“Harper, this is my husband, Nate,” Nikki said proudly while Nate reached around her to shake Harper’s hand.
“It’s very nice to meet you, Harper. Thanks for coming out on a Saturday on such short notice,” Nate said.
Harper tried not to stare too hard while she shook his hand, reminding herself that aside from his celebrity status, he was a regular guy who appeared to be madly in love with his wife. Julia had practically begged to accompany her today, but Harper had declined. She knew how important privacy was to Nikki, who’d been hounded by the press, especially when she’d first become involved with Nate. The locals had settled down some since then, but there were still the celebrity chasers out there who were vying to get close to them. Not that Julia was one of those people, but Harper thought it would be best if she did this shoot on her own.
“It’s nice to meet you too, and it was no problem coming here today. I do a lot of my work on the weekends.”
“Me too,” Nikki said, “although I’ve become better at delegating these days.” Nikki was a successful real estate broker who hadn’t given up her job to be a celebrity’s wife, and Harper admired her for it.
Harper followed them into the living room, where their son, Max, was sitting on a blanket in the middle of the floor, playing with a stack of blocks. When he saw his parents, his adorable face broke out in a toothless grin, and he flapped his hands excitedly.
“Max, this is Miss Harper. She’s here to take your picture,” Nikki said, squatting down to wipe the drool off her baby’s chin.
Harper wasn’t sure how much a one-year-old could understand, but Max smiled at her, which she took as a good sign. “He’s a cutie,” she said as she bent down to hand him a block. She had always loved kids, and they were her favorite subjects for photo shoots, mostly because they were so uninhibited. Their emotions were genuine and unfiltered, and she strove to capture that in her photos. Of course, the downside was they often ran out of patience before she could take all the shots she wanted. Hopefully, this sweet little guy would cooperate for the next half-hour or so.
“I just fed him before you got here, and he already took his morning nap, so he should be good to go,” Nikki said somewhat fretfully.
Nate hugged his wife into his side and said, “Don’t worry, honey. I’m sure Harper’s used to dealing with children.”
Harper knew he was referring to her job, but his statement struck a chord of sadness in her. By now, she’d hoped to have a child of her own—with Blake. They’d discussed it at length just before he’d died, and she’d been looking forward to embarking on the next chapter of their life together. Being around this happy family of three reminded her of all that she’d lost and the moments she might never get to experience.
Donning her professional mask, Harper smiled and said, “I’m anxious to get started. Where do you want me to set up?”
An hour later, satisfied with the shots she’d taken, she bid goodbye to the Collinses with a promise to contact Nikki as soon as the proofs were ready. When she backed down the driveway, the three of them stood in the doorway, waving goodbye, Max’s chubby little hand included. It wasn’t until she was back on the dirt road leading toward home that she let her tears fall.
“Damn it, Blake. Why did you have to leave me so soon?” she said, angrily swiping the tears away.
By the time she’d returned home, her tears had dried up, and her emotions were back under control. She’d taken numerous photos of children since Blake’s death, and she hadn’t had a reaction like that in months. Her emotions were still in upheaval thanks to what had happened with Finn. If she hadn’t kissed him, she wouldn’t know what she was missing, and she wouldn’t have been able to be rejected by him. Even though he’d probably thought he’d been doing her a favor by backing off. Some favor!
And then her phone rang, breaking her train of negative thoughts. Glancing down at the number, she sighed.
“Hey, Will.”
“Hi. Are you free tonight?”
She racked her brain for an excuse but came up empty. It was time to face Will and tell him the truth. “Yes.”
“Great! How about if we meet at the Union for a drink?”
“Sure. What time?”
“Can you be there in an hour?”
“Ok. See you then.”
After they hung up, Harper sighed again. She hated the idea of letting Will down, especially since he was such a nice guy. But she didn’t think it was fair to string him along. She only hoped that he wouldn’t take the news poorly.
When she arrived at the Union an hour later, it was already crowded. Standing on her tiptoes, she searched the crowd for Will and found him sitting on a stool at the far end of the bar. They locked eyes at the same time, and he smiled and waved her over. Turning sideways, she squeezed through the mass of people who were waiting for tables and went to join him.
“Glad you could make it,” he said.
She hadn’t seen him in a while, and she thought he looked particularly handsome that evening. His eyes were sparkling, and she caught a whiff of nice-smelling cologne as he swiveled around on his stool to face her. Did he do all this for me? I hope not. But it was obvious that he had.
“What would you like to drink?” he asked as he waved the bartender over.
“I’ll have a rum and Coke.” She needed something stronger than a beer to do what she had to do.
After Will placed her order, they settled back to wait.
Might as well make small talk before my drink gets here. “How was your ski trip?”
“Really good. It was nice to hook up with my old friends. Well, not hook up, but you know what I mean.”
If she weren’t mistaken, Will seemed nervous, and she wondered why. But then her cocktail arrived, and she took a long drink of it, enjoying the warm, tingly sensation it left behind as it slid down her throat. You can do this, Harper.
“So, what about you? What have you been up to since I last saw you?”
Oh, nothing, except for making out with Finn in his living room. She let her eyes travel down the bar while she decided how to respond and stopped short. There, at the opposite end of the bar, sat Finn and Liam, drinking beer and watching football on the big screen mounted behind the bar.
Great! The joys of living in a small town. She couldn’t go anywhere without running into someone that she knew. As if he sensed her eyes upon him, Finn looked up from his drink and made eye contact with her, a flicker of surprise flashing across his gorgeous face. And then he caught sight of Will, and giving her a forced smile, he held up his beer bottle in salute.
The entire transaction took less than thirty seconds, but Harper had almost forgotten that Will was there. And then Will cleared his throat and said, “Does he know?”
Jerking her eyes away from Finn, she said, “Does who know what?”
“Does Finn know how you feel about him?”
Oh God. Her first impulse was to deny, deny, deny, but then the mature part of her brain kicked in. “Will, I…”
“It’s ok, Harper. I had a feeling about this anyway.”
“You did? When? How?”
He chuckled, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “That first night when he showed up at the pub. I sensed that there was more between you two than friendship, but I wanted to be wrong.”
Twisting her hands in her lap, she said, “I’m so sorry, Will. I came here tonight to tell you that I’m not ready for a relationship, but it’s not really because of Finn.”
Eyebrows raised, he looked at her skeptically. “It’s not?”
Shaking her head, she said, “No. Finn and I…well…it’s complicated.”
“Because he was friends with your husband?”
“That’s a good share of it. Yes.”
Nodding with understanding, he took a drink of his beer and ventured a glance down the bar at Finn, who was staring right at them.
“Doesn’t look like he agrees with you.”
Harper had been trying to avoi
d eye contact since she’d first spotted Finn, but now she glanced down the bar and saw him turn away. He’d suggested they remain in the friend zone, but he didn’t look pleased to see her there with Will.
“Like I said, it’s complicated.”
“Well, thanks for your honesty. I hope we can still be friends.”
“I’d like that,” she said, smiling for the first time since she’d spotted Finn. “You’re a great guy, Will. I mean that. You’re going to make some lucky lady very happy.”
He took another swig of beer and said, “That could happen sooner than later.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, when I went skiing, one of my old college girlfriends was there. Last I knew, she was married, but now she’s divorced. Nothing happened. I told her I was seeing someone, but if she’d have known I was free…”
Placing a hand on his arm, she said, “Oh my God, Will. Now I feel even worse!”
Placing his hand atop hers, he squeezed it and replied, “Don’t worry about it. All it will take is a phone call to set the record straight.”
Harper felt her skin prickle as if something were wrong. Sure enough, she glanced down the bar to find Finn glaring at the spot where her and Will’s hands touched. Before she had a chance to pull her hand away, she saw two women approach Finn and Liam from behind and tap them on the shoulders. Will let go of her hand just as Finn spun around to greet the women, but not before Harper saw the corners of his mouth lifting in a broad smile.
Following her glance, Will shifted in his seat and said, “Looks like he might be trying to make you jealous, and it appears to be working.”
Rather than apologize, Harper admitted defeat. “I shouldn’t be feeling this way,” she complained, taking another sip of her drink.
“We can’t always control our feelings.”
“But a few months ago, I couldn’t have cared less about Finn’s love life. He’s always been off limits to me.”
“Well, whatever it is between you, I think you owe it to yourself to find out. Otherwise, it’ll drive you crazy.”
“It already is!”
Will laughed. “We could give him a taste of his own medicine.”
The brunette who was standing behind Finn had her hand on his shoulder now, and she was leaning in and whispering something to him. Harper frowned as she saw Finn peering at her cleavage, which was on full display as she bent over. Real subtle, lady!
Forcing herself to look away, she said to Will, “What do you mean?”
“He thinks we’re dating, right?”
“Yes.”
“So, we wait until he looks this way and then give him a show.”
“You mean like kiss or something?” The buxom brunette tossed her long, wavy hair over her shoulder, her oversized gold hoop earrings sparkling in the light and her bubbly laughter carrying all the way down the bar. Hussy!
“Sure. And my suggestion has nothing to do with the fact that I’ve wanted to kiss you ever since we met.”
He said it so sweetly that Harper tilted her head and sighed. “Why am I breaking up with you again?”
Will tipped his head back and chuckled, loudly enough that it caught Finn’s attention.
“NOW! Kiss me NOW!” Harper urged through gritted teeth.
Will didn’t hesitate. He leaned forward and planted one on her. She saw Finn watching them, and then she closed her eyes and pretended to sink into the kiss. Will was enough of a gentleman to leave his tongue out of it, but he put on a good show, kissing her softly while cupping her head in his hands.
It was over in seconds, but it had the desired effect, as evidenced by Finn’s scowl. But then the brunette said something to swing his attention back to her, and the moment was gone.
“Thank you,” Harper whispered.
“My pleasure. Seriously,” Will said with a wink.
If only she’d been attracted to Will instead of Finn, life would have been so much simpler! While the kiss was nice, it hadn’t gotten her juices flowing the way that Finn’s kiss had. Kissing Will had only served to solidify her decision that the two of them were better off as friends.
After they’d finished their drinks, Will offered to buy her another, but Harper declined. She suddenly felt overwhelmingly exhausted, and she just wanted to go home and sleep—alone! But then a movement down at the other end of the bar caught her eye, and she saw Finn and Liam stand up and start to follow the two women toward the door.
Finn glanced at Harper over his shoulder once before placing his large hand on the small of the brunette’s back and disappearing into the crowd.
“I think we’re about done here,” Will said, noticing her distress. He insisted on paying the tab while Harper shrugged into her coat and hopped down off the barstool.
When they reached the parking lot, Harper glanced around for Finn’s truck, but it wasn’t there. She figured that he’d gone home with the brunette, and the thought of it gave her a sharp pang in the chest.
“If it helps, I think he only has eyes for you,” Will said as he walked her to her car.
Smiling up at him, she said, “Stop being so nice to me. I don’t deserve it.”
They were standing outside her car door when Harper noticed the Burberry scarf tucked inside Will’s leather jacket. She’d been so distracted by Finn that she hadn’t seen it before. She decided she didn’t care what Finn thought. The scarf suited Will—classy and dignified. A true gentleman.
“Thanks for everything,” she said, her voice catching.
“This doesn’t have to be goodbye, you know?” Will said, raising the zipper on her coat. “You can call me anytime, even if it’s to talk about Finn. Wait a minute. Maybe I am being too nice!”
Harper giggled. “I wish you the best of luck with…”
“Megan.”
She noticed the softness in his voice when he said her name, and it made her smile. There was no disguising a person in love. And she was happy for him. She really was.
“I’m probably going to call her tonight,” he said.
“Good idea. Life is short. Don’t wait.”
“Sounds like you need to take your own advice.”
“I’ll try to.” And then, surprising them both, she put her arms around him and hugged him tight. And they stood there just like that for another minute or two before she got into her car and drove away.
When she glanced in her rear view mirror, Will was still there, watching her go.
Chapter 14
“What did you do to him?” Julia demanded the minute she showed up for work on Monday.
“Why? Was he really upset?” Harper asked.
“According to Connor, he snapped at everybody within a three-foot radius yesterday!”
“Wait a minute. Connor? You mean we’re not talking about Will?”
“What about Will? Oh no. Did you do something to poor Will too?”
“Back up. What did Connor tell you?”
“He said that when he showed up for work yesterday, Finn was slamming things around, muttering under his breath, and acting like a caged bull. Connor mistakenly asked him if he was having woman troubles, and Finn blew up at him!”
Interesting. If Finn had gone home with the brunette from the bar on Saturday night, why had he been in such a rotten mood? “And so, naturally, you assumed that I was at the root of his troubles? Thanks a lot, Jules!”
“Well, weren’t you?”
“I don’t know. Maybe it had something to do with the brunette bimbo he left the Union with on Saturday night.”
Brows raised, Julia said, “Oh. Connor didn’t tell me about that.”
“Well, he probably didn’t know. Liam was with Finn that night, and they left with two women they picked up at the bar.”
“And what were you doing there?”
Harper winced. “Breaking up with Will.”
Julia sighed, but she didn’t look angry. “I knew it was coming, but I feel bad for him. I think he really liked you.”
Julia instantly brightened. “Oh good. I always liked her. Not as much as I like you, of course…”
Harper giggled, glad that the tension between them had passed. “I felt bad about Will too, but he was very gracious about the whole thing.”
“So, back to Finn. Why do you think he was on a rampage yesterday?”
Averting her eyes to the set of prints on her desk, Harper said, “Maybe it had to do with him seeing Will and me kissing.”
Leaning forward, Julia said, “Can you repeat that, please? A minute ago, I could have sworn you said that you and Will broke up.”
Sighing, Harper looked up at her. “It was Will’s idea. He saw Finn flirting with the brunette, and then he suggested that he and I give Finn something to be jealous about.”
“Sounds like middle school!”
“I know. It was stupid, but I can’t go back and undo it. Besides, Finn agreed that we should keep things status quo between us. We need to get used to the idea of seeing each other with other people.”
“And I would agree if it was REAL!”
Harper shook her head. “He’ll find out soon enough. Nothing stays a secret in this town for long. Speaking of secrets, how are things going with Connor?”
Julia smiled, that same smile that Will had sported when he’d mentioned Megan. The same smile Harper used to give Blake.
“I think he’s ready to tell his brothers about us.”
“That’s great, Jules!”
Julia nodded, but she looked nervous.
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