So Pucking Wrong (Thin Ice #9)

Chapter Three

His shirt was twisted beneath him, driving him nuts. Harlan yanked, trying to untangle himself without fully waking. He wasn’t ready to face the day. Something warm stirred beside him. Harlan lifted his head and peeked open one eye. On top of the covers, on his stomach, Tanner slept peacefully. Harlan eyed the room. He was about ninety percent certain they were in Tanner’s bed. They were fully dressed, so there was comfort in that.

His shoulders relaxed. He rolled over and cuddled the pillow. There was zero reason he couldn’t go back to sleep. They had obviously made it home safely. On the edge of dozing off, a buzzing penetrated his peace. With his eyes still closed, Harlan patted the bedside table until he found his phone. He fully intended to take one quick peek to make sure it wasn’t an emergency and then turn off his phone. That expensive liquor hadn’t gone down quite as smoothly this time. Harlan needed another four hours to recover, at least. He lifted one eyelid again and checked the face. He had missed a hundred and forty-seven calls and eighty texts. That had Harlan’s attention.

“What the fuck?” The phone didn’t immediately recognize his face to unlock the device, proving how rough he looked. There were too many different numbers in the call log for Harlan to guess at the urgency. Harlan focused on the texts instead. He read Rider’s first. If anyone would get straight to the point and know the lowdown, it would be him.

Rider: How in the fuck could you marry my boss?

Harlan sat up straight like he had been poked with a cattle prod. He kept reading.

Rider: Tanner? Tanner Paige of all people? He’s nearly twenty years older than you. He’s an even bigger narcissist than Mom.

Okay. That irritated Harlan no matter his level of shock. Tanner was nothing like their mom. He scrubbed his hand over his face. There had to be a mistake. This had to be a prank. Something rough scraped his skin as he fought to wipe the exhaustion from his face. He looked at his hand. There was a gorgeous wedding ring on the ring finger of his left hand. His heart raced. Each breath came harder than the last. He searched his memory, going over every detail of the night. They had gone to the casino and then to a club. Things had gotten a little too hot while dancing, so they had moved to the bar. There had been drinks. Laughter. So many fucking drinks. He couldn’t breathe. Harlan needed a paper bag stat.

“Oh my god. Holy hell. What did we do?”

He punched Tanner in the arm. “What in the hell did we do?”

Tanner’s head lifted. His hair stood in every direction. Stupidly, he looked even sexier when sleep-mussed. No. Harlan couldn’t think like that. He needed Tanner to tell him it was a joke.

“I’m awake. What’s up?” He didn’t sound the least bit awake, but Harlan couldn’t worry about that now.

“What did we do?” Even Harlan heard the panic in his voice.

Tanner’s head turned from side to side. “We’re both dressed, so I’m guessing nothing.”

“Why did I miss a million texts about us getting married? And I’m wearing a wedding band.” He looked at Tanner’s hand. “Oh my God. You are too.”

Tanner looked at his hand. “Huh. I thought that was a dream.”

“What?” The screech took even Harlan by surprise. He had never been this panicked.

“Okay. I’m sitting up. We’ll figure this out.” He rolled. His shirt moved upward as he went, showing off the delicious skin beneath. Harlan had to stop. He could not lust after this man. Harlan definitely couldn’t be married to him.

Tanner pushed to his feet. He stretched, as if he didn’t have a care in the world. Tanner grabbed his phone. A stack of papers sat beneath. Tanner paused and cocked his head to the side. He set his phone on the bed and picked up the papers. Tanner spent a moment eyeing each page. Finally, Tanner turned a page Harlan’s way. “At least we look happy.” It was a photo of them at the altar, kissing.

He turned another paper Harlan’s way. “Yep. Married.” It was a wedding certificate. There was no missing the official gold seal and both their signatures.

The wind left Harlan. The confirmation brought an odd calm over him. Tanner didn’t seem panicked at all. Surely, that meant he didn’t need to freak out either. Tanner was in charge of massive corporations. He would know what to do. Tanner would handle everything. Except Tanner kept silently flipping through what appeared to be the pictures of their wedding. His silence was a bit frightening.

“Say something.”

Tanner glanced up. “Sorry. Are you okay?”

Was he? Harlan assessed his emotions. What had him the most freaked out? This was obviously something they could undo… except it seemed the whole world knew already. He didn’t want to embarrass Tanner. His shoulders fell.

Tanner set the papers aside and climbed onto the bed. He snagged Harlan’s waist and settled down, cuddling him against his chest.

“It’s okay. Say what’s in your head.”

“I don’t remember anything.” It surprised Harlan for that to be the first admission to pop from his mouth.

Tanner stroked his back, comforting him. “How can I fix it?”

Harlan took several breaths. His muscles relaxed. Without thinking, he shoved his arm beneath Tanner’s shirt, looking for warmth. Tanner grabbed a handful of covers and tugged them over them.

“You’re so calm.” Honestly, it was catching.

Tanner hummed. The sound vibrated against Harlan’s ear. “If I’m going to do something completely crazy, at least it happened with a friend I trust.”

Harlan closed his eyes. That was true. Things could be so much worse. It occurred to him his panic might have been somewhat insulting. Now that he could think a little clearer, Harlan had to admit it was flattering the way Tanner seemed unbothered.

“Sorry I freaked out.”

Tanner traced the shell of Harlan’s ear. He was putting Harlan to sleep with his soothing touch. “It’s okay. I know it’s scary not to remember what you’ve done.”

It was like Tanner reached into his head and pulled out the heart of the matter. He might have done anything while too inebriated to know better.

“We’ll be okay.”

Harlan nodded at Tanner’s reassurance. Sleep weighed heavily on him. His breathing deepened. With Tanner’s fingertips trailing up and down his jaw, Harlan let the darkness swallow him.

Tanner listened to the shower run. He kept his mind blank. There was an odd peace inside him he hadn’t expected. If he had woken up married to anyone else, he would have a team of lawyers in his living room, squashing any chance of this standing. He would protect his assets with every fiber of his being and have an annulment by sundown. Instead, he was simply… fine. There was no panic or fear. Instead, the idea of Harlan as his husband grew on him a little more by the second. They obviously had a lot to figure out, but Tanner didn’t want to face it right away. He needed to marinate over it.

Harlan stepped from the bathroom, wearing nothing but a towel. Tanner didn’t hide his interest. Harlan was sexy as fuck, and he had married Tanner.

Tanner didn’t hesitate to use the situation to his advantage. “I’ve been thinking. We were kissing in all those photos. Maybe we should try it. It might jog some memories.”

Harlan flashed him a wry look. “Uh, huh.”

Tanner tried looking innocent. “Really? Apparently, it’s already happened several times. What’s one more? I’m your husband, remember?”

Harlan laughed. He crossed the room to where Tanner still sat in his towel on the bed where he had been since he showered. “How much longer do you think we can keep our phones off before my brothers bang down the door?”

Tanner shrugged. “They’ll end up cooling their heels until I tell the staff we’re ready to accept visitors. No one gets past my security.”

Harlan stood over Tanner. His hands landed on Tanner’s bare shoulders. The air changed in the room. Tanner’s hands moved of their own accord. He ran his palms up the back of Harlan’s thighs. His gaze never wavered from Harlan’s face. Harlan dipped his head and touched his lips to Tanner’s. For a moment, time stood still. They shared each other’s air. Tanner broke first. He nibbled Harlan’s bottom lip, testing its firmness. The bed dipped next to his hip as Harlan set one knee on the bed. His mouth opened. Their tongues met. Heat exploded between them. Harlan straddled his lap. While holding Harlan, Tanner stood and took Harlan down on the bed. Their towels didn’t stand a chance in the bustle. Tanner held Harlan’s wrists above his head as he explored his mouth. Harlan didn’t fight him for control. Tanner knew he could be too much. That knowledge did him no good now that he had Harlan beneath him. His intensity kicked up to a scary level. Their kiss was almost violent. They came at each other like they were starved. Tanner didn’t know where this was headed. It was supposed to be just a kiss. Maybe Harlan would stop him any second. If he didn’t, Tanner wouldn’t. He had wanted this for too long.

“Where’s the lube? I need to be inside you.”

Tanner didn’t need to hear anything else. He dove for the bedside table. Their desperation was unlike anything he had experienced before. Harlan’s mouth never left some part of Tanner’s skin, even as Harlan rolled on a condom. When Tanner sat on Harlan’s dick, Harlan made a sound that nearly pulled an orgasm from him. If anyone had ever wanted him like this, Tanner couldn’t recall it. This entire situation was new for him, and Tanner hadn’t thought there was anything new left in the world for him. With his money, nothing had ever been out of his reach. But Harlan didn’t give a shit about his money. He wasn’t impressed by Tanner. Desire was the only reason he let Tanner ride his dick, and it was the most addicting experience of Tanner’s life. The feeling in his chest was bigger than anything he knew before now. He couldn’t let Harlan go.

Harlan kissed and bit. He used Tanner. His fingers dug into Tanner’s ass cheeks as he lifted and pulled while pumping upward. He took Tanner’s asshole, and Tanner loved every second. Their thrusts were almost violent. They were a storm, crashing against each other. Harlan sucked Tanner’s neck hard as he fucked him even harder. All Tanner could do was whine and take it. With his eyes squeezed closed, he focused on every sensation. Harlan pounded at the perfect angle. The sound of skin slapping skin mixed with the building pressure. Tanner’s mind was a mess. He needed this. His muscles tensed. Tanner held his breath. A cry tore from his lips when the orgasm hit. It was so powerful, he couldn’t control the sounds he made. His entire body jerked as he shot cum on Harlan’s stomach. Harlan didn’t let up the pace. Hard and fast, he rammed his cock inside Tanner, taking what he wanted. Tanner’s body twitched. He saw heaven. Then Harlan cried out against his throat. The sound nearly sent Tanner over the edge again.

Their movements slowed as they rocked out the final waves. Wheezing breaths filled the air, proving how hard they had worked to blow as fast as possible. Tanner’s pulse sounded loud in his ears as he tried catching his breath. He knew he squished Harlan beneath him, but he couldn’t move. Harlan wasn’t making any moves to remedy the situation either.

“Holy shit. That was…”

Tanner nodded at Harlan’s assessment. He fully agreed. There were no words.

“I swear I’ll move in a second.”

He felt Harlan’s laughter. “No hurry. You can stay there forever if you’d like. Hell, you can do whatever you want. That was… wow.”

Tanner chuckled as he mustered the energy to roll away, freeing Harlan. They both stared at the ceiling while catching their breath. At the same time, they burst out laughing. They turned their heads and their gazes collided. Harlan’s eyes swam with happiness. Tanner didn’t doubt he looked the same. They were both pretty crazy. Together, they were totally insane. Tanner couldn’t imagine being with anyone else ever again.

This was his husband. The idea grew on Tanner by the second. He fully recognized exactly how many strings his money had pulled for them to get married on a whim last night. That alone proved Tanner had wanted this pretty damn badly. As independent as Harlan was, he had to have wanted it too to have agreed, inebriated or not. Deep down, this was what they craved. In the morning light, it was still what Tanner wanted. That meant there was only one course of action. Tanner had to get all the way in the way of untangling this until Harlan had the same realizations. In his heart, Tanner felt maybe they were meant to be. Soon, Harlan would see it too.