Chapter 40 Trusting War
Trusting War
Caden
Jack shows up as Harper’s mom is leaving the driveway.
Harper holds the door for him as he carries a box inside and sets it on the table. Then she comes over to peer into the box with us.
“How long is this going to take?” She glances between us.
“This is Jack’s job, little nympho.” I touch my fist to his, and he chuckles. “You and I need to work on those college applications.”
She sighs. “There are too many essays.”
Grabbing my backpack, I take her hand and pull her toward the stairs. “Then we need to get on them. Don’t worry. I’ll be very encouraging.”
Her eyes widen. “Maybe you should help Jack with the security system.”
“No, little nympho. I told you I’d help, and I will.”
When we reach her room, I push the door open. The other three are still on the webcam, doing their homework.
“What have you done so far?” I sit in her desk chair and then pull her down onto my lap.
“I started the applications for the schools that use the common app. There’s several that have their own application, and most of them have essays. I opened a Google Doc for the essays.” She moves her mouse around on the screen as she talks.
“Share the essay doc with us. We can edit as you go.”
She turns. “This would be easier if I wasn’t taller than my desk.”
I chuckle but lift her to her feet. When I stand, I back her against the wall out of sight of the webcam.
Her brown eyes search mine as her vanilla scent fills my nose. Fuck, I love the way she smells. Her cheeks redden a little as her eyes dilate. She touches my arms, and I can’t hold myself back. I dip my head to claim her lips with mine.
She sighs against me and opens beneath me like a flower to the sun. I lift her against the wall, and she wraps around me as I settle against her. This is what I like about Harper. She doesn’t fuss at me like some girls do. She wants me as much as I want her.
Her hands slide into my hair, holding my head. Every inch of her presses against me. Her soft to my hard. I want more of her. She’s mine all night, even if Luke creeps in later. I can wait to have her.
We have shit to get done first, so I break off the kiss. But she leans in and recaptures my lips. I let her lead this time and enjoy the fire she fuels inside me. She’s amazing.
When I pull away, she whimpers. Her lips are swollen and her eyes glazed with need. I brush her hair behind her ear. “Get your work done, little nympho.”
I ease her down onto her feet, and she staggers back to the chair. Chuckling, I pick up my backpack and pull out my laptop. It automatically logs me into the webcam room as I find a spot on Harper’s bed to get comfortable.
She emails everyone the link to her document where she’s copied over the essay questions from each of the schools and how many she needs to write for each. I go through and highlight a few questions that would be the ones for her to answer.
The others make comments about what she should include on each of them.
“I haven’t even started on them.” She leans back in her chair. “Are you going to write them for me too?”
“No, but we want you to use your time wisely,” Luke says from his room.
She turns and looks at me before turning back to the webcam. “Are you going to stay here tonight, Luke?”
He smirks. “Miss me already?”
She doesn’t say anything, but I can see the look she gives the camera on my laptop. She rolls her eyes and focuses on her paper. His smirk softens. He’s falling for her.
She has a soft spot for him.
For all of us really, but I can’t tell if she’s actually falling for us. Before she wanted out of this, now she’s accepting it. Maybe that will be enough to make her open her heart.
I don’t need her heart to keep her with me. There’s a part of me that can’t imagine anyone choosing to fall in love with me. It’s a hard ask.
So I focus on what I can control. She likes what I do to her body. We get along.
Jack knocks on the open door. “It’s ready. Want me to walk you through it?”
Harper stands and walks over to take his hand. Jack is easy to love. My guess is she’ll fall in love with him first. His family and his little sister adore him in a way my family can’t love me.
I let Jack and Harper go by themselves. He’ll make sure she knows all about the system. He might not tell her about the video cameras. But then again, he might. There’s the whole trust thing we’re all trying with her. Probably should tell her about the cameras.
“I can sleep here tonight.” Luke’s voice pulls me out of my thoughts.
“She’ll sleep better if you’re nearby.” I shrug. “She worries about us.”
He nods and brushes his hand through his hair. “I don’t feel comfortable here.”
I know what he means. My house isn’t a home. Not like Harper’s is. Mine is a place where I sleep. It’s better with her and the others there, but it’s still not home. Luke’s is a prison. Mine is lonely. Eli’s is tense. Jack’s is loving, but there’s stress there. Just like there is here.
I glance at Nico. I don’t know how his home life is. He wasn’t wrong. He’s not quite one of us, but he is at the same time. We need to solidify his hold here.
“We should hang out at my place on Friday.” I stretch. “No party. Just get some pizza and play some video games.”
Nico looks up from his homework. “Yeah, that sounds good.”
It gives us all a chance to reconnect. And then we can all fuck Harper until she passes out. She comes into the bedroom and arches an eyebrow at my smirk.
“What are you thinking?” She comes close to the edge of the bed, and I set my laptop off to the side.
“That you look fucking hot when you’re passed out from being worked over.” I drag her down onto the bed with me, so that she straddles my lap.
She glances over her shoulder at her laptop on the desk. The webcam is still on, and the guys are watching, with the exception of Jack.
“Jack just left to go home.” She settles on my lap and plucks at my t-shirt, staring at that spot. Her voice is soft when she says, “We should talk, Caden.”
“We should.” I cradle the back of her head and touch my forehead to hers. “I can’t stand the thought of something happening to you.”
“What can happen to me during class at school?” She presses her hands on my chest and my heartbeat races beneath them. Something almost did happen to her in that locker room. But this is about Tanner.
“I don’t want to lose you, Harper.” I meet her eyes to show her how sincere I’m being. “You mean everything to me. We didn’t come at you in a normal way, but you’re ours. You’re mine. He hurt my sister in a way I can’t even comprehend someone doing to a girl that young.
“I wanted to destroy him after that. But it was a cold rage because I know she fell for it. She wanted him. He didn’t force himself on her.” I cup her jaw. Tears swim in her eyes. I remember Ava’s tears when she came to me. Rejected, pregnant, scared, helpless.
“I’m glad she had you to help put her back together.” Harper’s fingers dig into my shirt lightly.
“I took things away from him. I took his status. I took football. I took everything I could. Because he used my sister as a tool to get back at me.” Lifting my gaze, I search her eyes. She’s not like Ava. She’s not like us. She’s this pure soul we’ve latched on to like a fucking lifeline.
“I need you to know if he hurts you, I won’t stop at taking things from him.” I let her see the rage that boils inside me.
“Caden.” She puts her cool hands on my jaw and rests her forehead against mine. “I won’t let him hurt you.”
Something cracks inside me at those soft words. She won’t let him hurt me.
I glance at the screen over her shoulder, knowing they’re hearing everything, including Jack at his desk. But it doesn’t matter. They’re part of me. They know my damage.
“Do you trust me to keep you safe, Harper?” I return my gaze to hers.
“Yes, but—”
“No. I’m not going to let you take on the burden of me.”
She lets out an exasperated breath. “Caden, you aren’t a burden. Not to me. I want to take care of you the way you take care of me. I want to protect you the way you protect me. You can’t run over me every time I try to block you from getting hurt.”
“Harper—”
“Let me care for you.” She laughs and it’s heavy. “Fuck, what am I saying? I’m asking War to let me care for him, like that’s even possible.”
“He needs you.” The voice comes from the computer in the room.
She turns to look at Luke. Jack, Eli, and Nico are all in their rooms, watching us.
“We all need you, princess.”
Her mouth opens in shock or surprise. I turn her back so I can see her eyes. “We need you, Harper. It’s why we want to keep you with us. Without you, we’re just broken boys playing at a game. With you, we’re complete. You make us whole.”
A tear slips down her cheek. “Caden.”
She claims my mouth. I draw her closer to me. This kiss is different. It’s soft and full of promises I’m not sure I can keep, but I’ll try my damnedest for her.
She pulls away and rubs my lower lip with her thumb. “We’re in this together now. Trust me and I’ll trust you.”
When she lifts her eyes to mine, I want to promise her everything. I don’t want to let this girl down, but I don’t have that great of a track record.
“I trust you.” I press my lips against hers and sigh. “But we need to get back to these essays. Are we good?”
I search her eyes and see the warmth in them that lures me in.
“Playtime later, little nympho.” I kiss her again before moving her off me.
She crosses to her desk and sits down to work. When I watch her, something feels right in my chest.
Harper
“No more.” I push my laptop back. My eyes blur on the words. “I’m done. I have a few months before most of these are due.”
“We’ll keep working on them, kitten.” Eli runs a hand through his hair and gives me a wink. “Have a good night.”
It’s weird to be closing my laptop and shutting off the others, but Caden won a night with me fair and square. Or at least, as fair as a sex game can be.
My gaze seeks out Luke’s. He avoided answering before. I won’t rest easy until I know he’s here.