Contractual Obligation

Chapter Eighteen

Crazy didn’t begin to describe the next several weeks of Tate’s life. With no secrets between them, Tate and Harper became fast friends. Tate was glad he didn’t have to explain their deal to Gorden, because Harper told the man in no uncertain terms that the topic of discussion was totally off the table.

Permanently.

He’d met Harrison Wells a few times and liked him. He didn’t have any doubt the odd sideways glances the man gave him had to do more with trying to figure out what Harper’s game was than anything personal against him.

After hours, Tate and Harper spent a lot of time talking. Aside from a few business social functions, they usually ate in every night in front of the TV, working as Harper did her best to help Tate get up to speed.

His initial opinion had been right, that Harper was self-insulated. Worse, she was lonely and now doubting her judgment in the wake of Doug’s secret being exposed. He could tell she wanted to open up more to him, but now she felt gun-shy.

Despite not having any contact with Doug, Tate gave him the benefit of the doubt about his actions when he found out the full extent of Sarah’s medical bills. He knew darn well what Doug’s dad made in salary, and that even with insurance, the expenses on the family would have been crushing.

He couldn’t imagine Doug doing anything but taking the job to help them out. All he had to do was convince Harper that Doug’s keeping him a secret wasn’t her fault.

Gorden, however, proved himself a constant source of friction. Tate liked the man, but found himself butting heads with him at every turn, so much so Harper frequently had to step in and referee. One afternoon Harper was out of the office at a doctor’s appointment when Tate and Gorden got into it.

Tate knew damn well Gorden felt loyal to Doug, and Harper hadn’t enlightened him about the reason for Tate’s arrival and apparent taking over of Doug’s place in her affections. Finally, when Gorden nearly caused him to miss an important meeting with one of their suppliers, Tate called him out on it later in Gorden’s office.

“Look, I know you don’t like me,” Tate said, “but quit trying to dick me over, dude. You’re trying to make me look bad.”

Gorden scowled at him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Tate could only say so much without breaking Harper’s confidence, something he refused to do. Doug had to deal with Gorden while he was overseas, and Gorden wasn’t happy about being forced to maintain the illusion with Tate. “You know exactly what the hell I’m talking about. We are on the same side. Team Harper. I know you like Doug and think I’m some sort of douche, but put the passive-aggressive bullshit to rest, would you? You don’t know what’s going on.”

“You don’t know her the way I know her.”

“Yeah? Well, maybe I know some things you don’t know. Did you ever think about that? So maybe you should just keep your opinions to yourself and do your fucking job and let me do mine.”

Tate fought the urge to slam the door behind him when he stormed out. His loyalty was to Harper. As he started for his office, he pulled up short.

I love her.

Fuck!

He did. He’d fallen in love with her. The fact that Gorden wasn’t happy with her over the Doug situation only made Tate feel even more protective of her.

Crap. Now what the hell am I supposed to do?

They ate in that night as they usually did. Later, they sat on the couch and watched TV. Well, Tate was watching TV with Harper’s feet in his lap, while Harper was reading her Kindle. She’d never given Doug a look at hers, a little embarrassed to admit some of the content.

“Whatcha’ reading?” Tate asked.

She hoped her face didn’t turn red. “A book.”

Before she could stop him, he pulled the Kindle out of her hand. “Ooh, look at this.”

She tried to reach for it, but he held it out of reach. “Give it back,” she protested.

“Not before I find out a few of Harper’s favorite authors.” He managed to hold her off as he scrolled through it. “And look at some of these titles.” He eyed her. “Naughty little girl.”

A wave of heat washed through her, surprising her when it pooled between her legs and started her clit throbbing. The way he’d said it reminded her so much of how Doug used to take charge in bed. She grabbed her beer and finished it, heading for the kitchen since she knew trying to get the Kindle away from Tate until he finished was useless. “You want another?” She held up her empty beer bottle.

“Sure.” He laughed. “Look at these authors. I’ve heard of some of them. Cooper McKenzie, Sophie Oak, Stormy Glenn.” He grinned as she brought him another beer, his third. “You are a wicked little girl.” He finally handed the Kindle back.

“Okay, so I like erotica. A girl’s got to get her fun somewhere.”

“That’s not just erotica, sweet stuff. That’s just downright pervy. I think I luuurrrve you. I’ve read a couple of books by some of those authors. Guy on guy, guy on guy with a girl. Two guys on a girl. Oooh, dirty.” He grinned.

Harper knew she shouldn’t have had the second beer, because she had a low tolerance for alcohol and the first one already had her tipsy, but she was beyond the give-a-fuck stage. She’d had another argument with Gorden that afternoon after returning from her doctor appointment. She suspected Tate and Gorden had another run-in, but neither man would admit it if they had.

Time for a new subject. “Since you’re so interested in talking about sex, how was Doug in the sack when you two were together?” she asked Tate after she put her Kindle on the coffee table.

Tate’s lopsided smile was more than enough to tell her his third beer had also pushed him over the edge of sobriety. “Fucking great. Hope he didn’t disappoint you.” A frown flashed across his face. “Is this an inappropriate conversation for me to have with my boss?”

“Nope. I think we’ve already crossed that threshold. Doesn’t bother me if it doesn’t bother you.” She took another swig of her beer. “The boy could give great head.”

Tate belched and held up his bottle in a salute. “Amen, sister!” He took another drink. “He could suck cock like nobody’s business.” Tate grinned. “Then again, he had a great teacher.”

“Who?”

“Me.” He giggled. “I was his first guy.”

“So how are you at giving a girl head?”

He shrugged. “Been a while, but the couple of girls I was with didn’t complain. Why, are you asking?”

“If you’re offering.” What the hell am I doing? I’m drunk!

“Why the hell not. Serves him right for leaving me and lying to you. You deserve better than that.” He set his beer bottle down on the coffee table and moved over to sit next to her on the couch. “We gonna do something we’re gonna regret in the morning?”

She laughed as she also put her beer down. “I sure as fuck hope so. Since we already have Doug in common, we might as well become friends with bennies.” She fell into Tate’s arms, softly moaning as he kissed her. “You kiss good,” she whispered when she came up for air. She felt a little guilty for what they were about to do.

Then again, Doug had lied to her and hurt Tate. She’d deal with the fallout later. For now, all she wanted was for Tate to make her forget.

And make amends to him for the pain she’d caused him. “You kiss really good,” she added.

“So do you,” he said. “Does this mean what I think it means, or am I really, really drunk?”

“I think we’re both drunk, but this means I want you to fuck my brains out. I want to see if I can give you head better than he did.”

He grinned “Fuckin’ A! I haven’t gotten laid since he left. Do you have any idea how horny I am?” He pushed her down and stretched his body out over hers. He felt different than Doug, a little shorter and lighter in build, but his warm weight pressing her into the cushions was a welcomed comfort. So he wasn’t Doug.

She didn’t care.

For tonight, she’d pretend he was the love of her life, and he could pretend she was whoever the fuck he wanted in his arms.

For tonight, she wanted her heart to hurt a little less.

Okay, a lot less.

She threaded her fingers through his hair and welcomed it when his tongue pressed for entrance between her lips. They kissed for what felt like forever as she felt her panties grow damper by the second.

He kissed his way down her jaw, to her throat, nibbling and gently biting until he reached the neck of her T-shirt. He pulled it to the side and nuzzled the crook of her neck. She hooked a leg around his, trying to rub against him as her clit began to throb.

“You horny, sweetie?” he rumbled into her ear before nibbling on her earlobe.

“Uh-huh!”

“You want me to take care of that for you?”

“Please!”

He pulled his shirt off, then pulled hers off, too. Warm skin against warm skin, he kissed her again, the blond curls on his chest rubbing against her nipples. He sucked on her nipples and worked his way south to her shorts.

“I’m going to make you scream, baby,” he promised as he slid them down her hips.

“Yes!”

He didn’t remove his shorts. Instead, he pushed her legs apart, draping them over his shoulders as he burrowed between her thighs. When his lips found and parted her labia, she grabbed him by the hair and didn’t want to let go.

He had a different technique than Doug. She couldn’t explain the difference, but he eagerly circled her clit with his tongue, flicking at it and driving her to the brink of madness. “Do it,” she begged. “Please!”

“Do what?”

“You shit, make me come!”

He stopped and sat up. “Ask me nicely, you dirty little girl.” The mischievous grin on his face turned any resistance she might have had to melted butter.

“What?”

“I saw the kind of stuff you had on your Kindle.” He slipped two fingers into her now soaking wet cunt and slowly thrust. “You’re no prim and proper lady. You’re a kinky little girl who wants me to fuck the shit out of her.”

She swallowed hard, no longer able to speak. She eagerly nodded.

He pulled his fingers out of her and crawled up her body. He kissed her, then pressed his fingers into her mouth. “Can you come by being fucked, baby?” he asked in a tone somewhere between amused at her eager sucking and sounding like he was two seconds from blowing his own load. He pulled his fingers from her mouth and grabbed her chin.

She felt her face heat. “Sometimes,” she softly admitted. “Doug was the first man to ever get me over like that.”

“Oh, we can’t have that,” he said in that same amused tone. “I can’t have him outdoing me.” He stood and grabbed her hand, pulling her up to her feet. “Let’s go.” He gave her a gentle shove to move her in front of him, and slapped her ass on the way. “I have a little something to prove.”

They resumed their tryst in her bedroom. He shed his shorts, and she was pleased to find not only did he go commando, but that his cock was nearly as long as Doug’s, and a little thicker around. Without any formality, he pushed her down onto the bed and resumed his position between her legs. His tongue found her clit again with pinpoint accuracy, and it wasn’t long before he had her coming.

He looked up. “Did he ever fuck this sweet ass of yours?”

Her head popped up. “What?”

“Your ass. Did. He. Fuck. It?”

She knew she was blushing. It felt like her face had suddenly gone supernova hot. She shook her head.

“Have you ever been fucked there?”

She shook her head again.

His smile broadened. “Oh, baby girl, we are sooo going to take care of that.” He sat up and pointed at her. “Do not move. I’ll be right back.” He bolted off the bed. She heard him down the hall, rummaging around in his room before he came running back and dropped something onto the bed. Then he disappeared into her bathroom and came back with a couple of towels.

“Up,” he said. She complied, and he spread the towels out under her before he pointed back to the bed.

She felt an almost physical click in her soul as she realized if he wanted to truss her upside down from the ceiling fan, she’d let him. Different than with Doug, and yet the same. She trusted Tate and was willing to let him do whatever he wanted to her. She laid down on the towel and watched as he started rummaging through her bedside table.

“Where’s your toys, baby?”

“What?”

He crawled onto the bed, grabbed her hair, and kissed her. “Don’t play shy with me. Never play shy with me. Your sex toys. You’ve got to have at least one vibrator in here. Where are they?”

She felt her face grow hot as she pointed at the other bedside table. His eyes lit up as he leaned across her and yanked the drawer open. “Oh, you nasty little girl.” He pulled out the two vibrators she had, one a battery-operated rabbit style, and an electric Hitachi. He also pulled out the two dildos she had.

“Hmm.” He held them up. Both of them were smaller than Tate and Doug’s cocks. In fact, once Doug had moved in, she hadn’t used any of her toys.

He put the larger of the two dildos back in the drawer and kept the vibrators out. He plugged in the Hitachi, checked it, and grinned when it sprang to life. “Not yet,” he said as he clicked it off again. “Roll over.”

“What?”

“Roll. Over.” His voice deepened. “Don’t make me ask again.”

Heart racing, she did. Her clit still throbbed from his previous attention as much as it did from anticipation and his masterful tone. She felt him push her legs apart and kneel between them. Then he spread her ass cheeks, and she felt his tongue slowly begin to rim her virgin ass.

“Oh!” She fisted the sheets, squirming, loving the sensation.

He repositioned himself, hooking his arms under and around her thighs so she couldn’t squirm out of his grasp and he could still reach up and hold her cheeks apart as he laved his tongue over her ass, pussy, and taint.

She loved it. She’d never felt anything like that before. After a few minutes of that, she felt him press a finger against her rim.

“Relax, baby.” He massaged her, not working inside yet. When he apparently felt she was ready, he sat up and she felt cool lube drizzling between her cheeks. His finger returned, and this time he did start slowly pressing for entrance.

“How’s that feel?”

She buried her face into the pillow, ashamed to admit she loved the sensation. Then she felt the sharp sting of a slap on her ass. She yelped and tried to sit up, but his firm hand between her shoulder blades wouldn’t let her.

“I asked you a question, darlin’. Answer me.”

She felt another flood of juices soak her already wet pussy. “Good,” she whispered.

He rubbed her ass cheek, where he’d smacked her, soothing the residual sting away. “Good girl,” he cooed.

She wondered if he’d be this assertive in bed after he sobered up.

Scratch that, she prayed he’d still be this assertive in bed. She loved it.

Loved him.

Her eyes popped open as the revelation hit home. I love him.

Then his finger breached her tight ring of muscle, stealing coherent thought from her as he slowly began to fuck her ass with his hand. She ground her hips in time with his movement, earning her a pleased chuckle.

“Such a good girl you are. You want me to fuck this sweet ass, don’t you?”

“Yes!”

He reached up and grabbed her hair, firmly pulling her head up and back so he could look into her face.

“My cock’s the only one to ever fuck you there?”

His intense blue gaze mesmerized her. “Yes!”

He leaned in and kissed her. He owned her, and he knew it.

“I’m going to fuck you so good,” he whispered, “that you’re never going to want another cock in you again, you hear me?” He buried his finger even more deeply in her ass, wiggling it around and making her moan.

“Yes!”

“Such a good girl you are,” he cooed. He gently lowered her head to the pillow and released her hair. She felt him withdraw his finger from her ass, add more lube, then start over with two fingers.

“Oh!” She couldn’t think. It felt good and weird and pleasant and nearly painful all at the same time. A pinchy burn as he slowly worked both fingers into her, which gave way to more pleasant sensations once her body grew used to him.

Then she heard the smaller vibrator click on and felt him press it against her cunt. It slid in, and she raised her hips enough he could fully insert it in the right position.

She exploded, screaming into the pillow and trying to fuck his hand and the vibrator at the same time as her world unhinged. It felt like the core of her being had been ripped apart by an explosion she never wanted to end.

He laughed. “Ah, I found what you like, didn’t I? Yes, you just wait, I’m going to turn you into a good little ass slut for me.”

One orgasm rolled into another, and she was barely aware of it when he withdrew his hand and then added a third finger, pressing in. The aching as she stretched to take him triggered yet another orgasm.

She tried to escape him, to get a momentary respite from the intense, relentless pleasure, but he swung around and straddled her waist, pinning her to the bed. “Oh, no you don’t. You’re not going anywhere until I say so. I’m not done with you yet.”

She felt him remove his fingers, then add more lube. Then something else, cool and firm and round, pressing against her ass.

The dildo.

“It’s too big,” she tried to protest.

“You want me to stop, it all stops,” he firmly said. “Just say ‘red,’ and I’ll stop everything.”

She fell still.

“Good girl,” he said.

She melted, inside and out, at his pleased tone even as another orgasm made her sob.

“See? You love this. You just needed someone to trust enough to make you lose control.” She felt her face burn as her hips took on a life of their own, trying to fuck his hand and take the dildo in.

He lightly slapped her ass. “Hold still, baby. There will be plenty of time to shake that thing later when it’s my cock going in there…”

She lost track of what he did and said as dizzying pleasure took over. The vibrator wiggling inside her, as well as the little appendage on the front perfectly hitting her clit, in combination with him fucking her with the dildo, took her to the edge and held her there, overloading her senses.

Tate finally pulled out the dildo and switched off the vibrator. He removed it, too. She felt empty as her senses tried to coalesce into something resembling coherency.

She heard him rip open a condom pouch. Then he grabbed her hips and nudged her up onto her knees into the position he wanted her. “Last chance to say no, baby. Tell me what you want.”

She licked he lips. “I want to feel your cock in my ass.”

He feathered his lips down her spine, sending shivers through her. His voice sounded low and throaty, sending more waves of need through her. “I’m going to make you come until I’m ready to stop, baby. I want to feel that sweet virgin ass of yours sucking my cock deep inside you. I’m going to make you realize how good it is to let go to someone else.”

“Yes, please!”

She felt still more cool lube on her ass, then he knelt between her legs and pressed the head of his cock against her loosened rim. “No going back.”

“Do it!”

He slowly pressed forward. She gasped, and he paused, waiting for her to adjust to the sensation. When she relaxed, he continued until his entire cock was buried inside her and she felt his thighs pressing against hers.

“Take a deep breath,” he instructed.

She did. Then she heard the Hitachi click on and felt him reach around her waist and press it between her legs.

Her already swollen clit responded as an earth-shattering orgasm ripped through her. Her back arched and she cried out.

He held her in place with his other hand around her waist. “That’s it,” he grunted. “Let me feel you come for me.”

The pleasure bordered on pain, more intense than anything she’d ever felt before, robbing her of all strength. Her body held her prisoner even more than Tate’s reassuring grasp as she trembled in his arms. He pulled the Hitachi away for just a moment, giving her a chance to catch her breath before he firmly pressed it against her pussy again. He did this over and over, softly talking to her, encouraging her to let go for him.

After what felt like forever, he started moving, sliding his cock out until just the head was buried before sinking home again, the pleasure-pain in her ass only intensifying each orgasm until she could do little more than lie there and gasp for air between moans of ecstasy.

He began to thrust faster, harder, deeper. “You’re such a good girl, and such a hot ass, I’m ready to come. Give me one more, baby.”

Her body responded, her fingers clamped around fistfuls of bedding as she moaned into her pillow.

“Good girl.” He shut the Hitachi off, dropped it to the bed, and grabbed her hips. He fucked her hard and fast, his cock swelling and throbbing inside her as she felt him come. He collapsed on top of her, then rolled to his side with his arms around her, his softening member still buried inside her.

She burst into tears.

Immediately, Tate’s voice changed, concerned, back to normal. “Honey, are you okay?”

“Yes!” she wailed, clutching his arms tightly around her, praying he never let go.

She felt his body stiffen, his uncertainty evident. “Are you sure? Did I go too far?”

She vigorously shook her head as she sobbed. “That…was…fantastic!”

He finally relaxed, chuckling a little. “You sure?”

She nodded, tipping her head back so she could kiss him. He responded, gently nibbling on her lips and working his way back to her ear. He sucked her earlobe into his mouth and flicked it with his tongue.

“I love you,” he whispered.

She sniffled as a smile curved her lips. “I love you, too.”

He hugged her tighter, and like that, she crashed into sleep.

Tate waited until he knew Harper was sound asleep before carefully pulling out and untangling himself from her. He cleaned up in the bathroom, moved the toys off the bed, then crawled back in next to her.

He’d sobered up, and as Harper rolled against his side, tucking her head in the crook of his arm in her sleep, he knew he would do whatever it took to keep her in his life. He loved Doug, but tonight he’d fully seen the vulnerable side of Harper, the woman who wanted someone to love, to be loved, someone she could trust to let go with.

He would never take that away from her. Not even for Doug.

He would, however, do his best to convince her and Doug that, contract be damned, there was room for three in this relationship.

The next morning, he awoke before she did and watched as she stirred, then slowly opened her eyes.

He stroked her cheek and kissed her good morning. “How do you feel?”

She blushed, but nodded.

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.