Tormented (28 page)

I kept reading. I wanted to know how he died.

Speculations were that he’d committed suicide, but I didn’t buy it. Nolan was way too much of a narcissist to ever contemplate doing something like that to himself. Chances were much higher that somebody had decided it was time for the self-involved politician to meet his maker.

Gazing into the distance, I hardly registered the deep blue of the ocean or the squawking of seagulls as my mind processed the new information. Relief washed over me that Nolan would no longer be able to affect my future.

In spite of Harrison’s assurance that he would protect me with his own life, I couldn’t help the small seed of fear that had planted firmly inside my mind. As long as he was alive Nolan could always come back to threaten my family.

Even prison couldn’t stop him if he wanted to get to me. Or Harrison.

Once the therapist I saw twice a week convinced me that Nolan derived erotic gratification from admiration of his own physical and mental attributes, and that he was most likely incapable of loving someone else, I’d found it a lot easier to deal with what had happened to me on that island.

It was always about Nolan, and only Nolan. He’d simply used me as a tool to feed his ego.

Proud that I was finally able to dissociate myself from the way he’d used my body, I’d tried my damn best to move on. Yet in spite of everything, that small seed of doubt would always have remained.

I grimaced as I thought back to the grueling time I’d been through after we returned from the island. Statements, testifying about what I’d been put through, examinations and tests . . . on and on for weeks, yet now it all seemed like a blur in my mind.

Reliving the hell Nolan had put me through caused me to wake drenched in sweat, screaming as nightmares invaded my sleep. Every time Harrison had comforted me, held me tight and reassured me that it would all be okay.

Every time he’d rock me in his arms and whisper one specific word repeatedly. “Karma, baby, karma.”

If it weren’t for Harrison, I could easily have lost the plot.

My man had saved me not only physically but in every way that really counted. It had taken a while to come to grips with it, to get over the emotional hurdles and mental distress, but I’d done it with the help of Harrison, Ryder and Jade.

Even the Scorpio Stinger men had played a part in helping me heal. They held a barbeque at the compound in my honor and Razor even had a bunch of flowers for me when we arrived.

At first I’d found it difficult to forgive my father for his part in the nightmare, but he assured me that he’d only had my best interests at heart and never in his wildest dreams would he have imagined Nolan to act the way he did. I couldn’t have predicted it and I’d lived with the man, so I decided to simply let it go.

Plus, Bill had taken care of my darling Mui-mui, so I had to give him credit for that. Mui-mui moved to the house with us, but she hated the ocean so we never brought her with us if we planned on swimming.

J
erked back to the present by a whistle, I turned my head and watched Harrison running toward me from the house carrying a cooler bag and an umbrella. God, he looked gorgeous and as usual butterflies swarmed my belly. His muscles flexed in the gleaming sunlight while he moved gracefully over the hot white sand. I stared at his washboard abs and muscled calves and counted my blessings.

“Hey you,” I said as his body cast a short shadow over mine. The man was so fit he hardly broke a sweat, and his breathing wasn’t even labored. “You didn’t need to run.”

He laughed. “Of course I did. I wanted to get back to you as soon as possible. As your bodyguard, I’m not supposed to leave your side for a minute while you’re outside. I brought supplies.” He held up the insulated bag before placing it next to me and then dug the umbrella into the sand. He opened it and positioned the shade so it covered the top half of my body, allowing my legs to soak up some more rays before he sank down next to me on the large beach towel and nuzzled my neck. His hot breath hit the shell of my ear and I let out an appreciative hum.

God, I love his closeness.

“See this,” I said, as I handed him the tablet. He read the news article in silence before handing the tablet back to me. Since he wore sunglasses, I couldn’t read his eyes, but his jaw had set tightly and he pressed his lips together as if he was stopping himself from saying something.

“You already knew, didn’t you?” Just as I couldn’t hide anything from my man, he was an open book to me.

“Yeah, Savage messaged me half an hour ago. I called him when I went up to the house. Somebody ordered a hit on Parker.”

I sucked in a breath.

“Do you know who it is?”

“Savage didn’t say.” Even if he knew, he’d explained to me earlier that sometimes there would be things he wouldn’t discuss with me because he was protecting me, so I didn’t push it.

“I do have a surprise for you though.” A mischievous smile lit up his face.

“Don’t keep me hanging. What is it?” I shrieked.

“First, I need a kiss.” He puckered his lips and waited.

I laughed. “That’s bribery, Mr. Summers.”

“Anything for a kiss. You know I can’t resist those juicy lips.”

Lifting myself, I reached up and lay my lips on his. I loved kissing Harrison.

Breathless, he pulled away after a while. “You’ve earned your surprise like a good girl. Want to know what it is?”

I slapped his arm. “What kind of question is that?”

His eyes sparkled with mischief. “I’ve been working on it for a while, but I figured you need some help around the new house.”

“Oh. That’s it?” I tried to hide my disappointment from him. He was right, it was a big house and I wasn’t the best at cleaning or doing boring chores. I preferred to spend my time doing creative things and the days weren’t long enough to get to everything. Plus, I hadn’t been back to work and when I decided I was ready, I’d need all the help I could get.

“Don’t look at me like that. The person I’ve organized to help you is the real surprise.” He beamed from ear to ear. “I’ve managed to get Sofia to come to stay with us. She’ll also go to school to learn a skill for her future.”

“Sofia? Oh my God, you’re the best!” I threw my arms around his neck and showered his face with big wet kisses.

“If I knew you’d react like that I would have told you sooner. She’s arriving next week, so we need to prepare a room for her.”

“That’s easy. Jade and I have already done some planning and choosing color schemes for the guest rooms. I can’t wait to see her again.” I pushed the hair off his forehead and smiled at him. “You are the fucking sweetest man, Harrison Summers. Your heart is pure and I love you for thinking of Sofia.”

His hearty chuckle warmed my soul. “Well, you couldn’t stop talking about how much she helped you, so I figured I’d find out more about her. She’s an orphan and lived with her uncle and his family. It took some convincing, but apparently Sofia misses you too and she jumped at the chance to further her education.”

“Thank you so much. I love my surprise so hard.”

“That’s all that counts, sweetheart. I love making you happy.”

“I’m happy, Harrison.”

“Me too, baby, me too.”

H
e rolled me over so I lay on my side, facing him. “Guess you don’t need a bodyguard anymore.” His lips twisted with a wry smile. “I’ll have to get a real job now. I’ll talk to Ryder when we go to dinner on Sunday.”

“Ryder? How is that going to help you?”

His face turned serious. “I’ve been toying with the idea of joining the Scorpio Stinger MC for a while. Ever since we rescued you off the island, to be exact. It may be time to act on those thoughts.”

“Wow. Just wow. You are a dark horse, Mr. Summers. I would never have guessed it in a million years.”

He chuckled. “Me neither. But most of all, I can’t wait to see Jade’s face when we discuss it. She’s always stood up for Ryder and his boys.”

“As long as you’re happy with your decision. That’s all that counts.”

He picked up the tube of suntan lotion, squeezed a dollop into his hand and rubbed it between his palms. The aroma of coconut and vanilla drifted in the air as he leaned over and applied the cream to the back of my legs with long languid strokes.

God, I loved his large hands on my skin. I closed my eyes and savored the moment.

“You could always work with me at Ryder Music,” I said, my eyes still shut.

Harrison chuckled. “Have you heard me sing? Baby, I know my strengths, and music isn’t one of them. Let me stick to what I’m good at, yeah?”

“Hmmm, I know a number of things you’re good at,” I purred.

“Turn around so I can rub lotion on your front too.”

Taking my time, I flipped onto my back and smiled up at my man. My arm slid around his neck and I pulled his face closer to my lips.

“Eva, you’re an insatiable beast. I fucking love it.”

I giggled as Harrison turned my words on me. Since we’d moved into the house, I’d become a borderline nymphomaniac. He’d done a damn good job of erasing all the bad memories and keeping me wet for him. I just couldn’t get enough of Harrison’s cock, and nothing could have pleased my man more.

Let’s face it, what man doesn’t like his cock to be worshipped?

“Do with me whatever you want . . . whatever you need. As long as it makes you happy, it makes me happy too.”

“You know what I want. I want you. And your pussy. Your mouth. Your tits. Your heart and your soul, too. All of you.”

“You’ve got it already. It’s been yours forever.”

“I know. You were born to save me.” He grinned down at me. “And to fuck me.”

He untied the top of my bikini and pulled it off my breasts.

“Fuck, you’re so beautiful,” he growled as he cupped my breasts and squeezed. “And since you’ve given me permission to do anything I want, have I told you how much I like fucking on the beach on a sunny day?”

I laughed. “I heard there’s stormy weather headed our way,” I teased.

“To be honest, I don’t really care about the weather or where the hell we are. I just wanna be inside you, where my cock belongs.”

“Hmmm, I love that your cock likes me so much.”

“He more than likes you, baby.” To prove it, he pushed his trunks down and produced his hard dick. A drop of pre-cum formed on the tip, begging for my lips.

“God, what a handsome specimen . . . and so happy to see me!”

“Always, baby, always,” he groaned, as I leaned in to lick the droplet and then rim the edges of his cock with my tongue.

He pushed me backwards, and I wriggled my ass as he helped me out of my bikini bottoms and slid them down my legs. A deep ache settled at my core. The kind of ache that could only be fixed with one man’s love.

“God, I crave your cock so damn much,” I said in a low and husky voice.

“Not as much as I crave your pussy.” He spread my legs wide while keeping his gaze locked to the most private part of me.

Diving between my legs, he licked and sucked my clit until my moans could be heard above the sound of the crashing waves. Harrison loved when I was verbal, and I wanted to drive him crazy with my sex noises.

Anyone could come across us at any time. Although the beach was reasonably private and directly in front of our house, our neighbors could easily come for a walk and discover us naked and in lust.

As if he read my mind, he raised his head and said, “Fuck, this is hot. Could easily become my new favorite place to fuck you.”

“What? No tying me up?”

He wiggled his eyebrows at me. “You have no idea how creative I can be. But today I want you to tie me up.”

He was handing me the reins. I loved submitting to Harrison, but I enjoyed when he gave me a chance to be the one in control too. Two could play this intoxicating game.

I swallowed hard then grabbed hold of my bikini top that he’d discarded earlier, and wrapped it around his wrists, tying them to the pole of the umbrella. I was fully aware that this wasn’t about physical strength—because Harrison could easily have ripped the pole from the sand and been free—it was about giving yourself completely to another person and trusting them wholeheartedly. It was Harrison’s way of showing his faith in me. My heart brimmed with love, and every corner of my soul sang with joy. I straddled his hips and leaned forward, my hair hanging between us and my breasts dangling in his face.

He gave me a sexy-as-hell smirk. “Woman on top happens to be my favorite position.”

“You like when I have the control, don’t you?”

“Sure do, baby. There is nothing I can do but take everything you dish out. I can’t wait to see what you do to me.”

“Is that right?” A multitude of delicious ideas ran through my mind.

I could get used to this.

“Hmmm. And watching your tits and beautiful face is a bonus.”

“You talk too much.” I leaned in and shut him up with a toe-curling kiss.

Nearly breathless, I leaned back as my fingertips ran over the tattoo on his chest. “Karma,” I breathed as I read the word scripted on his chest in black ink.

“Yeah. Karma has a way of sorting things out in the end. Like with Parker.” He went quiet for a moment before he said. “There’s only one thing about karma I don’t understand.”

“And that is?”

A deep frown settled between his brows. “You. I don’t understand what I did to deserve you.”

Reaching up, I gently massaged his brow until the frown disappeared. “Oh baby, you deserve me as much as I deserve you. We were always meant to find one another—we just had to go through hell and back to be together. But karma showed mercy on both of us.”

“I have to agree. Karma’s about mercy
and
justice. Both in equal measure.”

I smiled at him. “Yeah, it seems it is.”

Harrison’s gaze settled on my stomach. “How’s our baby doing today?”

I rubbed big circles over my growing belly and beamed at him.

“I felt the tiniest flutter while you were away. I think Junior has started kicking.”

“Have I told you lately how much I love you, Eva?”

“Only about a million times. But once more won’t hurt.”