Текст книги "Stealing Harper"
Автор книги: Molly McAdams
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Stealing Harper
MOLLY MCADAMS
Dedication
For my Book Broads. Without all of you, Chase’s story would have never been heard. Love you girls!
Contents
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Acknowledgments
An Excerpt from Forgiving Lies
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
An Excerpt from Taking Chances
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
An Excerpt from From Ashes
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
About the Author
Also by Molly McAdams
Copyright
About the Publisher
Chapter One
“THAT IT?” I asked one of my housemates, Derek, as we passed each other in the hall.
“Yeah, this is the last box. I’m ready for Brandon to be here and all, but, Jesus, I’m glad he won’t be here ’til next weekend ’cause if we move one more person into the house today, I’m gonna die.”
I laughed and stretched out my arms before lifting the bottom of my shirt to wipe the sweat off my face and neck. “That’s what you get for being the first person back here.”
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.”
Drew rounded the corner, holding a flattened inflatable doll. “My car’s empty; did you guys get everything already?”
“No thanks to you.” My eyes went flat as I watched him start blowing up the doll, “Where the hell did you go?”
He held up the doll before going back to blowing air into her.
“Nice. I’m glad that’s your priority.”
“At least he’s come to terms with the fact that a doll’s the only way he’s gonna get some,” Brad, another housemate, said as he smacked Drew’s head and pushed through us.
“Then Drew”—I looked down to the thick, leather-banded watch on my wrist—“you can go pick up and pay for the kegs tonight.”
“But—” he began.
“Might want to go soon; people will be here in a couple hours.”
“Bastards,” Drew mumbled under his breath, as we all left to go to separate parts of the house.
“Quit bitching. You’re the last one to move back in, and you didn’t even move your own shit in.” Even after nine hours of moving the guys in, I couldn’t help but smile as I went to take a shower. First and last parties of the year were always the best; and the first always meant a lot of women and plenty to come.
“GOD,” I GROANED, and couldn’t help it when my hand formed a fist in her hair, urging her to continue—I was so close. She moaned around me, and my eyes shut as I lost it. From the way she jerked, I knew she hadn’t been expecting it. I probably should have warned her, but that was the last thing I’d been thinking about just then.
As soon as she was done, I let her pull away and, as I put myself back in my pants, I looked around to see if anyone had come to this side of the house.
“Thanks, Chase.”
I froze momentarily, then huffed a short laugh and glanced at her as she stood back up. She’s thanking me? Usually, I had to do something for them first before they started thanking me, but I wasn’t one to judge. “Uh, yeah. Ready to go back in?”
She nodded enthusiastically and reached for my hand, so I quickly draped my arm around her shoulder and led us through the backyard and into my house. “Oh, Chase, can we dance? I love this song! Pretty please?”
Pretty please? What are we, five? I tried not to groan and forced a smile on my face. We walked toward the center of the mass of people dancing in my living room, and my hands went to whateverhernamewas’s hips as she ground her butt into me. Her back arched, and I had an even better view of her already exposed chest.
“I’m so glad we can start this before school starts; I was dying to date you all last year,” she whispered, and I ground my teeth.
Date? Oh hell no. I tried to remove my hands from her hips at the same time she pushed them tighter to her body, and someone knocked into us. My already narrowed eyes looked up to see wide, terrified, gray eyes turn toward me. I literally felt my heart skip a few painful beats before my pulse started racing.
Her cloudy eyes looked at the delusional blonde I was pressed up against, then flashed back up to mine. They got wider, and her head slightly shook back and forth like she was on the verge of panicking from what she was seeing as she stumbled over herself trying to back away.
Wrong thing to do, sweetheart. I always did love a challenge.
I finally detached myself and made quick work of getting away from the tightly packed bodies and headed in the same direction she’d just taken off.
“Chase!”
I looked up to see Zach sprinkling salt on a redhead’s chest on the island in the kitchen. “Body shots?”
Zach shook his head to the side and put a shot glass in the girl’s mouth, then filled it with vodka. “No, but do you want the honors?”
The redhead curled her index finger toward herself, and when I got close, ran her fake nails across my lower stomach. I licked her chest, curled my lips around the shot glass in her mouth, and lifted it out, letting the liquor slide down my throat. Zach poured the next shot as I sucked on the spot on her neck where Zach had rubbed lime juice before making my way to lick her chest again and take the second shot. I resumed biting and sucking on her neck as I sprinkled more salt on her, then repeated the process for the third.
I’d almost forgotten why I’d been coming to the kitchen in the first place, but an annoying feeling like being watched finally broke through, and my eyes shot up to find wide gray eyes locked on mine again. Drew was talking to her, but she was focused on me. Her eyes looked like they were about to bulge out of her head, and her mouth was slightly open. She looked disgusted. I licked the redhead’s chest and winked at this timid-looking girl before taking the fourth shot. I am going to tear you apart, little girl.
I wiped my mouth and bent low to the redhead’s ear, “Thank you, beautiful.” I let my teeth graze her ear and smirked when she shivered.
Straightening quickly, I looked ahead, only to find the timid girl gone and Drew looking in the direction of one of the halls. I immediately took off in that direction and ran into Bree.
“Hey, bro! Awesome first party!”
I hugged her tight and kept looking for that girl. Why did she have to be so damn short? I was never going to find her in this now.
“Who’re you looking for?” Bree asked, and when I looked down at her, saw she was looking around, too, but in the opposite direction.
“A girl, who are you looking for?”
“My roommate, she ran off.”
“Ah shit, Bree, I forgot to ask. How is your roommate?”
She waved a dismissive hand. “She’s awesome, a little sheltered, but I can already tell I’m going to really like her. Now I just have to find her. Can we have your room tonight?”
“Of course, find me whenever you get tired, room—”
“I know, Chase, room’s locked. Like always. I’ll find you later, I gotta go find Harper.”
Harper . . . what the hell kind of name is Harper? Sheltered girl named Harper, I already felt bad for my sister. I laughed softly as I continued to walk toward the hallway; after looking up and down it and not finding her, I went back out toward the kitchen to look for her there.
“Hey there, handsome.”
My brow scrunched as I turned to look at who had just whispered in my ear but relaxed when I saw her. “Natalie. How was your summer?”
She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and leaned close. “It was fine, spent most of it with my boyfriend.”
I nodded and kissed right below her ear. “And how is he?”
“Not here.”
“Shame.”
Her body pressed even closer to mine. “Isn’t it? I was thinking since I’m just so upset about that, you should help me enjoy tonight.”
My fingers trailed under her shirt and against her hot skin, “Bathroom?”
“Where else?” She laughed low and took my other hand as we turned to go one of the bathrooms on the hall I’d just been.
We’d turned the last corner when a little blur smashed into me and began falling backward from the impact. My arms had automatically gone out to steady her, and I instantly recognized the auburn hair moments before the gray eyes met mine.
“I’m so sorry, I—” Her mouth snapped shut, and her gorgeous eyes narrowed.
I couldn’t help but smile at her; she looked like a fierce little kitten the way she was glowering at me. Her eyes lost their anger, and her cheeks reddened slightly as her eyes locked on my lips. I doubt she realized she had pulled her bottom lip into her mouth and was currently biting on that perfectly full, soft-looking lip. I tilted my head to the side and smirked at her; I knew that look. Hell yeah. This was gonna be fun. Oh, sweetheart I am going to break your heart. “Now who are you?”
She blinked rapidly, and a determined look came over her face as she tried to get out of my grasp. No way in hell was I letting her leave yet.
“What, you’re too good to tell me?”
Her expression deadpanned, and her eyes shifted to my left, then down to my waist. Shit, I’d forgotten about Natalie. One of her eyebrows arched, and she looked at me like I disgusted her. “Apparently.”
Excuse me?Who the hell doesthis girl think she is?She’s going to look at me and talk to me like that at my party in my house? She was looking at me like she was royalty, and I was some peasant in her way. I let go of her and crossed my arms over my chest, but for the life of me, I couldn’t tell if I was more pissed off or intrigued. I’d had a girl thank me for letting her blow me earlier, and this girl wouldn’t even give me her name? “Excuse me, Princess?”
Those eyes turned into damn thunderclouds as she roughly shouldered her way past me. “You’re right, excuse me.”
I stood there stunned for what had to be a full minute before Natalie was able to pull me toward the bathroom again. What the hell just happened? I looked behind me, like the freakin’ princess would still be standing there, and shook my head slightly as we hit the bathroom and locked it behind us.
“On or over?” she asked, and was already reaching for the button on her shorts.
That’s what I liked about Natalie. No bullshit with her. Just sex. She had a guy back home, and I didn’t want a relationship. “Over.” I pulled a condom out of my wallet and shed my pants and boxer briefs before rolling it on. Natalie was already bent over the countertop, and I didn’t waste any time.
We both groaned when I slammed into her; I kept one hand on her hip, the other went to her shoulder. I looked at the long blond hair falling across her back and onto the countertop, and my eyes shut as images of auburn hair filled my head. What is it about that girl? I’d seen her for all of three minutes, and already she was consuming my mind this way? Why? She was disgusted with me . . . that was more than apparent. That had to be it. I was used to this, used to tonight. The blonde earlier, the redhead in the kitchen, and now Natalie. I wasn’t used to insignificant girls not wanting me. And she had no idea how bad that was for her. It just made the challenge that much better. I would get her. And I would enjoy breaking her heart. I almost smiled to myself, but then flashes of her wide, innocent, gray eyes and her perfectly white teeth digging into her lips assaulted me. I thought about biting that lip, and my thrusts quickened; thought about her underneath me and in my arms, and I gripped Natalie tightly as I came harder than I ever had before.
“Hell, Chase,” she said roughly, her breathing ragged.
“I’m sorry.” I took a deep breath in and released her before sliding out.
“Why are you apologizing—that was—just holy crap.”
I wanted to ask what else she expected. But I hadn’t even lasted four minutes and had been so lost in a gray-eyed princess that I don’t even remember it. “Get dressed, Natalie.”
After pulling on my own clothes and waiting for her to situate herself, I unlocked the door and led us back into the hall. Without another word, I let go of her and went toward my room in another part of the house. Once I was locked in, I groaned into my hands. What the hell just happened? Why had I pictured her in that way? Sex only, making love never. Those images had definitely been me making love to her, and how was I already getting hard again thinking about this? And about her, especially? That’s it, it’s official . . . there’s something wrong with my dick. She’s a challenge, yeah, but that’s all.
Shutting my eyes tightly, I tried to think about anything other than her and those fucking mesmerizing eyes, but nothing was helping. With a frustrated groan, I shot off the bed and dug around my desk until I found my latest sketchpad. I focused on some pieces I was working on for myself, as well as my buddy Brian at the shop, and tried to push that girl out of my mind. And no, the fact that I hid the word “princess” within the design I wanted to complete my right sleeve had nothing to do with her or the fact that I couldn’t stop thinking about her. At all. Fuck. I slammed my sketchpad shut and shoved it into my desk.
I stretched my arms and back before leaving my room and locking the door behind me. I’d almost gotten to the end of the hallway when I heard Drew’s loud slur.
“YYYEEEAAAH, Bree and fresh meat are sleeping over tonight!”
I figured “fresh meat” was Bree’s new roommate and felt bad for once again forgetting to meet her. I needed to make sure my sister wasn’t going to be rooming with some crazy person. When I got into the living room, Bree was over taking shots with Drew and Zach, and there, standing near the doors to the backyard, was my gray-eyed princess. This better be a fucking mistake.
Plastering a smile on my face, I couldn’t help but embrace the images that were now burned into my mind, “Well, well. If it isn’t the princess.”
She froze when she heard me, and as she turned to look at me, her eyes narrowed, and the fakest smile I’ve ever seen crossed her face. “I almost didn’t recognize you without a tramp attached.”
Seriously, who the hell doesshe think she is? I leaned close and whispered harshly in her ear, “Would you like to change that? I’m not up to my limit tonight yet.”
The princess leaned away, and her eyes went wide, “Oh, I’m sorry, but I don’t have any STDs, I’m not your type.”
Bree started choking, and I knew I should make sure she was okay, but my jaw had dropped, and I couldn’t stop staring at his frustrating girl. “Chase, you better stay away from my roommate. I told the guys she’s off-limits.”
I cringed at Bree’s words. Not a mistake. This really was her roommate.
“You know him?” the princess asked, hardly trying to contain her revulsion.
“Well, I’d like to think so, he is my brother.”
The most beautiful blush I’ve ever seen instantly spread across her cheeks, and for a second I forgot why I didn’t want to be completely taken with this girl.
“Wait. Harper, is this the guy you said was a jerk?”
Harper. That’s right, her name isHarper. I don’t know why I didn’t like it earlier; I couldn’t think of anything more perfect for her. It fit her, and I wanted to say it myself, but then I remembered why she was pissing me off and decided to stick with what seemed to piss her off more. Her eyes flew to the ground, and my lips quirked up into a smile.
“You said I’m a jerk?” I laughed and walked over to my sister. “She’s the one that just practically called me a dirty man-whore.”
“Don’t be rude to my friends, Chase!” Bree punched my arm, and I tried not to roll my eyes at how pathetic her punches were.
Princess turned quickly and went outside, and I tried not to let it show that I watched her leave. “Great roommate, Bree,” I scoffed, and grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge.
“She is, but she said you weren’t nice! So be nice. I told you, she’s pretty sheltered.”
I turned my back to Zach and Drew and leaned onto the island close to Bree. “Sheltered how?”
“She grew up with only her dad, and she said he’s been in the army or navy or whatever for her whole life.” Bree took two more shots, and I shook my head at her; at least she was staying here. “And get this! She’s never worn makeup or been to a mall!”
My face fell in mock horror. “Never been to a mall? Oh no.”
“Go be nice to her, you big jerk!”
I kissed Bree’s forehead and made my way outside. It was dark, but it didn’t take long to find her. Her face was in her hands, elbows on her knees. Is she crying? I usually hated when women cried, but I had to force myself not to rush up to her to make sure she was okay. God, get a grip. I sank into the seat next to her and waited until she peeked up at me. Not crying. Thank God.
“You hiding?”
“Is it that obvious?”
I looked at the empty backyard. “A little.” I took a deep breath in and got more comfortable. “Tell me, what’s a princess like you doing at my party?”
“I’m not sure what you mean,” she ground out, “but I was invited.”
I couldn’t care less if she was invited or not. I just didn’t want her around me. I didn’t want her in my house, and I didn’t want to be getting hard again thinking about her in my bed. Challenge or not, she was already getting under my damn skin too much for me to think clearly. She needed to go. I curled my lip and looked at her with the disgust she’d been serving me with all night. “You don’t have to be invited to come to the party, but in case you didn’t notice, you don’t exactly fit in here, Princess.”
She looked shocked and hurt. Good. Maybe now she’d stay the hell away.
“If the way we are disgusts you so much, feel free to stay at school next time.” I stood, and hated that I couldn’t help but look at her once more before walking away.
“Chase.”
My eyes shut, and I took a deep breath in. Would it have been weird to ask her to say my name again?
“I’m really sorry, I was out of line.”
Wait—she was apologizing? I turned and looked at her, confused. Oh God, it was a bad idea to turn around. If her sweet-as-hell voice hadn’t been bad enough, the way her eyes had gone back to completely wide and innocent was about to do me in.
“I was raised not to back down to people, but what I said was too much. So, I’m sorry. I don’t know you, I shouldn’t judge you.”
I huffed, and the corners of my mouth twitched. Snarky and sweet. Bad combination. Sexy combo—so damn sexy. But bad. I shook my head, and my brow rose when I realized I wanted to get to know this girl. Now that was a bad idea. I turned and took the long way around the house, giving my hard-on time to go down.
“. . . you kiss anyone tonight?” Bree’s voice reached me as I stepped through the front door, and I closed it quietly when I heard Princess murmur, “No.”
“I can help with that!” My hands formed into fists over Zach’s words, and I growled. Over my dead body.
“No, no, no. I told you guys, she’s off-limits!”
Thatta girl, Bree. I took the last few steps toward the living room when Zach spoke again.
“Come on, Bree, what’s your deal?”
“ ’Cause she’s pure. Completely. Pure.”
I froze. What the hell, Bree? Shit, from the way Harper’s cheeks went fire-engine red, Bree wasn’t lying. She was pure. I looked at Harper’s mortified expression, and the urge to take her in my arms and take her away from this overwhelmed me. I didn’t know where the protectiveness for her came from, but somehow I knew I’d do anything for this innocent girl, and I’d kill anyone who tried to take that innocence from her.
Bree’s index finger went to tap Harper’s lips, and Harper grabbed her wrist, pulling it back “Breanna!”
“Shh!” Bree covered her own lips with her index finger this time. “Harper, don’t tell them!”
Harper looked up, and her jaw clenched as she took in Brad, Drew, Derek, and Zach bursting out laughing. I wanted to punch every single one of them.
Derek was wiping tears from his eyes. “Oh my God! Princess, is she serious?”
I growled again. That was my name for her.
She swallowed roughly and disentangled herself from Bree before heading straight toward me. My heart started pounding until I realized she hadn’t seen me yet, and I was standing in the way of the front door.
Jolting back slightly when she realized I was in her way, her eyes looked everywhere but at me. “Please. Move.”
And let her leave? Hell no. I grabbed her shoulders and turned her around at the same time I started walking us toward my room.
“Don’t touch me!”
“Just trust me,” I growled, and walked her through the living room, where everyone was still laughing.
“Looks like Chase is gonna take care of that problem for you, Princess!” Brad yelled, and I’ve never wanted to punch my friend more than I did then. I paused and cursed, but knew I’d rather take care of her right then than let all of them know how much they were pissing me off.
I unlocked my door and pushed her in; as soon as the light was on, she gasped and started bucking against me. I held her by pushing her elbows into her side so her jerking arms couldn’t hit me.
“No! Get off me!”
“Not until you stop trying to hit me!”
Instantly, Harper stopped moving, but her body was practically vibrating with tension. I waited almost a minute before releasing her and feigning indifference.
“Calm down, Princess, I’m not going to do anything to you.”
“I really wish you would stop calling me that.”
I rolled my eyes. Why else did she think I still called her that? I opened up one of my drawers and pulled out a pair of mesh workout shorts before throwing them at her and walking toward my door. “Put those on, I’ll be back.”
“Why?”
“Did you want to sleep in that skirt?” I raked my teeth over my bottom lip as I thought about her sleeping in nothing at all. “I swear I wouldn’t mind it, but I figured you’d be uncomfortable, though.”
“Breanna said I would be in a room with her tonight, and if that’s not happening, I’d rather just go back to the dorm.”
“I can assure you she’ll be sleeping in the bathroom. I’ll give you a minute to change; I’ll be right back.”
“I am not sleeping with you in here.”
“Look, you’re seriously hot; that alone is going to have them chasing after you. But top that off with the few words you’ve even said that shows me just how snarky and sweet as hell you are, that is one hell of a tempting combination. Trust me when I say they’re going to want to change what they just found out about you. So if you don’t mind, I’d rather make sure that doesn’t happen.” I’d already vowed to make it my mission in life to make sure that didn’t happen.
I slammed the door with more force than necessary and stalked out to the living room, “What the hell is wrong with all of you?”
“She putting up much of a fight, Chase?” Drew sneered, and put more bottles of liquor away.
My hands balled into fists again, “You’re all assholes, and you just embarrassed the shit out of her.” I turned to look at Bree, who looked like she was five minutes from passing out. “You’re on your own tonight, sis. Or ask one of the other guys to take care of you.”
“Chase,” Brad said with a confused look, “seriously? She’s your sister, that”—he jerked his head toward one of the hallways—“is just some chick that ain’t gonna put out for you.”
Don’t punch him. Don’t freaking punch him. “She’s your problem tonight,” I said through clenched teeth and went back to my room.
“That was rude, she’s your sister. She should be in here, too.”
Harper, too? Did no one else realize how much of a bitch Bree just was? “Are you serious? You’re gonna defend her after she just spilled that?”
“She’s drunk. I’m sure she didn’t realize it.”
“That’s not an excuse.” I almost groaned; there she goes being sweet as sin again. “Come on, Harper, get in.”
I watched her crawl onto my bed, and my heart started hammering. Bree slept alone in my room when we had parties, but other than that, no girl had ever been in any of my bedrooms, and definitely not in my bed. And I was about to get in it with her. I could easily go crash on the couch or Brad’s floor, but the thought of waking up next to Harper was too tempting. When she was under the covers, I switched off the lights and crawled in beside her; she immediately flew up into a sitting position.
“What are you doing?” she hissed.
“What do you mean?”
“You can’t get in here with me!”
So innocent. I laughed softly, but inside I was terrified she would actually ask me to leave, “It’s my bed, I’m sure I can do what I want.”
Without another word, her half of the covers were flipped onto me, and the weight left her side of the bed. Her side? No . . . the side she was on. She doesn’t have a side. This is just for tonight, right?
“Get back in the bed, Princess.”
She scoffed, and I sighed. Snarky, sweet, and stubborn as shit. God, I wanted her. I rolled off the bed and picked her up off the ground.
“Oh my word! Put me down!”
With pleasure, Princess. I dropped her onto the bed and crawled over her body, trying to stifle my groan when I felt her body press against mine.
“Chase! No!”
“Calm down, I’ll stay on my side. We can even put a pillow between us if it’ll make you feel better.” I was serious. With the hard-on I was sporting again, I needed a brick wall between us.
She scooted as far from me as the bed would allow, and I forced myself not to pull her back to me. “I swear, if you touch me, I’ll go Lorena Bobbitt on you.”
Lorena Bobbitt? Why does that sound—oh my God, the lady that chopped off her husband’s dick? I busted out laughing and put my pillow over my face. “Oh my God! Princess! You’re my new favorite!” That’s it, that comment right there, and it was sealed. I would do anything to have this beautiful gray-eyed princess lying next to me, as mine.
“That wasn’t a joke.”
I moved closer and let the tips of my fingers trail up her slender arm. Could she hear how hard my heart started pounding at just being able to touch her? “One of these days, you’ll be begging for me to touch you.”
“I’m serious, Chase. I’m not like all those girls I saw you with tonight.”
“That’s an understatement.” God, I wish she hadn’t seen any of that, and she didn’t even know the half of it. “Get some sleep, Princess, I’ll see you in the morning.”
