It Was Always You (Harpers Ridge Book 1)

by Ann Carver

  It was a joke. Bobby wasn’t kidding and Joe knew it. He wanted woman. All woman. It didn’t matter if they were tall or short, thin or big, sweet or naughty, he wanted them all. And, most of the time, he got them. That’s why he didn’t want Bobby even talking about Harper.

  “I know you’re doing red, so I’ll leave her alone.” Bobby sat back down after Joe did. “But, damn, I’ve never seen you so sensitive over a chick before. You got it bad!”

  Joe unclenched his fists. He was ready to punch him again. “Her name is Harper and I’m not sensitive, nor do I have it bad. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Shit, keep kidding yourself then,” Bobby said as he stood and walked around the corner and out of the building.

  Joe waited a minute before saying, “You can quit hiding around the corner now.”

  Giggling came from around the corner and then Rebecca appeared. She made her way to the couch where Bobby had sat. She leaned back, put her arm on the arm rest, and crossed her legs. Joe didn’t want to talk to her. Not about Harper.

  “So, you like this girl, huh?” she asked after she managed to stop giggling.

  He didn’t look up. “I’m not talking to you about Harper,” he said matter-of-factly.

  She giggled. “I promise not to get jealous,” she said, further teasing him.

  This time he looked up. “I’m not going to talk to someone I used to sleep with about someone I’m sleeping with now,” he said firmly.

  Her brow raised. “So, you’re finally going to admit to sleeping with her. We’re finally getting somewhere now.

  Joe slapped his hand to his forehead. He just couldn’t win here.

  “Are you not over us, yet?” Rebecca asked, jokingly.

  He blinked. How could she joke about something like that? Of course, he was over her. She’d cheated on him. Why would he ever want someone like that? “Don’t flatter yourself, I’m not the type to share.”

  Rebecca stood quickly and gave him the finger. “Fuck you Joe! Why can’t you let that shit go? People make mistakes…you’ve never made one?” Then she walked around the corner and out the door, just as Bobby had.

  He knew he fucked up…especially when he heard her car start up and take off down the driveway. Without having a choice, he picked up the phone and asked Dylan to come in to cover her shift. He knew he’d already worked, but that’s why he’d called him. Dylan would be tired and sleep as much as possible so he wouldn’t have to talk about anything.

  Luckily, Joe had only had to wake Dylan once. Two calls had come in that night, but one was Mrs. Fargle. She claimed her cat was stuck in the chimney, but Joe talked her through the house, looking in various spots when she found the cat sleeping on her chair. The second call was a car accident down by the river. A guy misjudged the curve and ended up in the river. He’d hit his head on the steering wheel and was taken to the hospital for sutures and check for a possible concussion.

  The rest of the time, Joe took solace in knowing he didn’t have to talk to anyone. He’d texted Rebecca several times with an apology, but she hadn’t bothered to return any of them. He’d been such an asshole since Harper showed up. He didn’t feel stressed out by having her around. He felt…like he wanted to protect her. He didn’t want people to talk badly about her. He knew what an amazing woman she was and he wanted everyone else to see it as well.

  The other great thing about only having to go out once, was that he didn’t have to move too much. He was still hurting and couldn’t wait to get out of his pants and underwear.

  When he arrived home, he put a bag of donuts on the table for Harper, and then took a cool shower. He’d learned earlier that hot water makes burns hurt even more. He pushed open his bedroom door and smiled when he saw Harper sprawled out in his bed.

  Her hair was piled on top of her head and her earbuds were tucked in her ears. He could faintly hear something about someone having twenty dollars in their pocket. As much as he’d never understand her taste in music, his smile didn’t fade.

  He started getting a hard-on and smiled even more when he thought about getting lucky. But that was quickly squashed when his skin stretched and pain shot through his second brain.

  It was going to be a long night.

  Joe, ever so carefully, climbed into bed, making sure his back was toward her so there was no accidental touching. Thankfully, it wasn’t cold and he didn’t need a blanket either. He fixed his pillow, sighed and closed his eyes.

  A warm body snuggled to his and an arm came over him, with fingers settling on his stomach. Harper wasn’t wearing anything and Joe went hard at the mental picture of it. He managed to stifle a groan, but he couldn’t when her lips came to his neck and started nibbling.

  “I missed you,” she whispered in his ear.

  Joe couldn’t talk. He wanted to pull her under him and show her just how much he’d missed her, but not in the condition he was in.

  “Did you miss me?” Harper asked cautiously as she stiffened.

  Joe hated that he made her wonder if he’d missed her. “Of course I did,” he said and she loosened up.

  She lifted up and sucked on a patch of his neck, producing a groan from him. When she let go of his skin, she whispered, “I want you, Joey.”

  Hell, he wanted her too. He always wanted her and that was the problem. “Harper, I can’t. Not until this burn goes away,” he said regretfully.

  Harper slouched back to the bed. It killed him to turn her down, but then after he thought about it, he didn’t really have to. He carefully rolled over and groaned when he saw her red hair, loosely, strewn over her breasts. She was like a fire goddess.

  Her eyes were closed and when Joe clamped his lips around her nipple, she gasped. Then, when he flicked her with his tongue, she shuddered. She pushed her fingers through his hair and then clenched it, holding him there.

  When he slipped his hand down her body, she was already wet. When he rubbed his finger over her heated spot, she bucked up into his hand as she gasped and pulled his mouth onto her breasts even more.

  Joe laughed. “Easy now, don’t want to suffocate me,” he teased and then sucked deeply causing her to do it all over again.

  He was hard as a rock, but he’d gotten used to the pain. As long as he could please Harper, then he’d be happy. He’d heal soon enough and make up for lost time.

  Working her into a mess made him feel good. He’d tease her and then stop when she was close. He did this several times before he finally let her climax after she begged. Her breathy pants of begging went right to his core. They were short pleas and he liked it. “Please, Joey,” and “Oh, my god, Joey,” had him wondering if it was worth the risk to thrust inside her and take the pain.

  The music buzzed out of her earbuds as she laid, sprawled out on the bed, fully sated. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was rapid. She shuddered when his finger would linger on the one spot that brought her pure happiness, which brought a smile to his face.

  He leaned over and pressed his mouth to hers. She reciprocated by wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him close. He stroked her tongue and then sucked in her bottom lip. When he pulled back, she opened her eyes. They were lustful and filled with want. So, he gave her what she wanted…another orgasm.

  The next morning, Harper woke around ten o’clock. She wanted to get up around seven to get an early start on the block house, but she’d decided to stay up late so she could sleep in with Joey.

  And, oh boy, was she ever happy she did. When she felt him slide into bed, she shivered with desire. She’d never felt that with any other man before. Then, he rocked her world without even pleasing himself. That had never happened with a man before. The men she’d been with had been stingy. They didn’t care if she was satisfied. When they were satisfied, they were done.

  She sighed, knowing it was her fault for going out with all the wrong guys. There’d only been one who made her feel good about herself. And that was the man lying next to her. She nev
er wanted to be with anyone else again.

  After taking a shower, and eating the donuts Joey had left for her, she went to the block house and continued to make her list smaller. Vinny was on the roof, working hard. The front side of the house was done and he was working on the back side. He told her Joe was coming the next day and they’d have it all finished up.

  The granite counters arrived and were installed. Harper was very excited. Since she’d put the cupboard doors back on, the main floor was all finished. The house seemed to be coming along faster than she’d expected. Thanks to Joey. He’d helped her so much along the way. She didn’t know how she’d ever repay him.

  Harper pulled out another piece of paper and started writing what she wanted to do tomorrow. The bedrooms upstairs needed to be painted and after that, she needed to furnish the place. What had been left in the house wasn’t salvageable. It had sat empty for a couple of years when the Mitchell’s moved into an assisted living community.

  The sun was on its way down. Fall was in full swing with the leaves turning into their beautiful, yellow, orange, and red beauty. Vinny had been gone for a few hours and she’d wrapped up inside. She locked the door and sat on the porch wondering if she could be in the house before Halloween.

  Initially, she didn’t think she’d be in until Christmas, but with all the help she’d gotten, it was going to be well before then. She could line the porch steps with jack-o-lanterns. She envisioned some cornstalks and hay bales on each side of the porch as well. Maybe even a spooky spider web in the corner.

  Her thoughts were broken when a truck pulled into the driveway. Without even looking, she knew it was Joey.

  “Hey, you all done?” Joey asked as he approached the porch.

  She looked up at him and smiled. She may have even shuddered when she thought about how he’d made her feel this morning. “Yup,” she chirped. “I was thinking about decorating for Halloween. You know, pumpkin, cornstalks, and scarecrows. What do you think?” she asked as she looked at each side of the porch again.

  Joey chuckled. “Still like Halloween, huh? I think it’s a great idea. I know where to get some good pumpkins and cornstalks,” he said.

  Her smile didn’t fade. “Vinny said you’re working on the roof tomorrow.”

  “Yup, I’m off tonight, so I’m all yours, tomorrow. I’d like to stop in and see my grandpa, but I’m sure there’s some stuff we need to get from the hardware store anyways,” he said as he pulled her up and into him. “And, since I’m off tonight, I’m taking you out to dinner.”

  Before she could answer, he covered her mouth and kissed the daylights out of her. When he pulled back and air filled her lungs, she whispered, because she could barely talk after a kiss like that, “I’m all yours.”

  Joey had wanted to take her down river to a fancy restaurant, but Harper had been starving. She’d worked through lunch and didn’t think she could wait to go down river. Besides, the sooner they ate, the sooner she could devour him in bed.

  They ended up at the Dancing Pony. They ordered wings and beer. While they waited, Harper told Joey all that had gotten accomplished at the block house and what she was planning on doing the next day.

  “So, you need paint. I can check on my grandpa in the morning and then we can get your list done,” he said and then took a drink of his beer.

  Harper took a drink too as she nodded. “I watched a few videos on painting. I think I want to paint the bottom half of the walls one color and the top half, another color. I think it looks really neat.”

  Joey chuckled. “Who would have ever thought you’d take an interest in do it yourself stuff.”

  She laughed. “Certainly not me,” she said.

  The waitress brought the wings out and Harper was thankful it wasn’t Cindy. Harper ate like she hadn’t ate in a week. She finally had to slow down so Joey could get filled, so she devoured the paper boat of celery, carrots, and ranch dip.

  “Want the last one?” Joey asked.

  Harper licked her lips and looked up at Joey without a word. He laughed and pointed to it. “Go ahead,” he said. She didn’t make him say it twice, she gobbled it right up before finishing off her beer.

  “Want another one,” he asked, gesturing to her beer.

  She placed her hand over her stomach. “No, I’m so full I’m not sure I can move,” she said with a groan.

  Joey leaned in closer and whispered, “I bet I can make you move.”

  A fire lit in her jeans at his sultry voice and had her wet at the same time. She grabbed his hand and dragged him up. He laughed and stopped long enough to put money on the table before leaving.

  When they made it to his apartment, she stripped her clothes on the way to the bedroom. She plopped on the bed and then…frowned when he came into the room, fully clothed.

  “Get those off,” she said pointing at his clothes.

  The smile on his face never faded. “No, I’m still incapacitated. This is all for you, babe,” he said with a wickedly, sexy voice.

  Chapter Nineteen

  As luck would have it, the following morning was filled with thunderstorms. Since he and Vinny couldn’t work on the roof, he could help Harper with anything that needed to be done inside. This came after he gave Harper another mind-blowing orgasm that morning. Sure, she’d begged him to be inside her, but he still hurt from the burn and he got her to beg for something else instead…her release.

  “What color are you thinking for your bedroom?” Joe asked as they stood in the paint aisle of his grandpa’s hardware store.

  Harper glanced at all the color samples. She pulled out a few and held them next to each other. “I think I want to go with these,” she said as she showed him a light blue and a dark blue.

  Joe smiled with a chuckle. “Let me guess, colors of the sky. Want to get glow in the dark stars for the ceiling too?” he teased.

  She smacked his arm and narrowed her eyes at him. “No,” she huffed. But then the sourness left and a thin-lined smile crossed her face. “Maybe,” she mumbled, stifling a laugh.

  Devin came along and helped Joe mix the paint. Not that Joe needed help, but the kid was always eager to help whenever he could. Joe asked him how school was going. A big smile filled his face. He went on to explain about getting a girlfriend and then went on and on about it.

  “I want these for the other bedrooms,” she said to Joe as she handed him a coral, seafoam green, and sunshine yellow sample card. “I want to paint the bottom half of the rooms these colors and the tops, white.”

  Joe looked them over and nodded. “What about the bathrooms?” he asked.

  “I think I’m sticking with white and going with a theme for each of them. I was thinking, for the bathroom upstairs, doing a rustic theme. I watched a video on how to make a shower curtain out of burlap sacks and the hooks made from rope. Then I looked up some ideas to make decorations out of chunks of wood and twigs.”

  Just watching Harper get excited about her house was enough to make Joe’s day. It also made him very uncomfortable in his jeans because she was sexy as hell with her red hair laying over her shoulders and resting on the tops of her breasts. He tuned her out as she talked about her rustic bathroom and instead, thought about what he wanted to do to her when he could get naked with her.

  That was until she smacked him on the shoulder. “Joey, are you listening to me? Do you think it sounds stupid?” she asked with her arms on her hips.

  If he wasn’t careful here, she’d get pissed. “Um, I was listening and I think a rustic bathroom is a great idea,” he said, hoping it was the right thing to say.

  “You do?” she asked with hopeful eyes as she dropped her hands off her hips.

  Joe nodded. “Of course, I’m going to mix these paints while you look around for anything else you can think of,” he said and turned around before she saw right through him.

  “Okay,” she said and walked away.

  Joe was mixing the seafoam green when his grandpa walked up. “What are you do
ing, boy?” his grandpa asked.

  “Mixing paint for Harper’s house,” he said as if it were obvious. He wasn’t mean about it. He loved his grandpa, but sometimes you never knew if he was going to be in a good or bad mood.

  “Where’s Harper?” he asked Joe.

  Joe furrowed his brows. He knew his grandpa was up to something. “Looking around, why?” he asked.

  His grandpa shrugged his shoulder. “I hear she’s staying with you,” he said in an accusatory tone.

  Joe hoped like hell his grandpa wasn’t going to lecture him about the birds and the bees talk. He’d gotten a bull-shit rendition from his drunken dad when he brought some floozy home and told Joe he was going to have sex. Then he looked at Joe and asked if he knew what it meant. Joe had nodded, but he went on to describe what he was going to do with that floozy. It sounded a whole lot like the porn his dad had left around that Joe had curiously watched.

  “Yeah,” he said reluctantly. “Until she can live in her place.” He secretly prayed that was all he’d say about it.

  His grandpa smiled a toothy grin. “I hope she’s payin’ you, boy,” he said as he elbowed him with a wink. “If you know what I mean.”

  Joe choked. What the hell? How did he end up with a perverted grandpa and an asshole for a farther? “Grandpa, what would grandma say about your mouth?” he asked.

  He didn’t reply. He walked away laughing as Joe shook his head and went back to mixing the paint for Harper. It didn’t take long for his mood to change. In fact, what Harper and he were doing was far exceeding any type of payment he could ever think of. He couldn’t wait for his damn burn to go away.

  After mixing all the paint, he found Harper in the rope aisle. No doubt picking out rope for her shower curtain. At least he’d heard that. “Find the size you want?” he asked as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

  She shooed his arms away, but when he didn’t give up easily, she did. “Yup, this one,” she said as she pointed to one.

  Joe kissed the sensitive spot right below her ear. “Hm, can we get extra? I can think of some things to do with it,” he asked as he gently nipped at her skin.