Orchard Hill Volume Three

by Kara Lynn Russell

  Harmony smiled. She had them right where she wanted them. “Follow me for lesson number one, girls.”

  Harmony walked the girls home a couple of hours later. Tea time had been spent on manners, along with a few tips on being considerate of others. That was the true heart of manners, after all.

  Once they reached their own house, the girls ran inside, yelling their thanks over their shoulders. Not exactly princess-worthy behavior, but they’d been very good while they were at her house. You could only accomplish so much in a day.

  Harmony was going to turn and go home, but Joseph saw her there on the front porch and came out. “How were the girls?”

  “They were very good.”

  Joseph raised an eyebrow. “Really? Are you sure?”

  She laughed. “Yes, I’m positive.”

  There was a pause then, and he dropped his eyes from hers. Sensing that he wanted to say something, Harmony waited.

  “Are you all right? I mean, has he left you alone?”

  She shouldn’t say anything. She shouldn’t give him any reason to think he could run her life any more than he’d already tried to do. But he looked sincerely worried, and she was in too good a mood to start another fight.

  “I haven’t heard from Blake since that night. I think he’s cut his losses. Really, he’s not the stalker type. Just selfish and greedy.”

  “Oh…well…good. In a relative sort of way, I mean.”

  Harmony reached out and squeezed his arm. “I know what you mean.”

  Joseph stared down at her hand where it lay on his arm. Slowly he brought his own hand up and covered hers with it. “Are we friends again then?”

  “As long as you don’t try to boss me around any more. I’ve been on my own for too long to put up with that.”

  “I’m the boss at work and the head of my family. I guess I’m too used to telling everyone what to do. I’m sorry.”

  “I know you just wanted to help Joseph. If you’d asked instead of ordered me, I probably would have welcomed your suggestion to stay at Hope’s.”

  “I guess I sort of lost it when you wouldn’t come out of the bathroom,” he admitted, looking away again. “I was afraid…”

  “Afraid of what?”

  “That he’d hurt you. When you wouldn’t come out, I sort of panicked.”

  She guessed for Joseph that meant taking down the door. It must have cost him something to admit it, though. It merited a little honesty on her part, too. “He did hurt me. I really thought I was in love with him. It broke my heart to find out that the man of my dreams didn’t exist. It was like biting into a wonderful dessert and getting a mouth full of mud.”

  He chuckled. “I like that analogy. Only you would think of that, Harmony.”

  “Anyway, I didn’t feel like I could face you after you knew…how foolish I’d been.”

  “You’re not foolish because you trusted someone.”

  “I don’t want to make any more mistakes,” Harmony admitted. “I guess I’m a little wary of relationships right now.”

  Joseph dropped her hand and stepped back with a sigh. “Hope has driven past three times now. I suppose this is her idea of giving us some privacy. Like I wouldn’t notice.”

  “I’ll go then, or she’ll be driving around the block all night.” Harmony’s heart felt strangely light, and she couldn’t attribute it all to her success with the girls. There was a bit of a spring in her step as she crossed the yard to her own house.

  TITLE

  Orchard Hill: volume three

  Chapter 9

  Sunlight streamed in through her window. Harmony woke and stretched. She lay in bed and thought about the day ahead of her.

  It was strange that just a couple of weeks ago, she’d been dreading the days ahead and fighting to keep clear of the depression that had hovered since the end of her television show. What, exactly had changed?

  She’d become involved with Joseph’s family. Every time she turned around, the kids were there, asking for homework help, a snack, an opinion. It felt good to be needed. Maybe that was what had been missing from her life for so long.

  And there was Joseph himself. With the kids spending more and more time at her house, she was seeing more of Joseph as well. Several times she’d made dinner for the family again, simply because they were all at her house when suppertime rolled around.

  She loved those evenings. They all sat around the table, talking and laughing. This was nothing like the suppers she’d shared with her parents when she was growing up. Then, she swore they all watched the clock, waiting for it to be over so they could return to their own pursuits.

  She had the menu for the harvest celebration party almost set now. Peter had been an invaluable assistant, coming up with the idea for a Halloween trail mix with pumpkin seeds, dried apple bits, popcorn, candy corn, and even dried cranberries. They also made pumpkin muffins with icing eyes, mouths and noses and apple ghosts – apples covered in white chocolate with chocolate candy eyes and mouths. This was their own variation of caramel apples. They finished up with a few other treats that incorporated the fun of the season into the party.

  Her deal with the triplets was working out, more or less. They weren’t going to switch from the Terrible Trio to pop star princesses overnight, but they were making real progress. Peter seldom showed up at her house just to avoid them now.

  Joseph seemed to always be on the periphery—at her door to pick up the kids or showing up just in time for supper. But she felt his presence whenever one of his family was around. The teens were such good kids, always willing to lend a hand, honest, and considerate—of the world in general, if not of each other.

  They had Joseph’s stamp on them, every one. She could even see the impression Joseph was beginning to make on the triplets, though he hadn’t had them long.

  It was a Saturday, Harmony remembered, and Peter was coming over to help make leaf shaped cutout cookies for the party. They would be covered with a berry-flavored glaze that would also add color.

  Although his family swore Peter never lifted a finger to help in the kitchen at home, at Harmony’s he was always involved in baking something. When she asked him why that was he’d simply replied, “It’s no fun. Noah and Abby are always telling me I’m doing something wrong or trying to tell me what to do.”

  It took all afternoon to make and decorate enough cookies. Just as they were packing away the last of them to put into the freezer, Abby stuck her head in the door. “Can I talk to Peter?” she asked.

  Her brother went over to her and she whispered something in his ear. A big grin spread across Peter’s face, and he nodded.

  “See you later Harmony,” called Abby as she left.

  After they’d cleaned everything up for the evening and finished the dishes, Peter invited Harmony to join them around the fire pit that night.

  “It’s sort of late in the season for that now, but Dad promised we could have one more cookout before winter. We roast marshmallows and make s’mores. We have hot dogs, too, and apple cider.”

  “Sounds great,” Harmony said, wiping her hands on a dish towel. “What time?”

  “About six,” Peter replied.

  “I’ll be there.”

  Harmony saw the light from the fire through her kitchen window a little before six. She put on her warmest sweater and grabbed a heavy coat and gloves from the closet before she went out. All of the kids as well as Oliver and Hope were gathering around. They called out greetings to her as she crossed over to their yard.

  There were plenty of hot dogs, cider and s’mores to go around. When everyone had eaten, there seemed to be a number of significant looks being exchanged between Hope and the kids. First Oliver and Hope left, taking the triplets to spend the night with Hope. Then Noah left, saying he had a date. Abby begged for a ride to the movies where she was meeting up with some of her friends, and Peter asked for a ride to a friend’s house as well.

  Within minutes it seemed, Harmony and Joseph were l
eft alone. It couldn’t be a coincidence. What should she do?

  “It looks like we’ve been set up again,” she said to Joseph.

  He got up and moved to the chair next to hers. “Yeah, it does.”

  Harmony shifted nervously in her seat. “What should we do?”

  “Do you know how often I get a chance to be alone? I’m going to enjoy it.”

  “Oh.” That put a different spin on things, didn’t it? “I guess I’ll go home then and leave you to it.”

  She rose to leave but Joseph grabbed her wrist.

  “Why would you do that?”

  “Because you said you wanted to be alone.”

  He laughed. “With you, Harmony. I want to be alone with you.”

  What did you say to that? “Um…um…are you sure? Because I can…”

  Joseph tugged on her wrist and sent Harmony tumbling into his lap.

  She gasped. “You’re a fast mover, aren’t you?”

  His smile released a thousand butterflies in her stomach. “I told you I don’t get much time alone. I have to take advantage when I can.”

  Take advantage. A poor choice of words. Once again, she was torn between the desire to move closer to Joseph and the panicked urge to run away.

  He rested his forehead against hers and whispered, “Harmony?”

  “Y-yes?” It was a struggle to get that single word out.

  “Are you going to let me kiss you tonight?”

  Her heart beat double time. “I…I don’t know.”

  Joseph loosened his hold on her. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to push you.”

  “I don’t want to make another mistake,” she said to his chest, unable to look him in the eye. Not that this view was bad either.

  “I understand. We can take it slow. I promise—”

  Realizing that he was going to let her go, Harmony made a split-second decision. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

  It only took Joseph a moment to tighten his arms around her again, and kiss her back.

  And could this man kiss! There were more fireworks going off between them than were set off on the fourth of July. It was sensational, exciting…wrong.

  What were they doing, sitting in the back yard necking like teenagers? Anyone could come by. Anyone could see them. It was unseemly.

  Unseemly? How had her mother gotten into her head at a time like this?

  Joseph brushed kisses over her eyelids and cheeks. “Sweetheart,” he whispered.

  There it was again. She loved being called that, especially by him.

  “Why don’t I put the fire out while you make some hot chocolate? We can find a movie to watch. As much as I love kissing you, I think we’d better slow down.”

  Slow down! What had she done? She’d thrown herself at him. What was he thinking?

  She jumped to her feet as if she’d been scalded by hot water. “You don’t have to. I-I mean, I’m sure you have better things to do than…”

  Joseph got to his feet, too, and stopped her chatter with another kiss. “Don’t run away from me again. I can behave myself, I promise.”

  “You behave yourself? What about me? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

  Another kiss. Her bones were melting, forcing her to lean into him.

  He laughed. “So this is the way to win an argument with you.”

  Harmony began to pull away again, but he wouldn’t let her go. “I’m teasing.” He kissed her nose. “Please stick around for a while. We don’t have to watch a movie. We can do whatever you want.”

  “I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Harmony mumbled.

  “What?”

  “People,” she said quickly. “Let’s go somewhere there’s lots of people. This being alone business should only be taken in small doses.”

  They went to The Grace Place for their hot chocolate. A local Christian band was playing, and the coffee shop was crowded and noisy.

  Joseph felt a little funny showing up there, holding Harmony’s hand. It seemed everyone he knew was there. He exchanged greetings with Grace herself as well as her fiancé, Riley, who’d been pressed into service behind the counter. As they searched for a table, he and Harmony were hailed by Riley’s brother, Ian, and his girlfriend, Lily, as well as his realtor, Jeff Bradley and Jeff’s fiancée, Angel.

  He was used to being single in a world that seemed made for couples. He was suddenly acutely aware that coming here with Harmony would start a wave of gossip. But, being with Harmony was a good thing, and he didn’t care if people knew. It was the speculation on what they didn’t know that bothered him.

  It looked as if there wasn’t a free table in the whole place. Joseph was about to give up when he spotted Isaac and Shaun together. He led Harmony to their booth and slid in next to Shaun. She sat next to Isaac.

  Joseph was glad to see Shaun here with Isaac. Although there’d been no trouble for weeks now, he still worried about the younger man finding a release from his guilt and frustration in destructive behavior. He should have known he could trust Isaac to keep him on the right track. Shaun hadn’t come in to work with a hangover since they’d become roommates.

  They were close to the band here, and the volume of the music made talk difficult. It was impossible to miss the looks that Isaac and Shaun were giving him. They were wondering if Harmony was a real date or just a friend, no doubt. Joseph ignored them. He chose to pay attention to Harmony instead.

  Her attention was on the band. She’d changed into an emerald green sweater that made her eyes seem luminous. Her long brown hair was caught back in a ponytail, making her look as if she weren’t much older than Abby. He reached across the table and took her hand, wanting to touch her, to have some connection between them.

  From the corner of his eye, he noticed his friends’ surprised expressions, but when he touched her hand, Harmony switched her gaze from the performers to him. She smiled and he decided he didn’t care if the whole place was looking at them.

  TITLE

  Orchard Hill: volume three

  Chapter 10

  In the following days, Joseph and Harmony continued to grow closer. She fit in so well with his family, that he wondered how they’d gotten by before she’d come into their lives. Her baking for the harvest celebration party overflowed to his freezer. The triplets were on their best behavior for longer than they’d ever been. Peter was happily discovering the world of baking. Abby had nothing to complain about for once, and even Noah admitted that he liked hanging out at Harmony’s house.

  Joseph thought Harmony was a gift straight from God, and he wanted her to be a part of his family always. He knew she was still a little skittish after her experience with Blake, so he was determined to take things slowly.

  Hope admitted they’d planned to leave him with Harmony that night. “It was Pansy’s suggestion,” she told him, “but after you walked in on our planning session we decided to wait to put our plan into action. I think the timing worked out perfectly.”

  Joseph was forced to agree with her.

  The days were crisp and clear, beautiful fall weather. The leaves, blazing with color, scattered across the lawns. It was time for leaf raking. The entire Velasquez family plus Harmony gathered for that duty one Friday when there was no school.

  They raked the leaves in both yards into colorful mountains. Stopping to take a breath, Harmony noticed the triplets looking wistfully at them.

  “I’m surprised they haven’t jumped in yet,” Noah told her. “They’ve been so good lately it’s scary.”

  “Really?” Harmony studied their faces. They so obviously wanted to play in the leaves. It must be taking every ounce of resistance they had to keep still. “Jumping in the leaves—what a great idea.”

  “Dad will freak,” protested Noah.

  Harmony hesitated. She didn’t want to have to re-do all their work. But on the other hand, even the best pop star princesses deserved to have fun, and Joseph was in the house getting a drink of water. With a whoo
p, Harmony threw her rake down and jumped into one of the leaf mountains. She heard the triplets give shrieks of delight. The teens uttered their disbelief. Then suddenly there were bodies all around her, diving into the leaves. All six kids and Harmony rolled on the ground. They thrashed around, tickling one another and laughing.

  “What’s going on here?” She knew that roar. Joseph was back.

  The kids scrambled to their feet, pointing and exclaiming, “She started it.”

  Harmony sat in what was left of the pile of leaves and gave him a tentative smile. “They’re right,” she said. “I did start it.”