Dalton, Tymber - Contractual Obligation (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (23 page)

He gently grasped her chin in his hand and made her look him in the eye. “Don’t ever be embarrassed around me, baby, got it? You enjoyed that as much as I did, if not more. It’s between us, and we can do that as much as you like.”

She stared at him for a moment, then threw her arms around him and kissed him. “I love you,” she whispered.

He stroked her back as he held her. “I love you, too. I meant it.”

She closed her eyes, laid her head on his chest, and cried. It nearly broke his heart, hearing her sobs, but he sensed this was something she needed to do, a pressure relief of some sort, a cathartic cleansing of her soul.

When she regained her composure, she sniffled. “Thank you,” she softly said.

“For what?”

“Forgiving me.”

He sat up. “Forgiving you for what?”

“For taking Doug from you.”

He gathered her into his arms again. “Let’s get one thing straight,” he said as he cuddled her to him. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Stop feeling guilty. It’s in the past, it’s not your fault, and there’s nothing to forgive. Got it?” He nuzzled the top of her head. “And frankly, look at what happened. We never would have met. Right?”

“Right.”

He kissed the top of her head. “Shower and then we go out to eat for breakfast. Okay?”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“Go check your sugar.”

She sniffled as she nodded and slowly climbed out of bed. She stopped, turned, leaned in, and kissed him again.

“Hey, give me a smile,” he teased.

She did, and it twisted his heart in a pleasant way. He reached out and stroked her cheek. “There’s my sweet girl.”

Her smile widened. She turned and headed for the bathroom.

He watched her go. He sighed, happy, before getting up to join her.

* * * *

Two weeks after her initial tryst with Tate, Harper knew she did love Tate every bit as much as she loved Doug. She just didn’t know what to do about it. The London office reported that the deal would be finalized within the next couple of days. She’d barely spoken to Doug the entire time he was out there, e-mailing with him but doing everything in her power to avoid actually talking to him on the phone.

She knew Tate still loved Doug despite their own new relationship status. With nothing to hide between them, she’d made Tate open up and talk about Doug. No matter what Tate said to the contrary, she couldn’t ditch the guilt she felt over taking them from each other.

She sat down at her desk, pulled up the travel site they usually used, and booked Doug’s flight home. Before she hit enter to finalize the ticket, she hesitated. Doing this would end the newly found happiness she had with Tate. It would also end the past happiness she’d had with Doug.

After a moment, her finger pressed the key and the flight confirmation information appeared on the next screen. She printed it out, forwarded a copy to Doug, and then locked herself into her bathroom to cry.

In three days, he would return.

In three days, she’d be saying good-bye to her new life.

Chapter Nineteen

Harper stood at her office window and stared out at the Tampa skyline. No more delays, no more putting off the inevitable. Doug was finally winging his way home. Part of her wished she could have permanently reassigned him to London. It would delay facing him and saying good-bye to Tate.

How selfish of me.

Rubbing her stomach, she winced.
Last time I eat at Morocco’s
. Tate had picked the restaurant the night before, but apparently it wasn’t setting well with her. She’d had an upset stomach all day. It couldn’t be something else, because she’d religiously checked her blood sugar the past several days. It was right on the money.

Not that Tate would let her forget to check. He acted as annoyingly attentive about that as Gorden and her father.

Probably the falafel chattering at me.

Then again, maybe it was the beginnings of an ulcer over what she knew she had to do.

She went to her desk and arranged for a car before she called Tate into her office. When he arrived, she handed him an itinerary and another sheet of paper.

“What’s this?” he asked.

“That one is Doug’s flight info. There’s a car waiting for you downstairs. You’ll go meet him. His flight will be here in less than an hour.”

“What?” He looked shocked, but she didn’t give him time to recover.

She pointed to the other paper. “That’s a release from your contracts,” she softly said. “For both of you. I want the two of you to be happy.”

* * * *

Tate felt a huge lump blossom in his throat. “What are you saying?”

“You heard me. If it wasn’t for me offering Doug this job, you two would still be together and happy.”

“I thought you and I had something together. What about that?”

She expertly dodged his statement. “You two belong together. I’m just getting in the way.”

“I never said you were in the way! And where exactly does this leave you and me?” he asked again.

“You and Doug can still work for me,” she softly said, refusing to meet his gaze. “I will uphold my end of both your contracts. But I want to do what’s right. I want you two to be together. You deserve to be happy.”

“So, just like that, you and I are done?”

“I want to be fair—”

“Stop with the bullshit, Harper,” he angrily said. “I love you. You told me you loved me, too. What am I supposed to do with that? Was that all an act?”

“I do love you. That’s why I have to do what’s right. Because I love both of you.”

She looked like she was close to tears, but he also sensed she’d shut down if he kept coming at her right then. He felt the wall, almost a visible presence, between them. Her body language, her tone. Pushing her would only make her mad. Yes, he still loved Doug.

But he also loved her. “Okay, I’ll go get him, but you and I are going to talk about this later when you get home tonight.” If she didn’t think he would, she had another think coming.

“There’s nothing to talk about.” He wished she’d get mad and quit using that soft and sad tone of voice. “I have to do what’s right for both of you. I need to step aside.”

He grew aggravated at her refusal to discuss it despite his resolve not to press her. “How heavy is that cross you’re nailing yourself to, Harper? Don’t Doug and I get a say in this? If I’m not mistaken, he’s crazy about you, too.”

“You’d better go. His plane will be here soon.”

Infuriated with not being able to get through to her, he leaned in and kissed her cheek before he left. He did love her. The more she tried to push him away, the more determined he grew to show her how he felt about her.

And the fact that he loved her, and loved Doug, still didn’t change. He didn’t feel the slightest bit of jealousy when he thought of her and Doug making love.

What he thought was how hard his cock grew at the possibility of having them both in bed with him at the same time.

Maybe that was the true source of her resistance, that she couldn’t accept a ménage relationship even though he suspected she secretly wanted it. He thought about some of the books on her Kindle.

Yes, she definitely enjoyed the fantasy or else she wouldn’t have so many erotic novels on the topic.

As he hurried down to meet the car, he started to plan. If Harper thought he’d give up on her that easily, she wasn’t as smart as she thought.

* * * *

Doug couldn’t quell his nerves. On the eight-hour flight, he barely touched the food offered to him. He feared he’d get sick if he ate.

He’d spent less than ten minutes on the phone with Harper in the past few weeks. He understood that she had a busy schedule, but this just felt wrong despite Gorden’s assurances to the contrary.

He couldn’t get past the feeling Gorden was hiding something from him. Maybe it was his own guilty conscience, but he couldn’t help but make the comparison to when he gave Tate the brush off before he broke up with him. Was that what this had been about? Getting him out of her way so she could let him down easy?

He didn’t want to think that about her. As much as he still did and always would love Tate, he realized while in London that he loved Harper nearly as much. Her tough outer shell that he knew hid a very vulnerable woman. Her passionate side.

He only hoped Tate could move on. He wanted nothing but happiness for the man who would always hold a special place in his heart.

Doug tried to stay calm while making his way through customs at Tampa International, but the fact that Harper wasn’t answering his texts or calls since his plane landed also spoke volumes. She wasn’t in a meeting right now, that much he knew from checking her calendar, but his calls to her cell went straight to voice mail.

Again, shades of how he’d treated Tate.
Avoid, avoid, avoid.
How well he knew that trick.

He scoured his memory, tried to think about anything he’d done wrong that would make her mad at him. Everything had been fine up until he left for London.

Had she seen him with Tate at his parents’ house? She hadn’t mentioned it. He discarded the thought. That couldn’t be it.

Then he thought about her statement before they went inside the house that day, that she’d never met someone’s family before.

But why would that freak her out?

She’d said she loved him. She wasn’t the type to lie about anything.

He’d find out soon enough. He’d head to the office first, and if she wasn’t there, he’d have the car take him home. But he would see her sooner rather than later.

Finally, he cleared customs and made his way to arrivals. He spotted the driver, the same man who’d taken him to the airport weeks earlier. The driver opened the rear door to the limo for him and then took his suitcases to stow in the trunk.

Doug climbed in before he realized someone else occupied the backseat. When he looked up, he felt like the wind had been knocked out of him.

* * * *

Tate nervously watched through the tinted windows as Doug emerged from the terminal at arrivals. The driver immediately jumped out and met him, opening the door for him. Doug slid in, then froze when he saw him as the driver closed the door behind him.

“Tate?”

Tate nervously smiled. “Hey there, stranger.”

After a long, silent moment, Doug stammered, “But…what…what are you—”

Tate leaned in, grabbed his chin, and kissed him. “Shut up.”

Doug grabbed him, taking over and kissing him hard, the way Tate had missed and longed for all these months. Making love to Harper was fantastic, but during those times, he was the one in charge, making Harper swoon the way Doug now had him longing for more.

“I don’t understand,” Doug finally gasped when they came up for air.

“Long story. Shut up and kiss me again.”

Doug obliged. He apparently didn’t realize they were almost to the house until he looked up and recognized the neighborhood. “Why are we here?”

“We’re going home,” Tate said. “Kiss me again.” His cock throbbed, desperate to feel Doug’s mouth or ass engulfing it. He didn’t care which as long as he could blow his load, and soon. He knew Doug felt nearly as horny from the feel of the iron-like bulge tenting his expensive slacks.