Sapphire (Rare Gems Series) (16 page)

Harris sat down before he fell. He
didn’t know which was harder to believe, that Sapphire had killed his brother
or that they wanted him to stay. He tried to think around his pounding heart. He
had a pack and one that he was proud to call his own.

“Harris, are you all right?” He nodded
at Blair. “Do you want to leave us? If you do, is there anything we can do to
convince you to stay?”

“No. Yes. I mean no.” He took a deep
breath, and when that felt good, he took another. “I don’t want to leave. Yes,
I want to stay, and no, there is nothing you need to do to have me stay.”

They smiled at him, and Sapphire finally
sat down. He’d known, he supposed, that she was nervous, but not why. She
leaned back and looked at Blair before she looked back at him.

“Jeffery attacked Blair when his back
was turned. He had already tried to hurt me, but I’d…I guess I got the better of
him before he could do much more than scrape my cheek. I’m very sorry, but he
might have killed Blair had I not intervened. I ended up tearing his throat
out. The Board just last night told me they were ruling it justified.” Harris
nodded at her, and she looked away, and he knew she’d been more than just
physically hurt, but he’d hurt her heart, too. “He said that he’d thought to
kill off my family to bring me to my knees. Then he was planning to kill me. Did
you know that?”

“Not until afterwards. It was right
after you left that I started making plans to leave. But that night I was
getting ready to move out when I was jumped. They chained me to a tree, and I
had to watch it all. I was let go after it was all over and went to see to your
grandmother immediately. I couldn’t find you at all. Then I was told that
Diamond had hidden you away.” He moved around on the chair, feeling better with
every word that passed over his lips. “It was within my rights to leave when he
clawed me open and left me for dead. I disavowed myself of him and his pack
immediately.” He looked at Blair. “What happens to the rest of the pack? There aren’t
that many left, but what few there are will need guidance.”

“The Board has asked me to take them.
I’m not sure I’m ready for that, but they seemed to think we’ll do just fine.” Harris
had to laugh. He supposed for a man as much a loner as Blair was, it would be
difficult to take on not only a mate but a hundred other pack members as well.

“You’ll help us, of course?” He nodded
at Sapphire when she asked. “Good, we’re glad to hear that, because we have a
slight problem. Money was found when your brother was taken. A great deal of
money, as a matter of fact. We need you to help us get it to the others in the
pack so they can have a fresh start, too.”

“Me?” He stood up, then sat back down. “I
know we all need something more than we had, but I’ve no idea…Christ, they’ll
want things I don’t know how to get them.”

“We can get them what they’ll need. Everyone
that works for us from now will be paid a decent wage, as well as we’re
upgrading the houses and adding a facility here for health and well-being. Once
we have that taken care of here, we’ll sell the other house and grounds and
move everyone here.” Blair leaned back in his chair as he continued. “The house
there is going to need some work. Most of it is going to be easy—carpet and
paint. The grounds need to be maintained so that it looks good for the new
buyer. Then once we have everything ready here, we’ll keep some of the pack
there to watch over it until it’s sold. Sapphire and I have just purchased
another seven hundred acres thanks to the Board helping us out.”

“And you plan to pour that money back
into the pack?” Blair nodded and smiled. “I don’t think I like the look you’re
giving me right now. What haven’t you told me?”

“Nothing much except that you’ll have a
car as well as an allowance to make sure things are maintained and in ship
shape order. You’ll have the authority to set and enforce all rules as well as have
the full backing of Sapphire and I whenever you need it. And then there’s the
other stuff.” Blair looked at Sapphire and winked. Then she took over.

“You’ll be training some of the men how
to do certain projects for us, namely being on an enforcer squad. And when I
say men, I mean both sexes. We want you to make sure that when the time comes
for a pack to do their best, they’ll able to help with people like Jeffery.” Harris
nodded, and when Blair handed him a file, he opened it as Sapphire continued. “These
are the other jobs we want to see if we can get some training on. We don’t
expect you to do all the work, but make sure that standards are met as well as
people being rewarded for doing a good job.”

By the time that Harris left, he had a
better understanding of his new alphas and a great deal more respect. Plus, he
now had his first paycheck and a car that ran all the time instead of when it
suited it. He drove over to his brother’s house just to see what was going on. He
was surprised to see that work had already begun and that the place looked
better already. Harris had never been so happy to have a job in his entire
life.

As he drove back to the house he’d been
staying in since he’d gotten out of the hospital, he thought about what his
life might be like now. He was going to be the best enforcer he could be now,
and no more shortcuts, either. Harris wanted to be the man he’d never been with
his brother for the simple reason that the new alphas deserved the best. Harris
was going to give it to them. Smiling for the first time in a great long while,
Harris decided that life was suddenly sunshine and green grass wonderful.

Chapter 16

“Do you think he’ll have any trouble?”
Sapphire sat back in the chair after getting her and Blair a glass of iced tea.
“I know that he doesn’t think he’ll be able to do it, but I know he can.”

“He’ll make it work, and much better
than we thought. My biggest concern is whether or not to take you across this
desk or to wait until I get you naked out in the woods.” She felt her body
respond to his words. “Of course, I could take you here
and
there if
you’re up to it.”

“I’m sort of up to it.” She smiled at
him when he growled low. “You’re sure you’re up for a challenge like that? I
mean just this morning you were complaining about not getting enough sleep.”

“I was talking about the phone ringing
fifty times in the middle of the night. Who was calling anyway that we had to
hear it?” She had heard it too but was used to it now.

“Diamond is on call for the rest of the
week, and they have to call her when there are problems with a patient. She
said she’d make sure that they call on her cell from now on. She’d forgotten
that you could hear it too.” Sapphire stretched her body and watched Blair as his
eyes darkened. She wanted him as badly as he looked like he wanted her, but she
wanted to tease him too.

“You do know that you’re playing with
fire, don’t you?” She nodded at him and stood up. “Take off your clothes. I
want to see you spread out over the desk before I feast on you.”

“You have too much shit on this desk for
me to lie there very comfortably.” She burst out laughing when he stood up and
swiped his hand over the top of the lovely oak and threw all the papers to the
floor. “That’s one way to do it, I suppose.”

“Come here for me.” She didn’t move but
began to unbutton her blouse slowly. “You should probably lock the door first.
When you scream, I don’t want the household coming in here to rescue you
again.”

Last night they’d been making love in
the shower, and when she’d cried out her release, her sister Emerald had burst
in the room with a gun. They had since found out that she had it registered and
used it walking around campus at night. Blair had told her that he wanted her
to have self-defense classes, and Sapphire agreed. Emerald and a gun just
didn’t seem all that safe. Sapphire walked over and turned the lock, and moved
slowly back toward Blair.

“Do you have any idea how much I love
the way you look when you start to get aroused? I love the way you smell, too,
the way your skin seems to take on a glow that makes me want to lick every part
of you.” She had to lean into the chair that was just in front of her when he
started to speak. She was glad now that she’d taken the time to lock the door.
They were about to get very noisy in here.

“Take off your tie and shirt for me.” He
stood up to do as she asked. He did it like he did everything, with a slowness
that set her on edge. But this time she enjoyed his taking his time.

When he was down to his tee shirt and
pants, she moved closer to him. On most men, a sleeveless tee shirt seemed so
trashy, but Blair wore his just a little too snug, and she loved the way his
furred chest hairs tufted out from the top of them. He unbuckled his belt but
let it hang onto his pants while he opened his fly.

“You’ve slowed down. Would you like for
me to help you?” She nodded at his husky question. “I’m all for tearing your
clothes from you rather than waiting for you to take them off. Besides, I love
the sound of clothes being torn. It reminds me of you shifting while dressed
and knowing that you’re going to be naked when the time comes for you to be
human again.”

He moved toward her and finished
unbuttoning her blouse. She had on a skirt because they’d had a meeting with
Galloway Industries that morning and she’d wanted to look nice. Now all she
could think about was Blair lifting the skirt up over her hips and taking her
from behind. When he dropped to his knees in front of her, she had to grab onto
his head to keep from falling.

“Blair, I thought you were going to lay
me over your desk. You’ve gotten it all cleaned up for me.” He grinned as he
ran his hands up under her skirt and into the tiny strings on the hips of her
panties. “You can untie them.”

“And what fun would that be?” She moaned
when he tore them off her. “The next time you wear a skirt, don’t wear panties.
I want to know that you’re ready for me whenever we’re together.”

She nodded and would have agreed to
anything right now. He inched her skirt up and kissed each thigh every time he
exposed a little more of her. She was a living flame by the time he had it up
far enough that her pussy was showing.

“You’re wet for me.” She nodded suddenly,
so needy she was ready to beg him to do something, anything to relieve the ache
he was causing. “I want to drink from you this way before I put you on my
desk.”

“Why?” Sapphire had to try three times
before she could say the little word where it didn’t sound like she was
strangling it out. But he seemed to understand her.

“Because this way your juices run down
your legs and I can lick it. When you’re laid out for me, I miss some, and that
simply won’t do.” She shook her head, not really caring if it would do or not.
His fingers slid up over her pussy and down to her other thigh. She was
trembling now.

“Blair, please, I’m not going to be able
to stand like this for much longer.” He smiled at her as his finger slid in and
out of her. She wanted to beg him to finish her, but she’d learned over the
past few days that the more she begged him the longer he seemed to make her
suffer. When he finally reached in and licked her clit, she nearly came up off
the floor.

“You’re ready right now, aren’t you?” She
nodded at him. “Would you like to come? If I let you, will you let me take you
from behind while I smack your pretty ass?”

“Please, Blair, I don’t care what you
do, just help me come.” She nearly screamed when he sucked her clit into his
mouth, and did scream when he nipped at her. Her climax was fast and hard, but
not nearly as satisfying as she needed. But he picked her up and sat her in front
of the desk. When she gripped the edge, he moved her more over the top.

“Hang onto the other side. You’re going
to need the leverage for what I have in mind.” She did as he asked, her body
already ready for him to do his worst. The sting across her rear cheek had her
moaning, and when he smacked her twice more, she rolled her hips, looking for
something to fill her.

“Fuck me, Blair, please. I need to feel
your cock in me while you beat my ass.” He chuckled at her, and she heard him moving
his clothes. As soon as his cock touched her ass, she stiffened.

“No, I’m not going to fuck you here. Not
yet at any rate. I just want to play.” His hand came down twice more, and she relaxed
again. “That’s my girl. I’m going to fuck you like this someday, but for now, I
just want to ready this pretty hole for me.”

His fingers ran through her curls, not
once touching her where she needed it most. When he pressed against her ass,
she tried to relax, but she was afraid of the pain she was sure that was going
to be there.

“Relax, baby, I swear to you you’ll
enjoy this.” As he moved his soaking fingers over her tight bud, he reached to
her pussy and began moving in and out of her. “You’re so wet right now I could
fuck you, and you’d be able to take all of me.”

“Please.” She rolled back against his
body to be rewarded with another slap. But she was almost too far gone to quit
now. If he smacked her enough she’d come or he’d fuck her and she’d come. Either
way, she was going to get what she needed most. When he pressed deep into her
ass, she nearly came up off the table, but he held her down.

“I’m going to fuck you now. I almost can’t
wait to do this.” He put his free hand on her hip and held her while he moved
into her slowly. She tried to force him to go deeper, but he wasn’t having it. He
was fully in her, and she stilled when he commanded her to.

~~~

Blair felt the sweat roll down his back
as he tried to remain as still as he could. If she moved or he did, he was
coming, and there would be no stopping him. When she moaned, he actually
thought about coming, then giving her whatever she wanted after. His balls were
so tight against his body he wanted to cup them. He leaned over her and bit her
ear lobe.

“I want you to be very still. If you
move, I’m going to come, and then you’ll be left high and dry.” She moaned, and
he felt her stiffen. It wasn’t going to work. Breathing made him want to shoot
his load deep inside of her.

“I’m so wet and so very close right now.
If you touched me, I’d come with you.” He shivered at her words and the tone.
She sounded like sex. Hot silky sex, and she was all his. He reached between
her legs and touched her swollen clit.

Moving slowly inside of her, he pinched
her. She hadn’t been kidding when she said she was wet and close. His fingers
slid over her quickly, and when he stroked her again, she came apart with a
scream, bringing him along with her. Standing up behind her, he grabbed her
hips and took her as hard as he could. Blair threw back his head and howled. His
wolf even seemed to enjoy himself.

Falling back in his chair, he brought
her with him. She lay across him so limply he had to smile. He loved rendering
her to the point where he could hold her quietly like this. When she finally
stirred enough to turn in his lap, he cradled her in his arms and kissed her
head. Blair didn’t think he’d ever been so content before meeting her.

“I have a meeting with Thad tomorrow. He
wants to go over the specs again at his plant. They’re having problems with seals
around the veggies. I think he’s got a problem with his foreman down there. Morton
Guzman is a prince.” Blair laughed. He hadn’t cared for the man much either.

“I’ve been thinking about our newest
client. Do you think he’ll ever figure out that his secretary is a panther and
we’re wolves? The poor man seems to be completely focused on his work. Poor
guy, how will he ever smell the roses doing that all the time?” She slapped his
arm. “I’ll have you know I smelled a few roses in my time. How do you think I
convinced you to be my mate?”

She snorted. “Yeah, right. You did a bang-up
job convincing me, all right.” She stood up and reached for her shirt. “Should
we tell him you think? I don’t mean right away but eventually?”

He’d thought of it, too. He really liked
the man and enjoyed working with him. It was nice to have a person believe in
you so soundly that he would simply do it without question. There was no doubt
this was going to be a money maker for him, and the new contract he and
Sapphire had signed guaranteed that they would be making a great deal, too.

He pulled his pants up over his hips without
standing. He reached for his phone when it rang and grinned at Sapphire when
she sat across from him. His dad was missing him, and he and Sapphire had
decided to have him move into the big house, as well. This was the perfect opportunity.

“I tell you, son, that woman across the
hall from me is going to drive me insane. Just yesterday she invited me in and
was buck-assed naked. Who invites a man to their home to seduce them? I
certainly didn’t expect it. My God, Blair, she wasn’t a sight to behold,
either.”

Blair laughed so hard he nearly dropped
the phone and ended up putting the phone on the cradle with the speaker on. He
had his dad repeat the story, and, of course, he had to add enough more to it
that Blair laughed again.

“You need a keeper, Allen. I think I
might know of a couple of women that would love the job, too.” He winked at
Sapphire as she continued speaking to his dad. He wondered what his dad would
think if he knew his future daughter-in-law had no blouse on and marks over her
body where he’d taken her hard against this very desk.

“I don’t know about too many women there,
sweetheart. I wouldn’t mind if one of them was you. Are you volunteering for
the job?” His dad laughed. “I sure could use a pretty thing like you hanging on
my arm.”

“How about six of us? My sisters would
love for you to come and live here with us. And Grandmother is hoping you’ll
come and help her by taste-testing her new recipes.”

He waited for his dad to say something,
anything, but he remained quiet. When Sapphire looked at him, he could see her
fear. They’d all discussed this and were thrilled, really thrilled, about
having him nearby. Sapphire said his name, and he heard his dad sniffle.

“Got something in my eyes. Hang on a bit
there, girl. If you’re going to be pestering me for quick answers all the time,
I don’t know about that.” He blew his nose before he finally continued. “Moving
in with you and that son of mine could cause more trouble than you think. He
and I don’t see eye to eye when it comes to women. What if he gets all hot and
bothered when I play around with them sisters of yours?”

“How about if I keep him all hot and
bothered too, and you’ll be safe? I think you’ll see that he’s a changed man
now.” She leaned to the phone. “Please come and make our family complete,
Allen. I’ll make sure Grandmother bakes you an apple pie once a week.”