“But this time it’s different. Felisha is in charge, and there is no way that she will let anything happen to her best friend, and sure as shit, I won’t either. Forrest, I know there is some weird kind of dynamic between you and Harper, because the two of you are like caged animals around each other, but you need to back off a bit. Remember what happened the last time you got like this with Cherie?” And his words hit harder than I would like to admit.

“Don’t even compare this to that,” I hiss at him.

“It’s the same damn thing. You are in my office demanding things because you want to sweep in and save the damsel in distress. Can’t you see that?”

“It’s different,” I swear as I turn and walk toward his window so I don’t have to look at him. “Last time was just wanting to protect a woman because I don’t like seeing them in danger with the potential to get hurt. A friend was putting herself in danger, and it was stupid.” I huff at the frustration of having to explain myself to him.

“But with Harper.” I turn back to him and thump my chest. “It’s like a burning pain in here, and I don’t know how to turn it off or contain it.”

My hands are at my sides, tightly clenched in fists, and I can feel the blood pumping fast in my body. What the hell is wrong with me?

Not saying a word, Rem just stands and walks to me, placing his hand on my shoulder and looking straight at me. “I haven’t known you that long, Forrest, but in the five years since we met and you became one of my best friends, I have never seen you like this, and it’s about damn time.” He smiles at me smugly, like he knows some special secret.

“Like what?” I demand.

“Turned inside out over a woman. Meeting Cherie knocked on the door of that titanium wall of yours, but she was never going to be right for you.” Putting his other hand up onto the other shoulder and patting it, he continues. “But Harper, now that’s a different story. She is yelling and screaming at you through those walls, and you don’t know how to deal with that. You want her to kick them down, but she isn’t interested. And that, my friend, is confusing the fuck out of you. So welcome to the club of men who have no damn idea what goes on in women’s heads, but we love them anyway.” He looks so sure of himself with his big speech of wisdom, but he’s wrong.