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Before she even had a chance to recover from the high, he righted her panties and settled her dress. He rose, giving her a once-over, captured her chin, then dropped his mouth on hers. She instantly became lost in her scent mingling with his and in the way he claimed her, until he backed away and she was left breathless yet again.
He ran his fingers through his hair, fixing the mess she’d made. And with that sexy smile on his gorgeous face, he took her hand and quickly led them back around the house. Without a single hitch to her step, he twirled her around on the dance floor then brought her in close against his chest. “How are you feeling now, beautiful?” He grinned. “Still wanting me bad?”
“I’m feeling like my legs aren’t working.” She laughed. Though the more she glanced around, the more she felt all sets of eyes on hers. “Um, Chase, I think everyone knows. They’re looking at us.”
“No one knows.” He sprawled his hand against her lower back, bringing her in close, and whispered in her ear, “The only thing they are looking at is the fact that I am making a very public statement by having you in my arms like this.”
When he leaned away, she looked at him and all her worries vanished. She knew him, trusted him, and he would never let her be embarrassed like that. He might have played the game of letting her think they would be caught, maybe even giving her a fantasy that, of course, she had thought about before, but he would never actually let her be caught. “You, Chase Blackshaw, are one very bad boy.”
He twirled her past another couple, then pulled her back in. “No, beautiful, what I am is a man who had a beautiful woman begging him to touch her. How could I refuse that?”
Something passed in the air between them. Something sweet and warm and wonderful that brought her emotions into her throat. Tomorrow, she was leaving.
Why couldn’t time stop?
Obviously, her thoughts showed on her face, since he squeezed his hand a little tighter, bringing her against his erection, though that seemed far from his mind. “Can I do something for you tomorrow?” he asked a moment later.
At that, she cocked her head. “What’s the something?”
His brow wrinkled. “Is it okay if I drive you to the airport for your flight?”
She swallowed back all the rawness swelling in her heart and all the things she wanted to say. Instead, she smiled. “Yeah, I’d really like that.” To avoid a reality she was not ready to face, she lay her head against his chest, staring at Brody dancing with Faith across the way.
He gave Harper a smile before glancing down at his new wife. As Chase swayed with the dance, she spotted Nash and Megan talking, which soon turned into Megan glaring and Nash laughing. Harper smiled to herself. Those two would never change. Chase swayed his hips again, turning her slightly, and Harper’s gaze fell to Emma and Shep. They were dancing together on the other side of the yard, their eyes only for each other.
In the warmth and safety of Chase’s arms, the world suddenly looked different, clarity coming out from the shadows of her confusion. There was so much love here in this backyard.
She lifted her head then and stared into Chase’s captivating eyes, spotting his sweet smile. The answers she had been struggling to find for days were suddenly right there, if only she were brave enough to grab hold of them.
At whatever crossed her expression, Chase frowned. “What’s that look for?”
“Ever feel like you’re right where you’re supposed to be?” she asked before she wondered if maybe she shouldn’t have.
He pulled her close, dropping his head into her neck. She thought his silence was his answer. Then he surprised her, murmuring in her ear, “I feel like that every time I’m with you, Harper.”
Chapter 12
Two hours before sunrise, Chase climbed out of bed after tossing and turning all night. Harper slept soundlessly, obviously not disturbed by his restlessness. Once he was showered and dressed, he drove to the ranch, with thoughts of hurrying back to Harper repeating in his mind. Later today, she left him. He wanted to keep her hidden, so she didn’t have to leave. All night he kept trying to find a way they could somehow make this work. Every answer led him to the same conclusion.
For these past eight days, things made sense. Everything was perfect. But he had known all along, right at the beginning, that those eight days were all he got with her. And that had not changed. But that didn’t mean he was not going to enjoy her one last time before she left.
First, he needed to put in a few hours at the ranch while she slept, then he could get back to her.
An hour after sunrise and well into working on one set of stairs, his chest still felt weighted by a reality he could not change—a thought that kept circling his mind—his cell phone beeped. With the morning air warming from the hot sun, he placed the hammer down on the cabin’s porch
, leaving the unfinished stairs for a moment, a haunting reminder of all the things he still needed to do. He grabbed his phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen, finding a text from Harper.
I missed waking up to you. I have something to do this morning, but I’ll go back to your house when I’m done.
His fingers tightened on his phone, a sour taste filling his mouth. His mind continued to circle back to all the things he wanted to say to her, and all the things he would never say because it would only make her leaving him that much harder. Instead, he texted back: I’ll be there as soon as I can.
With his mood sinking into a dark place, he returned his phone back onto the cabin’s porch and lost himself in his work. No matter what he wanted or where he wanted to be, he could not forget he needed to finish this project. Everyone was counting on him. And the grand opening was not going to wait for his desperate desire to have Harper one last time.
An hour later, he finished realigning the stairs and began brushing the dark stain across the corrections he made. He dipped the brush back into the can of stain when he noticed Shep’s truck speeding up the driveway, leaving a trail of billowing dust. When he reached Chase’s truck, he slammed on the brakes, and was out a second later.
“Has Brody come?” Shep jogged toward him, his brows furrowed with concern.
“No.” Chase put down the paintbrush. “Why would he?”
