by Bijou Hunter
No way am I admitting to Harmony how I don’t have any memories of that night. She’s already too smug, and I’m still pissed about her putting out for another guy just because I bailed.
“I’m going to heaven, babe. Don’t worry about that.”
“You have the same look on your face as Keanu gets when I tell him it’s almost bedtime.”
“Why that guy?” I ask again, not finding her first answer satisfying.
“You weren’t available.”
“So, you wanted to punish me?”
“I didn’t think you’d care. You left, remember?”
“So, then anyone would have gotten a shot?”
“No,” she says, sitting back and sighing. “I wanted you, and you bailed. The other guys in this area bore me. They want to talk about how pretty I am or how my middle name is Tequila. They’re loser versions of you. Then Hwan came along, and he was different. I thought fate dropped a second chance in my lap. I’d get over you by spending time with a man nothing like you.”
Her words kick me in the balls. I don’t want her wanting anyone else. Not four years ago and not fucking now.
“If he had lived, would you be with him now?”
Harmony startles me by snorting before bursting into laughter.
“Yeah, can you imagine me living in South Korea away from my family? What a train wreck that would have been. Besides, Hwan’s family would have freaked if he married a white woman. Heck, they weren’t exactly thrilled to know he knocked up one.”
“Are they shitty to you?”
“No,” she says, and her expression softens. “They love Keanu. They talk to him online and send presents. They send money to help raise him too. His mom says Keanu is all that’s left of her son. They’re good people. One day, I hope they can visit. In an ideal world, I could get the money to visit them when Keanu’s old enough to deal with a long flight.”
“Why couldn’t Hwan live here with you if he lived?”
“We weren’t in love, Dayton. We had a fling. After he left the US, we talked online about cryptozoology, not sex or being together. We were friends. He was sweet when I told him I was pregnant. He said he hoped our child had my smile. Yet he never said anything about moving here or being with me. That was never an option for either of us. Stop acting as if he’s my lost love and you’re my second choice.”
“That’s not how I’m acting.”
“Bullshit. Now eat your food before it gets cold.”
Despite my bad mood, I laugh at how she sounds like my mom. That’s the Harmony I dig. She says what she wants and does what she wants, and I never need to worry about her lying to me. She doesn’t see the point in faking anything.
“Is your food good?” I ask, cutting my steak.
Her gaze studying me, Harmony nods. She wonders if my mood will improve. I’m wondering that too, but I’m stuck thinking about the night I chose to walk away, and another guy swooped in. Harmony might never have loved Hwan, but he created a child with her. A kid I’ll look at for the rest of my life and see another man in his dark eyes.
Unlike Harmony, I believe in lying whenever necessary. People don’t particularly like the truth most days anyway. Tonight, I give her a smile that promises her answers about Hwan have eased the angry male part of me. The lie improves the mood at dinner but changes nothing to fix what I broke years ago.
Twenty - Harmony
Dayton eats his food like he’s angry with it. He guts the steak and tears open the baked potato. Ramming bite after bite into his pissed mouth, he chews everything to a pulp before swallowing in a hard gulp.
Knowing why he’s pissed, I chose to enjoy my meal. Dayton is stuck on a night long ago. I see the resentment in his dark eyes. Remaining silent, I can’t think of a single thing to say. I’m here in the present, and I hold no regrets. To say I regret him not sleeping with me that night is to wish for a path that doesn’t lead to Keanu in my life. Dayton is one delicious man, but my boy owns my heart.
“How come you never dated anyone after Hwan if he wasn’t so special to you?” Dayton asks after punishing his meal.
“You’re kidding, right?” I ask, turning to face him in the booth before sitting cross-legged. “I had a baby.”
“I know plenty of dating women with kids at home.”
“So do I, but once Keanu was born, I found my new love.” Shifting my arms into the position I used to cradle my baby, I continue, “I could look at his little face for hours. I was in awe how I’d made someone so beautiful. Until Keanu, I’d only been a woman. Once he was born, I was a mother, and no man could be as entertaining as my little guy.”
“You still went out to Red Barn and enjoyed drinks.”
“I needed time to decompress from work. Sometimes, my job can be depressing. You realize the people you’re caring for will never improve. They’re trapped in bodies and minds that won’t cooperate. Often, they’re in pain or full of frustration. When I was at the bar, people left me alone because you’d made clear how you thought I was your personal property. That meant, I could drink and daydream and let my mind clear of all the negativity. Then I’d go home, feeling lighter and happier. It was better for me and Keanu, not to mention my clients who don’t need more negativity in their lives.”
“That’s a lot of hippy-dippy thinking there.”
“Not as much as the hippy-dippy thinking going on in here,” I say, tapping my head. “Are you trying to say I’m a bad mom for wanting a few days a month to decompress?”
“Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“Then you put them in there and tell me what you mean.”
Dayton leans his head back against the wall and sighs angrily. “I want you to tell me that you didn’t date anyone after Hwan because you were waiting for me.”
“I don’t lie, and I wasn’t waiting for you.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Were you waiting for me?”
“In a way.”
“Well, I never thought we’d be together in a real way.”
“We have chemistry.”
“Yeah, but you bailed on me, and I had a baby. Chemistry or not, we’re on different paths in life. I figured we’d make out eventually and hook up eventually and then you’d get married to a tough biker lady, and I’d have unprotected sex with another random guy and give birth to his bastard. We’d all live happily ever after.”
“And you’d end up alone?”
“Oh, no, I fully plan to raise my kids to depend on me so much that they’ll never leave. You know, like my mom did with me.”
Dayton doesn’t smile at my comment. In fact, his frown deepens. “So the night I blew you off and the dead guy swooped in, you were looking to get knocked up.”
“Of course not. I was eighteen, but I’d never been good about remembering my birth control pills. They even have the days on them, but I’d think I took it in the morning when I actually took it the day before. Or a few days earlier. Things got blurred in my teenage brain. That’s why I got an IUD after Keanu. No more worrying if I’ll have a brain fart and forget a pill. Of course, I haven’t needed it until the night with you. But then again, I figured that night would happen earlier.”
“Then, why didn’t it?”
“You tell me. I was always looking to make out and maybe more, but you wanted to talk about the club or your brother or lately about your cousin, JJ. You were the one who put on the brakes.”
“That I did, but what’s a man to do when he leaves a woman for a night, and she gets knocked up by some stranger?”
No way am I feeling guilty even if that’s what Dayton’s hoping for. “Depends on what the man wants.”
“He wants to go back in time and stop her from seeing anyone except him.”
“Well, that’s rather immature, don’t you think? And one-sided. Especially since this man has seen every willing woman in their small town.”
“That’s an exaggeration.”
“Well, it’s your exaggeration.”
Studying his unreadable expression, I have an incredible urge to finish up our date. Dayton’s being weird, but I need to push through my fears and force him into the truth.
“What’s the point of lying about fucking everyone if it’s not true?”
“The men in my club don’t admire dick self-control. They’ll never applaud a monogamous man. When Bonn went so long without sex, they thought he was weak. They admire men like my father and uncle who need fresh pussy like most people need to breathe.”
“So, you lied because of peer pressure.”
“Why do you have to make it sound stupid?” he demands, seeming almost embarrassed.
“Because that’s how it sounds to me. If anyone else told me they had to lie about their sex life to fit in with their friends, I’d think the same thing. Don’t be so sensitive.”
“Fuck that. If you don’t get at this point how everything you say is personal to me, then I don’t know how to make it clearer.”
I again study Dayton’s expression, seeing past his cranky exterior. “We do have chemistry. You’ve got to wonder what would happen if you could feel this chemistry with someone better suited to your lifestyle.”
“I can’t think of another woman when you’re sitting so close.”
“Perhaps, if you get me out of your system, you can find a woman better fitted for your life.”
“Shut up.”
“You shut up,” I snap, falling into my role as the baby of the family needing to be heard.
“I’m not the one talking about me finding another woman.”
“Do you want to know what I think?”
“Probably not.”
“I think I remind you of your mom and that’s why you have a hard-on for me.”
Shaking his head, Dayton gives me a dirty look. “Don’t think talking about my mom and getting hard for you will keep me from wanting to fuck you.”
“Why would I want to get out of sex when that’s all I want you for?”
Dayton narrows his eyes and glares nasty at me, but I only smile. Leaning forward, I pucker up and dare him not to kiss me. His lust overpowers his ego, forcing his lips to cover mine.
As weak as I make him, I don’t trick myself into thinking his desire and possessiveness mean he’s in for the long haul. Dayton wants me to be his, so he can know he won a contest taking place only in his beautiful head.
Twenty One - Dayton
Harmony tastes like honey mustard sauce and fuck me promises. I wrap my arm around her and plaster her against my body. We’re in a packed restaurant but might as well be alone. I don’t see anyone else. I don’t want anyone else. To make Harmony mine, I’m willing to walk through fire, cut loose all my ties, and fall to my knees to beg.
Except she isn’t playing fair.
“Let me ask you something,” I say with my lips an inch from hers. “Didn’t you think about how hooking up with a stranger like Hwan might lead to you giving your kid a fatherless upbringing like you had?”
“Yes, I totally thought about that, but he was so sexy that I just couldn’t help myself.”
Harmony’s icy gaze holds mine. This woman won’t be poked without taking a swipe back. Best of all, she does the entire thing with a smile.
“Do you ever think about your dead daddy?”
“No, and Hwan didn’t remind me of him either. My father was a blond ski bum who died of alcohol poisoning while Hwan was an educated dark-haired professional who was hit by a taxi by no fault of his own. If anything, you remind me of my dead daddy, Jan.”
Sighing, I lean my head against the wall. “I don’t want to play anymore.”
Harmony pats my thigh. “Why are you asking me all these questions about Hwan and now my father?”
“I want you to feel guilty for cheating on me even though we weren’t together.”
“Okay, but I do feel guilty. I should have waited for you. If I could go back to that night, I would blow off Hwan and never get pregnant and then I’d be pure for you when you finally worked up the courage to fuck me stupid. Do you feel better now?”
“Yeah, actually,” I mutter, sliding her hand from my thigh to the erection I’ve endured for an hour.
“When was the last time you were with a woman who wasn’t me?”
“I don’t know.”
Harmony strokes my erection through my jeans before squeezing it threateningly. “Yes, you do.”
“Last night.”
“Try again.”
“An hour before I picked you up.”
“One more time.”
“Two years ago after I saw you walking with your boy. I’d been pissed at you for not waiting, but you looked too good that day, and I knew no other woman was good enough for my dick again.”
Harmony stares at me, wondering if I’m lying again. Even unsure, her hand never stops stroking me. The woman has me nearly ready to jizz in my pants at a family restaurant.
“You’re not a good man,” she whispers. “But you’re not all bad either.”
I know her words mean she’s opening herself to me, but I can’t think of anything except the building pressure in my balls. Resting my head back on the wall again, I close my eyes and try to look like a man chilling and not one about to come.
Harmony doesn’t relent even after I grit my teeth to keep from groaning. She strokes me long after I’ve emptied myself into a conspicuous spot on my jeans.
“Think anyone will notice?” I ask, opening my eyes.
“Do you care if they do?”
“No, but I figured you might.”
“People think I’m trailer trash. They think my kid is a half-breed bastard. They call my clients horrible names and think they’d rather die than end up like them. People don’t impress me, so I don’t give even the tiniest shit about impressing them.”
Taking her hand from my now relaxed cock, I hold it against my chest. “You’re worth waiting for, but I need to fuck you tonight. I don’t care where or how, but I need to shove my cock as deep inside you as you can handle. I need to pound you until you beg me to stop and then I need to pound you a bit more. And every time I can’t keep from bending you over, that’s on you, Harmony Tequila Slater. You did this to me, and you need to help me deal with the consequences.”
“Pay the check,” she says, giving me a sly grin. “Then drive me to my trailer and bend me over. I want to see how much of a bite comes with that bark of yours.”
Without looking away from Harmony’s still smiling face, I wave the waitress over and ask for the check. I pay and leave a nice tip since I know my woman keeps track of things like that.
When we stand, I maneuver her in front of me to hide the wet spot, but she wiggles free, stands next to me proudly, and takes my hand. Harmony’s fearless right now, and I don’t think she’s ever looked nearly as beautiful.
Twenty Two - Harmony
Dayton devours my lips as soon as I shut my trailer door. I struggle to hold him back. Should we talk more? Maybe he can say something romantic again like that waiting for me thing. The ride home reminds me who he is and who I am and how I’m completely out of my league with this man’s lifestyle.
But this is just sex, I tell myself. We still have time to work on the details and figure out how a man like Dayton fits in a life like mine. I certainly don’t think I fit in his.
Sex makes sense, though. We don’t need to worry about kids or jobs. No past or future. I can shut off my brain for a few hours and forget about everything besides the man stripping out of his clothes in my tiny trailer.
“I’m going to fuck you raw,” he growls, kicking off his shoes and dropping his pants.
I don’t pay attention to his words. I’m too busy enjoying the exquisite view of Dayton Rutgers buck naked in my living room. My gaze devours the sight of him in the way his lips devoured me earlier.
“
Now you,” he demands, sounding as angry as his erect cock looks.
“I’m too shy. Let me undress in the dark.”
Laughing before I finish saying the words, I take off for my bedroom. Dayton follows, stomping and exhaling like a pissed bull.
No!
He’s Big Foot coming to ravage an innocent camper. Just the thought sends my giggles into overdrive until I can barely breathe let alone remove my sandals.
Dayton grabs my ankle as I sit on the floor. He lifts my foot and unsnaps my strap. “It’s all fun and games until someone gets fucked senseless.”
I lift my other sandal for him to remove. His gaze focuses on my parted legs, now bare from my skirt sliding to my waist.
“You’re Sasquatch,” I gasp, trying not to laugh. “A ferocious animal.”
“Get your panties off.”
“You take them off, beast man.”
Dayton frowns at my giggling but doesn’t hesitate to reach down and drag my panties off my hips and down my legs. He presses the pink fabric to his nose.
“You smell wet. Are you ready to be fucked?”
“Yes, you big scary monster man.”
“Are you drunk?”
Sitting up, I tug off my shirt and pop off my bra. “Have you ever seen a human woman’s breasts before?”
“You are drunk,” he says, reaching out to pinch my right nipple.
My hand strokes his thick cock as I lift my gaze to meet his. “I’m a virgin hiker in the woods, and you’re a big, hairy beast with a raging hard-on.” Letting go of him, I turn around and wiggle my ass. “Please be gentle, beast man.”
When Dayton says nothing, I worry he might pull some bullshit about not wanting to play. Instead, he leans forward and bites my left ass cheek. I yelp in surprise and pain. Glancing back at him, I find him sniffing me.
