“This is weird, right?” she asked. “You and me going out on a real date? Does it feel weird to you?”
“No. It feels right to me.” He lifted their joined hands and kissed the back of hers.
She sighed, and it sounded absurdly dreamy, which made Harley beam and annoyed the heck out of her.
“Any more guesses about where we’re going?” he asked.
“A Broadway show? That hardly seems worth missing the playoff game. I know most women like them, but all that singing and dancing . . .” She caught herself before she could roll her eyes, realizing how rude she sounded. What if he had planned to take her to a show? God, she sucked at dating. A show was a romantic date, even if she didn’t think she liked them. Maybe she would with Harley. “I’m sorry. I sound like such a downer. A show would be nice.”
Amusement rose in his eyes. “The only thing great about a show would be that you and I were watching it together. And knowing us, we’d spend the whole time picking it apart, making fun, and wondering when they were going to serve drinks.”
“Oh, thank God,” she said with a laugh. “I love that you get it. My sisters get all excited about that shit, but . . .”
“But you’d rather shoot yourself in the foot with a nail gun.”
“Yes! Exactly.”
They both laughed, and her nervousness fell away, leaving behind a new curiosity.
“Do you miss living and working in the city?” she asked.
“Not really. Working on Wall Street was great, but stressful.”
“Ben said you were really good with investments and that you still handle some of his. Is that true? I mean, he’s an investor, so it seems weird that he’d have someone else invest for him.”
“Ben has his hands full with business investments. I handle his stocks and bonds and such. I enjoy the hell out of the work, but the environment on Wall Street was like a pressure cooker. To excel, you need to live and breathe the business, and I saw many good men get dragged down.”
“What do you mean? Fail at their jobs?”
“Fail, give up, become alcoholics, and worse.” His eyes swept over the people around them on the train, and when they found Piper again, he looked a little distraught. “Right before my father got sick, one of my best friends came close to committing suicide. He had three young girls and a sweet wife, but he’d gotten too aggressive and made some bad financial decisions. He was on the verge of losing everything, and he couldn’t see his way out. It was just dumb luck that I walked into the men’s room before he swallowed the fistful of pills he was holding. It was awful. I didn’t know what to do, so I called a suicide prevention hotline right there in the men’s room and got him help. I found him a psychiatrist and called his wife, who met us at his office. I stuck around to make sure they had a plan and he wasn’t going to be booted out the door and forgotten. It was hell, but with counseling and his family’s support, he got out of the business and eventually turned himself around.”
She couldn’t imagine how difficult that must have been for Harley and for his friend and their family. “Thank God you found him in time. Do you still keep in contact with him?”
“Yeah. His name is Ralph, and we talk once a month or so. My dad got sick a few weeks later. Once I came home and saw how sick he was, I knew I’d never go back. Delaney was right yesterday about not taking a minute for granted. Time is a precious commodity, and we never know how much we have left.” He brushed his thumb over the back of her hand and said, “Anyway, you asked if I missed living there, and the truth is, I never had time for much other than work. I don’t miss it at all.”
“So you’re saying you didn’t leave a string of brokenhearted bed buddies in your wake?” she said to lighten the mood.
“I’ve never been one to sleep around. Not that there’s anything wrong with it,” he added quickly. “I just need more of a connection than some people do.”
Piper knew that he probably thought she’d slept with many of the men she went out with. She hadn’t slept with most of them, but she’d been with her fair share of men over the years, and she wasn’t going to apologize for doing what she wanted or needed.
He must have noticed something in her expression, because he said, “It doesn’t bother me that you’ve been with other guys, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
Harley had never judged her, even though he’d stopped her from going out with several men he’d deemed not good enough for her. She’d never felt a need to lie to him about her personal life, and she wasn’t about to start now. “I’m glad, but I was just thinking that I don’t regret the things I’ve done.”
“And you shouldn’t. Experiencing life is how we figure out what we really want.”
“Lots of people feel otherwise,” she said honestly.
“Who gives a damn? I’m a firm believer that nobody knows us as well as we know ourselves. I’m sure you were with whoever you felt was right at the time.”
For the first time ever, she wanted to set the record straight. It felt important that Harley knew the truth, and that was a tad scary. She liked people thinking she took life by the horns, by her own terms, and she wondered if telling him she’d probably been with fewer men than he thought would make her seem weaker.
He squeezed her hand and said, “What is going on in that mind of yours?”
“Just thinking about how life is a tightrope. Lean too far one way or another and you lose all the advantage you’ve gained.”
The train stopped, and people filed in and out.
“Is that why you snuck out in the middle of the night last night?”
She was hoping she’d get away without talking about that. She’d fallen asleep while they were watching the movie, and she’d woken up at a little after two o’clock in the morning, with her head on Harley’s lap and his hand on her butt. They hadn’t done anything more than share those heart-thundering kisses before the movie, but he’d looked so pleased, fast asleep with a small smile on his lips. And she’d felt an overwhelming sense of peace being there with him, being held by him. That had scared her, and she’d left before they could have an awkward conversation—and before he could wake up and ask her to stay, because she just might have done it.
“I didn’t want the girls to find me there in the morning.” It was the perfect excuse, though she didn’t think the girls would think twice about her falling asleep watching a movie with Harley. When she’d hugged Sophie good night last night, Sophie had taken Piper by surprise and said, “Love you.” Sophie and Harley seemed to throw their emotions around like confetti, as if they should be celebrated. When Jolie had hugged Piper good night, she’d held Piper for a long time, and then right before she’d let Piper go, she’d whispered, “I’m glad you’re here.” She had a feeling that she and Jolie weren’t that different when it came to keeping the lid on their emotions, making Jolie’s words that much more meaningful.
Harley didn’t look like he was buying her excuse.
The train stopped at Penn Station, and Harley said, “Off we go.”
Piper helped him get situated with his crutches, and they made their way off the train and up to the main level.
“I hate these crutches,” Harley said as they stepped out of the building and onto the busy sidewalk. The scents and sounds of the city rose around them.
“Why?”
He gave her a perplexed look as they hurried along the sidewalk. “This is our first date. I want to put my arm around you or hold your hand, not hobble along beside you.”
Why was it such a turn-on that he’d admit that?
“Possessive much?” she teased. “Where are we going, anyway?”
He stopped walking and reached for her hand, pulling her against him. “Happy first date.” He pointed up ahead to the sign above the entrance to Madison Square Garden.
It took a second for her to understand what he was saying, and when she realized what he’d done, she shouted, “Are you freaking kidding me? You got tickets to the playoff game?”
“Harley!” She launched herself into his arms, sending him stumbling back on his hurt ankle.
He cursed, reaching for the side of the building to take the pressure off his ankle, knee bent, teeth gritted, as his crutches crashed to the ground.
Piper jumped back. “Oh my God! I’m so sorry!” Panicked, she scrambled to retrieve his crutches. “Are you okay? I’m sorry! I suck! What a crappy friend I am.”
He shook his head, pulling her against him despite his obvious pain. He rested his forehead on her shoulder and said, “You don’t suck. You’re awesome. That was exactly the reaction I was hoping for, but this bum ankle tripped me up. If I didn’t have it, I’d have caught you and that kiss I missed.”
He lifted his head from her shoulder, and his eyes drilled into her without a speck of anger for what she’d done. She was overwhelmed with so many emotions for this incredible man, she didn’t think past the one that gripped her the hardest—the desire to give him the best kiss of his life. She dropped the crutches against the building, went up on her toes as the crutches slid to the sidewalk, and took his handsome face between her hands. When she pressed her lips to his, his arm belted around her waist, holding her tight against him as he took control, deepening the kiss. She was right there with him, pushing her hands into his thick hair, taking and giving in equal measure. He kept one hand on the building, the other firmly around her. The sounds of the people and traffic fell away, and she became hyperaware of all of him—the tickling of his beard, the strength of his tongue, his sweet, manly taste, and the feel of his hardness pressing against her. She didn’t want the kiss to end, and he was obviously in no hurry, as a guttural noise traveled up his chest and into her lungs.
She had no idea how long they stood there making out, but when their lips finally parted, she swayed against him, light-headed and a little giddy. She realized they’d been grinding against each other right there on the sidewalk. She should be embarrassed, or at least ticked off at herself, but it was hard to feel anything but pleasure when Harley was looking at her like she was everything he’d ever wanted and her lips were tingling from their kisses.
As she sank back down to her heels, she said, “I hope I didn’t hurt you too badly.”
He pulled his shirt over the bulge in his jeans and sang, “Hurt me, baby, one more time . . .”
“Oh Lord, my kisses make you delirious.” She handed him the crutches and said, “Let’s go, Britney, before you get speared.”
The stadium was packed. Harley knew he shouldn’t be jealous, but Piper had captured the attention of every male within a three-row radius, including a group of teenage boys. Luckily, along with jealousy came a boatload of pride, because she was there with him. She kept her hand in his or on his leg practically the whole game and leaned into him when he put his arm around her. Piper wasn’t flirtatious with anyone but him, and her brand of flirtation wasn’t blatant like other women’s. She was all sass and challenge, but there was no missing the heat sizzling in her eyes or the lust in her innuendos.
He glanced at her as she discussed which players had the best stats of the season with the guy sitting on her other side. He didn’t think it was possible to fall harder for her than he had over the last few years, but he was wrong. She’d been high-fiving, fist-pumping, and cheering like she did at the bar when they watched sports, but she was even more vivacious and spirited here at the game, which he didn’t think was possible—and he was totally digging it. They’d eaten hot dogs and popcorn for dinner, and though Piper said she didn’t want a beer, she drank half of each of his. And yeah, he dug that, too.
“That’s what I’m talking about,” she said as she reached for the cup on the floor between Harley’s feet. She took a sip and hiked a thumb at the guy on her other side and said, “I love this guy. His wife is eight months pregnant. If they have a boy, they’re naming him Griffin because he’s his favorite player. If it’s a girl, they’re naming her Lennox. How cool is that?”
“Pretty awesome,” Harley said as she took a drink. They were sitting in the front row, center ice, and he was getting more joy out of watching her than the game.
Piper took a drink and said, “If I ever have kids, I’m giving my girls boys’ names.”
“Why?”
“Because girls need something to overcome. It makes them tough. Do you think it was easy growing up with a name like Piper?” She handed him the beer, and as he took a drink, she said, “I’ve heard it all, from Pied Piper, to come blow my horn, to I must be a plumber’s daughter. You’re lucky—you have a great name. Harley is rugged and manly. Nobody messes with a Harley.”
He put the drink on the floor and pulled her close, speaking directly into her ear as he said, “I’m hoping a certain someone wants to mess with a Harley.”
She turned, bringing their mouths a whisper apart, and the world seemed to stand still. The game and the crowd turned to white noise, and as he leaned in, the guy beside Piper yelled, “You’re on the kiss cam!”
They both looked up and saw their faces on the screen above the rink and yelled, “Nerd reel!” in unison.
They stuck out their tongues and made faces, wiggling their hands with the hang-loose gesture—thumb and pinkie extended, fingers curled down. They gave each other bunny ears, laughing like fools. Practically the whole stadium chanted, “Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” But Piper and Harley continued their childish antics. They loved making fun of the people on the kiss cam, for which they’d coined the name nerd reel, because the kisses always looked forced and uncomfortable. They had a running joke that if they ever got caught on the nerd reel, they’d act even weirder than the kissers.
When the camera panned away, they fell into each other’s arms, cracking up.
“I can’t believe we were on the nerd reel!” she exclaimed. “This is the best date I have ever been on!”
That was music to his ears.
They laughed and joked, cheered and booed throughout the remainder of the game. When their team made the final goal and won the game, they shot to their feet—well, Piper shot to her feet; Harley shot to his one good foot—whooping and cheering. This time, when she launched herself into his arms, he was ready, and their mouths connected with a kiss so hot it could melt all the ice in the rink.
She jerked back, wide-eyed and panicked and so damn beautiful, she took his breath away. “Oops! I did it again!”
He laughed. “I was ready for you, Trig. I’ll always be ready.”
He drew her mouth back to his as he sank to his seat, bringing her down on his lap, and proceeded to kiss the hell out of her.
He continued kissing the hell out of her as they left the stadium—and from the minute they got back on the train heading home all the way until they hobbled across the parking lot and into her truck, where they were currently fogging up the windows. Thankfully, they’d parked in a dark corner of the lot and the truck had tinted windows, because Harley wasn’t about to stop until they got their fill.
They lay across the front seat, devouring each other’s mouths like they’d never get another chance. He was hard as an iron spike behind his zipper, throbbing as he thrust against her softness. He wanted to claim every inch of her, to feel her mouth on his body, see her sucking his cock as he buried his hands in her silky hair. But he’d been dying to get his mouth on her all night, and when he pushed his hand beneath her blouse, meeting her bare breast, heat seared through him. He loved her perfect little breasts and that she didn’t always wear a bra. He teased her nipple, and she moaned, arching and writhing, driving him out of his mind. He’d never imagined their first time touching that way would be in a truck, but he wasn’t about to complain. He was careful of his sore ankle as he tore his mouth away and moved lower, needing to taste more of her. He sealed his mouth over her neck, sucking hard. She dug her nails into his flesh.
“Yes,” she said on a long, needy breath.
“Again,” he growled, sucking hard again, trying to ea
rn another sexy sound.
“Harley!” she cried out, and he eased his efforts. “Don’t stop, so good,” she whispered as he teased her nipple with his fingers. He lowered his mouth to her neck again, and she hissed, “Yesss.”
There was an art to loving Piper Dalton, and he was determined to become an expert. He licked and sucked, nipped and kissed down her neck, across her shoulders, and along her breastbone. He pushed her shirt over her breasts, baring her to him.
“Christ, you’re gorgeous.”
He pressed a series of tender kisses between her breasts, each touch of his lips earning a sensual, anticipatory gasp or murmur. When he lowered his mouth over one breast, she grabbed his head with both hands, holding him there. She bowed up beneath him, and he sucked harder. She cried out, but when he tried to pull back, she wouldn’t release him.
“Again,” she pleaded. “I like it hard.”
Holy. Fuck.
She was his every fantasy come true.
He grazed his teeth over the taut peak, and when she panted out a plea, he sucked hard, then soothed the redness with his tongue. She drew in several sharp breaths, guiding his mouth to her other breast, which he gave the same lavish attention to. One of her hands slid from his head to her other breast, and she began caressing it. She was driving him to the edge of madness. He rose, moving her other hand from his head to her other breast, and watched her touching herself as he unbuttoned her jeans. She scooched up along the seat, resting her neck on the arm of the door, watching as he yanked her jeans down past her knees, all the way to her ankles, leaving her bare, save for a black thong.
“Off,” she said urgently, lifting one leg so he could push her jeans off.
He took off her ankle boot and pulled one leg of her jeans off. Then he spread her legs and ran both hands along her outer thighs. He loved the heat of her skin, the dark look in her eyes as he kissed, licked, and sucked his way up her inner thigh. Every suck brought a sinful moan, every lick, a needy whimper. He couldn’t resist teasing her until she was wild with desire. He lowered his mouth over the triangle of cloth between her legs and pressed his tongue flat against the thin material covering her center, teasing her through the damp cotton. Her eyes closed, her neck arched, and she ground her hips against his tongue. The scent of her arousal sparked fire beneath his skin. He kissed his way up her hip, across her stomach, licking her belly like he was going to lick between her legs.
She Loves Me Page 13