by Brooks, Abby
Later that day, as they got ready for the evening, Juliet finally caved to the temptation.
“Why am I not surprised you want to have dinner at Harrison’s tonight?” she asked from the doorway to the guestroom.
Tilting her head to see her friend as she fastened an earring, Willow arched a sarcastic eyebrow. “Why am I not surprised that you’re giving me a hard time about it?”
Juliet widened her eyes when she saw Willow’s outfit—a form-fitting sapphire blue sheath dress and a pair of strappy heels that cost more than Willow would ever admit to spending. “Damn, girl! You look amazing.” She glanced at her own outfit. “Should I change?” Juliet had chosen a simple white sundress and paired it with a denim jacket and boots. “This is the dress I wore the second time I met Ian. The day he gave me a place to live.” She smiled, her eyes misting as she traveled back to the memory.
“Then no,” Willow replied. “It’s absolutely perfect.”
The teasing about choosing Harrison’s as their dinner destination continued on the drive over. Willow just smiled through the abuse and quietly ran through the surprise party checklist she and Harry came up with the day before. The event had come together so easily once they decided to have it at Harry’s restaurant, the hardest part had been notifying the guests. They caught a lot of flak for waiting so long to contact people, but not one person turned them down.
All the Moores would be there, of course. Ellie Charles, who was carrying a Moore in her belly. Some of the people Ian worked with. A few friends. Lilah had been the worst, reminding Harry that when she had been the one throwing an engagement party, it had been on time and well-planned. The list hadn’t seemed all that big when they made it, but as they pulled into the parking lot, they had a hard time finding an open spot. Willow took the opportunity to send a quick text to let Harry know they’d arrived.
“Wow.” Offering his elbow to Juliet, Ian nodded at the full lot. “Good for Harry. He deserves this kind of success.”
Willow beamed as she mentally ticked off all the reasons Harry deserved success. He was kind. Hard-working. Generous. Sexy. Hilarious…
“Oh, my goodness…just look at your face!” Juliet rolled her eyes as she linked her other elbow with Willow, then turned to Ian with a conspiratorial grin. “My best friend has it bad for your baby brother.”
Ian leaned around Juliet and took a quick look at Willow. “Good. Like I said, he deserves to have good things in his life.”
Willow blushed and watched her feet striking the pavement, enjoying both the compliment and the anticipation of the surprise. She stepped back as Ian opened the front door and ushered Juliet inside. As planned, the guests were gathered near the hostess station, ready and waiting.
Exuberant voices greeted the couple as the door closed behind them. “Surprise!”
Juliet shrieked and put her hands to her mouth while Ian laughed and turned on Willow. “You tricky little thing!” he said, then looked back to the guests, where Harry appeared out of the crowd with his hand extended. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down, little brother.”
“No way in hell.” Harry grasped Ian’s hand, then pulled him close to thump him on the back.
“This is perfect.” Juliet put her hands to her heart and turned to her friend. “All of us together like this…” Tears glimmered in her eyes. “You’re the best.”
“No, you are.” Moved by her friend’s genuine emotion, Willow found herself fighting tears as well. The reaction was everything she hoped for, everything Juliet and Ian deserved.
While the couple disappeared in a crowd of family and well-wishers, Harry pulled Willow over to a not-so-visible corner near the front door. “You look amazing in this dress,” he said, running his hands over her waist and hips. “But I can’t wait to get you out of it.”
A private grin tugged at her lips, and she wasn’t sure what she liked more, being wrapped in an embrace in a secret corner of the restaurant, the way his hands felt on her, or the idea of their clothes in a pile at their feet. “I missed you all day,” she said, pressing her cheek to his chest, loving the way her body molded itself to his.
“I doubt that.” Harry put a finger to her chin and lifted her face, nuzzling her neck, kissing that shiver-inducing spot just below her ear.
With his mouth busy building need like a fire in her belly, Willow didn’t feel it was fair not to share the love. She slid her hand between them and massaged his already slightly hard cock. “I missed this all day, too,” she said, giving a little squeeze.
Harry loosed a low groan and his dick jumped in her hand.
Encouraged by the reaction, she continued. “And I couldn’t get you out of my mind because I’m so sore from having you inside me. I can’t move without aching for you.” She gave another squeeze. “It’s so good.”
“Damn, that’s hot,” he breathed. “You have no idea what you do to me.” He leaned in and kissed the edges of her ear, the whisper of contact sending a shower of goose bumps across her skin. “But if you’re good, I’ll make sure to show you later tonight.”
“Oh, I’ll be good,” Willow promised, stroking him until she felt him straining against the zipper. “Very, very good.”
“You’re not being very good right now. In fact, you’re being very, very bad. You know what happens to bad girls, don’t you?” Harry grabbed her ass and pushed her hips against his.
“Mr. Moore?” The voice came from behind them and Willow spun to find a mortified waitress holding a tray of hors d'oeuvres. “They need you in the kitchen,” the girl said, looking everywhere but at Willow. Harry promised he would be right there, and the waitress practically ran away.
“You can bet you’re gonna get it now.” He grabbed Willow’s waist and pulled her into his arms, then thrust his hips so she could feel his erection digging into her back. “You dirty, greedy little girl.”
She giggled and leaned back into him, turning her head over her shoulder. “I’ll hold you to that, you know. A man is nothing without his word.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Willow
Juliet absolutely sparkled with happiness and Willow found herself battling a gigantic lump in her throat more than once. On the one hand, she was ecstatic for her friend.
Juliet so completely deserved everything she found in Bliss. So completely deserved to have such a large, welcoming family surround her. So completely deserved to have a man like Ian open his heart to her and show her the true meaning of love.
But on the other hand, as the Moores welcomed Juliet into their life, reality smacked Willow across the face. Soon, she’d head back to New York. Back to ACB. Back to a life she loved, but also felt diminished after her week in Bliss.
The quick glimpses of Harry bustling around the restaurant physically hurt.
She yearned for him.
She hated the fact that an entire room of people stood between them…then began to worry how it would feel when the time came for her to leave and the majority of the east coast separated them.
She purposefully chose a chair on the outskirts of the family. She tried telling herself it was to have a better view of all that was going on, but she knew that wasn’t true. She needed distance between herself and everyone at the party, because in a few days, there’d be over seven hundred miles separating them all.
Letting herself be swept up in the romance of Harrison Moore had been a foolish decision. There was no chance of anything real ever happening between them. Powerful signs from the universe or not, the facts were simple.
He lived in Bliss while she lived in New York, and they were both were married to jobs that couldn’t relocate.
Willow swallowed the rest of her wine and stared blearily into the empty glass. Maybe she needed something stronger to get through the night. She made a beeline to the bar and wound up running straight into Harry.
“Hey.” He brought his hands to her waist. “You look like someone ran over your kitten. What’s wrong?”
She clo
sed her eyes, desperate to remember the moment and forget it all in the same instant. The concern in his gaze. The warmth of his hands on hers. The strong, masculine scent of him. How good she felt standing that close to him. All those things managed to both break her heart and put it back together again. She shook her head, not trusting her words. In fact, judging by the growing lump in her throat, there was a good chance she was about to lose it in the middle of her best friend’s party.
Harry put a hand to her cheek and pulled her further away from the others. “Hey, hey, hey,” he said, his voice as gentle as his touch. “What’s going on? Talk to me, my angel.”
That was all Willow needed to lose control. She took a shuddering breath as tears welled. “I’m sorry.” She swiped at her eyes and tried to calm the spasm in her chest. “I’m okay.”
“You’re clearly not.” Harry wiped a tear from her cheek. “Come on. Follow me. I know a place we can talk.” He led her through the restaurant, expertly guiding her away from the guests so they couldn’t see her tears, and pushed through a door that opened to an outside seating area overlooking the ocean.
“I’m sorry,” she said when they came to a stop out of the view of the windows and therefore invisible to all the happy people inside. “I’m being silly.”
“I doubt that.” Harry slid out a chair and sat, pulling Willow into his lap. “Now, stop apologizing and tell me what’s going on.”
She nuzzled her cheek against his chest and took a moment to appreciate the closeness. But that only reiterated how much she enjoyed being with him and how soon she was going to leave Bliss. She choked on another sob and buried her face in his neck.
“I don’t want to leave,” she finally managed between deep, hitching breaths. “I love it here. I miss Juliet like crazy and I’m so super happy for her, but I don’t have anyone in New York anymore.” She pulled back and looked Harry in the eyes. “And…” She sniffled, trying to decide the perfect way to say what she meant. “And…” She licked her lips. “I’m gonna miss you so damn much. I can’t believe how attached I’ve gotten to you in so short a time.”
Harry pulled her in close. “I’m gonna miss you, too. A lot. Every second of the day. You’re something special, Willow Tamran.” He kissed the top of her head and put a finger under her chin, tilting her face to his. “But, there’s email and phone calls and texting. There’s video chat. And don’t forget the plane ticket I booked to fly out to New York to see The Nutcracker in a few weeks.”
The statement hung between them as it circled Willow’s head like a drunken sparrow. When it finally landed, when she finally processed what he said, exhilaration had her heart doing victory laps. “You’re coming to New York? To see The Nutcracker?” She knew the smile on her face was too big and the tears were making her eyes all squinty—surely not her best look—but she couldn’t stop grinning if she wanted to.
Harry nodded. “I love making you look this happy.” He ran his thumb across her lower lip. “And yes, I’m coming to New York, but no, it’s not to see The Nutcracker. I’m coming to see you. I want to keep getting to know you better. And how can I know you better if I don’t start learning to appreciate the things you’re passionate about?”
This man. How could I ignore this man?
He came into her life in a trumpet’s blast of powerful signs and there he was, continuing to prove himself to be everything she ever needed.
Without thinking, she kissed him.
Just flung her arms around him and pressed her mouth to his as an explosion of need overcame her. Her body yearned for him in the same way her heart did.
She needed him inside of her, not just physically, but emotionally, too.
She needed him to be part of her. To claim her and promise to be hers and she did her best to communicate that to him in the moment of unbridled passion that sent her into his arms.
Harry returned the kiss with as much passion as she put into it, his tongue darting into her mouth as his hands traced her back. She opened to him. Gave herself to him. There was no going back.
In that moment…
…sitting on a darkened deck overlooking the ocean…
…she acknowledged that she was irrevocably his.
That no matter what the next couple months brought, no matter how much distance was between them, her heart belonged to him. It would live where he lived.
Harry slid his hand under Willow’s dress, sighing into her mouth as his fingers found the lace edge of her underwear. She parted her thighs and let her head drop back as he dipped into her.
“Stand up,” he said, and she did. “Come here.” He took her wrist and led her to a dark corner of the deck. “Put your hands on the railing.”
Willow gripped the wooden beam and stared into the water on the other side, shivering as Harry ran his fingers up her arms before he reached under her dress and pulled her panties to her ankles.
“Harry!” She gasped in protest even as she stepped out of her underwear, careful not to catch them in her heels. “We’re outside. Someone might see.”
“Don’t worry. This will be quick. Part punishment for being such a bad girl earlier tonight. Part reminder that you are mine and I am yours and nothing can come between us. Not distance. Not a party filled with people.”
Harry lifted her dress and smacked her ass. “That’s for being a bad girl.” He ran a finger up her slit before dipping first one, then two, fingers inside her. “And that’s because you’re my bad girl,” he said as Willow moaned and arched her back, trying to look over her shoulder and see him.
There was a moment of emptiness as Harry withdrew. She heard the rustle of foil as he pulled a condom from his pocket, then the sound of his zipper coming down and the condom going on. He pressed the tip of his dick against her opening and Willow quivered with desire, both delighted and horrified to realize she was wet enough for moisture to drip down her inner thighs.
Harry thrust forward, so fast and deep there was no time to think about anything else. She cried out—unable to hold back the sound as he slammed inside her. Pain melted into pleasure, each thrust bringing him deeper and deeper. When she cried out again, Harry covered her mouth with his hand.
It was quick and dirty, and Willow’s body responded to his with such fervent desire that her orgasm arrived faster than she expected. She was thankful for his hand over her mouth as he had his way with her because considering how her inner muscles clenched tighter around him, with her wetness dripping between them, she couldn’t keep quiet, punctuating each of his thrusts with a sharp cry.
Harry gained speed, pumping into her faster and faster until she finally gave in and came, her body contracting around his. “Willow,” he whispered, pausing to make sure she heard him. “You. Are. Mine.” He punctuated each of his words with another thrust of his hips, slamming his cock ever deeper and bringing waves of pleasure over her, until he finally came, pressing into her with a shudder. Spent, he bent forward and kissed her neck and shoulders before he pulled out. Willow sagged against the railing, totally unable to trust her legs to hold her weight.
“Maybe I should be a bad girl more often, if that’s how I get punished,” she said after she managed to pull her panties back up where they belonged.
Harry drew her close, wrapping her in the safety of his arms. “I meant what I said,” he murmured. “You are mine and I am yours and distance isn’t going to change that. I’ve never felt this way about another person, and I’ll be damned if I let you slip through my fingers just because we don’t live in the same place.”
Willow smiled up at him. She didn’t have any words, at least none that wouldn’t make her cry all over again, and between the tears and Harry smearing her lipstick across her face, she was pretty damn sure her makeup was already a disaster.
After giving herself a minute to overcome the lump of emotion in her throat, Willow finally spoke. “I should probably stop in the bathroom and get cleaned up before I show myself in there.”
“You lo
ok pretty fucking hot to me,” he said. “With your lipstick on my hand and all.”
“I mean, if you want to upstage your brother’s wedding party with a Willow and Harry Have Been Fucking on the Deck announcement, be my guest. I just thought now wasn’t the time to make it so obvious.”
Harry chuckled. “I guess you’re right. Today probably isn’t the day to let everyone know how I feel about you.” He kissed Willow again, deeply. “Just needed one more before you get yourself put back together.” He kissed her again. “And one more.” Another kiss. “Maybe just one more.”
Willow laughed as he continued kissing her, happier than she remembered being in a long time.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Harry
December
Harry’s family grew by one. Juliet Lane officially became Juliet Moore. The ceremony was beautiful—at least those were the words on everyone’s lips when it was over.
He’d never dare say it aloud, but he didn’t notice one thing about the ceremony.
The only person on his mind that day was Willow.
How she looked in her bridesmaid dress.
How she tasted when they snuck into a closet at the reception and made love until her legs went weak. How she felt in his arms that night—the first full night she spent in his bed. And then, how his entire being ached as she waved goodbye before going through airport security, tears welling in her eyes.
And in his.
Harry had never been more attached to his phone than he was after Willow went home to New York. Between rehearsals, she messaged him or sent pics of herself dressed in her ballet get up—which was just fine with Harry, considering what little clothing dancers wore clung to the body like a second skin. But even better still were the pics of her wearing nothing at all. He saved those for when he was alone and could stroke himself to completion, her name on his lips, her face in his mind.
