Page 83 of Wicked Devotions

We’ll do everything we can to make sure each one comes true.

Chapter

Thirty-One

HARPER

Much like the first time I came to a party here with the guys, I wander around in the fading light while they set up. I tried to help, but they insisted they were good. Now I find myself back in the ruins of what was once a sanctuary.

The altar draws me near, I’ve never seen anything like it. Completely carved out of granite, it has withstood the test of time. Some might even go as far as to say it’s a metaphor for the eternal love of God.I wouldn’t know.

My father’s church didn’t have an altar, he stood in the middle of a large stage with a screen at his back. Stage lights would shine down on him, so hot that he’d finish his sermons and have to dab sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief. The juxtaposition of my experience and the quiet serenity of this place leave me with an overwhelming sense of sadness.

How different would things be if I had grown up in an environment of beauty and love instead of garish wealth and fear? There’s no point in entertaining these thoughts and questions. It won’t change my circumstances, and as I turn and watch the guys laughing together, I’m not sure I’d change anything anyway. Being welcomed into their lives makes me feel incredibly lucky.

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch a short burst of light from the trees. I cross the room to investigate but don’t pay close enough attention to where I’m stepping, and my foot slips into a hole. I cry out in pain as a broken board cuts open the skin just above my knee.

Before I can even pull myself up, I feel two hands lifting me from under my arms. Emerson scoops me up like I weigh nothing and sets me on one of the pews lining the crumbling walls. He kneels down infront of me and pushes my dress up my thigh to get a better look.

“It’s just a scratch,” I say as I watch him run his finger under the cut. “I’m such a klutz.”

Cy jogs up behind him with a small first aid kit, followed closely by Declan.

“This place is dangerous if you take a wrong step.” Emerson grabs the kit and searches through it. “When was your last tetanus shot?”

“I have no idea.”

His lips flatten into a line. “We’ll take you to get one tomorrow, but I’ll clean this up the best I can here.” He opens an alcohol wipe and gently runs it over the wound.

I hiss through my teeth at the sting while he dabs it clean. With one hand he presses a little bit of gauze over the cut while the fingertips of his other hand trace tiny circles on my inner thigh. I don’t know if he knows what he’s doing to me or not, but he shifts to drop the gauze in a little trash bag, and the hand that’s caressing me slips higher under my skirt.

It takes all my willpower to not let my legs fall open in invitation. I haven’t felt his touch in any more than a friendly manner, but my core immediately starts aching for him. Curiosity and need swirltogether while he continues to take care of me, ripping open a bandage with his teeth.

I look up and find both Cy and Declan with their eyes locked on my face. By the looks on their faces, I know that they know I’m turned on. Cy bends down and whispers something in Emerson’s ear that makes him go still.

Mischief shines in his eyes as he lifts his gaze to me. “I think you’ll be fine, but there’s one more thing I can do for you.”

“What?” My eyes lock on his whiskey-colored irises.

“Kiss it better.” His gaze stays locked on my face as he lowers his to my thigh.

Emerson presses his lips to the corner of the bandage. “Any other aches I should know about?” His fingers slowly move up my thigh until his knuckles brush my panties.

I nod my head, afraid my voice won’t work if I try to speak. I drop my head back as he drags his thumb along my slit. His heat seeps through the thin cotton and into my skin. Just as he starts to slip his fingers under the side of my panties, the sound of people entering the clearing brings the moment to a screeching halt.

He pulls his hand from under my dress, butinstead of standing and putting space between us, he wraps it around the back of my neck and slides me to the edge of the pew. His lips close over mine in an unexpectedly fierce kiss. But just as soon as it started, he ends it.

“We’re not finished with this,” he says against my lips.

I stay where I’m at while I catch my breath. My nipples strain against the soft fabric of the dress. I thought I’d be okay without a bra tonight because of the way the dress is gathered at the bodice and supports my breasts. Being incredibly turned on wasn’t something I gave a single thought to, though, and now I’m wishing I would have. At least I was smart enough to grab a cardigan.

Declan stays with me as I get myself pulled together and then offers his hand to help me up.

“Thank you,” I say quietly.

“I think I’ll be thanking you by the end of the night.” He smirks at me and then leads me out to where everyone is gathering. “Stay close,” he murmurs in my ear as he steps around me to go greet a few guys from his team.

I nod and walk over to the cooler to grab a drink. I’m not much of a drinker, so I grab a bottle of water and take a seat in one of the chairs we brought andset up by the fire pit. A group of girls walks into the clearing and head straight for Declan and Emerson, immediately gluing themselves to their sides. While it annoys me, I try to hide my feelings by focusing on Cy as he talks animatedly to two guys off to the side of the party.

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