“They’re good kids, sir.”
“I’m betting they are. Now go get in line with your woman. Tell anyone who gives you grief they have me to answer to.” He smacks my shoulder.
I nod and hurry over to Harper and the kids. No one gives me the stink eye when I slide my hulking body behind Harper’s.
“Hey, remind me to introduce you and the kids to Coach before we leave, okay? I should’ve done so sooner, but—”
“We took up all your time and attention.”
The kids tugged us from one auction item to another.
“I understand, Ryker. No need to feel bad.”
I blow out a breath, relieved. My big paws wrap around her from behind. My chin on her dainty shoulder, we shuffle our way in line until the food line forks. I go right. She hangs a left.
We check each other out over the bowls and platters of food. Harper is smoking hot in a long, flowing black dress with these thin straps and the sides cut low, showing too much tit.
It’s a good thing they’re small. Any bigger and they’d spill out the sides. And those damn covers she put on her nipples—petals, as I’ve been schooled by her—won’t save her from the guys’ rampant, horny imagination.
She sees where I’m looking. Her skin flushes pink, drawing my eyes to how clear hers are. Her freckles are also damn sexy. I reach across the table and brush my finger over the constellation. Stroke the ones on the corners of her mouth too.
“Hey, stop mauling her already, and get on with it, Conway. We’re hungry.”
Deep chuckles from both sides of the line. Smiling big, I drop my hand from her face and fill my plate. There’ll be time left tonight to get in another taste of Harper.
“You and Harper, huh?”
Sultry. Seductive. I crane my neck to my left. Ample chest, the tops of her breasts ready to topple over her tight-as-fuck dress. Hair the color of honey. Green eyes. She saunters over. I lean back and check out the frontal view. Yeah, her dress is tight. Her tits are huge. And she has legs that go on and on. I return to piling food on my plate.
“Don’t ignore me, Ryker. I asked you a damn question.”
“Pretty to look at but shit for class when you show your claws, Missy.”
“We know you’re only with her for a bet. I take it you haven’t nailed her yet; otherwise, you’d be bailing and hopping into my bed.”
Across from us, Harper is hurrying the kids through the line. Her mouth is set in a thin line, and the hand not holding her plate is balled against her side. She looks up. The steel in her eyes . . . Oh, shit, if there weren’t kids around, she’d lay down the smackdown and it’ll be Missy on the ground.
“Harper knows. We don’t keep anything from each other. She and I are solid.”
“Is that so? Did she tell you she cheated on her boyfriend with his older brother, Shephard?”
“We don’t keep important shit from each other,” I emphasize, my voice firm and deadly low.
“Did she tell you she accused my boyfriend of raping her? Or that Shephard shot my defenseless boyfriend? Harper Garrix is nothing but a liar and a whore.”
The women in line gasp. My teammates cover the kids’ ears. Harper goes pale. Everyone’s attention swivels to her. Her eyes shimmer, and she rushes out of the line. The kids hurry after her, shooting worried glances my direction. A nerve ticks along my jawline. I count to ten. Keep my focus on stacking food on my plate.
“You don’t know jack shit. Harper is none of that. She’s the best person in this room. More so after what she went through.”
Her hell on earth.
“What she went through? How about what the families of the dead boys suffered through? Her guy killed them. Shephard shot them dead.”
I clench and unclench my jaw, move it side to side, forcing it to relax and not give in to the anger building inside me. The anger wins out.
“You keep your mouth shut, Missy,” I growl.
“Are you threatening me?”
She crowds my space. Her big tits push on my arm. My body stills. I’m holding on to a thin thread of restraint. Now that the kids and Harper are out of earshot, I can snicker and posture like the douchebag I am. Instead, I aim for the highroad.
“Don’t put words in my mouth.”
I leave the line and go in search of Harper and the kids.
“They’re coming, Ryker,” she calls after me. “For every part and piece of her. You better keep her close.”
I smirk. Who is threatening whom now, and in a crowded room no less? I find Harper near the door of the gym, consoling the kids.
“Hey, you guys okay?”
“We want to kick that mean girl’s butt.” Collin glares in the direction of the food line. He and the other boys smack their fists together.
“I get it. But violence isn’t it, kids. Harper’s lived through it and doesn’t want anymore of it. We stick with her wish, okay?”
The boys nod. The girls have tears in their eyes. My girl’s eyes tear up too.
“Here’s my choice for you all. Now, this is a test of character, but if you’re not up to facing that test today, I understand. Should we run with our tails tucked between our legs at being bullied by that evil witch? Or do we stand our ground, let her words slide over us, and party the night away?”
They look to their leader. Harper smiles and shakes her head. She opens her arms. The kids gather around and take turns hugging her before they face me as a singular force to be reckoned with.
“Harper wants to stay. We stay.” Collin speaks for the group.
My throat tightens. I choke up. Nod. These kids . . .
Harper puts out her hand. “Together.”
We stack our hands on top of hers, and like the little cheer team we are, we toss our hands in the air and yell, “Together!”
25
Harper
The night was a bust no matter how hard Ryker tried doing damage control using his natural charm and booming laughter.
For the rest of the auction, his teammates left us alone. The coaches and the coaching staff too. I don’t think they did it to be mean. In their situation, I wouldn’t know what to say either.
It didn’t help that Missy slept her way through half the football team the minute she transferred in junior year from Chicago.
My hands clasped in my lap, I stare out the limo’s window. It’s quiet now that the kids are dropped off and there’s a lingering smell of burgers and hot dogs. Warm air hits my bare shoulders and slides down my arms. I guess Ryker’s team chose who they’d rather believe. But I don’t give a care what they think of me. Only Ryker’s opinion matters.
“I’m sorry, Ryker.”
“For what?”
“For being a shitty date.”
“Aw, babe, you’re not.”
“You’ve been so quiet. Haven’t spoken a word since we dropped off April.”
My poor girl. She had high hopes for a “slamming good time,” her words.
“I’m disappointed, Harper, okay?”
My chest aches like a surprised punch to the chest from Shephard. He calls them “love taps.” Then why the hell do they hurt so much?
“I see.” My throat tightens. Tears spring at the corners of my eyes. Thank goodness we’re at my place.
The limo parks alongside the curb. Without another word, I rush out and hurry for the front door. On the steps, I trip. I catch myself, holding on to the railing.
Heavy footsteps from behind me.
“Why the hurry, sweetheart? I would’ve carried you to the door had you waited.”
There’s disappointment in his tone like it’s my fault I didn’t stick around for him to dig the knife into my heart deeper than it already is. I face him. My hair falls around me like a curtain. I shove the strands away from my eyes.
“Why are you here? You should be in that limo. And on your way home, you should be thinking over how you can let me down gently.”
“I—” He shoves his hands in his pockets and pulls his shoulders inwar
d. “Why would I do that, babe? We’re solid, remember?”
“But-but you said I’m a disappointment,” I stammer.
“I should’ve been clearer. I’m sorry, Harper.” He blows out a breath. Rakes his fingers through his hair. “I meant my teammates. I’m disappointed with how they treated you and the kids. Further disappointed in Jake. Four years I protected his ass on the field. The least he can do is have my back when it counts the most.”
I understand loyalty and betrayal, having lived through both with Shephard and Sam. My chest aching for him, I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head on the spot over his heart.
“I’m sorry and disappointed, too. Can we make it up to the kids?” I glance up at him. “After what happened tonight, I can’t think straight to come up with ideas, but I owe them something special, Ryker.”
“Of course, babe. Anything for you and them.”
“Thank you.” I pull him down for a kiss. His mouth on mine is searching, claiming. My body slackens. I lean into his heat. Want more of Ryker Conway. Preferably naked.
“Inside,” I say between kisses, dizzy and out of breath with need.
We make our way inside. Stumble to the bedroom. Along the way, we discard piece by piece of clothing. He rolls on a condom. I watch, balanced on my elbows. God, that body of his . . . I never tire of soaking in his sexy, beautiful, flawless body.
We make love nice and slow. Shower afterward, then crawl in bed. His arm is slung over my hip. My butt is nestled in his crotch. I burrow beneath the covers, enjoying the heat from his body.
I’m happy. He makes me so happy. But how much patience will he have when I tell him of my hang up, that I might not ever be able to perform oral on him without the overwhelming urge to vomit?
Unable to sleep, I stare at the wall and listen for his rhythmic breathing. The first night we slept together but didn’t have sex, I woke up from my nightmares, only to have him soothe me back to sleep with his deep voice and comforting words.
Later, I woke up again, panicked and fumbling for my cell on my nightstand, hoping we didn’t sleep past the alarms. But at five in the morning, Shephard wasn’t at my place, and Ryker was fast asleep, his rhythmic breathing in my ear startling at first.
I let a guy sleep with me, hold me through my nightmares, and he didn’t once make a move on me. Finally, I can’t take the silence anymore. I call him out.
“I can hear you thinking.”
“I’m thinking that hard, huh?”
I catch the smile in his voice.
“You are,” I say.
“Does that make you a mind reader?”
“I can be.” I bring his hand to my mouth and drop kisses on his palm.
“What am I thinking?”
“Why didn’t I tell you of my history with Missy? I knew of your bet, but I didn’t disclose what a bitch she is.”
His quiet laughter reverberates against my back.
“So it’s bitches and not witches?”
I bite down on his knuckles. Run the tip of my tongue along the web of his hand. He groans. I smile.
“You aren’t supposed to be turned on.”
“But I am.” Low, gravelly.
Heat pools between my legs. “Focus, Ryker.” God, that didn’t come out very convincing.
“If I do, can we?”
“Can we what?” Grin on my face, already guessing his answer.
“Make love?”
“Oh, you mean screw like rabbits?”
“Babe.”
If my back wasn’t to him, he’d be biting down on his knuckles, showing me exactly how much my words affect him. This guy of mine can be dramatic, and I love it.
“Yes,” I answer. “We can make love.”
“You give me too much leeway.”
Warm breath on my hair. Big calloused hand splayed across my hip.
“Shit, Harper, I don’t know what I was thinking accepting that dare, other than my dick had too much control. A bad decision on my part. I’m sorry, babe. You’re steps above her in looks and class. You’re good people, sweetheart.”
He’s too kind. I’m not a good person, not when I drove a wedge between two brothers, fracturing their bond.
“I don’t want to disappoint or be an embarrassment.”
“You’re not. Don’t think like that. As for Missy, no worries if you don’t want to tell. You’ll tell in your own time. If not, I’m okay with that too.”
“How are you so patient?”
“My father. He . . . Harper, my mother was a stripper.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that. Nothing at all.”
“Aw, babe.”
He does the next best thing I like about “us.” Ryker curves his body into mine, and I’m safe. He has my back. Is my shield from the impending storm. The sheath for my blade. His warmth surrounds me like a fragile bubble, but he’s strong and adaptive.
When I need soft, he lets me be vulnerable. When I need strength, his softness hardens and cushions my fall. We’re practicing, he and I. That’s what we do through conversation and this . . . this spending time with one another.
Ryker will cushion my fall when I fail, and I will certainly lose in this war of wills and dark desires, but I’ll take any piece of him I can get.
In comfortable silence, I listen to him tell me of his childhood. I want to understand this gentle giant. Need to understand how he can turn out so right, and I turned out so wrong. Abnormal.
“My father fell in love with her the night she saved his life after a nasty car wreck. He didn’t know what she was. Didn’t give a shit. To win her over and win her heart, he became a very patient man. Became a saint too, if you know what I mean. My mom came with a shit ton of baggage. He earned her trust and her love with friendship, patience, and kindness. He didn’t judge. He . . .”
His sigh is warm on my ear. Whispers over my hair. I bring our laced fingers to my mouth. Drop gentle kisses over his knuckles, showing him what’s in my heart. I’m grateful he’s letting me into his. And into his life.
“He accepted all of her, Harper, the good and the bad.”
The respect given to me in school when the kids found out my father was an MMA fighter, the overwhelming support I received after my father murdered my mother, the social shunning after my kidnapping and rape . . .
“Did the other kids know?” I know the answer, and my heart aches for him.
“Yeah, they did. They weren’t quiet. They said godawful things. After too many fistfights and the threat of expulsion hanging over my head, I had to handle my anger differently.”
“Football.”
“Yes. My dad was all for it. My mom too.”
“What position do you play again? Full disclosure, I don’t understand the game.”
“Duly noted.”
He laughs, and I have a cheesy smile. I love making him laugh.
“I’m part of the offensive line. There’s a center, two tackles, and two guards. The center snaps the ball to the quarterback. Tackles and guards protect the QB, giving him time to make the pass. For the most part, I play left tackle, the QB’s blind side.”
“Like the movie.”
“Yes.”
“Why did you pick that position of all the positions?”
“Selfish reasons, really. I figured if I protected the king of the game, he’d have my back off the field. It worked. The kids left me alone. They stopped taking shots at me with their words and their fists.”
I untangle out of his hold and face him. “Have you seen you? You’re not small, big guy.”
“Hmm, I got something big for you.”
He swipes aside my hair and trails kisses along my temple and jawline. I tip up my face, giving him better access. His thumb caresses along my bottom lip and lingers on where my freckles are. Ryker confessed my freckles are the most perfect part of me.
“I left myself open for that, didn’t I?” I say, breathless.
“You sure did.” He nudges me on my back, a
nd soon, I’m lost to his fervor kisses and demanding hands.
This guy, this man, I’ll never get enough of his touches and his kisses. Or his soft murmurs of how beautiful I am and of how much I mean to him.
We make love again. Afterward, I press my body into his warmth and his strength. I want to stay like this forever, safe in his big arms.
But nothing in life lasts forever. The only guarantee in life is . . . death.
26
Harper
If I thought what happened at the dinner and auction was bad, the rest of the week is a shitstorm, and I’m at the center of it.
On Monday, in my classes, the other students steer clear of me. Empty seats around me. I’m “quarantined” inside an invisible bubble, and everyone received the memo but me. Walking around campus, they either stare or avoid looking me in the eye.
I don’t see Ryker, and I’m not sure I want to in the dark mood I’m in. Sunday night, I received a call from a little bird in Chicago informing me a private investigator is snooping around, asking prodding questions about my past.
To think Ryker paid someone good money for information I’m willing to give him for free. All he has to do is ask. Then again, he gave me his word he wouldn’t pry, that my personal business is mine. Now I understand the reason. He’d gone behind my back to get it.
Why did he have to go digging? Why couldn’t he have left my past life in Chicago alone?
The next day is worse. I show up at Ryker’s place ready to pound the pavement and let off steam. The lawn in front of his new rental is empty.
“Where is everyone?” I close the driver’s side door and walk around to where he’s waiting by the front door.
“They have somewhere else to be.”
“They ditched us for breakfast out?” I smile. “Jocks and their appetites.” I go over my normal stretching routine.
“It’s not that, Harper.”
I pause mid-stretch. He’s looking straight at me, his gaze searching. He’s prepping for my reaction, and that’s when it hits me. His teammates didn’t ditch our run for food. They ditched me.
“I see.” I kick at the grass, the sting of rejection eating at my core. This is the reason I allow few people into my life.
Wicked (Dangerous Liaisons Book 1) Page 14
