Saving Us (The Billionaire Brothers of NY Duology #1)

6. Gage

CHAPTER 6

Gage

O ur weekly meeting would be starting momentarily, but I needed to finish one more spreadsheet before Maryellen came in. The company was doing better than expected this quarter, but still not where we were this time last year. And although it was simply a sign of the economy, my father would see it as a failure of mine, I was sure.

Just as I hit save and send, the knock came on my door.

“C’mon in, Maryellen,” I called out.

She came walking in with her tablet, always ready to go. Sitting in her accustomed chair in front of my desk, she crossed her legs and put her phone on my desk.

“We don’t have too much today, si—Gage.” The smile made it to her eyes this time as they lifted to look my way at her blunder. She was starting to get it. It was hard being under the formal rule of my father for so many years before he left. I was working hard to make things different here at Parker Financial and bring it into the twenty-first century. My hope was that it would pay off.

“Sounds good, what’s up first?”

She started off with some basics from human resources and some forms I needed to sign about benefits and insurance. Then we moved on to the topics I would need to address at the faculty breakfast meeting coming up. We finished up, and she was standing to leave.

“Oh, there is one more thing,” she said, sitting back down. “A call came through late yesterday. Harper Wilson put a request in for you to go to the shop. She said she needs your approval on the summer lineup.”

Trying to disguise my stunned face was challenging, but Maryellen seemed to not notice.

“Is this how you handled the flower account?” I asked her.

She seemed surprised by my question, flustered even. “Well, yes, sometimes I’d need to approve the designs, I guess, if they were completely new and never used before.”

Flowers. We were investing this much time into flowers. Don’t get me wrong, I clearly understood the aesthetic value they added to our space. But something wasn’t adding up.

“Fine, let her know I can stop by tomorrow afternoon on my way home.”

And it sure as hell wasn’t adding up that this had now become a responsibility of mine.

Maryellen nodded with a slight smile and let herself out of my office.

And I spun in my chair to look out my window.

To think.

And fuck, the only place my mind went was to Harper’s round ass as she bent over that table. And how her tits filled out her t-shirt as it stretched across her chest. And the fact that not only was I paying her another visit, but looking forward to it was a big red flag. I’d had enough red flag relationships lately to last a lifetime. I was supposed to be staying away, fooling around only.

So maybe that’s what this would be, could be.

Maybe Harper Wilson would be a hookup.

My nerves were shot as I approached the door of the shop. Maybe my assumptions about this meeting were wrong. There could be a need for approvals I was unaware of. I was new to this side of our business, what did I know? My thoughts about Harper wanting me to come by morphed from wanting to see me to it most likely being business, all in the last three steps before the door. And I was not accustomed to feeling insecure.

Pushing the door open, the bell announced my arrival. But once inside, the shop was already dimmed as if they were closed. Looking at my watch, I knew they were open for a few more minutes but thought I could have gotten the hours wrong since it was Friday.

“Hello?” I called out.

“I’ll be right there.”

Just hearing her voice did things to me.

Then she came strolling through the door, nothing in her hands. Just her. This time, her hair was long, hanging in waves past her shoulders. She was in jeans again, but a tight pink V-neck sweater hugged the curves of her breasts.

“Hi,” she said. Her voice was quiet, almost shy, as she stopped feet away from me. Leaning against that massive wooden table, her hands wrapped around herself, almost protectively.

But all it really did was push her full breasts out more, her cleavage displayed by the neckline.

“Hello,” I said.

I allowed the awkward silence to linger just a bit.

“Maryellen said you called, needed me to come by.”

She was nervous. Her hand went to her hair as her fingers ran through the long strands. There was a slight tremble to her hand as it came back down and settled against her torso again.

“Um, yeah, well, about that,” she started. “There aren’t really any papers to sign…I just…” She turned bright red.

“It’s just that, when you left the other day, I didn’t get your number. The only number I have is Maryellen’s.”

“So, you thought calling a fake business meeting to get me here was the way to go?”

I thought it was smart if not a creative way to get me here. But risky.

As I closed the gap between us, Harper’s eyes widened with each step I took. Completely thrown off by my question, she had no idea how to read me as I approached her.

My own intentions were clear to me when I was coming here. Then a haze fell over my mind, clouding my judgment. But that cloud seemed to be lifting with her words.

Seems she had the same idea.

I mimicked her stance, leaning my hip against the table, my arms crossing my chest. My movements caught her eye, and she glanced up from under her lashes.

But then I saw her steel her emotions and throw her shoulders back in defiance.

“I’m sorry I lied to you,” she said, keeping her gaze locked on mine. “I, um, didn’t know what else to do. After you left, and after that kiss, I…”

“I wouldn’t have come to this meeting if I didn’t want to see you.” And maybe get more than another kiss.

That made her smile. She was still nervous, but a bit less knowing I wanted to be here. She went to some lengths to get me here, and it felt pretty good being pursued. Even though I was fairly used to recognition from women, I usually took the aggressive role.

But this felt good.

“I guess I dropped the ball on that the other day,” I said. “But I do have your shop number.”

And then she looked a bit put off, almost nervous.

“So, should I have waited for you to call?” she asked.

Stepping closer to her, the urge to scoop her up and make her understand that wasn’t what I meant was strong. I was usually a lot smoother than this.

Why did she take me off my game? This was going to be a hookup, nothing else. But she already had me feeling things inside.

“No,” I said. “Not at all. I’m glad you called our meeting .”

Her breaths became choppy with my words, and her eyes rolled back a bit before her lids slowly covered her deep blue irises. Maybe she was still nervous, or possibly my words calmed her. Regardless, she looked damn sexy. And I felt, like the other day, as though I couldn’t keep my hands from touching her.

Gently wrapping my fingers behind her neck, I pulled her closer to me.

Taking her face in my hands with my other hand, I guided our faces close, our lips gently touching. She gripped my shirt in her fingers, pulling me closer yet. She opened her mouth to me, our tongues tangling together, my hands moving behind her head and into her hair.

She wanted this as much as I did, it seemed.

And I wasn’t sure how far this was really going to go, or how far she was willing to let it go.

But I knew how far I wanted it to go. I came here on a mission.

So, I took a chance.

My hand trailed from her hair to her neck again, that warm spot I’d been daydreaming about. But I didn’t stop there. Instead, my hand continued down her chest, a finger daring to touch the top of her breast peeking out of her sweater. Her skin pebbled from my touch, and she pushed her body against mine.

“Is this okay, Harper?”

She mumbled an incoherent agreement into my mouth, not wanting to pull away.

Cupping her breast, the weight of it heavy in my hand, I pushed it against the other. My thumb felt for her nipple through her sweater, her bra, and it responded immediately.

Suddenly, she pushed me away, and I wanted to whine like a bratty kid. Staring down at her pouty lips, all I wanted was my mouth on them again.

“I think…” she started.

But I put my finger on her mouth to quiet her. We didn’t need words. I moved in to replace my finger with my lips, but she pulled out of my hold.

“Gage, should I maybe go lock the front door? It’s not locked yet.”

My hands found her ass, and I pulled her against me, eliminating the space between us. Grabbing hold of her as I stood from the stool, I lifted her up and onto the table next to us, her laugh lighting up the room.

“Oh my God!” Her wide eyes looked at me as a smile spread across her face.

Then I was standing between her spread legs. And it felt good. She wrapped them around me and pulled me against her, locking her feet behind my thighs. I was tempted to take her right then and there, screw anyone walking in on us.

But the sensible side of me won over.

“I’ll go lock the door, don’t move. And you’re sure that’ll be okay?” I walked toward the front of the store but kept my eyes on her. “What about Fiona?” I asked.

“Everyone already went home for the day, I’m closing.”

Her sly smile made my feet move faster. Not only did I lock it, and double-check, but I pulled the window shade down as well. By the time I turned back around, Harper was undoing her jeans.

“Stop,” I instructed her.

Confusion set in all over her face as I stalked back to her. She sat motionless on the table, her legs hanging off the side. Her innocence was screaming for me to be careful with her.

I didn’t know what it was about her that brought out the animal in me. Her bright blue irises peeked out from under her long, dark lashes and I swear I saw the hint of moisture in her eyes. I didn’t want to scare her, I wasn’t a monster, but the domination I felt was definitely a turn on. My hands landed on her thighs, above her knees, rubbing gently, making their way to the top. My fingers curved in, thumbs pushing between her thighs, and I could feel the heat emanating from the spot, even through the thick fabric.

Her eyes closed slowly as my hand rubbed over her pussy.

She was turned on, too.

“You like this?”

She immediately got flustered by the verbal interruption, her once-closed eyes popping open.

“I do,” she replied.

She stared at me while her hands plopped behind her on the table to support her weight as she leaned back.

But all that did was push her tits closer and higher out of her low-cut sweater. I couldn’t wait to feel them in my hands, not through the sweater or bra.

“So, we’re doing this, here, and you’re good with it?” I asked.

I don’t know why I needed confirmation, but I did.

And she gave it to me by sitting up and taking off her sweater.

And she unveiled a completely see-through white lace bra.

Fuck.

I could see the outline of her nipples clearly through the thin material, and it begged for my mouth to suck on them. But I withheld.

Instead, I reached out and rubbed my fingers across them through the lace. She closed her eyes and rolled her head back, relishing my touch.

Then I grabbed one between my fingers and rolled it, feeling it grow and get hard.

“Oh my God,” she moaned. Her body relaxed under my touch, and using my other hand behind her head, I gently lowered her to the table, all while still working her nipple between my other fingers.

Once she was flat, I noticed she’d been hiding a fit body under her clothes, the tight lines of her abdomen showing muscles that had been worked. But there was still a curvy softness to her, a femininity that trumped her solid body. My fingers found her nipple again, and bumps arose on her flesh, begging my other hand to caress her skin. Her legs instinctively spread wider, allowing me to push myself against her, the pressure intensifying.

I couldn’t hold back any longer. My mouth landed on her breast, sucking the taut skin deep between my lips as my hands pushed her breasts together. Her back arched, pushing them against my face. Taking advantage of her moves, my hand went behind her, and holding her up, I maneuvered the clasp of her bra, pushing it from her shoulders.

Harper helped pull it away from her arms and settled back against the wooden slab. Then she reached up and pulled at my tie, my buttons, then my jacket.

“I think it’s time we got some of your clothes off,” she said.

Stepping back to help, I took my jacket off and laid it over a stool. Taking my time, I unknotted my tie and loosened my shirt. Harper sat up and keenly watched every move I made.

Leaning back on her elbows again, smiling up at me, she looked so fucking adorable. But not so cute that I didn’t want to take her pants off. Moving closer to the table, I slid the zipper down on her partially opened jeans and noticed she had a white lace thong on. There was something about the matching set under her clothes that turned me on.

“See something you like?” she asked.

“Something like that,” I responded. My hands reached behind her, anxious to finish the job of getting her naked.

But then, standing there, almost naked, in front of me, she was suddenly shy. Her eyes avoided mine, scanning the room and looking anywhere but at me. She fidgeted with her hands, covering herself for a few seconds here or there. They needed something to do.

“Take my belt off.”

It worked. She settled and her hands came to my waist, fiddling with the buckle and sliding it from my pants.

“Should I keep going?” she asked. She looked at up me as she asked her question, her blue eyes wide and bright, the color of today’s sky.

“If you want.”

And she did. She moved to the button and the zipper, a slight push allowing them to fall to my ankles. I kicked my shoes off, and the pants followed.

We both stood there, facing each other in our underwear. I was thankful she left the thong on. I needed to see how her ass looked in it. And I would have some fun taking it off myself. Reaching out, I picked her up and placed her back on the table. Keeping my hands on her ass once putting her down, I enjoyed the feel of her flesh on my fingers as I massaged her cheeks. Her legs fell open, allowing me to step close, our centers aligned, almost touching.

But I didn’t give in to that, yet.

Her hands went behind me and wrapped around my waist as she attempted to tug me against her, to rub against me.

“Uh-uh, not yet. Patience.”

The tiny moan of disapproval quickly turned into a sly smile when my hands came around to the front of her and my fingers rubbed along the outline of her panties. She suddenly seemed to be on board with making this last.

Although my dick was rock solid already, and I knew if she stroked it once or twice, I would probably shoot my load right then. It had been too long.

“It looks like you’re ready to go now, though,” she said as she stared at my cock.

“Don’t you worry about me,” I said as I spread her knees wider.

A squeal sprang from her lips as my hands dropped to the thin strip of cloth covering her pussy.

“Fuck,” I said. As I ran a finger from top to bottom, her panties were already wet. “It seems as though I’m not the only one ready.”

My thumb found her clit through the lace and pressed down on the now hard flesh. Harper’s legs instinctively tried to close in on my hand, but I held her legs open, and her body writhed on the table beneath me.

“Oh, fuck,” she moaned as her hands reached for her breasts. Her back arched as she gripped them, pushing them together, pulling on her own nipples with an intensity I wasn’t expecting.

My thumb started swirling around the tight nub, pushing into the lace. My other hand skimmed the seam of her panties, lifting the fabric just enough for the tip of a finger to dip inside. She gasped at my touch as I found her entrance and immediately plunged my finger deep inside her while my thumb continued its assault on her clit.

Her eyes popped open, finding mine and begging for more. She needed more as her hand came over mine and pushed it deeper into her pussy.

“Does this feel good, Harper? You like this?” Before she could answer, a second and third finger made their way inside her tight opening, pumping into her.

“Fuck, yes, please, don’t stop!”

Her hands thrashed, pulling at her tits and slamming against the table. Her legs pushed against my arms, but I held them down, my elbows against her knees.

Then I had an idea.

My hand stilled and she whined. Pulling my hand from her pussy, I laid them on top of her thighs.

“Do you trust me?”

She looked at me with wary eyes, and I knew it was an unfair question. My smile warmed as she continued to think about my question.

“ Will you trust me?”

“Well, I must trust you on some level already to be letting you do this to me, right?” she said. “Why?”

“I want to blindfold you, Harper. I want to cover your eyes so you have no idea what I’m going to do to your pussy. What do you say?” I didn’t wait for her answer as I reached for my tie that had been tossed to the floor. Coming back up with it in my hand, I showed it to her.

There was a moment of hesitation.

Then she smiled up at me, a nod following.

“Say it, Harper. Use your words and tell me what I can do to you.”

She blinked several times, looking a bit stunned at my demand. But she regained her confidence quickly.

“Blindfold me, Gage.”

I’d never done this before. But something about our spur-of-the-moment hook up had me pushing my own boundaries.

Smoothing out the silk with my fingers, I lowered it over her eyes.

“Lift your head a bit.” I wrapped it around and tied it on the side of her head. “Are you comfortable?”

“I am,” she said.

But her words were breathy, and the rise and fall of her chest indicated some stress. My lips grazed her forehead and trailed tender kisses toward her ear.

“Relax,” I whispered. Kissing her lobe caused a shiver to run through her body, but her breathing started to even out and she settled. “That’s it,” I murmured in her ear. The back of my fingers rubbed across her cheek, over her lips.

Her lips were plump and cherry red without any makeup on. My thumb glided over the smooth skin, pulling down on the bottom lip slightly. Leaning down, I planted a gentle kiss on her mouth. That seemed to calm her even more.

Standing, I reached across Harper’s body, grabbing hold of the first “toy” I planned on using.

A pink, long-stemmed rose.

Dragging the bloom across the tip of her nipple, I watched closely for her reaction.

Her body froze as her mind processed what was touching her. But there was no denying that her body liked it as her nipple hardened to a peak. Moving to the other breast, I swirled the flower across her skin, the velvety petals leaving a path of goosebumps.

“You’re being such a good girl, Harper, and I can tell you’re enjoying this.”

I moved the flower to her upper lip, rubbing it under her nose, allowing her to smell and identify what I was using. She smiled as I pulled it away. Dragging it in a line between her breasts and down her belly, stopping at the line of her panties.

Pulling them down a bit revealed a little patch of light brown hair manicured so perfectly atop her pubic bone.

“Turn over for me, Harper. I need to see that ass of yours in this thong,” I ordered.

She turned over, her feet coming to the ground as she bent over the table. Her ass was an offering to me. The full, round cheeks fit perfectly in my palms as I gripped them, pulling them apart to see that strip of cloth down the middle. Pulling the thong from her, the temptation was strong to reach out and play with her tight, puckered hole.

Instead, the rose made a pass along her tight back opening, her body stiffening at the touch. A moan left her lips at the same time, so I made another pass, and she pushed her ass closer to me, almost in invitation.

But I still decided to wait.

“Take your thong off for me, Harper, and then get back on the table.”

Harper willingly obliged, and when she laid back down, she spread her legs even more.

And what a fine sight she gave me. Her cunt was the same color as the rose as I slid it from top to bottom. My free hand rubbed the inside of her thigh as the flower continued teasing her.

Her body jerked with the sensation as my other hand moved closer to her core, desperate to feel her again. I placed the flower on her belly and moved both my hands to the insides of her thighs, moving upwards as my fingers reached the lips of her pussy.

A tiny gasp escaped from her, and her hands came around to mine, prodding me to continue.

And I liked that.

But I still needed more.

“Can I taste you, Harper?” I asked.

As I looked up her body, I saw an enthusiastic nod, the silky ends of the tie flailing about.

Spreading her open, I pulled her clit out and lowered my mouth. My tongue made slow, languid circles to the taut tip as her body tensed.

Moans followed, so I knew she was enjoying it.

But my patience had waned; I couldn’t wait any longer. My finger found her entrance as my lips sucked her clit into my mouth.

“Oh, Gage!” Harper screamed as her legs crashed against the sides of my head.

Her muscles tightened around my finger as I fought to put another in. Instead, my tongue bathed her slit from bottom to top, and I returned to the bottom to force it inside her, needing to taste her again. My thumb pulled at her clit as she writhed under me?—

“Stop!” she yelled. She sat up and ripped the tie from her eyes, nervously looking to the back of the store. “Shit, did you hear that?”

I froze and listened.

And then I heard what sounded like a key jiggling in a door.

“Who is that, Harper?” I asked as I found my pants on the floor and handed hers to her.

“It must be Fiona. Fuck, fuck, fuck…”

She was frantically looking for her underwear on the floor, almost in tears.

“She gave me this opportunity, this account with your company, and I’m fucking you on the table!”

She was full-blown crying now.

“Harper.” I grabbed her by the arms and forced her to look at me. “You need to calm down and get dressed right now. We’ll talk about everything later, you can do this.”

I handed her thong to her, and she quickly got dressed. My clothes were on seconds after hers and then we heard the voice from the back.

“Harper, are you here, honey?”

She was panic-stricken, with an expression like she was about to vomit. I nodded, trying to instill some confidence in her. She wiped away a few stray tears and nodded back.

“Yes, Fiona, I’m in front,” she said. Her voice cracked slightly, but she did good.

“Okay, I’ll be right there, I have some stuff to get from the truck.”

Harper grabbed her apron from a hook, tying it around her back.

“Okay, I’ve got this, I can do this,” she said to herself as she sat on a stool at the table. “Can you sit with me? Will you stay?”

I would have preferred to make my exit, sticking around could easily give the impression I’m looking for something more. But this was not a situation anyone should have to deal with alone, especially since it was created by us doing this together.

“Of course I’ll stay.”

I heard the back door open again and knew her boss would be joining us. That was the second I noticed her white lace bra under the stool I was about to sit on. Grabbing it from the ground, I stuffed it into my jacket pocket, next to my tie, just as a tall, dark-haired woman of about sixty years came through the doorway.

“Well, I didn’t know Harper had a meeting tonight,” she said, walking up and reaching for my hand.

I stood to take it, shaking it vigorously. “Yes, hi Fiona. I’m Gage Parker. It’s nice to meet you. We’re just about done here. She did a wonderful job setting us up with our summer lineup. I look forward to seeing the new designs in person.”

“Oh, Mr. Parker,” she said with enthusiasm. “So nice to put a face to the name. I met your dad years ago.”

Fiona’s proud smile went in Harper’s direction. She obviously cared deeply for her and entrusted her with her company, which said a lot.

“She’s amazing, isn’t she?”

“Oh my God, please stop, Fiona,” Harper said, looking embarrassed. She stood and started cleaning the table, shifting the lone pink rose to the side. “I’m going to finish up with Mr. Parker and then enter the order into the system. Can you open the front door, I had it locked.”

Harper snuck a smile my way as Fiona went to the front door.

“Don’t mind me, you two. Act like I’m not here. I wasn’t supposed to come in, but I had some flowers I needed to drop off. I’ll only be here a few minutes and then I’ll be out of your hair,” Fiona said as she walked past us toward the back.

Harper slouched against the table, looking exhausted.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “This was a disaster.” Her hands covered her face and were trembling.

“Hey,” I wanted to go to her, it was my instinct. To take her hands in mine and make everything okay. But I saw the red flag warning pop up in my head, telling me I was doing what I always did: moving too fast. I stayed where I was, trying to console her with my words. “This was not a disaster. Maybe it was just the universe’s way of telling us to slow things down.”

“Yeah.” She nodded, but her voice sounded…disappointed.

She picked up the pink rose again, wistfully holding it against her chest as she started gathering her portfolios and papers.

“I had fun, Harper. Maybe we can try this again sometime.”

She didn’t stop organizing her things as I spoke; she felt dismissed.

But that was what I wanted, wasn’t it?