by Tess Summers
He opened the bedroom door and stopped short when he saw her standing there. His mouth dropped open and his eyes widened in surprise.
“Wow,” he gasped as he looked her up and down. “You look fucking hot.”
She smiled shyly as he approached her. Ben held her hand over her head and spun her around slowly, sputtering enthusiastically, “God. Damn!”
“Do you like it?” she asked, tucking her hair behind her ear.
“Like it? Baby girl, I love it. You are the sexiest damn woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.” He sat down on the bed and pulled her to stand between his legs. Brushing her hair from her forehead, he asked softly, “You know my first thought when I walked through the bedroom door?”
“No.”
“I thought, what the hell did I do to deserve to be in this woman’s bed?”
“You did?”
“Yeah, Scout. You’re amazing. Not only are you sexy as hell, you’re brilliant and kind, and I’ve loved every minute of our time together. I have no idea what you’re doing with a grease monkey like me.”
“I think you’re pretty amazing, too,” she whispered, biting her bottom lip as she stared into his gold-flecked eyes.
“You do, huh?” he said, pulling her closer to kiss her neck.
“Mmmhmm.” Harper closed her eyes and tilted her head to allow Ben better access to her neck as her arms came around his broad shoulders. She could feel his muscles move as his hands traveled up and down her sides, resting on her ass and squeezing.
“Do you have any idea what you do to me, Harper Finch?” he growled against her skin. “You drive me fucking wild.”
Feeling how wet she was getting, she could relate. She loved how powerful she felt, having this strong, sexy man filled with desire for her.
Ben pulled the lingerie over her head to leave her standing before him in nothing more than a thong.
“So beautiful,” he murmured as his eyes raked over her. Normally, this would be where she was covering herself with her hands or pushing against her partner’s body to hide hers. Instead, she boldly looked in his hazel eyes, trying to channel her feelings for him.
Reaching for the hem of his t-shirt, she whispered huskily, “You have far too many clothes on, Mr. McCallister,” then helped him remove his shirt.
His body was a work of art, in terms of both his physique and his colorful tattoos.
“God, you are beautiful,” she purred as she traced her fingertips over the outlines of the pictures and patterns on his body.
“That’s my line,” he chuckled as he grabbed her fingertips and kissed them, then moved to peel her panties off. He kneeled before her as if he were worshipping her, his hands gripping her ass while he kissed her just above her pubis bone. “Except it’s not a line, Scout. You are so beautiful.”
Ben easily lifted her onto the bed. He took off his jeans but left his boxer briefs on, and started to climb onto the mattress next to her.
“Uh uh.” She pointed at his underwear. “Off.”
The corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk. “So demanding,” he said, but he did as she requested and removed them, his glorious cock moving up and down once it was freed from the confines of the fabric. Harper reached for it automatically, smugly smiling when he moaned as she began to stroke him up and down. He was so warm and velvety soft, yet hard as steel. When he leaned down to kiss her, their tongues tangling, she began to stroke him using two hands.
“Fuck, Scout,” he snarled against her lips. “I love how your hands feel on my cock.”
His tip was slick with precum, and Harper moved it around the helmet with her thumb.
Using his body as leverage, Ben pushed her flat on her back. He wasted no time cupping her right breast and drawing her nipple between his lips. He swirled his tongue around it, then began to suck as his other hand found her left tit. Tugging her pebbled flesh between his teeth until she let out a gasp, he released the right nipple to seek out the left. Then, while he suckled her left boob, he reached between her legs, his fingers parting her folds as he searched for her clit.
Gloriously, he circled her knot with his index finger while inserting his middle finger into her pussy.
“Mmm, so wet,” he commented. The noises as he finger-fucked her mingled with her cries of pleasure. How was she already so close to coming?
He pulled his hand away, and she whimpered in protest while he sucked on his fingers, staring into her eyes with a devilish smile. He was obviously enjoying the tease.
His hands cupped her face while he enveloped her mouth with his. Harper could taste her pussy on his tongue as it sought hers out. Deepening the kiss, his fingers weaved into her long hair until he was tugging, then rolling her on top of him.
She sat up straight and he eased his thick cock inside her, her hands on his middle for support as she sank down.
“Fuuuuuuck,” he groaned while he filled her balls deep.
“Oh my god,” she panted. His cock felt so good inside her pussy, and she began to slowly roll her hips. His thumb began moving in circles over her clit, and she increased the tempo, bouncing up and down on him.
Ben sat up, grabbing a fistful of her hair with one hand and pulling her head back so she couldn’t move as she clung to his back for purchase. His cock was still deep inside her pussy, and his free hand began to frantically rub her clit as he thrust his hips up until she was completely filled. Over and over, he slammed into her, never relenting on her clit. Her head was still pulled back, his lips on her neck, and with every thrust he let out a low grunt.
“That’s it. Take it all,” he snarled against her throat. “Come all over my cock, baby girl.”
Holy shit. Come all over his cock she did.
“Ohhh myyyyy goddddd, yessss,” she cried as the orgasm hit her. He let go of his grip on her hair as she spasmed on top of him, her nails digging into his back while her pussy quivered around his dick.
He wasted no time in flipping her onto her back and pumping into her furiously as she milked his cock.
“You. Feel. So. Fucking. Good,” he growled through gritted teeth with every thrust, his fingers gripping her hips tight.
As if she had suddenly been possessed by a porn star, she purred, “Come inside me, baby. I want to feel your cum dripping out of me.”
“Ohhh fuck!” he roared as he began to come, seating himself as deep inside her as possible while he did.
In that moment, she felt sexy, desired, and powerful. Maybe there was something to this inner-porn-star thing.
He collapsed on top of her, catching most of his weight on his forearms.
“Holy shit, Scout,” he panted, rolling off her and putting his hand on his forehead while he caught his breath. “That was fucking awesome.”
He reached for her and pulled her in close even as he struggled to level out his breathing, like he couldn’t bear not to be touching her.
How did he manage to make her feel like a strong, sexy siren and a loved submissive all at once? It was nice to be able to feel vulnerable with this man, yet confident he wouldn’t smash her heart to smithereens.
There was a niggling sense of guilt that it was she who was going to do that, eventually, but she managed to push it down for now. It was easy to do when he kissed her shoulder and wrapped his muscular arms around her.
“Go to sleep, baby girl. You’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”
“Goodnight, Ben,” she said as she turned over and nestled her ass into him. “I love… falling asleep next to you.”
She could tell he was grinning when he murmured in her ear, “I love… waking up next to you.”
At least they were on the same page that it was too soon to say anything crazy like I love you. But boy, if he hadn’t made love to her tonight, she didn’t know what he’d done. It sure felt like love.
Harper didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Right now, it felt wonderful, but she knew it was going to be short-lived. She’d worry about that tomorrow.
&n
bsp; Or next week.
Maybe next month.
She wanted to enjoy her time with the sexy mechanic as long as she could without having to tell him about her disease It would ruin everything.
****
Ben
He consciously made sure he was touching her in some way or another all night long, even if it was simply his ankle wrapped around hers. She fell asleep in his arms, but she had a tendency to shift positions frequently—more than any woman he’d ever slept with. Regardless, she slept like the dead—also unlike any woman he’d ever known.
He could only imagine how much mental energy she exerted on a daily basis; she was so fucking smart.
The alarm on her phone started going off at six fifteen. It sounded like a car alarm going off right next to the bed.
Her hand was slapping the nightstand, searching for her phone. Finally, she reached it and shut it off, but she didn’t get up. Instead, she rolled over and snuggled against his body.
They lay there quietly for ten more minutes, her head on his arm while he ran his fingers up and down her back.
Finally, she groaned, “God, you make getting out of bed hard.”
Ben smiled and hugged her tight.
“Wanna play hooky today?” he teased. He already knew the answer.
She groaned again, “Yes—yes, I do. Very much.” Then she let out a dramatic sigh. “But I have court at ten, and I have to go into the office before that.”
“I know, baby. Do you want me to shower first? It’ll take me five minutes, tops.”
“Okay,” she murmured, then rolled over, taking the blankets with her.
Chuckling, he got of bed. Even hogging the covers, she was fucking adorable.
****
He left Eleanor in Harper’s garage and had her drop him off at the shop on her way to the office. Honey gave them sad eyes as they were leaving, and Ben made a mental note to call Luke about getting a dog. He’d feel better if she had a friend.
“But is the dog for you or for Harper?” Luke asked when Ben got in touch with him later that morning.
“Well, I guess technically it’s for me, but it’ll probably be spending a lot of time at Harper’s with Honey.”
“Okay, so where will it be when you and Harper are both at work?”
“Probably at Harper’s with Honey.”
“So it’ll be Harper’s dog.”
“Goddammit, no. It’ll be my dog. Sometimes he’ll stay at Harper’s with Honey, and sometimes Honey will stay at my house with him.”
“We need to meet for lunch,” his friend said. “You’re moving awfully fast with this woman. You haven’t even known her a week, and you’re already talking about moving in with her.”
“The fuck I am,” he snarled.
“Yeah, Ben, you are. Listen to yourself. It’s not a criticism—everyone really likes her; I just wonder what’s changed. You were such a holdout with Margo about moving in together, even after dating her for almost a year; now after knowing Harper less than a week you’re ready to get a dog together and practically cohabitate.”
His former roommate had a point.
“I guess I knew Margo wasn’t really the one.”
“And Harper is?”
“Maybe, yeah. I don’t know.” He took a deep breath. “Like you said, it hasn’t even been a week. It’s way too soon to be thinking long term. All I know is when I’m with her, I’m happy, and when I’m not with her, I can’t wait until I can be again.”
“Benji’s got it bad,” Luke sing-songed with a laugh.
“You don’t get to call me that.”
“Okay, but still… you do.”
“I do,” he conceded.
“Welcome to the club, buddy. I better be godfather to your babies and your best man.”
“Whoa, whoa—hold on there, Sarge.” Ben paused for dramatic effect, then grinned into the phone. “It’s best man first, then godfather.”
“How traditional of you,” his friend said, laughing. “Do you guys want to get together this weekend?”
“The short answer is yes, but I need to double check that she doesn’t have anything else going on.”
“Let me know. And I wasn’t joking about that lunch. You and I need to get together. I want the dirty lowdown.”
“I have a meeting tomorrow morning with the property owner of that site I want for my third location. The one whose granddaughter-attorney wouldn’t even entertain my offer.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. Good luck with that. You want to do lunch after?”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“Okay. I gotta get back to work, but I’ll put out some feelers about a dog for you.”
“One that’ll be a good fit for Honey,” Ben interjected.
“I know, dude.” Luke’s tone was one of amusement. “We talked about that at length.”
“Just making sure you remembered.”
The SWAT sergeant chuckled. “I never thought I’d see the day.”
He knew Luke was baiting him, but he took it anyway.
“What day is that?”
“You, gaga over a woman.”
“Fuck off. I’m not gaga over anybody.”
“Whatever, bro,” Luke said laughing. “Keep telling yourself that. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow, dickhead.”
He hung up, and couldn’t help but smile. He was gaga over Harper, and he knew it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Harper
Her day in court had gone exactly as she’d anticipated. She expected to wrap everything up, including a verdict from the judge, by Thursday—Friday at the latest. Maybe she could take Friday and Monday off, and see if Ben wanted to go away for a long weekend.
It’s probably too soon to suggest a couple’s weekend.
Harper could get away by herself; she’d done it plenty of times in the past. Or she could see if Lauren was interested—but the thought of being away from Ben made her squash the idea as soon as it entered her head.
She was back at the office by four thirty, and decided to take a quick thirty-minute nap and then work for another hour or so.
“Becky, I’m going to…” she said, and motioned her head toward her office. Her assistant knew what she meant.
“Why don’t you go home? There’s nothing urgent pending, you took care of your paperwork yesterday, and any calls that I can’t handle can wait until tomorrow. Go.”
She hesitated, so Becky added, “If anyone asks, I’ll say you were needed back at the courthouse. Go, Harper.”
“Thanks, Becky. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Once she was seated in her car, Harper debated about where to go next—McCallister Motors or home? Not wanting Ben to bring Cary Grant back to her house without having paid for the work, she decided to head to his shop first.
“Well, there’s a sight for sore eyes,” Frank said with a big smile when she walked in the lobby.
“Hi, Frank. I just stopped in to see if my car’s ready and pay my bill.”
The older man started looking around the counter, going through other clients’ paperwork and baskets of papers before deciding, “The boss must have it. Probably didn’t want you sneaking in without getting to see you.” He winked before disappearing through a door that she assumed led to offices.
A minute later Ben walked through the same door, and she caught her breath. It was as if she’d forgotten how sexy and commanding he was since she had seen him this morning. He didn’t stop at the counter—instead he kept going until he was around it. She couldn’t help but smile like a fool when she realized he was headed to her side. Wrapping his arms around her, he leaned down and kissed her softly. His lips tasted like cherry Chapstick—her new favorite.
“Hi, Scout,” he murmured when he pulled away.
“Hi,” she returned breathlessly, gripping his huge arm to keep her bearings.
“I’m glad you’re here. How was your day?”
He released her, then went b
ack around the counter and started clicking buttons on the computer. Harper wanted to follow him and have him put his arms back around her—she already missed his warmth and his scent.
“It was good. Court went exactly according to my expectations, so I think we’ll finish tomorrow or early Thursday morning, and have a verdict by Thursday afternoon.”
He stopped what he was doing and watched her closely.
“You look tired, baby girl. I’m gonna be here for few more hours—why don’t you go home and get some rest. I’ll bring Cary Grant over along with some takeout around seven.”
“Okay,” she agreed readily—her plan all along had been to leave here and go home to catch a quick nap before he arrived.
Ben told her it was, in fact, Cary Grant’s carburetor that needed adjusting; other than that, he was in pristine condition.
“I also threw in an oil change,” he said with a wink as he rang her up.
She smiled. “Thank you. That was very sweet.”
But when he told her the total she owed him, she almost choked—and not because it was exorbitant.
“Ben, I know for a fact there is no way that should cost so little. I value your time and respect your expertise, and am more than willing to pay the fair rate.”
“It doesn’t feel right, Scout, charging you for my time.”
“You’re a master mechanic, Benji. Your time is valuable. If you don’t charge me, I’m not going to feel comfortable coming back. I’ll know I’m costing you money bringing my car in.”
He slid the invoice toward her to sign. “Sorry, Scout. I’m not charging you for my time, and you’re not taking your cars anywhere else from now on.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re such a Neanderthal.”
“I prefer caveman.”
A tiny snort escaped when she laughed, and her hands flew to cover her face, her eyes wide with embarrassment. That caused Ben to bellow out a deep, contagious laugh, which made her laugh even harder and snort again, making Ben laugh louder in turn. It was a downward cycle.
She wiped her eyes when they’d finally recovered, but she couldn’t stop smiling as she walked toward the exit.
