by RaeLynn Blue
“Oh yeah, like what?” she asked idly setting out the plates and moving them to the bar.
A sigh-mixed-breath and then silence, before Nathaniel answered, “Really crappy stuff that came out of a can, or leftovers.”
Harper tilted her head and brought her eyes up to his. That wasn’t what he was going to say, and he knew she noticed. But what else could he do? She didn’t really want all the details of his prison life.
“Where did you get crappy food?” she asked cautiously as she popped the bread from the pan and onto a cutting board. “You cook for yourself?”
“Uh, no, not really.”
He grabbed the wineglass and gulped down a mouthful of courage to face those luminous honey-brown orbs again. When he did, he found a puzzle expression staining her features, but soon she smoothed them out.
“Not tonight. This evening you’re going to eat well.”
She placed the bread in front of him. Over the next few minutes she didn’t look at him, but busied herself with moving the salad bowl over, setting out the dressings and other accoutrements of dinner. He moved to help her, but she shooed him back to his seated position.
“I got it,” she claimed, still avoiding his gaze. “You paid for dinner last, and since I don’t have a wait staff, it’s all me.”
“No problem.”
She lifted the bowl of steaming spaghetti and hoisted it from the island to the countertop. Without missing a beat she strolled around to the side where the bar stools waited and climbed onto one beside him. She smelled like fire, onions and garlic. Fantastic.
“Eat up.” She began cutting thick slices of warm bread. “Don’t tell me its crap later, either,” she added with a wave of the knife.
“Thank you, Harper. It looks delicious,” he said, carefully using the pasta spoon to deliver the noodles and marina to his plate. “And I can already tell this isn’t crap.”
And you aren’t stupid. So smart and perceptive. I’m going to have to tell you the truth, aren’t I? But I think you want to let it rest until later, and I certainly don’t want to risk ruining the evening.
“Don’t tell me you’re bored already?” Harper teased, giving him a small smile.
There had been boring activities in his prison life. Huge, vacant holes in Nathaniel’s existence had successfully sucked little bits of energy from his motivation. A leech that crawled from those holes and greedily devoured him, leaving a husk of a man who had once been whole. He’d allowed it, filling them in occasionally with fluff, fast women, and fickle modes of fun.
No longer.
Eating alongside Harper, he listened intently, watching her rays of sunshine shrink the holes in his being into pinpoints of nothingness.
She swallowed and commented, “This is yummy, maybe because you’re here.”
Nathaniel’s mouth stopped at once, her comment pulling him back into the moment. “Thank you,” he said, watching her jaw work on the mouthful of pasta. Again, he noticed how she ate with gusto.
“So how’s Scott?” she asked.
“He’s difficult, angry and obstinate, but I think I’m breaking through the barrier. Slowly.”
She rotated toward him. “It’s going to go slowly, you know.”
He nodded and continued. “He’s had a difficult patch to tread through, but we’re working on it.”
“Super,” Harper said. “I’m glad he’s finding his connection to you again.”
He got up, unable to sit as guilt swamped him from his head to his feet. Scott was not the easiest kid to like, he knew that. The fact that he hadn’t been there to be a father to his son was the number one reason. The choices he had made had been difficult ones, but they were ones he had thought he had no other options at the time. He had been dead wrong, but he couldn’t expect Harper to understand that. He was going to have to tell her the truth about his long absence in his son’s life soon. He just wished he knew the right words.
“I’m glad he’s finding his connection to you.” She sat up straight on the sofa. The hollow teacher voice crept into her tone. “He’s had a difficult time. I’m glad you’re back in his life.”
“You sure as hell don’t sound like it.”
“Well, I am,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “He’s my student, and I see him every day. I know him. Believe me, I’m pleased you’re back in his life.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really,” she retorted incredulously. She followed him as he retreated to the living room. She trailed with relentless fervor. “He’s one of my students. Of course, I care about him. He’s a lost boat bobbing aimlessly in a storm of uncertainty. His mother’s a louse, and his father’s a…”
Nathaniel stood like a stone. Cold from his head to his feet, his heart squeezed with ice. What did she think of me? Truly? Down deep?
“What about his father? Go on,” he pushed in a hush so quiet Harper gasped. I’m a fool to think she could love me. The acidic disdain in her voice sliced him to the quick. I thought she cared about me, about Scott.
Horror raced across her face. Harper dropped her eyes and clasped her hands over her mouth. She might’ve sworn, but he couldn’t be sure.
“Go on,” he repeated. “Tell me about Scott Pearson’s father!”
She winced as if his words hurt her.
He could hardly breathe. Still he wanted to hold her, and make sure she would smile again. Conflicted and torn, Nathaniel reached for her. Had she meant something horrible right then, about him?
“I—I won’t lie to you,” she stated, spine ramrod straight as she squared her shoulders and met his gaze. Her chin jutted upward. She didn’t take his hand, only gave it the briefest glimpse. “I thought his father’s absence left him scarred and distrusting. I believe his mother’s irresponsibility and selfishness has hindered him too.”
Nathaniel fought back the scowl threatening to erupt. Sure, she taught him every day, but what gave her the right? His circumstance? She didn’t know anything about him.
“You don’t know anything about us. How can you stand there and judge us?” he asked, voice breaking in his realization she had perhaps pinned her insights on the surface stuff she witnessed with Scott’s behavior. “You don’t know what I’ve—what he has gone through outside of the damn classroom.”
“I’m not judging you, Nathaniel. I’m only telling you my thoughts, my observations of Scott when you and his mother aren’t there. I read his journals, listen to his conversations with classmates, and watch his interactions with his peers. He’s distrustful of everyone, including you and his mother. I am not trying to pass judgment. Please understand that.”
She stepped to him and at last took his outstretched hand.
Instead of fleeing, he let her touch him. Her hand lay heavily on his forearm. But he didn’t leave. Repealed by her gentle caressing, his flash of anger seemed to be smooth over by her strokes.
“I’m sorry.” She cautiously closed the distance between them, at least physically. Emotionally, the chasm existed. “Nathaniel, please. Your absence has made a deep impact on him. There’s no getting around that.”
“I know,” he whispered. “I’m… Yes, you’re right. I messed up by not being there for him. I’m doing my best to be there now.”
But acknowledgement did little to remove the hitch in his chest. She thought him a failure, and to be truthful, he hadn’t been there for Scott. The reasons why didn’t really matter; the end result remained the same.
She took another step and waited, lips curved into a warm, apologetic smile. He struggled to stay angry, to somehow impart the pain she’d inflicted right then back at her, but he couldn’t. Instead he swallowed the agony she crafted and closed his eyes. She had been right, observant and honest. She hadn’t lied to him or tried to appease him with bullshit. He needed honesty right then, no matter how bitter the pill had been to swallow.
He put his arms around her and pulled her into his embrace. Relief washed over him, and he squeezed her to him.
“I did hurt him, yes, but I am making up for it as best I can, Harper.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him into her. He massaged her scalp. He tugged the ponytail holder from her soft strands to gain greater access. Harper moaned, melting against him. He loved how wonderful and warm she felt in his embrace. The stitch eased in his chest, though her blatant words of judgment simmered in the back of his mind. He touched her chin and lifted her lips to his. The kiss drove something hot and deep inside him. She felt like heaven. Unlike their joining in the parking lot, this kiss differed. Slowly, unrushed, and with tenderness in his heart, their lips parted in mature agreement.
Sweet! So lovely!
Harper melted herself into him, pressing against him with such vigor, he stumbled to keep his balance. He dropped his arms to stroke her back. She broke the kiss and with her eyes at half-mast, she breathed. “Wow. You’re forgiven as long as you help your son.”
Nathaniel chuckled, desire burning through him. Harper led him to the sofa, and she sat down, patting the spot beside her. Hair free, she glowed, a beacon in the gloom his life had become.
“Scott is a great boy,” he explained as he settled in beside her. “Really. You should see him. It’s Tara. A dark storm cloud of negativity I’ve only just begun to deal with.”
Harper nodded, eyes meeting his without judgment. “I’m sure underneath his aggression is a boy who is smart and engaging. But to be honest I don’t see the real Scott enough.” Their hands remained enveloped in each others. Never had he felt so comfortable, so accepted.
“Nor do I.”
Harper gave him a peck. “I know. I applaud your efforts, Nathaniel. You have a large mountain to climb.”
“Yeah, but he’s worth it.”
“He is,” she agreed and wrapped her arms tightly around him. “Yes, he is.”
Chapter Fourteen
Harper hugged him close to her, pushing her body against him, unable to stop touching him.
“I like that,” Nathaniel declared, a voice like velvet gliding across her body. “Thank you for listening. I’m sorry I sounded so defensive.”
Harper snuggled closer to him.
“I understand the challenge and the frustration.”
She closed her eyes and allowed him to hold her. The gentle rise and fall of his chest as he breathed soothed her. Relishing the silence and the warmth of his embrace, she smiled. This was nice. What would it be like to come home to this peace every night?
A bolt zipped through her as her as his lips traced invisible lines of across her ear, down her neck, and along her shoulder. A blaze of heat arose in their wake. He carefully tugged the collar of her shirt back to expose her sensitive skin to his lips and to gain greater access to her flesh.
Harper sighed. He was there, right in her house, right in her arms, and right next to her nexus of hunger.
“You smell nice,” he whispered against her ear, sending ripples skating across her body. Nathaniel’s words kept stirring Harper’s arousal, bringing her liquid heat to a boil.
She smiled. “Thank you.” A simmering cauldron ready to explode, Harper kissed him deep. He tasted like marinara and wine, a spicy sweetness she savored.
“You’re welcome,” he answered, laughing gently into her ear, tugging on the lobe with his teeth.
Harper licked her parched lips. She was so tightly wound she would pop. She didn’t know him all that well, not really. Yet being here with him felt so right, so good and it wasn’t all hormones.
There was no ignoring the chemistry between them. She could feel the electricity streaming between them, and as she reached up to kiss him again, shockwaves coursed through her body. She needed more than kisses this time. She wanted him.
She began taking off her shirt, throwing it aside. She stood before him and dared him with her eyes to take what she was offering. Enough with the teasing, she wanted him badly, and she was showing him.
She loved the way his eyes widened as she stood there. His breathing became labored as she offered herself the only way she knew how.
“See something you like?” So not like her, but she was through with waiting.
“Bad, but I like it,” Nathaniel confessed, pulling his shirt over his head, though much slowly. He took her hand and guided it to his rigid cock. As if it were silk, he molded her hand around his aching need and said, “I’m dying, Harper. Make me feel alive. Will you?”
“Yes,” she hissed, twisting her nipple through the lace of her bra. She drew her bottom lip between her teeth and moaned. She’d felt the outline of his huge tool—wide and long. It would do wonders for igniting her lust.
“Yeah, do that again. Damn, yeah, fuck, you look so good.”
She did, not because he asked, but rather because mounting horniness wouldn’t allow her to come down, or retreat. Not now. It was far too late for backpedaling.
Harper slipped out of her khakis and solicited a groan from Nathaniel as he watched intently. Following the leader, he dropped his pants—and to her surprise—his boxer-briefs to the ground. He came toward her in slow, languorous movements. Hunger rippled through her at the very sight of him—tight abs, pink nipples pointed with lust, and a rigid rod that bounced as he stalked toward her. A light brushing of hair scattered across his chest begged for her lips to drift across.
She did once he came within striking distance.
“Sweet Jesus, Harper,” he growled as her lips connected to his flesh.
He touched her shoulders, smiling at the contrast of their skin tones. His cream and her cinnamon, a sweet concoction of carnal delights. His hand drifted down her shapely arm, a white canoe on a warm river of cognac.
“So soft, supple,” he breathed, voice a hoarse croak in the quiet air. “Mmm…”
A forest of goose bumps broke out across her skin as Nathaniel trailed candy kisses down her arms to her very fingertips. He was taking his time, driving her crazy with the slow deliberate nature of his loving. Grabbing his head, she drew his lips to hers and eagerly sought his tongue, ravaging the sweet places as a pirate would plunder and steal the goods with zest.
“Lay down, baby. Let me look at you.” He broke the kiss far too soon, gesturing toward the sofa. He didn’t have to ask her twice.
She lay down and her eyes dropped at once to her heaving chest.
“So sexy,” he croaked before he lowered his head and drank from the luscious container her pussy created. Nipping at her swollen lips, the burning fire in his loins leapt high—ready to consume the ample beauty before him. “Oh, Harper, moan like that for me. Just like that. Let me hear it.”
Trailing a path from the opulent orbs, he kissed and pecked a trail straight to the entrance of her cove. Dark and tempting, it beckoned to him, his cock bobbing in a wave.
“Nathaniel please…”
Unaccustomed to being on the receiving end of a man’s manual manipulations, Harper’s hips bucked and thrust in vain attempts to capture his mouth. Her squirming made it difficult for him to stay on the sofa.
“You are so impatient,” he accused playfully blowing against her hot button. The ripple from the breath bolted through her sending Harper in hysterics.
“Damn!” she screamed, surging off the sofa. “Nathaniel, I want, I want…”
“What?” he asked, smiling up as her as he playfully slapped at the wickedly tempting triangle. “Tell me what you want, and I will give it to you.”
“I want you. You! Nathaniel!”
She closed her eyes and relished the words rushing from her mouth. Beyond desire, she wanted him, and she longed for it to be forever. True, they’d only met and true he was her student’s father, but right then, it all seemed to perfect, so right, so what-she-needed, she wanted it for good.
She opened her eyes when he took one of the pillows and guided it beneath her ass, lifting the glorious globes upward and at a good spot. Sliding the pillow under her, Nathaniel growled at the sight of her spread open for his pleasure. She loved hearing proo
f of his desire; she especially loved that she had made him feel this way, desperate for her. He brushed her hair from her eyes. So beautiful against the rich chocolate color of the sofa, Harper made the tingling in his gut flood his system.
With her legs parted, an open invitation, Nathaniel kneeled before her. He wrapped his hands around his rigid rod, where already droplets of dew clung to the tip of his head. He brought it up to the glistening lips of her shaved mound. Hairless except for that soft strip of tightly coiled ebony curls, it beckoned to be serviced, worshipped.
“Look at me,” he said, and her eyes flicked up to his. Nathaniel’s face broke into a grin. “Do you want me, like this? If you don’t tell me now, or I won’t be able to hold back.”
Shuddering from his width nestled against her outer entrance Harper’s eyes latched onto his and noted how much he hungered for her. She was a raft in the storm raging through her. She lifted her hips and clasped his delicious purpling head of flesh between her slippery folds.
“Goodness! Please! I can’t, Nathaniel!” she begged, grabbing her hands on his shoulders, nails buried inside his flesh.
The bulbous head slipped between her slick folds, soliciting a gasp from Harper.
He growled, and he dipped his head down to her neck and kissed. Harper’s long lustrous legs nestled around his waist, locking in her efforts for deeper satisfaction. She met his thrusts with vigorous action. He plunged in deep and quivered as his aching balls slapped against her apex. Each lustful moan pierced his ears and wrenched up his rhythm.
“Yes, oh, harder,” she urged, eyes still open never letting her gaze wander from his face as if she meant to memorize it.
Staring into that warm liquid heat, Nathaniel’s cock twitched inside her. The climax came within reach and he kept plunging.
“Yes, yes,” Harper whispered into his ear. “I want to hear you say it.”
“Love, you’re divine…lovely…sexy…” he rambled. Losing himself in the folds of her steaming heat. “Oh, baby.” Pistoning his hips fast and furious, Nathaniel’s words blurred into a string of syllables.
