Page 19 of Caspian (HC Heroes #14)

H is words, his praise, the way he felt driving deep inside, had Harper right back at that blissful edge again. His talented mouth was on her neck, and with each thrust, his magnificent chest brushed her nipples. A strangled moan panted up and out of her throat.

She’d never made that sound before. There were a lot of things she hadn’t felt or done before. Before Cas.

His body was hot. So hot. She crossed her ankles behind his back, pulling him in even more. He groaned against her throat. God, he felt so good. He filled her completely. So perfectly.

“ Caspian… ”

He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. “I’m right with you,” he murmured, then kissed her hot and rough, and with so much need, she burst clean over that edge to experience her first ever double orgasm.

A second later, Cas gripped her hips, and with a fierce thrust and a sexy, rough sound rumbling in his throat, followed her over into bliss.

Unable to remain standing, he slid them down to the floor, holding her tightly, still buried deep inside her. Air rustled around them as they stayed that way a few moments, working to catch their breath. She’d never felt so relaxed, so boneless in all her life.

“Cas?”

Spurts of warm breath fanned the side of her face and neck as he set his forehead against her temple. “Yeah?”

“Is it normal not to feel your legs?”

His chuckle rumbled through her. “It’s okay,” he said, drawing back to catch her gaze. “Feeling will return.” He lifted a hand to trace her cheek. “You okay?”

“Better than okay.” She grinned. “That was applause-worthy, no question.”

His lips curved into a very satisfied grin. “You were fantastic. We were fantastic.”

“I agree. But I think you know that.”

“Yeah. Your screams kind of gave it away,” he teased, detangling from her before he brought them to their feet.

She smacked his arm. “I didn’t scream.”

Yeah, she did. She totally did.

“Well, now, it sounds like I need to refresh your memory.” He skimmed a finger down her chest and lightly brushed a hardened peak.

Heat instantly pooled low in her belly. Holy smokes . Already? She was going to be so easy when it came to him. At the moment, Harper didn’t care. He made her feel too amazing.

She skimmed her hand up his taut abs to his muscled chest. “If you think you can, go for it,” she dared him, leaning forward to lick one of his gorgeous pecs.

In a swift move, he swept her off her feet and carried her up the stairs and down the hall toward the room he was currently occupying. “You should never challenge a SEAL,” he stated, his gaze heated with excitement and desire.

A shiver of anticipation washed through her. “Then let the screaming commence.”

His gaze smoldered. “Roger that.”

***

C as lay in bed, the early morning light filtering through the thin curtains casting a soft glow across the room.

He turned his head and gazed at Harper, still asleep, curled into him.

Her hair was splayed across the pillow and her shoulder, her breathing, steady and peaceful.

Cas smiled. He’d never met anyone like her—so strong, so full of fire, and yet with a softness and vulnerability that made him want to wrap her up and protect her from anything that dared to threaten her peace.

Last night had been everything he hadn’t known he needed.

It hadn’t been planned. In fact, after several incredible, heated kisses, he’d run like a wuss into the house to keep a tight hold on his control.

He didn’t want to push her, and he made that clear, but she’d made several things clear too.

She was ready. He made her feel alive, and she wanted him.

Those three things had decimated his control. Resisting her was no longer an issue.

Suddenly, they were on the same page, and their needs took over.

It had felt so damn right. Every touch and whispered word had connected them in a way that went beyond anything physical. It was crazy. So were his sentimental, pansy-ass thoughts, but he didn’t care.

Thinking back to the quiet moments they’d shared on the porch beforehand, his smile widened.

They’d talked about everything and nothing, the easy laughter and the way she’d looked at him like he was something special had warmth flooding his chest. It had been a long time since he’d felt like that.

Like he was exactly where he was supposed to be.

Harper stirred, and those soft curves of hers brushing against him were stirring something in him, too. Her eyes fluttering open, and when she saw him watching her, she smiled a sleepy, genuine smile that sent a jolt straight to his heart.

“Morning,” she murmured, her voice still thick with sleep.

“Morning,” Cas replied softly, reaching out to brush a strand of hair from her face. “How’d you sleep?”

“Better than I have in, well…ever,” she admitted, her fingers finding his under the covers. “I could get used to this.”

So could he, and it was thoughts like that he never expected to entertain.

He brushed his thumb over her knuckles. “Me too. I’m glad you’re here, Harper. I’m glad…for all of it.”

There. He said it out loud and he didn’t care.

Unless she didn’t feel the same.

She looked up at him, her eyes soft and full of something that swelled his chest. “So am I, Cas. I didn’t expect any of this, but I’m really glad I came to Harland.”

He dipped down to press a gentle kiss to her forehead. “You make everything better, you know that? Coming home was the best decision I ever made.”

Harper’s smile was warm and real and widening. “Funny, I was just thinking the same thing.”

Chuckling, he pulled her closer, and they lay there in comfortable silence, the morning unfolding slowly around them. He knew there would be challenges ahead. They both had a lot of baggage, but right now, with Harper in his arms, everything felt right. And that was more than enough.

“I’d better get up.” She yawned, then stretched. “I’d better get up or I’m never going to leave your bed.”

In a quick move, he switched their positions and smiled down at her. “Promise? I can live with that.”

Her laughter filled his dark soul with much needed light. “Me too, if someone hadn’t depleted my reserves. I’m starving.”

“You’re welcome.” He kissed her nose then rolled off her before he gave into the need to initiate another depleting maneuver.

“So are you,” she countered with a grin before getting out of bed, and he nearly swallowed his tongue at the sight of her glorious, naked curves.

Doing his best to behave, Cas pulled on jeans and a black T-shirt, sneaking glances at Harper as she dressed in the room across the hall where her clothes were.

For now.

She moved with casual ease, but there was a spark in her eyes that told him she felt this new, unspoken connection between them. He smiled as he watched her tug on a sweater, her hair still a little messy from sleep.

“You’re staring,” Harper said, catching his eye.

He shrugged, unabashed. “Can you blame me? You’re kind of hard not to look at.”

Laughing, she tossed her hair over her shoulder, while a blush filled her cheeks. “Come on, charmer. Let’s go make some breakfast. I’m pretty sure I owe you an omelet.”

“You owe me, huh?” Cas grinned, following her downstairs. “I could get used to this—waking up to you, naked in my bed, then getting out to make breakfast.”

As she entered the kitchen, she shot him a playful look over her shoulder. “Oh, you’re going to have to do more than just smile at me for that kind of commitment, Caspian Taylor.”

He chuckled and leaned against the counter, watching her rummage through the fridge. “Fair enough. But I make a mean cup of coffee, so maybe I’ll win you over yet.”

She closed the fridge and raised an eyebrow. “Bold of you to assume I’m that easy.” Smirking, she set a carton of eggs, an onion, and a pepper on the counter.

He pulled a bowl from a cupboard and handed it to her. “I’d never assume that,” he replied. “I like a challenge.”

Harper met his gaze, and for a crazy moment, the room seemed to still. Then she smiled and turned back to her task, expertly whipping up omelets while he brewed the coffee. They moved around the kitchen like they’d been doing this for years, falling into a rhythm that felt as natural as breathing.

When they finally sat down to eat at the table—the place that had led to paradise last night—he shoved a forkful of omelet into his mouth and let out an appreciative hum. “Okay, you weren’t kidding. This is good.”

She smirked, taking a sip of her coffee. “Thank you.”

Cas grinned, savoring the moment—the simple pleasure of a good meal, the easy banter, the way Harper made everything feel light and possible.

As they finished eating, Cas glanced over at the diary that Harper had left on the counter.

The worn leather cover was a constant reminder of the mystery that still hung over them.

“Wanna see what Mary has to say today?” he asked, nodding toward the diary.

Nodding, she set down her fork, her expression shifting to something more serious. “I was thinking that, too. Let’s see where it takes us.”

They moved to the couch, and he sat next to Harper who opened the diary to the next page. She began to read aloud, her voice soft but steady.

“June 5th, 1937. I don’t know how much longer I can keep this secret.

The fire was no accident, and I can’t bear the weight of knowing who was responsible.

Every day, I see their faces, the way they lied to the town, the way they covered it all up.

They think they’re safe, that no one will ever uncover the truth, but I have to do something.

I have to tell someone. If only I knew who to trust.”

Harper’s hands trembled slightly as she held the diary, her eyes scanning the words again. “She knew, Cas. And it sounds like she was planning to come forward.”

His mind raced, piecing together the implications. “That means someone must have known she was a threat. That’s why someone’s trying to keep you from digging into this—they don’t want the truth about the fire coming out, even after all these years.”

A mix of shock and determination flittered through her eyes. “If Mary was about to expose them, and they stopped her…Cas, this is bigger than we thought. It wasn’t just a tragedy. It was deliberate.”

He reached for her hand and squeezed. “Whatever Mary knew, it’s still out there, and we’re going to find it.”

Her gaze met his, hers was fierce and resolved. “We will. For my great-grandmother and for everyone else who’s been hurt by this.”

Cas nodded, feeling the weight of their discovery settle between them. They weren’t just uncovering the past, they were unraveling a lie that had shaped the town for decades.

She tugged her hand free, and he watched her turn to the next page. Her fingers were trembling again. She glanced at him with uncertainty clouding her gaze before beginning to read aloud once more.

“June 10th, 1937. I never imagined that love could be so complicated, so entangled in lies and betrayal. They think they can control everything, keep us apart because of their own twisted sense of pride and power. But what they don’t know is that love isn’t something you can just bury.

This is the kind of secret that festers, grows stronger in the dark, and it’s bound to come to light eventually.

They tried to stop us, to make us pay for what they considered an unforgivable sin.

But I won’t let them win. I have to protect him, even if it means risking everything I know.

The truth has to come out, no matter the cost.”

Harper’s voice wavered, and when she looked up, her eyes were wide with realization. “Cas, this wasn’t just about the fire or some property dispute. It was personal. Someone’s love, someone’s life, was on the line.”

“A forbidden love affair and a family betrayal.” He leaned back and whistled. “No wonder someone wanted to keep this buried. If Mary knew all this, she was sitting on a powder keg. And now, so are we.”