Chapter 18 - Harper
The way he claimed my body, as if he had ownership over it, should never have made me as achingly wet as it always had done. Yet it did.
Alex gazed at me from the length of my bed. It was strange how this was the bed I had shed endless tears over him. But tonight, he would make me cry for a different reason. I slid my hands down my own body, feeling every curve I had worked to make strong, and spread myself for him.
“That’s a lot of talk to a man who hasn’t fucked me yet,” I teased. Yes , I thought. I can play my own game, too.
I knew exactly what those taunts did to him. Alex snapped, and then all his bulk and height lunged for me, hands grasping my wrists, yanking them either side of my body, spreading me out.
“If I bothered to take the time, I’d tie you up right now,” he hissed. “Is that what you want?”
“Yes,” I gasped. Because for all my talk, I loved relinquishing control to him. And he was right: I did despise myself for wanting him, but that only made the yearning for him burn hotter.
“Fuck me, Alex,” I pleaded. “Please.” I ground myself against his length—that delicious, thick cock I had missed. “Make me your good girl?”
Before I could blink, he was my hair wrapped around his hand again, and he tugged my head back. He grunted as he buried his face in my neck. Then the tip of his cock was at my entrance, and he pushed into me. It wasn’t slow, but the slight pain of not being fully prepared only made me wetter. I gasped and writhed, letting myself fall into a place of submission. What better way to enjoy my darker desires than to submit to an alpha wolf?
“Yes,” I gasped. “There—more— fuck .”
Alex buried his length in me until I felt his thighs press to my ass cheeks. I mewled, clawing at the sheets beneath my hands. Alex’s own breath was shaky. I felt teeth scrape my neck, a soothing lick, before he pulled back, and those brown eyes gazed into mine. His length twitched inside of me, and I squirmed on it.
“Tell me you hate me,” he said.
Easy , I thought. “I hate you,” I whispered. My pussy clenched. Alex groaned.
“Tell me again,” he ordered.
“I hate you so much it makes me unable to think,” I told him, softening my voice.
“Again,” he demanded.
Before I could, he had his hand settled over my throat, and my eyes rolled back as he applied some pressure. He pulled out of me before slamming back in. “ I said again .”
It was a growl, an order, and who was I to deny either of us our desires?
“I hate you!” I cried. “Fuck—I love you.”
Alex’s hips stuttered as he tightened his grip on me, as he lost his rhythm for a second. The words had slipped free, but they had us in a frenzy, reaching for one another. Alex thrust into me roughly, and I writhed, entirely his to take and have. My breath punched from my chest with each thrust. How had I ever gone without this? Without him ?
Alex’s fingers prodded at my lower lip, and I sucked on them without a second thought. He cursed under his breath and pulled them free.
“Going to make me lose my damn control,” he muttered.
“Then do it,” I whispered. “Lose it. It's only me, Alex.”
He echoed that: only me , with a shake of his head. Then he was on me, one of my legs lifted, deepening the angle. My calf rested on his shoulder, the heel of my shoes I hadn’t yet taken off brushing against the side of his head. Alex’s eyes closed, turning into my heel, as if he would relish the sting if it came.
This man, kept so still by his career, came alive during these moments, and I knew it was one of the reasons why we had introduced darker play into our sex life years ago. We fell back into that now.
“Safe word?” Alex asked, drawing a finger down the sharp heel. His eyes flicked to me as he pulled out, leaving me aching and clenching.
“Throttle,” I said. The old word pierced me but I realized I didn’t have to keep missing him. He was right there, right in front of me. That tattoo on his chest, the expanse of muscles that had my mouth dry. The overwhelming presence of Alex Garson.
It all had me desperate for him.
He sheathed himself in me, his thrusts turning animalistic, his head tipping back as he let out a deep groan.
“Fuck, Harper,” he called. “This pussy is mine .”
“Yours,” I moaned, “All yours!”
My heel caught the side of his face, drawing a red graze down his cheek. He moaned deeply, his hips slamming against me. His length twitched inside me, bringing me that overwhelming dizziness of an approaching orgasm.
“Alex—”
He knew, of course, he knew.
“Come for me, baby,” he said, his teeth gritted as he ground his cock into me. How could I have ever forgotten how big he was? Both long and thick, Alex took my breath away, and I squirmed, mewling into the sheets, clawing for him.
“Please, please, please,” I begged. Alex closed his eyes, listening to my pleas as if they were like his own brand of drug. His chest heaved, and I clawed a hand over that arrow fired through flames. My orgasm crested, and I shuddered the moment before it hit.
Alex sealed his fingers over my clit, and I was coming with a scream. My back bowed off the sheets as I pressed closer to him. He shifted us, pushing deeper into me, and my voice cracked as I called out his name. He sat me atop his lap, as he fucked up into me. This angle had me threatening to get riled up all over again as I fell over him. He growled as he sucked a deep mark into my neck.
My hair fell over him, and he moaned, licking and biting as he thrust into me so fast that he barely pulled out an inch each time. I tightened around him. I dragged my nails over his shaved head, rubbing my face against his, just needing him to be surrounded by me—and I got the same back.
“Harper— God, Harper— ” And then he was coming, spilling into me, and I moaned weakly as my body quivered in overstimulation. By the time he was finished, I was gasping, pleading, but didn’t use my safe word.
I never had.
After he stilled, he stayed sheathed in me. We both caught our breaths. I pulled myself from where I was pressed close to the side of his face, pressing kisses to the side of his face, licking along his stubble.
“Alex,” I whispered, bringing him back to me. I ran my hands over the back of his neck. “Alex.”
“Harper,” he murmured. Before I could say anything, he had us shifted against, lying beside one another. The post-orgasm air settled, and I blinked, gazing up at him. I could let myself believe that no time at all had passed, that this was four years ago, and he had never left.
Don’t leave me again . I wanted to ask, but I bit my tongue. I couldn’t risk ruining the moment.
Alex finally turned his gaze to me. “Let me claim you,” he said. “ Properly . Not in name, only.”
I almost said yes—had he asked me moments before, I would have said yes, but I knew he had waited, so I had more clarity.
“No,” I whispered. “Not—not now.”
“You know what you are to me, Harper,” he said. “Doesn’t what we’ve just done prove anything? It's not just sex.”
I knew that. I bit my lip, nodding.
“I know but… I’m just… I’m not yet ready. I want you—I want you here, but I can’t let you claim without a guarantee that you’ll stay for me. For the triplets.”
I tucked the sheets around my shoulders. I hated taking us out of the moment but had to be honest about why I held back.
“I don’t know how to prove myself to you,” Alex said, his voice hard.
I didn’t have the words yet to tell him that he already was. Instead, I pulled him back over me, distracting him with kisses. He moaned softly into my mouth, pulling my lower lip with his thumb.
Between my legs, he was already hardening again. I never wanted this to stop, ever.
***
I still didn’t let Alex sleep in my bed. Not that night, nor the next few, either. After we’d had sex, Alex fell asleep next to me, but I had removed myself to sleep on the sofa instead. There was something too vulnerable about letting him sleep next to me. That felt like a silent acceptance that things might go back to normal.
I couldn’t be sure yet.
“Okay,” Alex announced, clapping his hands together. “I think today we drop the trio of beasts off with their uncles—”
“I didn’t agree to the uncle part, Alex—”
“Either way,” he said. “They go there, and we go to visit your friend, Greta. Hector checked in yesterday and said that demons had been trailing the places we’d been. There were sightings on the Green Trail hike, then at Michael’s. I’m worried that it's only a matter of time before they target your cottage again. Frazer also reported that three demons attacked the villa two days ago. We need more information, and I think Greta is the one to give us it. You said she has a store, didn’t you?”
I nodded. “Down by the grocery store,” I said. “It neighbors the library.”
“Great,” he said. “We’ll drop the triplets off with their favorite uncles, and then we’ll head on over there. The demons have been too quiet. It's making me nervous.”
“Nervous?” I snorted. “Alex Garson doesn’t get nervous.”
“When a situation involves unpredictable threats against his children and mat—and you , yes, he does.”
Mate. I wanted him to say it. I wanted him to mean it. To claim me if he would stay. How had I gone from more hope rather than resentment? When had I let myself have a glimmer of hope that he would remain with me? That somehow this time would be different?
“Okay,” I agreed. “Let’s get ready.”
“All right,” he called. “Where are my lobitos at?”
“Lobitos?” I asked.
“Little wolves,” Alex said, grinning. “Well, they are, aren’t they?”
I rolled my eyes, laughing, as the triplets came hurrying out of their room. They each wore a different colored suit to play in, a little hoodie, and joggers. Hallie wore pink, Marie wore lilac, and Joseph blue. They looked adorable with their toothy grins and proud stances. Joseph had started taking the wolf news seriously. I had barely gotten him to walk on two feet. He had taken to walking around on his hands and feet, howling. One day, Alex could tell him he wouldn’t have to pretend anymore.
The thought of that day happening made my heart soar. But the thought of Alex bailing before that day was also a prospect I couldn’t ignore.
“Who wants to visit some uncles?” Alex asked.
The kids, who had been spending some more time this past week with the shifter group, all cheered. Marie had become particularly fascinated with the shifters’ villa and its tech. She couldn’t use some of it, but I knew Hector had been showing her through a tablet, parental controls enabled.
We got them all ready and headed out.
***
Guided by Greta was her two-story store, one story reserved for her own home after she had moved out of the cottage to pay fewer fees on both properties, and the bottom story being her actual business. The store was dark, lit by candles flickering away in jars, and eerie music. Smoke hissed around the store, and incense hung in the air. Books crammed on every shelf. The space was small, made to feel smaller by the dark décor, but Greta, the colorful queen of it all, sat in an armchair against the furthest wall.
“Good morning, Harper,” she said. “You don’t often visit my store.”
“We have some special requests,” I told her, smiling. I gestured to Alex. “I know you’ve already met, but this is Alex.”
Greta’s eyes narrowed on him. “Yes, I know all about you. Do not mistake my politeness the other week for friendliness. I know the games you men play.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “I mean no pain.”
“Not now, no,” Greta said. “But you have done. What are your intentions with Harper, Alex Garson?”
“I just want the chance to make things right,” he answered. “Is that so wrong?”
“No, that is honorable,” Greta answered. “But if you hurt her again, if you so much as cause one of those precious babies to have one tear, then you shall find out exactly what dark secrets this store has for me to use upon you.”
He swallowed, nodding. “Of course.”
Greta flashed a deadly smile at him. “Now, what can I do for you both?”
“Well…” I began. “As you know, demons have been crawling over the island. Alex and his shifter friends want to understand why.”
“Ah,” Greta smiled. She stood gracefully and wandered over to her own personal bookshelves. None of those were for sale, purely for her own leisure and reference. She took out a small book, a notebook, with old, dry ink on yellow pages. She brought it back over to her armchair and settled in.
“Sit,” she ordered, flicking a finger at Alex. “I know special ops are part of the military, but in my store, you shall sit down.”
“Yes, Ma’am,” he said, and I stifled a giggle.
“Tell me,” Greta said, “What do you think my store is?”
He shrugged. “A tourist trap, right? You sell crystals, say they’ll heal. Or potions that protect but don’t do a great deal or—”
“ Or charms and trinkets that actually do a great deal. Have you ever summoned a demon, Alex?”
“No,” he said. “But I’ve killed a few now.”
“I have summoned many ,” Greta said. “I know more of their history and recorded it when I was younger. Much of our island’s stories have been lost or downplayed as simple legend. But take note, shifter, you are also part of this island’s history.”
“Me?”
“Your kin,” she said. “Azure Cove is centuries old. Demon and shifters have always fought in this town, as small as it is.”
My eyes widened. I hadn’t known that. I thought it was simply paradise.
“Oh,” Greta said, smiling. “How you both harbor so much pain, anguish, and love towards one another. I should cleanse you both, help you work through the murkiness, and figure out your true feelings.”
I shook my head as Alex verbally refused. “No,” he said. “I would like those to stay to better know everything.”
Greta smirked. “Good choice. Now, onto the history.” She began to speak, and we were guided back to a time long before even Greta was born…
Azure Cove had always been a beautiful place. Full of beaches and forestry, it thrived but was empty. Soon, flashes of blue light started appearing, and this once-empty island grew populated. Not by humans, or even shifters, no. They were demons. Demons were the first inhabitants of this place, claiming the empty land for their own. They made it a base, for when they left their Hellish realm.
For decades, demons lived here, wreaking havoc. Their humanoid disguises made it so that they attracted tourists, and turned them into their playthings to feed the respective rings of Hell they had come from. They made couples fall in love or hate, they made friend betray friend. They tore human souls into thousands of pieces for their own delight.
Until one tourist wasn’t purely a human but a shifter. He was an alpha wolf of his own pack. Nobody quite remembers where he came from, but he entered Azure Cove and immediately caused an uprising. His entire pack managed to defeat the demons. But he was not alone, for his mate was not a shifter. She possessed a little dark magic of her own, magic that warded against demons and the portals they could create. She was considered a witch of sorts.
Together, the male shifter, his pack, and his mate, and her coven of witches, lived on the island, passing down their protection and ways of defending themselves to their kin, respectively. But decades passed, and the shifters and coven descendants grew apart, moved from Azure Cove. More and more humans returned to the island, reinstating it as a tourist destination. But the original shifter and coven witch to populate Azure Cove provided information on the demon lore, which has remained.
“The demon lore was largely lost,” Greta finished. “But I spent my late teenage years hunting for it. My mother wanted me to graduate, but I knew my coven’s ancestors had buried their secrets here. I knew I wanted to bring that knowledge back, and continue the witch’s goal of protecting this island. I passed it to my daughter, who was taken by a demon many years ago, but not before I had my granddaughter, Adalyn, who now wishes to learn the trade with me.”
Greta smiled, and only then, did I truly see how aged she was. Beautiful, elegant, and mysterious, she was a witch. The head of her coven, most likely, if she even had one, still.
And Adalyn… She was the epitome of a modern-day witch. They had never used labels like that with me, but I wondered if they had taken those names for themselves.
“Others believe that demons wait in the shadows for their turn to overrun the island once again.” Greta lifted her bony, old shoulders. “But who knows? It is something I am still trying to work out. But I assure you, Alex, that shifters and witches have co-existed more than you think. Far longer than humans and shifters have.” She looked at him knowingly, and he averted his gaze. What was that about?
“So why would they return again now ?”
Greta smiled, as if she had waited for him to ask.
“The last time we had a group of shifters as powerful as your men was many, many years ago. Due to Azure Cove's history, the demons and shifters have been natural enemies. They have caught your scents and energy, Alex. Now, they wish to reclaim an island that was neither demon nor shifters. The circle is complete now: we have shifters, witches, and demons. It is pure chaos for Azure Cove.”
Even I fell silent at that.
It made sense.
“Am I part of that original shifter line?” Alex asked.
Greta laughed. “Not that I can tell. But one of you is. I do not know which, but the demons can smell the ancient bloodline, most likely, as I have sensed it through my magic.”
“Well, then, there’s only one thing to do,” Alex said. He turned to me. “We must summon one of the creatures, lure them all into a trap, and dispatch them. Seal off the island again. Make it safe.” He shook his head. “I won’t have my children in danger. Even if my presence is the very thing that has caused the demon return.”
I nodded. It could work. I could ensure the triplets were far away. We bring the fight to us before the demons launched any surprises. I thanked Greta, and we quickly bought what we needed for a summoning before packing up and heading to the villa.
“Are you going to tell the others?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Not yet.” He smiled at me. “But I am having a picnic on the beach this afternoon, what do you think? Family day out?”
That word rang through me with a sense of yearning I had always wanted: family.
Perhaps it was finally time to open up my heart a little. I had told him I wasn’t the same simpering girl, but I was a woman, a mother, a Harper Thollin who had grown up and known what she wanted.
I don’t need you , I told him. But I’d never once said that I didn’t want him.
And I did.
God, I did.