Page 94 of The Beekeeper

“She’s a liar, Blaze. No matter how much or how well you dress up a lie, eventually, it all comes apart. I’m not going to let her take Paisley away from you.”

“I know,” I said roughly as we reached their SUV, and I hugged him.

“Bye, Daddy!”

I turned just in time to catch Pais as she launched herself at me. I breathed in deep, filling my lungs with her innocent love. “See you tomorrow, pumpkin.”

I released her and mouthed a ‘thank you’ to Lou who helped her into the car seat.

“See you tomorrow,” I repeated to Wade whose attention briefly flicked over my shoulder in the direction of the wildflower fields.

“Have a good night,” he rumbled, and for a second, I wondered if he knew—if he’d realized what was going on between Harper and me. I was sure the way I’d stormed out of the inn earlier, after demanding to know what Harper had called about, threw suspicion on everything. But what was I going to do? Let her face her demons alone? Not a chance. Hopefully, my brother read it as a platonic concern mixed with a little guilty gratitude…and not what it was. Instinctive protectiveness.

No matter what Harper said, I still wanted to punch Eastwood in the face. Just once.

As soon as Wade’s SUV disappeared from my view, my feet broke from their roots and pulled me toward the hives—and Harper. She’d stayed out there to finish up while I’d taken Pais back to the house to get her stuff ready to go stay at Wade’s.

Every long pace carried me closer to freedom. That was what this place was to me. Freedom. To live without looking over my shoulder. To want without being taken advantage of. To dream of something that had seemed out of reach for such a long, long time.

I reached the field and came to a stop, my stare homing in on Harper’s blonde hair catching the fiery red of the sinking sun.

She was walking back from the farthest hives, still wearing her Harper’s Honey tee and jean shorts from earlier. As she moved through the flowers, she ran her hand absentmindedly through the stalks, the colorful blooms dancing around her. For a second, I just stared. Watched her effortless grace. The warmth that was always in her cheeks, a barometer of her emotions. The way she strove to bring everything and everyone around her to life.

We’re her hive, too.

My daughter’s words from earlier—so simple and scientific and innocent—hit me in the gut and I knew I looked at her now like I did in the photo she’d shown me, the one I’d brushed off. I stared at her like I couldn’t fucking look away because she was so damn beautiful. Not just her face or physically, but her soul. The way she just instantly connected with people and wore her heart on her sleeve. The way she was unabashed about what she wanted. The way she was what I wanted.

The way she was mine.

Her eyes lifted then, widening as soon as she saw me.

And then I was heading for her, my steps heavy and urgent.

“Blaze—”

I no sooner reached her than I covered her mouth with mine, kissing her hard the way I’d wanted to all day. Our tongues tangled between our mouths, wanting—speaking all the things we couldn’t say out loud.

“I need you,” I said against her lips. “I need you so fucking bad, I feel like I can’t breathe.”

“I’m here.” Her voice was breathless as she wrapped her arms around my neck. “I need you, too.”

Something more than desire surged in my veins. Before her, possessiveness felt like a kind of poison that leeched slowly and perfidiously into my veins. The only antidote was contracted relief followed by isolation. Now, that sham of a contract we’d signed felt less like a way out and more like a desperate excuse to keep her with me.

I grabbed her ass and hauled her up, her legs instantly locking around me. I lowered to my knees, bringing her to the ground with me.

“All day I’ve thought of this,” I said, trailing my mouth along her jawline. “Of filling you up. Watching you leak.”

She slid her hands to my neck, trying to drag my mouth back down to hers.

I laid her back into the grass, her hair fanning out around her like a golden halo. I hovered over her for a beat, unable to stop myself from kissing her again. Her mouth parted instantly for me, a throaty moan greeting the swipe of my tongue. I could’ve stayed right there, kissing her until it killed me, but her little whimpered, “please” broke my trance.

I drew back, memorizing every inch of her face, her features glistening with lust. “So beautiful, my little queen,” I murmured huskily and then sat back on my heels. “Let’s see how ready you are for me.”

The sudden distance from her—from her mouth, from her heat—made my body feel like a rubber band about to snap. My movements turned rough and jerky as I made quick work of yanking her shorts and thong off her legs. The whole time, my jaw clenched to the point of spasm, and only released once her clothes were gone—abandoned somewhere in the grass beside us and leaving her naked from the waist down.

Fuck.

“Look at you,” I groaned, devouring the sight of her soaked cunt and trembling chest. “You’ve been thinking about it, too.” My fingers flexed at my side. “So needy for my cock.”