Page 5

5

HARVEY

T he last week has been the best of my life. And that’s no exaggeration. Hailey and I have spent every second we can together between work and other life commitments that, honestly, feel way less important than they did before now that I have her in my life. Hailey is literal sunshine, her sass and creativity brightening my life exponentially, and my friends are probably sick of hearing me talk about her like a lovesick teenager. But fuck it, I am exactly like that, falling hard for this girl and not one single bit upset about it.

Hailey’s turned me into a total sap, and I couldn’t be happier about it.

After work, I stopped by my favorite Chinese food takeout place and grabbed dinner to take over to her place. I pull up to her house, the bright decor familiar to me now, but pause when I see a new car in my usual spot. I park across the street, frowning at the red vehicle I don’t recognize, scrutinizing it as though it’ll come to life and tell me why it’s there.

I grab the takeout bags as I get out of my truck, heading over to Hailey’s just at the same time someone exits the red car and starts up the path to her door, too. I don’t recognize the man, tall and well-built with blond hair and dark eyes. There’s a twisted scowl on his face as he spots me, which tells me this man is probably not going to be a new friend, though. Suspicion settles in my stomach as he joins me at Hailey’s front door.

Before I can ask who he is, he beats me to it.

“Who the hell are you, and why are you at Hailey’s?” he asks, tone absolutely dripping with condescension. He looks me up and down, clocking the takeout bags. “You better be a food delivery driver or some shit.”

I squint at him, swearing I’ve heard that annoying, overbearing voice before. And then it clicks. I heard it over the phone on the first day I met Hailey. He has the same utter disrespect in his voice now as he did then, and it sparks anger in my gut.

This is Lucas, Hailey’s shithead of a manager. I already hate this man from just the way he spoke to Hailey on the phone, and the way he’s just spoken to me isn’t raising my opinion of him one bit.

I open my mouth to give him a taste of his own medicine, but the front door opens, interrupting us. Both of our heads snap to Hailey, standing in the doorway with a surprised look on her face as her eyes flit between us.

Lucas doesn’t give her the chance to speak, either. No, he just shoves past her and into her house, pushing inside like he owns the place. God, this man reeks of entitlement and a bad attitude.

“Hi, baby,” I murmur as I step inside, pausing to give Hailey a hug as the door closes behind us all.

Lucas evidently is disgusted by that small show of affection because he starts running his mouth yet again. “Who the hell is this man, Hailey?” he starts, gesturing at me in disgust. I can’t help but smirk, finding his outrage just a little amusing. Seriously, why is he so angry? “Is this the man I heard on the phone the other day? What, are you fucking him or something? Jesus Christ. You should know better than to waste your time on random men instead of focusing on your work and building your career. If you wanted a boyfriend to occupy you, you should’ve come to me instead of stooping to fuck the—what are you?” He pauses briefly to inspect the logo on my shirt, then glances out the window to my truck. “A handyman? Seriously, Hailey. This is low, even for you.”

What. The. Actual. Fuck.

I can’t decide whether to curse this man out or just punch him in the mouth. Not only has he just outright insulted me, but worse, he tries to shame Hailey for having any man in her life except him. Lucas officially takes the cake as the most vile man I’ve ever had the displeasure of meeting.

Hailey’s hand lands on my arm, seeking comfort, and I wrap my arm around her, foregoing punching him in order to be there for her instead. I inhale deeply, trying to be the better man and find some sort of inner peace. I don’t succeed very well, though.

“If you’re going to be a disrespectful asshole, then you can leave,” I snap, pointing to the door just in case he needs directions for the way out.

Lucas narrows his eyes at me, scoffing. “Oh yeah? Or what? What are you going to do about it?”

Oh, so he wants to be punched in the face. God, he’s practically begging for it. I step in front of Hailey, protecting her preemptively as Lucas curls his hands into fists at his sides.

Lucas swings first. His technique is shit, and he swings wide, but it’s still a clear threat that I won’t stand for, especially in Hailey’s presence. I dart forward, grabbing his fist and twisting his arm around his back until he cries out, restraining him so he can’t do anything stupid again. Anger flows through me, thick and heavy, as Hailey shouts out in shock at us.

Overpowering Lucas takes all of five seconds, but of course, the asshole doesn’t just accept defeat and go down easy. No, he starts running his mouth again, clearly not learning his lesson like a normal fucking person. God, I hate this dude.

“Do you see this shit, Hailey? Is this the kind of man you want in your bed, seriously? You could do so much better!” Lucas rants, his face red as he struggles to fight against me. I press his front against the wall, holding his arm behind his back still, refusing to let him free because I know he’ll just swing again.

“Don’t fucking talk to her,” I snarl, just as Hailey pipes up.

“You tried to punch him first!” she cries out, outrage in her voice. “Stop this!”

“Only because I was defending you!” Lucas argues, spewing more bullshit.

“Hailey will never need defending from me,” I growl. “I’d rather cut my own fucking hand off than pose a threat to her. You, on the other hand, have verbally abused her one too many fucking times now. If anyone’s the threat here, albeit a pathetic one, it’s you.”

Lucas sputters, his face so red I half expect steam to come out of his ears now. His jealousy is painfully obvious, and maybe I’d feel bad for him if he wasn’t such an asshole. He wants Hailey, and he hates that he can’t have her, hates me for getting her instead of him. But he doesn’t deserve her, not with the way I’ve seen him treat her, not to mention the fact that he’s her manager, not a suitor.

He squirms again, and I shove him harder against the wall, taking satisfaction in the way he grunts in pain.

Hailey steps forward, and though I want her nowhere near Lucas or his aggression, I refuse to let go of him to stop her. There’s fury in her forest green eyes that makes my dick stand to attention. She’s hot as hell when she’s mad.

“Let’s get one thing very fucking clear, Lucas,” she seethes, glaring at him. “I wouldn’t be with you if you were the last man on earth.”

I suddenly can’t wait to throw him out of here so I can show her just how much I love hearing her stand up for herself.

“And this is long overdue, but I’m not waiting anymore,” Hailey continues, getting closer to Lucas so he can see the determination on her face. “You’re fired. Effective immediately.”

I wish I could take a photo of Lucas’s face when she says that because it’s truly glorious. His mouth gapes open like a fish out of water, and his eyes bulge with shock. He sputters and stutters, staring at her in disbelief. His shock quickly turns back to rage, though, and he narrows his eyes on her.

“You won’t survive a month in this job without me,” he spits, lying through his teeth because we all know Hailey’s talented enough to make it without him. “Don’t come crawling back to me when you realize just how much you need me?—”

Hailey cuts him off, rolling her eyes at his dramatics. “Shut up and get the fuck out of my house, and my life for that matter,” she snaps, shaking her head in disappointment.

I take the cue and yank him away from the wall, forcibly walking him to the front door to see him out. I open the door and throw him out, grinning when he stumbles and falls down the step onto her lawn. He scrambles to his feet and turns, looking over his shoulder and opening his mouth to, no doubt, yell more nonsense at us. Before he can get a word out, I give him a wave and slam the door in his face.

“Goodbye, dickhead,” I mutter, locking the door just to make sure he doesn’t try to storm back in.

Hailey’s in the living room, watching Lucas get into his car and drive away with a mixture of annoyance and satisfaction on her face.

“I should’ve told him where to go weeks ago,” she says with a sigh as she turns away from the window. I sit on the sofa beside her, pulling her into my lap and holding her close, reassuring my instincts that she’s okay and unharmed.

“I’m so proud of you, baby,” I tell her honestly. “It was hot as fuck watching you stand up for yourself.”

She laughs, resting her head on my shoulder. “It was hot as hell watching you defend me,” she says, tipping her head back to kiss me. “Honestly, I’m just relieved he’s gone. He was never a great manager anyway, and in the past few weeks, he’s just gone from doing his job to making me uncomfortable. I didn’t think he’d go this … crazy, though.”

I kiss her head, tightening my hold on her. No doubt she can feel just how turned on I still am, but I focus on comforting her instead, trying to ignore my cock for a minute.

“None of this is your fault or responsibility,” I tell her. “The only one at fault here is Lucas. He’s clearly lonely and jealous, and that’s not your problem anymore. Hopefully, he’s learned a damn lesson.”

Hailey nods. “On the bright side, it’ll make for an excellent story time segment on socials,” she jokes, grinning.

“Imagining his face when he sees that will make my day,” I laugh.

Despite her jokes and her trying to hide it, I can tell Hailey’s rattled by what just happened. She keeps glancing out the window, and the usual rosy hue on her cheeks is pale. Plus, she’s cuddled into me, but I can see her hands shaking a little still. I hate the fact that he’s affected her like this.

I want to wipe him from her mind, to distract her so thoroughly she forgets he even existed.

I tip her chin up with one finger, meeting her eyes before I kiss her. She melts into me as we share breath, kissing slowly at first until she whimpers against my lips. I deepen the kiss, sweeping my tongue against hers, nipping at her bottom lip to make her gasp the way I love. She’s so damn responsive, I can’t get enough of her.

“You did so fucking good, baby,” I tell her again. “So fucking strong.”

She whines a little, adjusting her position so she’s straddling me, kissing me harder. She shifts her hips, grinding against my hard length through our clothes. I can’t wait a second longer, needing to show her just how amazing she is, just how much I care for her. I want to chase away any speck of fear or uncertainty that Lucas put into her, replacing it with love and affection.

I stand, scooping her up with me and striding through her house to her bedroom. She’s wearing cute-as-hell patterned pants today, but the second I set her down, I slide them off, helping her step out of them before I unbutton her blouse and throw it on the floor, too. She smiles up at me in a pink floral matching underwear set that’s so perfectly her.

“Fuck, baby, you take my damn breath away,” I say honestly, admiring her in total awe. “So goddamn perfect.”

She steps towards me, sliding her hands under my shirt and tugging it off, then making quick work of the button on my pants. I yank her closer, picking her up and throwing her backward onto the bed, making her squeal and giggle as she bounces on the mattress. She reaches for me with a huge grin on her face, and I can’t help but grin right back as I join her.

Hailey wraps her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck, pulling me close to kiss me.

Our bodies move in sync, proving how much we really are made for each other. As much as I want her, I want to see her fall apart and lose herself in pleasure first. I kiss down her throat to her chest, unclipping her bra and throwing it off to the side to give me access to her perfect breasts. I tease her peaked nipple with my tongue and teeth, loving every little gasp and whimper she makes.

She squirms, writhing beneath me as I kiss her stomach, then lower, easing her panties down her legs and kissing her hips, teasing her as much as she can cope with.

“Harvey!” she admonishes, panting. “Stop torturing me and fuck me already.”

I laugh, kissing her thigh. “So bossy,” I tease, though we both know I love her sass. “I was just trying to show you the love you deserve.”

I glance up just in time to see Hailey roll her eyes at me, her cheeks flushed and her hair messy around her head. “Show me with your cock instead,” she sasses, and though she tries to hide the smile on her face, the sparkle in her eyes gives it away.

“Your sass is going to get you in trouble one of these days,” I laugh as I brace myself over her, the head of my cock pressing against her wet center. We both know I’ll give her whatever she wants or demands without hesitation.

“You love it,” she grins, locking her heels around my back as her hands wander over my chest and stomach, tracing my muscles.

“I love everything about you,” I agree, sliding inside of her and taking whatever words she was about to sass me with out of her mouth. “Fuck, you feel so good, baby.”

She makes a moan of agreement, angling her hips as her inner muscles squeeze me, urging me to move. Knowing what she needs, I set the rhythm I’ve learned she loves, sending her spiraling when I fit my hand between us to trace circles around her clit. There’s no hope in hell of me holding off my own release when hers crashes into her, not when she’s crying out my name and clutching at me like she is.

I kiss her as we relax into bed together, holding her close and murmuring how amazing she is and how much I adore her until she falls asleep on my chest, peaceful and sated.