“What is it, Ember?”
“Well, if she says no, can I still do it?”
“Of course. But I don’t think she’ll say no. At least, I hope she won’t,” I muttered.
“For what it’s worth, I don’t think she will either.”
***
The week flew by. I was busy busting my ass with Ember to get things moving. She already had over half of the resources we needed, so we were well on our way to achieving our goal. The next step in my grand plan was to get Harper on board.
When I arrived at her house on Friday evening, I was ready to burst with excitement until she opened the door. One look at her face had my elation deflating faster than an uncapped air mattress. Scooping her into my arms, I asked, “What’s wrong, baby?”
Females baffled me from time to time. This being one of those times. If I hadn’t asked what was wrong, she would have been pissed off and claimed I didn’t care about her. I did genuinely want to know what was wrong, so I asked, and that one question had her sobbing into my shirt.
Taking quick strides to the couch, I sat us down and held her tighter to my chest. “Harper, baby, you’re freaking me out here. Did something happen? Are you hurt?”
She shook her head and mumbled, “No, nothing like that.” Then, she raised her head and said the words no man ever wanted to hear, “You know I love you, right?”
I froze, unsure of how to respond. She wouldn’t do this to us. She couldn’t do this to us. “Don’t do this, Harper,” I whispered.
Her eyes widened. “Do what?”
“What are you trying to tell me? Yes, I know you love me. Keep going,” I snapped. I was scared, and just like every man I knew, I used anger to hide my fear.
She took in a deep breath and sniffled. “I can’t keep doing the weekend only thing anymore.”
“What the fuck do you mean by that?” I barked, sliding her off my lap so I could stand and move about the room, a vain attempt to keep my temper in check.
“It’s too hard when we have to leave each other every week,” she cried.
“So, you’d rather not have to leave each other at all?” I asked through clenched teeth.
“Yes,” she answered.
I felt every searing slice as the metaphorical blade cut my still-beating heart from my chest. I stared at her, not believing the words that just escaped her lips. Reality slammed into me with the force of a train. “Fuck you, Harper,” I spat, spinning on my heel and stomping toward the door.
“Chase! Wait! Please!” she screamed, chasing after me. Fuck that and fuck her and fuck everything in the whole fucking world. I loved her with everything I had in me, but I would never, ever fucking beg and plead for anyone, not even her.
“Jason Chase Walker, stop and listen to me!” she yelled, seconds before launching herself into the air and landing on my back like a damn spider monkey. “I didn’t do a good job of putting it into words, and you misunderstood me. I was trying to say that I want to see you during the week, too, but I haven’t been able to find a job in or near Croftridge.”
I grabbed her by her ass and slid her around to the front of my body. “Are you serious?” I asked, unsure what to make of her at this point.
She smiled shyly. “Yes.”
“Then why were you crying?”
“Because I can’t find any job prospects. I love the center I work at now, but after giving it some thought, I realized there are kids everywhere that need help, Croftridge included.”
I carried her back to the couch but kept her straddling my lap when I sat. “You’re willing to move to Croftridge?”
She nodded. “If I can find a job—”
I grabbed her face and slammed my lips to hers. She had mortally wounded my heart and healed it in a matter of seconds. My emotions needed an outlet and said outlet was currently straddling me. I stood, still kissing her, and started moving us to her bedroom. Against her lips and between kisses, I managed to tell her, “Ember is opening a counseling center in Croftridge. Wants you to be in charge of it. Say yes.”
She moaned loudly when I worked my way down her neck and lightly bit down on her shoulder. “Yes. Oh, Chase. Talk later. Fuck now.”
I grinned against her skin. I couldn’t argue with that.
Once we made it to her room, I dropped her onto her bed and followed her down. Holding myself up with one arm, I shoved her skirt up to her waist and ripped her panties from her body with a firm yank.
“Chase,” she gasped. “I just bought those.”
“Hush and get your tits out unless you want the same thing to happen to your bra,” I ordered as I undid my jeans and shoved them down far enough to free my length.
As soon as I had my dick free, I pushed into her and looked up to see her tits bouncing freely as she let out a sigh of contentment.
I brought my face down to hers and stared into her eyes. “You really upset me,” I told her as I continued to move my body against hers.
Her hands came up to cup my cheeks. “I know, baby, and I’m sorry. I would never do anything to hurt you like that. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” I said before I covered her mouth with mine and showed her just how much I loved her.
***
“Why is Ember opening a counseling center?” she asked, lazily drawing circles on my stomach with her finger while her head rested on my chest.
“She felt like it would be beneficial to the community, and because I asked her to.”
“You what?” she screeched.
I grinned. “I asked her to. I know how important helping children is to you and I wanted you to be with me in Croftridge. She already has some programs in place to help the community, and she has several buildings on the property that aren’t in use, so I asked, and she said yes. And before you say anything, you should know she’s opening the center whether you take the job or not, but she really wants you to take it, and so do I.”
She pushed herself to a sitting position and met my eyes with her watery ones. “You did all of that for me?”
“Yes, baby. I love you. I would do anything for you.”
“I love you, too, big guy.”
***
“How long do you think it will take Ember to get the center open and ready for business?”
“I have no idea. Do you want to call and talk to her about it?” I asked.
“Yes, I probably should before I start making plans,” she giggled.
“What kind of plans are you making?” I asked, still feeling off-kilter from our misunderstanding the night before. I don’t think she realized it, but she had the power to destroy me with a few simple words. I hoped like hell that day never came.
She placed her hands on her hips and cocked one to the side. “Are you serious right now?” The dumbfounded look on my face told her she needed to continue. She started ticking things off on her fingers. “I have to give my notice at work. I have to pack and schedule movers. I need to find a place to live in Croftridge, and my house needs a little work before I can put it on the market.”
“Hold it right there,” I interrupted. “Did you just say you needed to find a place to live in Croftridge?”
“Yes.”
I snorted. “Baby, you’re living with me. Problem solved.”
She glared at me. “I am not living with you, and I don’t take orders from you outside of the bedroom.”
The last part clued me in to the error of my ways. She was pissed because I didn’t ask her. “You don’t want to live with me, baby?”
“I didn’t say that,” she sighed, exasperated.
“I would like for us to live together. Will you move in with me, please?” I asked, trying to sound sincere. I did want us to live together and we would, but me asking her was total bullshit.
“I don’t know how I feel about living at your condo. I mean, we’ve stayed there from time to time, but I don’t want to make a home where you’ve had who knows how many whores in your bed.”
I co
uldn’t help it. I tried, I really did, but the laughter just wouldn’t be contained. “Is that your only issue with my place?”
She seemed caught off guard by my question. “Uh, yeah, I think so.”
“Baby, first of all, we’ve been together for a long time, and I haven’t fucked anyone except you since the night I met you. Secondly, I haven’t fucked anyone in my condo other than you. Ever. Club whores are just that, whores at the club. Any other pussy I picked up, I fucked at the club.”
“I don’t know if I should hug you or hit you right now!” she fumed.
“Why?”
She pointed her finger in my face. “You will get a new room at that clubhouse, and you will replace anything and everything that may have been fucked on.”
“Okay, baby. I can do that for you,” I said, wisely choosing to keep any details of fucking on the couches, pool tables, bar stools, etc. to myself. “So, is that a yes for living with me at my place?”
“Yes, it is. Now, call Ember so I can talk to her,” she demanded.
“Keep it up, Harper. You’re earning yourself one hell of a spanking later,” I said, right before Ember answered my call.
Ember and Harper stayed on the phone for almost two hours. Had my phone battery not died, they would have talked longer. I couldn’t complain though. Harper was excited about the new center and her new job which is exactly what I had hoped for.
“How’d it go?” I asked.
“Great!” she beamed. “It will be at least a month before the center is ready for business. That will give me plenty of time to turn in my notice and transition my patients over to the other counselors. Now, I just have to tell my brother.”
“He knows.” I grinned at her stunned expression. “I talked to him about it before I brought it up to Ember. He was the one who suggested the horses as an alternative therapy method.”
“And he was okay with it?” she asked.
“Yes, why wouldn’t he be?”
“I don’t know. I guess I just remember the Duke who would have gladly placed me in a protective bubble if the option had been available,” she mumbled.
“You’re a grown woman now. He knows that. Speaking as an older brother, it is hard to accept, but little sisters do grow up. Besides, you can’t blame the man for being protective of you, especially after everything the two of you have been through.”
“Okay, we’ve ventured far enough down memory lane for me.” The tone of her voice changed, and she squealed, “Oh, my gosh, Chase! I’m moving to Croftridge, and we’re going to live together!” She threw both hands in the air, wiggling her fingers, and did some sort of little dance in a circle. Even Titan hopped around in a circle as best he could.
Her excitement was contagious. I laughed. “Yeah, baby, we are. Hell, if this is how you react from moving in together, what’s going to happen when I propose?” It was a foregone conclusion. We would be getting married, but I hadn’t intended on bringing it up just yet.
She froze, mid crazy dance. “What did you just say?”
Confused, I repeated what I had just said. She didn’t say anything for several long beats. Finally, she uttered, “You want to marry me?”
I rose to my feet and shook my finger in her direction. “That’s not how this works. I ask you. You do not ask me.”
“I wasn’t asking, caveman,” she sassed. “I just didn’t know you’d thought about it.”
“Of course, I have. I love you, Harper. You’re already my Old Lady, and now we’re moving in together. The next logical step is to get married,” I said, placing my hands on her hips. “Is that something you want?”
She blushed and cast her eyes toward her feet. “What little girl doesn’t dream of getting married to the man of her dreams?”
“I’m the man of your dreams? Hot damn!” I joked, trying to lighten the moment.
She slapped my chest. “You’re such an ass sometimes.”
For the life of me, I don’t know what came over me, but it seemed right, so I went with it. I captured her hands in mine and dropped to one knee. “Harper Jackson, you’re the woman of my dreams. Will you marry me?”
Her jaw dropped. “Are you serious right now?”
“I’m down on my fucking knee, and you’re asking if I’m serious. Fuck yes, I’m serious,” I growled.
“In that case, fuck yes, I’ll marry you!”
“Wait! Stay right there. I mean it. Don’t move, baby,” I said, getting to my feet and bolting from the room. I ran to my bag, found what I needed, and sprinted back to the living room. I resumed my position in front of her, down on bended knee and held up the diamond ring I purchased for her weeks ago. “Harper Jackson, you are the woman of my dreams. Will you marry me?”
She slapped a hand over her mouth as the tears started streaming down her face. She nodded her head several times, but that wouldn’t do. “I need the words, baby.”
“Yes,” she croaked, extending her left hand to me.
I slipped the ring on her finger and stood, capturing her in my arms and pulling her mouth to mine. I held her like the prized possession she was and made sweet, slow love to her right there in her living room. It was by far the happiest day of my life.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Harper
Chase and I spent the weekend working on my house. I cleaned out closets and started packing things I wouldn’t need before the move. Chase began working on a few minor house repairs that needed to be taken care of before putting my house up for sale. I was in a state of euphoria for the entire weekend, blissfully floating from task to task. Before I knew it, it was time to say goodbye to Chase yet again. However, knowing it was one of the last times made it a lot easier.
He rented a truck the day before to haul the boxes I had packed as well as some furniture and his motorcycle back to Croftridge. We both agreed it would be easier to make repairs and showcase the house if it was empty. For the time being, he was going to store my belongings at a building on Ember’s property to prevent me from having to rent a storage space. When I arrived in Croftridge to stay, we would sort through my things and figure out how to mesh our stuff to turn Chase’s condo into our home.
My giddiness was replaced by nerves when I pulled into the parking lot of the crisis center. Every part of me wanted to move to Croftridge and be with Chase, but I did not want to turn in my resignation. I knew, without a doubt, breaking the news to the kids I had come to love would be the hardest part. Titan must have picked up on my apprehension and tried to comfort me by nuzzling my hand with his nose. I took in a deep breath and willed myself to go inside and get it over with.
I didn’t have a chance to ease into my news or prepare myself to deliver it once I stepped foot through the door. Jackie noticed the ring on my finger immediately. “Harper Jackson! Is that an engagement ring I see on your finger?” she more or less announced rather than asked. By the time she finished, she was at my side with my hand held up to her face, as if she was a trained jeweler inspecting my ring. “Wow! That’s one hell of a rock. Congratulations girl! Who’s the lucky guy? Is it that biker that I’ve seen you with a few times?”
Holy crap. I didn’t know which question to answer first. “Uh, thanks,” I said, trying to gently pry my hand from hers. “Yes, it’s an engagement ring. His name is Carbon Walker, and he is a biker. He’s probably the one you are referring to. The other biker that has been around here is my cousin Judge.”
She smiled. “I know who Judge is. Well done, Harper. Your Carbon sure is one hottie. I bet he rocks in the sack, too.”
I covered my face with my hand and shook my head. “I’m not going there, Jackie.” When I looked up, I realized her overzealous interrogation had garnered the attention of most of the staff. “Good morning, everyone.” I held up my left hand and wiggled my fingers. “I guess you all heard the news.”
My co-workers instantly bombarded me with hugs and words of congratulations. The women fawned over my ring, and the men commented on what a lucky guy
Carbon was. Everyone seemed genuinely happy for me. Everyone except Hilarie.
She was the last to approach me, and she did so with her arms crossed over her chest. “So, I guess this means you’re leaving us?”
“I was going to do this later, but I guess now is as good a time as any. Yes, I will be turning in my written resignation today. I’ve enjoyed my time working here, and I’ll miss all of you dearly, but I was presented with an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up. Over the next three weeks, I would like to work with the other counselors on smoothly transferring the care of my patients. I plan on breaking the news to the kids one by one as they come in for their sessions,” I announced, managing to keep my voice steady and my face free of tears.
Again, everyone in the office warmly received my announcement. Everyone except Hilarie. She huffed. “I guess I’ll get to work on finding your replacement. Best of luck to you, Harper.” Then, she stomped off to her office, leaving me standing in the reception area with my mouth hanging open.
Jackie patted my shoulder. “Don’t worry about her. She’s just upset about you leaving. She’ll come around.”
I headed to my office and got started with my day. I emailed my written resignation to Hilarie and as expected, did not receive a reply. When lunch rolled around, I wasn’t sure if Hilarie wanted to eat lunch with me. I didn’t have to wonder long. Jackie knocked on my door and told me that Hilarie had already left for lunch, saying that she wouldn’t be back until after 2:00 pm. Since I was not in the mood to socialize, Titan and I picked up lunch at a drive-thru, and I ate alone in my office.
The rest of my day was a constant repetition of me telling a patient I was leaving, them telling me how much they would miss me, and then we discussed transitioning their care. By the end of the workday, I was emotionally exhausted. How was I going to survive two more weeks of this?
Assuming Hilarie wasn’t interested in having dinner with me, I packed up my things and headed to my car, with Titan dutifully trotting along behind me. One glance around the parking lot confirmed my assumption. Her car was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she just needed some time to get used to the idea of me leaving. Crossing my fingers and hoping for the best, I went home to work on packing.
Carbon (Blackwings MC Book 4) Page 16