His demon chuckled. “I promise I will let you deal with this matter yourself.” Though it would gall Knox to do so. It went against the grain for him not to defend her against anything or anyone.
“Belinda has basically set out to make me feel like I don’t compare to the females in your past. Maybe she’ll eventually realize I am totally fine with not being like any of them, maybe she won’t. Who knows?” Harper shrugged. “But she likes to constantly remind me that I don’t behave like other Primes, and she feels pretty certain that we won’t last. It’s annoying, but it doesn’t hurt me.”
Knox shook his head, anger rising inside him sharp and fast. His demon wanted to track the bitch and force a ball of hellfire down her throat. “I wish you had told me, Harper. I would have fired her immediately.” And he’d do exactly that very soon, his promise be damned. His mate didn’t deserve this shit.
“That’s part of why I didn’t tell you. I don’t want you to fire her. Tell me you won’t.”
He said nothing, not prepared to lie to her.
“I mean it, Knox. You swore you’d let me deal with this in my own way.”
“I can’t sit back and allow this to happen,” he clipped. “Belinda is purposely trying to hurt you and no one has the right to do that.”
“Stop with the protective growl. You know it makes me tingly.” Harper curled her arms around his neck. “Anyway, she annoys me, but her opinion isn’t relevant to me – something I think she’s finally beginning to sense. Which is making her crazy, and that’s just awesome.”
“I hired her, baby. It was clearly a mistake on my part. Now I need to fix that mistake.”
“You don’t need to do anything. I’m handling this. It really is fun knowing I’m making her organize an event that will make her die a little inside. All those pretentious people will check out her work, see skewered steak and wedges, and gasp in the same horror that she’s dwelling in. Her reputation will take a huge hit.”
Sometimes he forgot that his mate was ruthless in her own way. “You fight half her suggestions on principle, don’t you?”
“Of course. If she was nice, I’d be much more accommodating.” Harper gave him a quick kiss. “See you later. Have a good day.”
Knox grabbed her wrist before she could leave. He felt like a bastard for not spending any time with her. She was right; he’d been brooding. Brooding when he should have been with her, making up for the fact that her grand opening had been tainted by this mess. “You know you’re my priority, don’t you?” No matter how much time he spent in his office or anywhere else, she came first. Always would.
“I’m not judging you for wanting some time alone,” Harper said truthfully. “Everybody needs that sometimes. And I know you’re feeling helpless now that Crow could be on the loose once again and that we have no idea who’s pulling his strings. You hate not being in total control. I can completely understand you wanting to address that helplessness and take back the control by being proactive. I really do get it, which is why I’m not mad. I just wanted to check that you were okay before I left.”
He swallowed. She got him. Understood him better than anyone else and let him be exactly who he was without judgement. “What would I do without you?”
“Kill lots of people?” she quipped.
He chuckled and kissed her again. The kicker was… she was right. If he lost her, many would die in the destruction that followed. He broke the kiss as his office phone rang. “I’ll see you later tonight.”
“Tonight,” she agreed. Harper headed for the door, but she came to an abrupt halt when she heard Knox say, “Morning, Dario.” Brows flying up, she pivoted on her heel just as Knox pressed a button that put him on speakerphone.
“Ah, Knox, I hear that your sentinels have been asking questions about me and the rumors that are currently circulating.” There was a lazy amusement in the Prime’s voice.
“Should I be concerned by what I heard?” Knox asked, planting his hands on the desk.
“Concerned about which rumor exactly? The one that I’m turning rogue or the one that I’m building an army?” His tone said he found each of them ridiculous.
“Both,” replied Knox, eyes on Harper as she approached the desk.
“Neither are true. I simply wish to be left alone to grieve in peace,” Dario added, a note of emotional weariness in his voice.
“Strange that such an innocent thing would be twisted.” Which was why Knox wasn’t convinced that was all there was to it.
“I thought so. That’s why I had my sentinels work to find out where exactly the rumors came from.”
“And?” prompted Knox.
“They were unable to find out. But I at least know why the rumors were started.”
“And why is that?” he asked Dario, watching as Harper slid half her delectable ass up on to the desk.
“For the same reason that a rumor is now circulating about you.”
Knox stiffened. “What rumor might that be?”
“That you accused a psi-demon of being close to rogue in order to discredit his claim that he foresaw you fathering a child that could obliterate us.”
“Motherfucker,” Harper mouthed. It was one thing for the Primes to speculate on it at a meeting. It was another to spread it around when it could potentially cause panic among the demon population.