Fierce Shadows: Shadows Landing #4

by Kathleen Brooks

  Dare saw her staring and instead of looking caught, he pushed down his pants to reveal tight boxer briefs. Yup. He was well muscled everywhere. He wouldn’t blow over in a gentle breeze, as Great-Aunt Marcy would say. No, Dare Reigns could bring a hurricane to its knees.

  “What are you doing?” Harper finally asked after rinsing her mouth out.

  “Helping you in the shower,” Dare said as if it were obvious. “I want to make sure you don’t get worn out and fall. I’ll keep these guys on.” Dare hooked his fingers in his underwear and gave her a wink.

  “Do you have to?” Harper tried to play it off as if she meant to say that out loud.

  Dare looked surprised for one second and then sent her a grin that melted the clothes off her. At least that’s the only explanation for how fast she stripped out of her clothes until she was in her bra and panties.

  “Get your beautiful butt over here, Stinky, and let me bathe you.”

  “Stinky?” Harper tried to look offended, but how could she be when she really did stink?

  “Has anyone ever told you how cute you are when you’re faking being mad?”

  Dare held out his hand from inside the shower and helped her over the small step. Not that she needed help. However, it gave her the perfect excuse to pretend to trip and fall into him.

  “That’s even cuter.” Harper looked up at Dare and he winked at her. “If you wanted to get closer, you didn’t have to fake it. I’ll never fake it with you.”

  Harper was enjoying the results of her fake trip too much to care that he’d busted her. Her head was on his bare chest, delicious hot water was now running down her back, and his arms were wrapped around her waist. “Wait,” she said looking up after a minute. “You’ve faked orgasms with other women?”

  “Not that kind of faking it. Goodness, Harper, this is one hell of a hug I’m giving you if your mind is on orgasms.” Harper felt Dare chuckling. “I’ve faked being interested in what they’re talking about. Let me tell you, I’ve been on some boring dates. There’s only so much I can hear about makeup, the current fad diet, or what’s happening on some reality show. So I fake it. Not with you, though. As I said, I never have to fake it with you. With you I get to just be me. Except when I’m pretending to be someone else.”

  Harper smiled against his chest. “I’m dating a man of many talents and identities. It’s all very exciting. If I get bored, I can have you be someone else.”

  Harper felt Dare’s arm encircle her back and anchor her against him. His free hand brushed her hair back from her face as the hot water ran down her hair and then her back. Dare’s free hand then moved to her cheek as he lowered his face until his lips were almost touching hers. Harper swallowed hard as everything seemed to focus on Dare’s full lips.

  Butterflies flapped in her stomach as her body pulsed with building tension. Harper’s eyes never left his as his hand slowly ran down her cheek, over her shoulder, and down her side, rib by rib. His hand slowed as it trailed the path downward, his fingers fluttering like one of the butterflies against the side of her breast. Harper leaned toward his hand, silently asking for his touch, but his hand continued to travel south.

  He traced the top curve of her hip and then stopped. His thumb gently pressed at the crease of her hip and his fingers squeezed. Harper’s breath froze in her throat as those fluttering butterflies dive bombed south and took up their crazed residence just inches from Dare’s thumb.

  Harper saw Dare’s eyes dilate with desire as she felt his breath on her lips. “Am I boring you, Harper?”

  Harper sucked in air on a gasp as she realized he was repeating her words, but he didn’t give her a chance to argue. Instead, the second she’d gasped, Dare had his lips on hers, and it was most definitely not boring.

  He kissed as he lived. It was filled with danger, confidence, and even secrets. His hold on her never slackened, which was good considering Harper was pretty sure he was holding her up at that point. Her arms wound around his neck and her breasts were pressed against his chest as she kissed him back with everything she had.

  Dare began to slow the kiss. His hands moved back up and then they finally pulled apart. She swallowed hard as her heart raced. Her whole body felt alive from the top of her head to the tip of her big toe.

  “No, definitely not boring.”

  “Does it leaving you wanting more?” Dare’s voice was deep and gravelly as it echoed in the tile shower.

  Harper pushed her hips forward to grind against him. “I think we are both left wanting more.”

  Dare took a step back as his lips slid into a grin. “Good. I’d hate for you to get bored. Now come here and sit down.”

  Harper didn’t know whether to laugh or scream in frustration. Her whole body felt as if it were electric and every touch of Dare’s fingers and even the water on her skin sent little shocks through her.

  She took a seat and before she could ask why, Dare was squirting shampoo into his hand. He stood directly in front of where she sat and was giving her quite the eyeful. It would have been all she could think about until he started massaging the shampoo into her hair.

  “So that’s what I have to do to make you moan. That’s a bit of a blow to my ego. Although I haven’t really gotten to explore you yet.”

  “As long as you continue to rub my head, I don’t care what you do,” Harper said before letting out a long groan as he rubbed the base of her head.

  “Funny, the same is true for me.”

  Harper laughed but then groaned again when he pressed his fingers to the top of her head. Dare took his time massaging in the shampoo until Harper was pretty sure she was going to fall asleep right then and there because she was so relaxed. She’d been wrong, though. That was nothing compared to the full body massage he gave her with the soap.

  After the most relaxing shower of her life, she was glad Dare was there to help her out of the shower. Harper was so relaxed that her legs felt like jelly and her arms didn’t seem to want to move.

  Dare ushered her out and dried her off as she held onto his shoulders. Harper swayed and then felt herself being picked up. “Let’s get you into bed.”

  “Okay,” Harper muttered as her eyes began to close. She felt Dare moving her around some on her feet and then a minute later a T-shirt was pulled over her head.

  “Sit here for just a second and then you can go to sleep.”

  “Okay,” Harper said on a sigh again. Her eyes were fully closed as Dare sat her on the edge of the bed. She felt the bed dip behind her and then the gentle tug of a brush running through her hair. She thought he did something else too, but then her head was on the pillow and warm sheets were pulled over her. Right before drifting fully to sleep, she felt Dare slide into bed next to her. He pulled her against him as his arm came over her to anchor her to him. He was warm and safe. That was the last thing Harper remembered before she fell asleep.

  17

  Dare woke in the morning with Harper curled up against him. She’d moved during the night and instead of her back being against his front, her body was facing his. Her leg was in between his, her arms were pulled up so that her chin was resting on her closed fingers, and her head was buried against his chest. Meanwhile, his arms were wrapped around her, keeping her curled up against him.

  Dare had never felt anything so primal as the desire to keep the woman who had sought out his embrace during the night. Harper wriggled a little as if she were trying to get nearer to him. Dare pulled her as close as he could while resting his chin on the top of her head and breathed her in. Waking up with Harper in his arms was something he didn’t think he could live without after now experiencing it. In her sleep, Harper showed him the trust she had in him and that made Dare never want to let go.

  That and she fit perfectly against him. Of course, that led Dare thinking about how else they’d fit perfectly together.

  Dare remained like that for another ten minutes just thinking about having a future with one person. Not just any person, but
Harper. In the past he’d always known he’d settled down eventually, but he’d never been able to see his future clearly and never with any of the women he dated. But he could with Harper. He could see it so clearly it was as if it was real.

  Harper grumbled in her sleep and buried her head deeper into his chest as she let out a little snore. He even found the little snore sexy. Man, he was falling, and falling hard for the woman in his arms. Now, if only Harper could realize when she was awake what she realized in her sleep . . . that she trusted him enough to be vulnerable. With that trust she could free those emotions she kept caged up and together they could fly.

  Harper woke up before opening her eyes. She woke with a feeling of well-being. It was strange. She’d never felt that before. Her body was completely relaxed, her mind wasn’t running wild, and her heart thumped a slow and steady rhythm against her chest.

  Until she felt something hard poking her stomach and then that slow heartbeat was a thing of the past.

  “Good morning,” Harper heard Dare murmur quietly above her. She felt his head resting on hers as she opened her eyes. The broad expanse of his bare chest filled her field of vision.

  “Good morning. How did you know I was awake?” she asked but didn’t bother to move. She was too comfortable.

  “Your breathing sped up and you pressed your hips forward.”

  Of course she did. How could she not? There was something about Dare that made her always want to reach for him. Harper bit her lip as she thought about it. She knew the reason she always wanted to reach for him. Dare would never let her down.

  “How are you feeling,”he asked as he began to slowly run his hand over her hair and down her back. Only, her hair wasn’t down.

  “What happened to my hair?”

  “I braided it last night so it wouldn’t get in your face while you slept. With it being wet, it was sticking to your cheek. While I don’t have long hair, I imagined that might be annoying. Are you feeling better?”

  Harper took a moment to check in with her body. “Actually, I feel wonderful. I don’t remember a time I slept so soundly.”

  “Me neither,” he said quietly a moment before Harper felt him press a kiss to the top of her head. “I’m going to apply for a job at the resort today.”

  This time Harper did move. She pushed back from him, and he let her go as she rose up onto her elbow. “What? That’s dangerous!”

  “It’s my job, Harper.”

  Harper heard the way he said it. It was a line he’d said over and over again to women he knew didn’t understand. She didn’t want to be another woman who didn’t support him the way he supported her.

  Harper took a deep breath and then nodded her head. “You’re right. Be safe and check in when you can.”

  Suddenly Dare pulled her tightly against him in a hug. “Thank you. Speaking of jobs, I almost forgot. Manny called you yesterday to go over the numbers for your order. I told him you got very sick and I had picked you up.”

  “Food poisoning?” Harper asked.

  “I though that would be best. He heard you vomiting in the background.”

  “Ugh. Where’s my car? I can go home while you go to the resort.”

  “You’re welcome to stay as long as you want here,” Dare told her. “Your car is at the resort. I’ll take you whenever you’re ready and then drive you back home. I know your brother wants to see you to check you out this morning. He’s a good brother,” Dare told her just as she was thinking it.

  “He is. I’m just surprised to hear you say it.”

  “He loves you. That alone is enough to get me to like him. Do you want to call him?” Dare asked.

  Reluctantly she pulled herself from Dare’s embrace. “I better call Manny too.” Harper pulled back the covers and stared down at herself. “Dare? Where are my bra and panties?”

  “Hanging in the bathroom.”

  “How did they get off me and into the bathroom?” Harper remembered the incredible shower massage, but after that things were fuzzy. She just remembered feeling safe and warm and more comfortable than she ever had felt in her life.

  “I took them off. They were wet.” Dare paused and when Harper looked at him, his eyes were dilated with desire. “The next time I take them off for being wet, it won’t be because of a shower.”

  “Is that a promise?” Harper tried to ask seductively, but instead it turned out breathlessly.

  “Cross my heart, pinky swear, and I’ll even give you a freaking blood oath. The next time I get you naked, the last thing we’ll be doing is sleeping.”

  Goodness. Harper’s breath was driven from her lungs by the lust strangling her body. It wasn’t a threat. It was a promise. A promise she was ready to help him keep.

  Harper had assured Manny she was feeling much better. She blamed the food poisoning on a quick bite she’d grabbed from a gas station on the way to the meeting. Manny had told her he was at the resort if she was feeling well enough to meet him there. Since she was getting her car anyway, she agreed.

  “You don’t have to meet him,” Dare said again as they pulled into the parking lot. He’d been saying this since she told him she was going to meet Manny when she got her car.

  Dare parked next to her car and stopped her from getting out. “I’m serious. We have no idea if he’s a part of this or not.”

  Harper wanted to be mad at him, but since he was only concerned about her, it was hard to be. “I know. You can stay with me the whole time. I’m doing this to help keep your cover. And,” she said as she grinned at him, “I have an idea.”

  Dare walked beside her into the receiving area behind the restaurant bar. Inside Harper found Manny and one of his employees along with a woman she didn’t recognize. The woman’s skin was smooth, polished, and buffed to the point where Harper couldn’t figure out how old she was. One thing Harper could tell was that she only had eyes for Dare.

  Harper’s breath hitched, and not in a good way. Her stomach tightened and she could feel her blood pressure rising as if it were in a mercury thermometer and was about to burst from the top.

  “Too bad my business is done here,” the woman purred as she sent Dare a wink before sashaying from the room with her hips swaying seductively. Her ass was on full display in a tight pencil skirt that made it very clear she wasn’t wearing any underwear.

  “Sorry,” Manny said, drawing Harper’s attention back to him. “I had a meeting before yours with the hotel manager. Now, I think you’ll be very happy with what I can do for you.”

  Harper took the quotes and even though she was partially distracted when Dare ducked out of the room for a moment, she was thrilled with the numbers she saw. “Where do I sign?”

  “Excellent!” Manny smiled widely as he pulled a pen from the pocket of his long-sleeved button-up shirt. “I was hoping we could deliver everything to you tomorrow, but I’m down a man. He had to go back home for an illness in the family. It might not be until this weekend.”

  “Are you looking to hire someone else?” Harper asked as she signed the distribution contract.

  “I will. He just left this morning so I haven’t had time to put out an ad.”

  “Hmm.” Harper pushed the papers toward Manny and looked as if she were thinking of something when, in fact, this was perfect. “Darrell is looking for a job. His construction work is nonexistent right now. I think he was hoping to apply for something at the resort, though.”

  Manny eyes widened in surprise and then it was clear he was pleased. “The resort isn’t hiring, but I am. The position I need filled covers the hotel. If Darrell is available, he’d be checking in here multiple times a week since they’re our biggest regional client. Then he’d help with deliveries the other days. Do you think he would be interested?”

  “Interested in what?” Dare asked as he came back into the room.

  “Harper was telling me you were looking for a job at the resort, but I know they’re not hiring,” Manny began to explain.

  “I just lear
ned that same fact myself,” Dare said, holding up an application. “They said I can fill it out and they’ll keep it on file.”

  “Well, I have a job opening. You’d be the liaison to the resort and then when not here, you’d help with deliveries in this region.”

  “Really?” Dare said with excitement. “Can you tell me more?”

  Harper let Dare and Manny work out their arrangement. It didn’t take long, and before they left for Shadows Landing, Dare had a job and would be starting that evening at BGM’s main warehouse.

  “Since we’ll have Darrell to run things here tomorrow, we can bring your delivery in the early afternoon,” Manny told her. “Does that work for you?”

  “It does. I am sure my customers will be very excited to try some of these out.”

  Harper said goodbye and Dare thanked Manny for the job before heading out to their cars. “I guess I’ll see you later. Thank you for taking care of me and please be safe.”

  Dare held out his hand and she placed hers in it. She loved the feel of him. The largeness of his hand over hers, the warmth it encased her hand in, and the way his fingers flexed that reminded her of . . . phew. Who knew a simple handhold could turn her on so much?

  “Keys,” Dare said simply and Harper handed them over, wondering what he was doing as he unlocked the doors and held the passenger door open. “Remember? I’m driving you home. I want to hear what your brother has to say. I’m going to need to be focused on this job, and I might not get to see you as much. I need to know you’re healthy.”

  “Can’t you drive your car?” Harper asked as her stomach fell to the ground at the thought of not seeing Dare for who knows how long.

  “Yes, but then I won’t get to spend more time with you.”

  “We can’t have that now, can we?” Harper rose up on her toes and placed a quick kiss on Dare’s lips before hopping into her car.