Blind Love by Kelly Elliott
“What in the hell is she doing?” I almost screamed to anyone who would listen. I jumped up and made my way to them.
“Tripp! Don’t!” Waylynn called out from behind me, grabbing my arm.
“Let go of me, Waylynn.”
She gripped me harder. “You have a girlfriend and it’s not Harley. You go after her now, and she’s going to be pissed.”
“She’s fucking leaving with him!”
Waylynn shook her head. “No, she isn’t. They’re going out for air. She sent me a text. She’s not leaving with him.”
“Fuck that! She’s outside with him, Waylynn. Anything could happen.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Listen to yourself. Tripp, you can’t have it both ways. You’ve made your feelings clear with your silence toward her.”
I pushed my hand through my hair before shooting daggers at my older sister. “This is your fault, Waylynn!”
Taking a step back, she shot me a dirty look. “Come again, Parker?”
“You told me to date!”
“Again, I know that the XY chromosomes you have prevent you from differentiating reality from fantasy, so let me remind you, I told you to try to get over Harley by dating other women. I didn’t tell you to ignore her, Tripp. That’s all on you. So the next time you’re fucking your new girlfriend, remember it was you who decided to stay in that relationship and push Harley away by not responding to her. I had nothing to do with that. The least you could do is let Harley talk to you. You’re the asshole who has to own up to that. Not me.”
Waylynn pushed me in the chest and stormed away. I let out a frustrated groan before heading to the exit.
I walked straight out and didn’t bother looking around. The last thing I wanted to see was Harley making out with that dick. I jumped in my truck and started it up. With a frustrated growl, I hit the steering wheel over and over before resting my forehead on it.
“Why are women so damn confusing!” I yelled.
First, Waylynn tells me to be careful with Harley. Go date, have fun, make her see you’ve moved on. Then she’s mad because I did the very thing she told me to do. There was only one person who understood the Parker women.
My father. I needed his sage input on how to navigate these treacherous waters. I made a mental note to reach out to him and schedule lunch. If I ever needed advice, it was now.
I stared at my computer trying to concentrate. It had been a few weeks since I’d seen Harley at Cord’s Place dancing with that jerk. Karen informed me this morning that she saw Toby join Harley for breakfast at Lilly’s place. I’d stopped going on Fridays because Harley ate there. The vet clinic didn’t open until later that day so she made it a habit to stop into the café.
The phone on my desk buzzed. Glancing down, I saw that it was Mallory. Things hadn’t been the same with us since the night we got into a fight nearly three weeks ago. I was distant, and she could tell. I had hardly even touched her since the last time we fucked in the bathroom at Cord’s. It didn’t feel right. Not when I was so conflicted with my feelings for Harley.
Reaching down, I slid my finger across the screen to answer it.
“Hello?”
“Hey there. I was wondering if you might like to have lunch today. I’m closing the shop for a couple of hours, and I can come meet you at your office.”
I chewed on my lip, trying to think of a reason I couldn’t, but a small part of me wanted to just bury myself in Mallory and not think about what Harley was doing with Toby.
“Having a bad day?”
She chuckled. “After the morning I had, yes. A very bad day. I wouldn’t mind spending some time with you. I feel like we’re drifting apart.”
“I’ll let Karen know you’ll be stopping by.”
I’m such a fucking asshole.
Anytime Mallory stopped by for lunch, that meant Karen was free to have an extra-long lunch break. One that she took full advantage of. She wasn’t stupid; she knew what in the hell we were doing.
“Perfect. I’ll stop by around eleven forty-five.”
With a quick peek at my watch, I replied, “Great. I need to finish looking over this contract for a client of mine and then I’m free.”
“Wonderful! See you then, handsome!”
A lump formed in my throat. I was about to tell her I just noticed I had a meeting, but instead I replied, “See you then.”
I hit End, a part of me wishing I had called my father this morning and set up that lunch date.
Damn it. I can’t put this shit off any longer.
Hitting the red button on my desk phone, Karen came on the other line.
“Yes, Mr. Parker?”
“Karen, Mallory is going to be stopping by at eleven forty-five for lunch here in the office. Feel free to take a long break today.”
“Okay, shall I just send her straight in when she arrives?”
“Yes, please.”
“Will do.”
The phone clicked and went silent.
Leaning back in my chair, I blew out a long breath before reaching for my phone and pulling up my father’s number. It only rang three times before he picked it up.
“Tripp, what’s going on?”
I couldn’t help but smile when I heard his voice.
“Not much. Is now a good time to talk?”
“Of course, it is.”
I heard him muffle the phone and excuse himself.
“Dad, if you’re in a meeting or something, we can talk later.”
“Nonsense. You kids always come first.”
My smile grew bigger. That’s how my folks were. Always putting us kids first, no matter what.
“Are you free for lunch tomorrow?” I asked.
He paused for a few seconds, probably going over his schedule.
“I believe the only thing I have tomorrow is a meeting with Steed, Trevor, Mitchell, and Wade to talk about the spring fling.”
The spring fling was my father’s way of saying branding. It was when the ranch branded, vaccinated, castrated, and if need be, dehorned the calves. Branding was still a big thing in these parts, an excuse to have everyone over for a party. That was the whole reason my folks called it a fling. There would be enough food to feed an army. Luckily, though, it wasn’t how it used to be when I was younger, when we had to rope the calves and have a whole team helping out. A good crew would consist of at least twenty. You had to rope ’em, wrestle them to the ground, brand, vaccinate, castrate, and dehorn. It was a hell of a lot of work. Now it only took a few people to herd them into the chute and take care of it all at once.
“Y’all still moving over to the tag system?”
“Yeah, Mitchell’s got some fancy-ass program that will track it all. Probably even tell ya when the damn thing shits.”
I laughed. I was glad to see Mitchell was settling right into the ranch. He was meant to be there and we all knew it. He’d gone off to be a cop as a way of separating himself from Steed, even though they were two completely different people. But somehow he’d found his way back to the ranch, and my father and brothers couldn’t be more thrilled.
“How about I come out there? Sit in and listen in on the meeting. Wouldn’t hurt to be kept up to date with things. Then afterwards we could talk a bit. I need some advice and you are the only one who can help me.”
“I think that sounds like a plan. We’re meeting in Steed’s office at ten and can go for lunch afterwards to talk.”
“I’ll be there.”
“Sounds good, son. Talk then.”
“Okay, Dad. See ya tomorrow.”
Hitting End, I set my phone down and got back to work. Talking to my father about the ranch must have been what I needed. I was soon lost in the contract. When my work phone buzzed, I glanced up to see it was nearly time for Mallory to arrive.
“Mr. Parker?”
“Yes, Karen?”
“There’s, um, someone here to see you.”
“Do they have an appointment?”
I smiled.
“Is it Mallory?”
There was a slight pause. “It’s not Mallory. It’s Harley Carbajal.”
Sitting back in my chair, I then cursed under my breath. My heart started to race, and my hands shook.
What in the fuck is wrong with me? So what if Harley is here. Maybe it’s time I just got this shit over with.
I stood up and made my way to the lobby.
When I walked out and saw her, I almost stopped breathing. She was beautiful, even dressed in scrubs covered in cat and dog fur. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail, and she looked…panicked.
“Harley, is there something I can help you with?”
She looked nervously at Karen and then back to me. I could see the worry—or maybe it was fear—in her eyes. “I know you don’t want to talk to me, but I need your help, and it’s sort of an emergency.”
My stomach lurched when she said I didn’t want to talk to her. I’d been a dick the last few weeks. Hell…the last few years. Shit. It had been nearly ten years. Glancing at my watch, I knew Mallory would be walking through the door any minute for our lunch date.
When I focused back on Harley, our eyes met. It killed me to see the way she was looking at me. Pleading with me to give her five minutes for an emergency.
“I’m meeting someone for lunch. I have about five minutes. Why don’t we head into my office.”
I could feel Karen’s stare as I let Harley walk by. When I looked at her, Karen lifted a brow and crossed her arms.
Pointing to her, I muttered, “Stop giving me that look.”
“What look? The one that says you’re taking your ex-girlfriend into your office when your current girlfriend will be here any moment for lunch?”
“Hush!” I whispered as I followed Harley into my office and shut the door. Karen shook her head from side to side. I couldn’t stop this freight train that was approaching. It wasn’t like I could kick Harley out of my office. I was running for mayor, she was a constituent, and I had to talk to all of my constituents, right?
Stealing a breath before I went through the door, I realized this was the first time in almost ten years we had been alone together. A part of me wanted to run away, but the part that wanted to know what the emergency was—and also how Harley had won over Waylynn—was taking the lead.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
She stood there wringing her hands, staring at the floor. My chest clenched. Something was wrong. I knew Harley, and she wasn’t the type of woman who got scared easily.
“Harley? What’s going on? What’s so important that you needed to see me?”
When she started pacing, I grew more worried. I had the urge to help her, but I was now worried Mallory would be showing up any second.
“Harley! I don’t have all day, for Christ’s sake. What’s the emergency?”
Stopping in front of me, she took a shaky breath and blew it out.
“I think he’s found me.”
My eyes widened. “He’s found you? What, do you have a stalker or something?”
She closed her eyes and shook her head.
“Sorry, that came out all wrong. It’s Doc Harris’s brother. He’s…”
In that moment, the door to my office opened. Harley paused, not wanting to finish her sentence as Mallory stepped in. From the angle she was standing, and with the door wide open, Harley was blocked from Mallory’s view. She was wearing a long jacket and the moment I looked at her, she undid the belt and let it fall open.
“Ready for our lunch date, Mr. Parker?”
“Um…” I said as my eyes swept across her body. She was wearing heels, black barely there panties, and a matching bra. I could see her nipples through the thin lace fabric. Any normal man would have had a hard-on if his girlfriend showed up dressed like this, but not me. Nope. I stood there with a limp fucking dick because of the brunette standing a few feet from me.
Before I had a chance to stop her, Mallory shut the door and shrugged the coat off. I quickly walked up to her and picked up the coat, draping it back over her.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. It didn’t take her long to catch Harley out of the corner of her eye.
When I turned to her, Harley had her mouth open and the look in her eyes screamed something along the lines of sadness, regret…and pain.
“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have stopped by without an appointment. I’ll, um…I’ll check with a lawyer in Uvalde. Sorry to have bugged you, Tripp.”
When she rushed by Mallory, Harley gave her a warm smile and whispered, “I’m so sorry.”
Mallory opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out, and honestly, Harley didn’t wait long enough; she was out the door so fast.
Mallory shook her head. “Well…that was awkward. Karen told me to come on back. I’m so sorry, Tripp. I would never have done that had I known you were with someone.”
I clenched my jaw together. I was going to have to have a little talk with Karen after lunch.
“It’s okay. She didn’t have an appointment and she looked pretty upset. I was just trying to figure out what was going on. It’s, ah, it’s fine. If she needs to talk to me she can make an appointment like everyone else.”
Tilting her head, Mallory stared at me for a few seconds.
“You sure you’re okay?”
I nodded. The need to get the encounter with Harley out of my mind, I pointed to her. “I’ll be better when you take that jacket off.”
Jesus, the levels I’ll stoop to.
With a sexy grin, she did just that, letting it fall to the floor.
“Is Karen gone?” I asked.
“She got up and grabbed her purse as I walked in.”
I brushed my thumb over her nipples causing her to let out a little moan. “Had a bad morning, huh?”
With a frown, she nodded. “Very bad. I feel like being naughty.”
Mallory reached down and rubbed her hand across my dress pants. My cock had finally woken up and was ready to come out and play.
“I can do naughty really well,” I promised.
Her tongue ran across her lips. “Very naughty.”
She squeezed my dick, and I let out a groan. Gripping her hips, I pulled her to me and pressed my mouth to hers.
“I want you from behind,” I whispered against her lips.
“Then take me from behind.”
Spinning her around, I pressed her to my desk.
“Hands on the desk and don’t move. I’m going to fuck you fast and hard.”
Mallory peeked at me from over her shoulder and flashed me another sexy grin as I rolled the condom on.
I knew why I wanted her from behind.
Fucking asshole. That’s exactly what I was.
Mallory didn’t deserve this but my mind rationalized that she wanted me for sex as much as I wanted her as a distraction. It didn’t take me long to get lost in our fucking. The sounds of Mallory’s little whimpers and moans mixed with my balls slapping against her had me coming right along with her.
Slowly pulling out, I leaned over her and kissed her back. “Let me go get this off, and I’ll bring you back a wash cloth.”
The nice thing about having my office in an old historical house, I had a private bathroom.
“I’m okay. I need to get back to the shop. I thought I could take longer, but I’m meeting with a supplier.”
Standing there staring at her, I frowned as she put her jacket back on. “So, that’s it? A quick fuck and then back to work?”
She shrugged. “Isn’t that what our little lunch dates always are? I was worked up from a bad morning. I needed a release.”
In that moment it hit me: when we hooked up at lunch it was because she was stressed and needed a quick release—or because I was. My office or her back storage room at the store. There was nothing romantic about any of it. Was there anything romantic at all about our relationship? Was there any substance outside of the bedroom??
Nothing. At. All. It was purely sex. And lately, it was hardly even that. This was the first time I’d fucked her in almost three weeks.
“Tripp? Are you okay? You seem a bit lost.”
I was standing in the middle of my office, my dick hanging out of my pants with a condom on it. To say I was lost in thought was an understatement.
“No, sorry, I’m good. Are we still on for dinner tonight?”
She made a face and scrunched her nose. “I thought I told you I had to take this supplier out to dinner. He’s flown in from Dallas to meet with me. Their company doesn’t sell to very many boutiques so if I land this it would be amazing.”
“A guy, huh?”
Mallory walked over to me. Smiling, she reached up on her toes. “You have nothing to worry about. Now go take off that condom and toss it before you fill your office with the scent of sex.”
I laughed. “The scent of sex?”
“Yes!” she said, hitting me playfully on the chest. “I swear when we have sex in the stock room I can still smell our sex hours after you leave.”
Snarling, I added, “Hell, I hope Karen can’t smell our…sex.”
She chuckled again. “I’ve got to run. I’ll call you tonight once I get back home. Lucy is babysitting so I won’t be out too late.”
Spinning around, Mallory headed for my office door. “Talk to you later!”
“Yeah, I’ll see you later,” I called out as she walked through the door and shut it.
I made my way into the bathroom and discarded the condom as I began to clean myself off. Leaning my hands against the sink, I stared at my reflection and spoke to him like he was a long-lost friend.
“You’re an asshole. You just fucked your girlfriend to forget about your ex-girlfriend. How did that work out for you, dick?”
After splashing water onto my face, I made my way back into my office when something caught my eye. It was a single key on a little key ring. The moment I bent down and picked it up I knew whom it belonged to.
I thought for a few moments before making the decision to head over to the vet clinic. No sense in making Harley drive all the way back over here, plus I’d be able to find out what in the world she was talking about earlier.