“Not that bad?”
Oh yeah, she was gonna get it. I glanced at Kieran and saw he was already moving forward, wanting to get in on the fun. Her butt hit the counter, but it was when his hands went around her arms that I caught her small wince of pain. My smile died, and I was up and on the counter, my hands pulling Harper’s shirt up and over her head seconds later.
“What the fuck…?” I hissed, seeing the purplish bruises there. “Fuck Dax.” The tiger growled that out, but I was rightthere with the furry half of my soul. “Fuck his shit. Fuck that guy for laying hands on you.”
“You’ll get no argument from me.” Kieran looked way too pale, then moved to stand between Harper and Mack. “You’re not spanking her.”
“Of course, I’m not.” All the heat seemed to leave Mack in that moment. He shook his head, again and again, but that wouldn’t get rid of it. Pain, that’s what he felt, because it was exactly what was making my heart ache right now. “Fuck…” His hands clawed at the air, then fell helpless. “Fuck…”
“No, no.” Harper turned around and then started to wriggle. We all stared in complete incomprehension as she worked her jeans down. First there was a very pretty pair of lace underwear, then they were eased down, baring her arse to the room. “We’re doing this. You’re gonna spank me for being a very naughty girl and then we’re all moving on.”
“Pretty girl.” I tilted her head up so her eyes met mine. Pain, fear, anger, and something else all warred in them. Her lips thinned as she squinted, but I could see the tears she hadn’t shed. My hand stroked her cheek, suddenly so much more aware of what I could’ve lost. “He hurt you.”
“He tried to.” I had two sisters who could turn into tigers, but even they never managed to look as fierce as Harper did right now. “He tried to, and I killed him. So Dax is gone and there is nothing to get in the way…”
“Get in the way of what?” Kieran leaned over to get a better look at her face. “In the way of what, Harper?”
“Of us.” She shook her head as if this hurt to admit. “Of our future. I never wanted to think about it, but you made me.” Harper turned around slowly. “You were all sweet and lovely.” Her eyes narrowed as she took Mack in. “Except you. You were a dick. But then I realised why you were a dick and I… I decided I wanted this. I am never going to be someone who stays at homewaiting for someone else to save the day. I’m gonna be there fighting beside you.”
She sought my gaze.
“Your sisters fought Dax’s men.”
“My sisters turn into over one hundred kilos of furry fury, complete with massive fangs and razor-sharp claws,” I replied. “That’s not the same thing.”
“You did this for me?” Something shifted in Mack, drawing him closer, and I caught the moment his hands shook as he reached up to touch Harper again. Featherlight his touch was now, barely skimming her arms. “Gotta say, my mate, I’m starting to think you like me.”
Her breath came in faster and faster now, and at first I thought that was arousal. That syrupy sweetness of her scent deepened, becoming something far more complex. She glanced at Kieran, then me, but nothing she saw there gave her the out she was looking for. Instead, I watched the muscle jump in her jaw, then her head shake.
“I think I like all of you.”
“Think?” I cocked an eyebrow, trying for cool, but that lasted about two point four seconds before I leaned over and kissed away the tension in her mouth. “I know I like you, Harper.” My heart was beating faster and faster, reminding me of the danger I was in. Not from humans or Dax and his idiots. There was something far more important at stake. “I mean, if pushed, I might even say… I love you, Harper.”
Her face crumpled up, making me think I had fucked up majorly, but then her hand shot out, dragging me closer. My forehead pressed against hers, our breaths mingling.
“Right there with you.” I could almost see the abashed shuffle of the bear in Kieran right now, the big man’s cheeks flushing. “My mum gave me a talking to, said I needed to work out what my priorities are. The family I was born into or…” Hescratched the back of his neck. “The one I want to make mine. Harper?—”
“Don’t say it.” She dragged him closer, and now the three of us were in this little huddle. The whole world could blow up and I wouldn’t have noticed anything beyond our little bubble. “I don’t think I can cope with it if you say it.”
“Love?” Mack shouldered forward, placing her on the counter and stepping between her thighs. “What else do you call it when someone’s willing to kill for you? When you’re thinking about someone else’s happiness rather than your own damn safety? C’mon, beautiful, I know I said I’d chase you, but at some point you’ve gotta stop running.”
Her breath was ragged, coming in noisy gulps, and I savoured every single one. I didn’t want Harper distressed, but right now was the moment shefeltwhat it was like to climb that tree, not think about it.
“I can’t promise I won’t start running again,” she whispered. “Pretty much the only thing I know how to do.”
“We know,” Kieran said, grabbing her hand and holding tightly.
“But… maybe, I might think you guys are kinda OK and I wouldn’t kick you out of bed for eating crackers.”
“You looove us…” I said, grinning down at her, then pressing a kiss to her lips before she could splutter. “Which is kinda cool, because I am fucking gone for you.”
“He may or may not have doodled Tor hearts Harper all over the timber order we were supposed to pick up,” Kieran said. I shot him a dark look, expecting more due to the bro code. “Was kinda embarrassing explaining that to the supplier.”
“Yeah, well, Kieran started drinking chamomile tea all the time.” Harper looked at me in confusion. “So he could get to sleep earlier and visit your dreams.”
“That right, Bear Boy?” she asked, shooting him a slow smile, then turning to Mack. I felt a little moment of tension, hoping like hell he didn’t fuck this up. Mack wasn’t exactly known for his emotional availability. “What about you, Fur Face?”
“I didn’t doodle anything,” he said, staring into her eyes. “Didn’t dream of anything. If you’re looking for pretty words, Harper, I don’t have them.”
