Up until that moment, the only friend he’d ever had was Ivan. He loved his father, but the man’s business had cost him time and his marriage. An equivalent of the comic-book Stark Industries, Vetrov Corp. had the leg up on cutting-edge, energy efficient technology. It was not only good for the environment but had a hand in creating affordable homes and irrigation systems for economically destitute communities in Africa.
As a child, Konstantine was fascinated with his father’s way of doing business. Every move Ivan made was for the benefit of someone else. Of course the man was worth millions, but he never seemed to care about money. He’d taught Konstantine at an early age that working hard for what you gained didn’t make you a man. It was what you did with what you gained that made you a man.
Konstantine’s love for his father and Vetrov Corp. was what spurred him to get his law degree and become an integral part of foreign business dealings. The last six years since he graduated from Yale had been spent traveling abroad and closing out contracts in Japan, Cape Town, Brazil, and London. Now he was finally home, he planned on spending some time with the old man and trying to figure out exactly how he’d convince Harper she was gonna be the one to birth his many children.
How exactly was he gonna announce that? A poem, maybe? Nah, that wouldn’t work with Harper. She’d never been the typical girl. If you wanted to express how you felt, you
Konstantine was so goddamn proud of her. He could say that. He wanted to say that. Instead, he snatched her cap and put it on his own head. “Show me where I’m laying my head tonight, wench!”
Harper stared up at him until he replaced her hat before he nicely asked, “Could you please give me a tour of your lovely home?”
“Having you here for three weeks is going to make me crazy, isn’t it?”
“Aw c’mon! Its gonna be great!” Konstantine threw an arm around her shoulder. “Like one big slumber party!”
She rubbed her temples. “Does that mean I’m gonna catch you in my underwear drawer...again?”
“Are you still wearing training bras?”
“No...” Harper answered slowly.
He shrugged. “Then, yes, you’ll probably catch me in your underwear drawer again.”
She gave him an extreme amount of side-eye, which just made him laugh. By now he was used to that look—had been receiving it for about twenty-six years now. Picking on Harper had always been easy. There was something about her that just made him want to prod her as much as possible.
Konstantine could still remember how, days after he and Owen met when they joined the same little league softball team, his friend had invited him over for dinner. They’d stood in the kitchen doorway, watching five-year-old Harper playing Indiana Jones and the Last Cookie.
Eventually, her attempts to do everything in her power to reach a cookie tin her mother had purposely left out of reach were just sad. He and Owen took mercy on her and got it down. They were six at the time, so it wasn’t exactly an easy feat since the tin was sitting on top of the refrigerator.
To hear her parents tell it, she’d been a sugar fiend from the time she was conceived. As the years passed, he’d gotten to witness it for himself. Not only that, but how close she and Owen were amazed him. As an only child, he’d never seen that kind of camaraderie in his own household. And because his parents had separated when he was young, his mother moving on with her life, Owen was the closest thing he’d ever had to a brother.
When Ivan—Konstantine’s father—had first signed him up for little league, he hadn’t been really interested. It wasn’t that he hated the sport; he was just awkward around other kids, quiet. He knew Owen would be his best friend when he purposely pitched a piece of dog shit at one of the kids playing against them who had been picking on Konstantine.
Up until that moment, the only friend he’d ever had was Ivan. He loved his father, but the man’s business had cost him time and his marriage. An equivalent of the comic-book Stark Industries, Vetrov Corp. had the leg up on cutting-edge, energy efficient technology. It was not only good for the environment but had a hand in creating affordable homes and irrigation systems for economically destitute communities in Africa.
As a child, Konstantine was fascinated with his father’s way of doing business. Every move Ivan made was for the benefit of someone else. Of course the man was worth millions, but he never seemed to care about money. He’d taught Konstantine at an early age that working hard for what you gained didn’t make you a man. It was what you did with what you gained that made you a man.
Konstantine’s love for his father and Vetrov Corp. was what spurred him to get his law degree and become an integral part of foreign business dealings. The last six years since he graduated from Yale had been spent traveling abroad and closing out contracts in Japan, Cape Town, Brazil, and London. Now he was finally home, he planned on spending some time with the old man and trying to figure out exactly how he’d convince Harper she was gonna be the one to birth his many children.
How exactly was he gonna announce that? A poem, maybe? Nah, that wouldn’t work with Harper. She’d never been the typical girl. If you wanted to express how you felt, you
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