by Tess Summers
“It’s fine. I rinsed her off in the shower, so it wasn’t a big deal.”
“Is that why your shirt’s all wet?” Harper laughed.
Cassie rolled her eyes. “Well, Luke would’ve called me,” she replied loudly so her husband was sure to hear her.
“One time, woman. I had you take over one time.”
She shook her head in mock disgust.
“The man who deals with dead bodies at work can’t handle a little poop without gagging and tapping out.”
“I’m usually prepared for dead bodies. Something that putrid is not supposed to come out of something so tiny. I wasn’t ready for it.”
“Yeah, it was pretty gross today, too. Definitely unexpected when I picked her up. I stripped her crib sheet, too, so you’ll need to put another one on before putting her back to bed.”
Cassie looked at Harper.
“You are a lucky woman. He’s going to be a great dad, someday. Your kids will be gorgeous.”
Harper smiled appropriately, but let it quickly fade away. The subject of children was still a little raw. Ever since her diagnosis, she’d just assumed she wouldn’t have any. Ben said he’d be happy adopting, or even not being a dad, but was she robbing him of the chance to have a biological baby?
He must have noticed her change in expression, because he quickly said, “We haven’t decided on anything.”
“Oh yeah, first you need to get engaged.”
The sing-song way Cassie said it—like she knew a secret—had Harper convinced a formal proposal from Ben was coming soon.
And she realized, she was looking forward to it. They had no more secrets—nothing standing between them. If he still wanted to marry her knowing about her disease, she wasn’t going to say no. She was going to say yes and be thankful to the universe for bringing him into her life.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Ben
True to his word, Luke started yawning a little before eight o’clock, right after he’d shown them the profiles of dogs he’d found. He must have clued Cassie in on the plot, because she soon followed suit.
“We probably should let these old, married people get to bed before the news comes on,” Ben teased as he stood up.
“You try having three kids—two who are up with the sun—then we’ll see who’s in bed before ten,” Cassie groused.
“I know, I know,” he replied, pulling her into a side hug.
“Thanks again for having us,” Harper said with a genuine smile. “We’ll have to have you guys next time.”
“Are you ready for next Saturday?” Cassie asked as the four of them walked toward the front entrance.
“I think so. I’ve got my dress, shoes, and jewelry.”
“Bren and I are having people come to her house to do our hair and makeup. You’re welcome to come, too. I’m not sure of the exact cost, but I can forward it to you when Brenna sends me the info.”
“That would be terrific. Thank you so much.”
The two women exchanged a hug. As he dramatically hugged Ben around the neck, Luke said in a stage whisper, “Aw, our girls are becoming besties.”
“They’re adorbs,” Ben mocked.
Harper tugged on his arm.
“Come on, funny guy. Let’s go home.”
Luke gave Harper a quick hug, as did Cassie to Ben.
“I’m sorry I almost blew it when you first got here,” she whispered in his ear.
With a low chuckle, he assured her, “Don’t worry about it.”
They stood with their arms looped.
“Thanks for changing Charlotte—the pooping cyclone.”
Ben pulled away and walked out the nine-foot dark wooden door. “Goddamn, change her diet or something. That was nasty,” he teased while waving his hand in front of his nose.
“She’s still mostly breast feeding. I’m trying to be careful about what I eat but it’s not helping.”
Grabbing Harper’s hand, they walked down the front cement steps calling their goodbyes as Cassie and Luke stood in their doorway with their arms around each other.
“I love them,” Harper said with a smile as they backed out of the driveway with Cassie and Luke still waving at them in the headlights.
“They love you, too.”
They drove in comfortable silence until they drove past the lighted stone marker for their street.
“My girlfriend Lauren wants to meet you.”
“Maybe we should have a party?” he suggested as he maneuvered Eleanor past the neighbors’ houses.
“The soonest we could have a party would be in two weeks. There’s no way she’ll wait that long.”
He laughed out loud as he pushed the garage door opener. “Okay, well, just let me know what night we’re going to dinner with her, and I’ll be there.”
“Probably Thursday; she usually takes Fridays off.”
“Is she going on Saturday?”
“She said she’d be my date if I couldn’t find anyone, but otherwise, she’d rather not.”
He tilted his head as they walked inside. “Why not?”
“She slept with Tristan Burns a couple of months ago and never called him back. That’s the Burns in Carson, Burns, Sterling, and Cooper—my firm. She knows he’ll be there to support Travis and doesn’t want to risk running into him.”
He couldn’t hide the humor in his voice when he asked, “Why didn’t she call him back?”
“She said she didn’t want to give him the wrong idea. Lauren’s not interested in anything long-term right now, and she was under the impression he might be.”
Being a committed bachelor for most of his adult life, he could respect that. Anytime a girl gave the ‘I might want something more than a fuck’ vibe, she was put on the do not call back list. There’d been a few over the years that he’d had a longer-term relationship with, but inevitably they always wanted more than he was willing to give.
Until Scout.
Since the night they met, it had seemed like it was the other way around. He had been the one pushing for more. They were sitting on the patio while Honey scampered around the backyard, when suddenly a thought occurred to him.
“Have we gone too fast? Did I bully you into moving in together?”
With a confused chuckle, she asked, “Where is this coming from?”
“I don’t know. I know I can come on like a bulldozer when I want something.”
Leaning forward, she grabbed his hands in hers.
“You tend to sink your teeth in and not let go,” she agreed. “But no, not too strong. And you definitely didn’t coerce me into anything. That’s a little insulting that you think I could be bullied into doing something I didn’t want to do.”
Well, that was a relief.
He reached in his pocket and subtly pulled out the small, black, velvet box. Kneeling down in front of her, he opened the lid. She let out a quiet gasp, but otherwise let him continue without interruption.
“Harper…”
Suddenly, he was at a loss for words. That had never happened to him before.
Ben cleared his throat and tried again.
“I know it’s only been two weeks, but it feels like I’ve known you forever. My heart knew you were the one the night we met. I know we’re living together, but that’s not enough. Marry me, Scout.”
He was expecting hesitation on her part—or worse, a litany of reasons why they needed to wait. Instead, she shocked the hell out of him when she dropped to her knees too, wrapped her arms around his neck, and, with tears in her eyes, whispered, “Yes. I’d love to marry you.”
Fuck. Yeah.
Cupping her face in his hands, he kissed her like his life depended on it.
“I’ll make you so happy, baby girl,” Ben whispered against her lips. “For the rest of your life—I promise.”
With her forehead against his, she murmured with her eyes closed, “I love you so much.”
After he slipped the one-and-a-half-carat round solitaire diamond on her
left ring finger, she held her hand out to admire its sparkle.
“It’s beautiful. Did you pick this out yourself?”
He feigned offense.
“Of course I did. I’m not an incapable idiot.” Then in a softer voice he added, “But we can exchange it for whatever you want.”
She quickly brought her hand protectively to her chest and covered the ring with her other hand.
“No, I love it. It’s perfect.”
Ben smiled. “You’re perfect.”
Her face turned somber, and she shook her head emphatically. “No, I’m not.”
Stroking her cheek with the back of his fingertips, he smiled softly.
“I know you have faults, baby girl; I’m not suggesting that. I love you and your faults. Your imperfections make you perfect. For me.”
Harper returned his smile. “You’re pretty amazing yourself.”
“Hell yeah, I am. You’re just now noticing that?”
“No, I’ve known ever since you walked into the country club with me the night of Sloane and Hannah’s engagement party.”
“Yeah? Really? That soon?”
“Well, maybe I just thought you were really hot,” she confessed with a giggle.
“Scout, I don’t think my dick has been completely limp around you once.”
With a devilish smile, she reached under his waistband and took his hard cock in her silky palm.
“See?” he said with raised eyebrows.
Slowly, she stroked his entire length while staring into his eyes.
“Well, you’d have to take your pants off in order for me to see…”
He didn’t break eye contact as the corner of his mouth lifted, and he growled, “I can do that.”
She smeared the precum around his tip and continued jerking his cock up and down, while purring, “You should definitely do that.”
Instead of removing his pants, he tugged his shirt over his head then pulled on the hem of hers to lift it off, causing her to break contact with his cock. The loss only caused him to try to undress her faster, while she fumbled to get his shorts off him at the same time.
While it would have been hot as hell to fuck on the patio bricks, he didn’t want to risk her getting road rash—he’d read one of the side effects of her medication was a low white blood cell count, which would mean she wouldn’t heal easily. Instead, he scooped her up and walked through the house, both of them buck naked. Walking into the bedroom, he laid her down on the bed, then enveloped her body with his. Capturing her lips and kissing her, Ben began to grind his cock between her legs as his tongue sought hers out. She playfully nipped at his lips, then nudged him onto his back where she straddled him. She entwined their fingers together, and leaned down to continue kissing him while moving her hips in circles on his.
The feel of her engagement ring against the side of his finger made him want her even more, and he was aching to be inside her. Maneuvering his cock to align with her pussy, he swiftly pushed inside.
There was nothing like the initial sensation of entering her, and Ben groaned loudly as he filled her, balls deep.
“You feel so fucking good,” he growled.
Releasing his fingers, Harper positioned her hands on his core and leisurely left a trail of kisses from his shoulder to his chest, all while slowly fucking him. As she swirled her tongue around his nipple, he felt her smile; then she sat up on the balls of her feet and began to bounce up and down on his cock. The angle, coupled with how wet she was, equaled fucking nirvana. Her jiggling tits were a sight to behold, and Ben couldn’t help but grab a handful and squeeze.
She dropped back onto her knees and fell forward so that her boobs were in his face. Never one to miss an opportunity, he began to suck her nipples while she continued fucking him. Back and forth he went between the two—sucking hard and biting down as she rocked her hips faster over his cock. He knew the friction she was seeking and reached between their bodies in search of her clit.
Brazenly, she sat up and leaned back, spreading her pussy lips for him as she did. It was the sexiest, most wanton thing he’d ever witnessed, and he had to concentrate to keep from coming before she did.
“That’s it, baby girl. Keep your pussy spread for me,” he snarled as he rubbed her knot. “Show me your wet clit.”
He felt her walls tighten around his shaft, and her rhythm became uncoordinated.
“Mmm, fuck yeah. Come all over my cock,” he commanded as he kept us his pace on her clit.
“Oh my god,” she began to pant.
“That’s it.”
“Yes. Yessss… Yes!”
Harper Jean Louise Finch spasming as she came all over his dick had to be the best fucking feeling in the world.
Wrapping his arms around her middle when she fell forward, Ben jackrabbited into her quivering pussy, and soon he let out a roar as he came inside her.
They lay like that—Harper on top of Ben, his arms around her middle and his cock buried inside her—until their breathing evened out. Finally, she rolled off him and retreated to the bathroom. She returned moments later with a washcloth, which she carefully used to clean up his sensitive cock and balls.
“I think I’m going to love being married to you,” she quipped with a seductive grin as she moved the cloth over his genitals and giggled when she made him jump.
He grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms, tossing the washcloth toward the hamper in the corner.
“I know I’m going to love being married to you.”
She let out a long sigh and rested her head on his shoulder.
“Do you think we’ll always be this happy?”
“I think so, Scout,” he murmured as he stroked her long black hair. “I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure of it.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
Harper
“Come on, Ben. We can’t be late. That’s my grandfather’s pet peeve.”
Purse slung over her bare shoulder, she was standing in the kitchen by the garage door in a sleeveless pink and blue gingham checked sundress waiting for him to come out of the bedroom.
Harper decided he was worth the wait when he appeared in a pair of grey slacks and blue button-down that hugged his massive chest. His rolled sleeves showed off his tattoos.
“Do you think I should button the cuffs?”
She shook her head. “My grandparents are pretty progressive.”
“Yeah, but what about the other members?”
“Fuck them. Who cares what they think?”
“Well, I don’t, but I want to be respectful of your grandparents.”
She stood on her tiptoes and put her hand on his shoulder to peck him on the cheek. “You’re very thoughtful. It’ll be fine. Nobody is going to say anything to Mark Dufresne, trust me.”
As she lowered her heels, Harper caught a glimpse of sparkle from her ring on his shoulder and smiled as she held her hand out to admire it further.
“I love this ring.”
“What are your grandparents going to think?” he asked as he ushered her toward the garage.
“I think they’re going to love you, and therefore, be happy for me. When do you want to tell your family?”
“We have family dinner once a month; the next one is next Sunday. We’ll tell them then.”
He’d texted Cassie and Luke in bed this morning with a picture of the ring on her hand, while she sent the same picture to Lauren, who was demanding dinner with them before she’d give her blessing. Harper wasn’t worried—her BFF was going to love her fiancé.
That just left her parents.
They were going to be a harder sell, but she’d worry about that another time.
As they walked into the dining room of her grandparents’ country club, she surveyed the tables in search of them. Ben saw them first and tugged on her elbow, gesturing to where her grandmother was waving with a bright smile, her grandfather sitting regally next to her with a warm, lopsided grin.
“Scout,�
�� the older man said, standing and kissing her cheek before her grandmother grabbed both hands and kissed her as well. “Who is this?”
“Oh, knock it off, Pop. Ben already told me about your meeting.”
Mark let out a booming laugh and slapped Ben on the back.
“I can’t keep secrets from Stephanie either.”
The two men shook hands, and before they all sat down, Harper introduced him to her grandmother.
“Nana, this is Ben McCallister, my fiancé.”
That got her grandfather’s attention.
“Oh?” he asked with one raised eyebrow. “I didn’t realize you were engaged.”
“He just asked me last night,” Harper casually remarked as she scooted her chair closer to the table.
“What’s your daddy think about this?” Mark asked, his tone skeptical.
“I haven’t told my parents yet,” she stated matter-of-factly, laying the napkin in her lap. “And I’d appreciate it if you’d let me be the one to tell them.”
Stephanie Dufresne reached across the table for Harper’s hand.
“So, let me see your ring.”
Harper dutifully offered her grandmother her hand, where the older woman examined the diamond and smiled her approval.
“It’s beautiful. Well done, Ben.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
Suddenly a shrill voice came from a few yards away.
“Harper Radcliffe, is that you?”
She quickly slipped her engagement ring off her hand and into her dress pocket as she stood—with an obviously fake smile plastered on her face—to greet Tyler’s Aunt Jan.
“It’s Harper Finch, now, Jan,” she gently reminded the woman—although she was certain Jan knew that.
“I remember. Just wishful thinking, I guess,” said the middle-aged woman with short, brown hair. She was dressed in one of her signature monochromatic track suits, which she thought showed off how in shape she was. Today’s was a daffodil yellow with white tennis shoes. “His latest is just dreadful—can you believe he’s getting married again?”