Page 121 of Boss of Me

“Yes, she is,” Gunner agrees.

“Far too talented to be toiling away as your”—Harlan pauses condescendingly—“housekeeper.”

Heat rushes into my face.What the actual hell?

“Believe me,” Gunner says evenly, “I know how lucky I am to have found such a rare gem.”

“A rare gem indeed.” Harlan gives me a conspiratorial smile. “Don’t let him take you for granted.”

I force an awkward laugh.

Gunner’s hand flexes against my waist, then slides up my back to draw me even closer to his side. When I look at him, he says curtly, “You’re riding home with me.”

“What about the Range?—”

“I’ll send someone to pick it up.”

Harlan observes us with mild amusement. “I guess I’ll have to take a rain check on coffee.” He pulls a business card from hisblazer pocket and hands it to me. “Give me a call sometime to discuss an internship opportunity.”

“Um, okay.” I manage a smile. “Thank you.”

Gunner looks downright homicidal. “Let’s go,” he growls, grasping my upper arm. I bristle at the proprietary contact, but I don’t resist.

As he leads me toward the waiting car at the curb, Harlan calls out to him, “Say hello to your mother for me.”

Gunner stops cold in his tracks.

As I watch in shock, he charges back over to Harlan and grabs him by his shirtfront, pulling the man toward him so he’s right up in his face. Fear widens Harlan’s eyes and his throat bobs in a hard swallow.

Gunner tightens his grip, their noses almost touching as he peers menacingly into Harlan’s eyes. He’s much bigger and taller, seething with barely leashed violence. I can’t help shivering, astonished at seeing this side of him.

“Gunner,” I call out in a shaky voice. “Let’s go home.”

“Good idea.” Despite his obvious unease, Harlan manages a smirk. “We can’t have the university’s most celebrated alumnus causing a scene, now can we?”

Gunner’s eyes narrow with lethal warning. After another hair-raising moment, he releases Harlan, shoving him so hard that he stumbles back several steps and nearly falls.

Gunner rakes him with a contemptuous look before turning and stalking back over to me. With his hand gripping my elbow, he steers me firmly to the car where Trace stands with an impassive expression, as if watching his boss rough up other men is an everyday occurrence.

When he opens the back door for us, Gunner practically shoves me into the backseat and then crowds in behind me.

I whirl on him, my head spinning. “What the hell just hap?—”

He snatches Harlan’s business card out of my hand, rips it into pieces and throws them out the window as the car pulls off.

I stare at him in disbelief. “What on earth is going on between you and Harlan?”

Fury pulses his jaw. “Stay the fuck away from him.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want him anywhere near you.” He grits the words out. “Don’t cross me on this.”

The low warning sends a chill through me. I shake my head, feeling breathless and disoriented. “I don’t understand, Gunner. Why do you have such a problem with him?”

“He’s a soulless fucking bastard. That’s all you need to know.”

“What did he do? And why did his comment about your mother set you off?”