Angelo Deluca's POV

I groaned. The pain in my head was excruciating; I kept my eyes shut even though my body was now fully awake. I don't remember much, but I know the whisky I drank last night hit me harder than I initially thought it would. I rolled over onto my back; I was still wearing my suit, the tight material making me even more uncomfortable in my hungover state.

I try to remember what exactly happened last night, but all I remember is thinking about my father's birthday next week, and that's when it gets hazy, I remember taking out my drunken frustration on the coffee table, but that's all I can remember. I manage to open my eyes slowly, the bright light not helping my headache what so ever. I look down at my hands, and as I suspected, they were both covered in small lacerations. Shit that was a beautiful table, nice one dick.

I led in bed for a while and just stared at the ceiling, I knew I had to sort my shit out I was the CEO of one of the biggest companies in London, and I was currently led in bed in a crumpled suit feeling sorry for myself. I glanced over at my clock; it was a little after mid-day; I knew I couldn't go to the office like this. I was lucky that my meetings for today started at 3 and I could reschedule them for a better time when I didn't feel like I had been trampled on by a stampede of elephants.

My mind drifted to Harper as it usually did when I found my thoughts wandering, then it hit me. Shit, I was meant to meet her last night at Opal. I remember telling her that I'd see her later on when her shift started, but I never showed up. I felt guilty that I'd left her there all night without an explanation as to why and seeing as the reason I hadn't shown up was because I got drunk and blacked out my guilt was more intense.

I slowly sat up to try and limit the pain I was feeling in my head, I needed to shower and then reschedule my meetings for the day and then think of what I was going to tell Harper.

The warm water of the shower helped ease the effects of the hangover but something still didn't feel right something at the back of my head that didn't make sense. My fragile mind was trying to tell me something, but I was either too stupid or too tired to remember, then everything clicked into place. I had a dream last night that in itself was an oddity for me.

I never had dreams well, not ones that I could remember not even as a child. However, last night was a first for me, and the dream happened to be about Harper. Something didn't feel right about it all seemed too real; I could almost feel her arms around me. I brushed it off; it was just a dream.

Walking back into the bedroom and throwing on a shirt and joggers I went to find my phone; I silently prayed that the penthouse wasn't trashed I already had a £500 coffee table to replace because I decided to get drunk and turn into an emotional wreck. I walked into the living room, and I had to blink a few times nothing, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the living room or the kitchen. The only thing out of place was the empty frame of the coffee table that was now upside down in the corner of the room.

I found my phone and thankfully it was still in one piece I had a few missed calls from some of the board members, but I could handle them, all I needed to do was pretend that I had spent the night planning more ways for the company to make money and they'd leave me alone. After a brief conversation with one of the receptionists explaining that I wouldn't be in today and that my meetings needed to get rescheduled I could finally relax, I sat down on the sofa and closed my eyes, hoping that the pain in my head would subside.

My mind drifted back to the dream I had of Harper , for some reason my brain had made it appear that she was with me last night , the thought made me cringe. There was no way in hell that I would ever want Harper seeing me in a state like that even If It was just the dream version my drunken mind conjured up. Something still didn't feel right, the images of her were to real, and if I concentrated hard enough I could almost smell her perfume, I was either extremely desperate, or my tolerance for alcohol had gone entirely out the window. 

I knew I needed to see her and apologise for not showing up last night, but I couldn't think of the right thing to tell her. I knew if I told her the real reason she'd understand, but I don't want her to feel sorry for me, I've had enough sympathy from people to last me a lifetime.

I grabbed my phone and decided that using the sorry I got pulled into a meeting last minute card would have to do , it was a shitty excuse and I knew that she'd never believe it but it's better than telling her what really happened , well that's what I told myself anyway. I pulled up mine and Harper's messages and glancing at the last text that was sent my jaw almost hit the floor. The address to my penthouse was staring back at me, but it wasn't that made my heart race; it was the reply, I'm on my way, don't go anywhere. I checked my call log on my phone, and just as I thought, her name was there as well.

Then it all clicked into place, shit she was here last night. It wasn't a dream; it was me remembering what had happened last night. My mind went into overdrive, how was I going to explain all of this to her I knew she'd want answers, but I also knew she wouldn't force me to tell her but that the curious side of her would be aching to find out. 

I had two options, tell her everything, or I make up an excuse and hope that she believes it. I started to think of a plan in my head, I'd pick her up from school and take her to our little coffee shop, and hopefully, by then I'll have decided what to tell her. I pulled up our messages and began to text her.

To – Harper

From – Angelo

I'm picking you up from school

Later what time do you finish?

I need to speak to you

I sat back into the sofa and waited for her to reply, It didn't take long and after a few minutes of waiting for my phone vibrated.

To – Angelo

From – Harper

I finish at 3, where are we going?

To – Harper

From – Angelo

The little coffee shop you like

I'll see you in a few hours

I was glad that she didn't bring up anything from last night, at the back of my mind I knew she wouldn't. It was almost half one now, so it gave me some time to decide what I'd tell Harper when I saw her. For some reason I chuckled to myself, she didn't complain when I told her that I was picking her up from school, I remembered how panicked she was when I insisted on dropping her off there after we'd been for coffee a few weeks ago. It was refreshing to be with someone who doesn't act a certain way because of who I am. I shut my eyes and lent back into the sofa I had an hour and a half until I had to pick Harper up, just enough time to see If a quick power nap can get rid of this bloody headache. Note to self, never get emotional and drink EVER AGAIN.

Forty-five minutes later after one of the most prolonged power naps ever recorded the throbbing pain in my head had finally subsided slightly, I made my way back to the bedroom to change into a suit and make myself look more presentable for Harper. Sending a quick text to Craig I made my way down into the foyer to wait for him and the car to pull up, thankfully the man was punctual, and I didn't have to wait long.

Sat in the back of the limo I still hadn't figured out what I was going to say to Harper. I knew she wouldn't take whatever bull shit excuse I'd use but the thought of telling her everything, things not even Jessica knew scared me. 

I've never had someone know me so intimately before I wasn't the type of person to go around declaring my innermost thoughts and feelings to everyone around me. I was a private person, and I wanted to keep it that way, but something about Harper made me want to tell her, she was the type of person you could open your heart too without feeling like you were being judged.

The limo pulled up outside Harper's school just as the students started to leave , my eyes trained on the groups of teenagers leaving the building and moments later my eyes landed on her even though she couldn't see me through the tint in the window I knew she was looking straight at me.

She looked beautiful as always, even out of her work clothes she captivated me, and a few moments later she was sliding into the seat beside me. "Hey" her voice was like warm honey, it sends a shiver down my spine. I wanted to thank her for what she did last night, but I couldn't think of the right words to say.

"Hey, how was school?" A massive groan came from Harper, and I knew what was coming next. "Don't mention the S word please, my exams are in 4 months now, and if I have to do one more hour of maths I'm going to scream, on what planet will I need to use algebra in my day to day life". 

I chuckled as I watched her lean back into the seat. It made me wonder what she was going to do once she left school, and it got me thinking about why she was working in Opal in the first place.

The rest of the drive to the coffee shop was comfortably silent, Steeling occasional glances at Harper I noticed that she looked exhausted, the bags under her eyes were concealed slightly by the frame of her glasses, but I knew they were there. 

What made it worse they were there because of me, my heart sank she was already getting the bare minimum about of hours sleep, and I reduced that number further. Once we arrived at the coffee shop, I followed Harper inside thankfully, it was quiet, and due to the nature of the conversation we were about to have I was glad.

"Go and find us a seat Angelo I'll get the drinks" Harper turned to me with a smirk plastered across her lips, she was determined I'll give her that I knew I wouldn't be able to persuade her to let me pay, so I went to find an empty booth. A few minutes later, Harper appeared with our drinks and sat in the chair opposite me with a serious expression on her face.

"Are you going to tell me what the hell happened last night, Angelo ? You nearly gave me a fucking heart attack". I could see she was upset, but she was doing an excellent job of hiding it but knowing I was the reason made me feel much worse. Maybe that's the reason I decided to tell her my story either that or I was still drunk from the night before.

" I'm going to tell you a story, it's a long one, and it's not a happy one, but you've got let me finish it okay?" All I got was a small nod in return.

"The day I was born wasn't a very positive one, there were complications with my birth, and my mother was in labour with me for a very long time, and a few hours after I was born she bled to death. My father was there and saw the whole thing, at the time my father's company was starting to gain recognition, his hotels were becoming more popular, and plans for new hotels were getting approved at an alarming rate. Unlike most men in his position, my father decided that it was his duty to care for me and bring me up as a single parent. For that, I will always be eternally grateful to him, as you know, I had a good childhood. My father gave me everything a young boy desired I had all the toys I could ever want and attended the best schools, but no matter how busy my father was, he always made time to eat dinner with me and put me to bed at night. I don't remember a time that he ever skipped either of those because he was too busy. Further down the line as I graduated high school instead of attending college I asked my father if I could learn how to run the business that he had created, the sheer happiness that was on his face that day will stay with me forever and of course, he agreed. He began teaching me all the ins and outs of hotel construction and maintenance and by the time I was 20, I was fully trained and had worked my way up to my father's stand-in CEO when he was unable to attend certain meetings, he was making sure I was ready to act as one full time once he retired".

I took a long gulp of coffee to steady my nerves. I looked up, and Harper was staring at me her greens eyes locked onto my blue ones.

"A few months ago 6 to be exact, I got a call from the hospital to say that my father had had a heart attack and due to the severity of it had died soon after they got him to the hospital. He was meant to retire after Christmas he had worked most of his life and due to the fortune he had created he was able to retire comfortably , it would have been his 65th birthday next week, but he's not here to celebrate it".

I looked back at Harper to indicate that my story had finished and I was waiting for her to say something, but she stayed silent instead she reached out and took my hand in hers, that simple action said more than a thousand words and I gave her hand a small squeeze to show I appreciated the gesture. 

That's how we sat for a while silently, with our hands still connected it was Harper that broke the silence. " I've got to go, my nan will be wondering where I am, I'm not working tomorrow Jack gave me the night off but if you want we can do something? I've got something to show you if you're free?"

"I'll make the time I've got a few meetings, but I'm sure I'll have finished by the time you finish school, text me where you want to go tomorrow and I'll be there to pick you up".

A small smile appeared on her lips, it was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen one day I hoped I'd be able to tell her that, but for now, I was just glad I had her as a friend. 

"Come, I'll give you a lift home it's almost dark" all I got in response was a raised eyebrow, she knew I wouldn't take no for an answer. It was at times like this I wish Craig wasn't such a valued employee as when we left the coffee shop he was sat waiting patiently in the limo , he probably hadn't left even though I and Harper had been sat in there for over an hour. We both got into the back, and Craig made his way to Harper's address, which by now I was more than sure he knew off by heart.

Harpers POV

After saying goodbye to Angelo, I went straight to my room to lie down. I needed some time to process what he had told me. He never knew his mother, the image of a little boy with Angelo's beautiful blue eyes and dark hair filled my mind the thought made my heart ache, at least I got eight good years with my mother. 

I knew it caused him a lot of emotional pain to open up to me like that especially when we haven't known each other all that long, but it made me happy to think that he felt like he could open up to me like that.

I already knew where I was taking him tomorrow. I was taking him to see my parents and my grandad. I knew the last thing he would want would be sympathy; I just wanted him to know that I knew how he felt and that he wasn't alone and that he had me.

 I had meant to tell Angelo about my parents for some time but the conversation today had given me that one final push to open up to Angelo about my not so pleasant past along with why I was working at Opal. Apart from my nan he'd be the first one to know everything but even she didn't know about where I was working, I had friends in primary school that knew about my parent's death, but they had all moved on to different schools and slowly forgotten about what happened that day. 

I hoped that tomorrow, the weight I had been carrying for almost ten years could finally get lifted.

A/N

After a long and stressful week, I've managed to get this chapter up. However normal updates will resume next week ❤️

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I'd like to say a huge thank you to HaleyHunter242  for designing the new cover for Day and Night, go and check her other ones out they're amazing!