Elena was quiet for so long that Harry thought she'd fallen asleep again. The way she snuggled closer when he ran his thumb over her cheek further supported the theory. But just as he was going to lift her into his arms and carry her to a room and bed, she looked up at him and smiled apologetically.

"Sorry. I just don't know where to start. This is the first time I'm going to talk about them in close to ten years. Well, I did tell Gail but she doesn't count. Does she?"

Harry didn't know what was going on but he had a feeling that she was nervous. He could see her wringing her hands as well. Her nervousness worried him but he could tell she needed to let this out. This was a very important topic to her. Something that had an obvious impact on her if her constant worries of him being an absentee father were to be taken into account.

Hoping to ease her nerves, his free hand took a hold of one of her hands and squeezed it. "No, it doesn't sweetheart,"he said in response to her question. "Let's start off easy. Why don't you tell me what your parents work as?" He figured he should guide her along, ease the stress that she was putting onto herself. And the way her eyes focused told him that it was working.

"My father is a banker. He heads the largest bank in Massachusetts. And my mother doesn't work. She is a social butterfly, organising parties and events that would further my father's career. Between them, there isn't much affection but the opinion of the community matters. Especially the old money community."

His brows drew together. Biggest bank? That would mean that he knew him. In the world of business, everyone knew everyone. He kept rejecting the person who came to mind but he noticed Elena's green eyes that were cold and reptilian in another man's face and it clicked.

"Your family is the Boston Harringtons?"he asked incredulously when she paused. He barely heard her response, his mind was churning out all that he knew about her family.

The patriarch was a ruthless man who ever only cared about furthering his business dealings and fattening his pockets. Apart from the bank, he had other business interest, being on the board of directors of many organisations. The two of them had crossed paths, Harry having opened a branch in Boston to compete for some projects. And, more often than not, he had locked horns with her father. Whether it came to fighting for the same projects or investors, they had never seen eye to eye.

His two sons were cut from the same cloth. Elena's brothers. One was a real estate developer and the other was a director in a pharmaceutical company. One of the biggest in the country. Both didn't care what law they broke to increase their profit. Whatever they couldn't get around, they would just bribe whoever they could to look the other way.

On the other hand, the youngest female sibling wasn't involved in the business world at all. Instead, she took advantage of the wealth and power accumulated by the male in the family. Her partying exploits were well-covered by the paparazzis, especially as she was always in the company of celebrities and other jetsetting, partying offsprings of similarly successful businesses.

He, who respected hard work, didn't really have much interaction with her during his times there. But compared to her mother, he would have preferred her company. The matriarch was the typical rich man's wife. Having used the skills of experienced plastic surgeons, she looked at least fifteen years younger. And she had the sex drive of a woman in her twenties. Which reminded him of a party he'd attended a month ago.

"Oh, God. I think your mom hit on me,"he said, feeling sick to the stomach. He felt so dirty; he tried to get away from Elena but she practically collapsed onto him, laughing uncontrollably. And as much as he wanted to disengage from her, he couldn't help but smile. Her laugh had taken over her entire body and was so infectious that he couldn't help but chuckle slightly.

"That was so unexpected,"Elena said between laughter as she wiped her eyes. Waiting for her to wind down, his eyes travelled all over her face, delighting in her open humour. She beamed up at him when she had finally managed to stop. "I have never laughed like that when I talk about them."

"I'm glad that my pain brought you much pleasure,"he said drily even as he brought the hand still in his grasp to his lips. The reminder that she was part of her family got his brain running again. "But why are you living in that apartment? That dingy, small apartment? And why have I not heard about you?"

"I was kicked out when I was a senior in high school."

"What? Why?" He was shocked. Elena wasn't the type to do anything that would result in being written off by her family. From work, he knew she had been one to abide by the rules and policies. She wasn't one to deviate from the set path. It was only now, when the welfare of the boys were affected, that she was more argumentative and stubborn.

"Don't you know why?"she asked, raising an eyebrow. A bolt of irritation went through him. Would he ask her if he knew? But even as that crossed his mind, a little sliver of memory came to the forefront.

"Does this have something with your brother? The youngest son,"he said musingly as he tried to squeeze more out of his brain. "Something about him seducing someone from the straight path."

"Seducing someone?"she said incredulously, tearing out of his embrace and, with his help, got up from the sofa. Pacing about his office, he watched as she muttered loudly to herself. "From the straight path? That's rich. He didn't have to take what was freely given. Oh, they get me so mad. And the fucking bastard didn't even suffer any consequences. Playing the victim. Well, I know Stephan didn't force him to have fun at the fair. Stupid prick."

"Els, stop,"Harry said, getting up and engulfing her tense body in his embrace when her face grew so red with anger. He had no idea what she was muttering about but from what he could gather, her brother might not have been the only guilty party.

She stilled but steam was practically rising from her head. He began rubbing her arms in the hopes of calming her down. He hoped that it worked. "Look, I know this is a sore topic for you but it's not healthy for the boys. Now, I want this topic to be over and done with but I have to know. Will your family be an issue?" He was flabbergasted when tears began to well up in her eyes. Not knowing what else to do, he tightened his hold around her shoulders. "W-what's wrong now?"

"I-I don't know. I don't think they'd care about the boys. I've not had any contact with them since I left. But I'm afraid that they'll try to get custody of them since I left like that. And with them being yours, I'm worried they'd use them to get to you,"she said through her tears. He brought her to his chest even as he felt a foreign squeeze around his heart.

It hadn't occurred to Harry that anyone would use his children against him. They were still an amorphous idea to him. He knew they were there, he had seen them on the screen, butts and all, and their movements were fascinating, but they hadn't seem real. Not until that moment. Not until he thought about who could hurt them. Who could take them away from him. That was when he recognised the emotion filling him. It was fear.

Immediately after, his mind raced to find a solution. Never one to sit on a problem, he thought of and discarded every avenue that he could come up with. All the while, his hand began to absently move up and down Elena's back, his body curving protectively around hers. Standing up straight when he had hit on a plausible solution, he was surprised to find that the both of them were so entwined that he didn't know where one began and the other ended. But as comfortable as he was, he had to get this out in the open.

"Let's get married."

----@@@@@------

Elena was startled out of her comfortable daze at his sudden pronouncement. Stepping out of his embrace and almost falling on her back, she looked up at him after he caught her in his arms.

"What are you talking about?"she asked as she wiped her cheeks. How did he get from her family to marriage? Blinking fiercely, she waited for his explanation, ignoring the shiver that went down her spine at his fierce dark eyes. But from the way his eyes became half-lidded, she had a feeling that he wasn't going to ignore it. "Harry! Explain."

"If you, and by extension the boys, have my name, you will be afforded more protection than if we were not married. Even with the problems with my family, I still carry some influence."

Having been distracted by the way her breasts were crushed against his chest, she nonetheless returned to the conversation when he mentioned his family. Brows furrowing, she looked up at him. "What do you mean problems with your family?"

"It doesn't concern you." Her eyes widened.

Did he just say that? Did he just dismiss her like that? Was this the man she had trusted about her family? Her worries? Was this a one-way street? Did he not trust her as well?

Her rage growing with every question that ran through her mind, she pushed him away. Luckily, he didn't expect that and she was able to get out of his arms. "What do you mean it doesn't concern me?"she demanded. "Anything that happens to you concerns me. What if you get hurt by the fallout of whatever's happening with your family? How am I going to care for the boys?"

"Whatever happens, you and the boys will be taken care of. And what, exactly, can you do? Talking about it won't magically solve it." That hurt her. She knew she didn't bring anything to their relationship. Or whatever between them was called. But did he have to term it that harshly? And what did he know about talking? It was the solver of all problems, dammit. But if he didn't think she could help, she was more than happy to relieve him of her presence.

"Since I am just a useless ornament, I think I'll just head to the kitchen while you come up with another solution. Where you don't have to marry a damned MANNEQUIN. Don't touch me. Move aside."

Fuelled by rage, she pushed Jason aside when he entered the office. Walking mindlessly in the hallway, she ignored Harry's shout and refused to give in to the tears that threatened to fall. He was not worth it!

She continued walking before she admitted defeat. She was lost, she admitted begrudgingly to herself when she realised she had passed the same painting thrice. Refusing to go back to Harry, and not even sure she knew the way back, she forced herself to shelve her anger and think. She was still hungry and Harry had said that his housekeeper would be more than happy to whip something up. So where was the kitchen-

What was that smell?

AN: Hey guys. Hope you're well. Here's another chapter for you. What do you think? Do you think Elena overreacted? Or did Harry go too far? Or was he being a clueless moron that all guys are?

Anyways, please VOTE and COMMENT if you liked the chapter. And have a nice weekend.

THANKS

Next update: 2 Oct