by A. M. Kusi
After that goddamn kiss, he was doomed.
Chapter 10
Jax met Harper by the lockers like she’d told him to. The room was humid and smelled like chlorine. Families and couples were laughing and having fun on the several different activities in the water-park area. He stuffed the bag with his clothing inside the locker and followed her up the stairs to one of the three water slides, dragging a double-seated tube behind him, bouncing against his legs.
“Don’t you wish they had something so the tubes were already waiting up there?” Harper said, breaking the silence.
“Yeah,” he agreed.
They got to the top. Since the place wasn’t overly busy, they waited only a short time in line for the red waterslide. She sat down in the front while he climbed into the back, trying not to stare down the front of her bikini. He wrapped his legs around her and she slipped them under her arms, securing them like the employee showed her. Jax couldn’t get enough of her touch and closeness. She was addicting: just one little taste and he was her prisoner. A painful reminder of what couldn’t be.
They got the green light and started to slide down. Looking out the glass windows and seeing blue sky, rushes of excitement and happiness spread throughout his body. He smiled as he heard Harper laughing, and then everything went black as they entered a tunnel. Jax couldn’t see his hand in front of his face. The tunnel was pitch black and stuffy. The air dense, making it hard to breathe as they were whipped around. Not able to see which way they would turn next. She screamed as they plunged down deeper into the darkness and he squeezed his legs tighter. Once they saw light again, it was just before they splashed into a large pool.
He took a big gulp of fresh oxygen and relaxed. His hands had somehow found their way around Harper’s waist, and he immediately removed them and jumped off the tube into the warm pool water. In his haste, the motion left Harper unbalanced and she toppled upside down in the pool after him.
Harper came up gasping for air. “A warning would have been nice before you tried to drown me!”
Jax laughed as he grabbed the tube before it could float off, and waded to the exit stairs. He set the tube in a pile and turned to see Harper smiling, her slick wet hair and fat water droplets dripping down between her two luscious breasts. Her nipples pebbled through the white bikini, leaving nothing to his imagination. Remembering the way they tasted, he licked his lips.
“How about the river?” Harper asked.
“Sure. Tired?”
“Yeah, getting there.”
They grabbed two single tubes and got situated in them. Jax grabbed her ankle and spun her around slowly as they lazily made their way around the indoor complex. Harper relaxed her head onto the tube and closed her eyes, giving Jax a chance to stare at her beauty.
“What do you want in life?” she asked, not opening her eyes.
“Status, career, a better car, family someday maybe,” he answered without having to think.
“That will bring you happiness?” She prodded.
“It’s the American dream, isn’t it?”
“Doesn’t mean it’s for everyone.”
“What do you want in life then, Miss Guru?”
Harper smiled. “To live each day to its fullest. To laugh and love. To share experiences with those I care about.”
Her answer hit him like a ton of bricks. He wasn’t expecting it. He thought she would have said a husband, kids, a nice house, lots of travel, being free to do as she wished, since she seemed to not be able to settle down on anything.
“No kids? No white picket fence?” he half-joked.
“I would love to be a mother, if it’s in the cards. I would pour everything I have into making sure my child grew up knowing they were loved and accepted no matter what or who they were,” she said.
He didn’t doubt her. “What do you mean if it is in the cards?”
Harper opened her eyes and blinked a few times before meeting his gaze. “You know about my mom, right?”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Mom had abnormal cells—cervical cancer. They caught it just in time. She was lucky. She had a hysterectomy when she was twenty-five.”
Jax made the connection. “You’re almost twenty-five.”
“Two years.”
Suddenly Harper’s voracious appetite for life made that much more sense.
“Do you, I mean, is there any way to prevent you from…?”
“I get checked every year. It’s supposed to be every three, but I am extra vigilant with my family history. I have one coming up soon, actually.”
“I can’t imagine having to deal with the idea of losing your mother when you were so young.”
She took a cleansing breath before she explained, “It rocked my world. I went from being a carefree child into a quiet and people-pleasing teenager.”
Jax remembered her that way, which was why this forward version of Harper had been such a surprise.
She continued, “It wasn’t until I made a friend in college, who helped pull me out of my shell, that I woke up. She helped me see that instead of living in fear of what could happen, and trying to do or be what I thought everyone in my life wanted, I need to carpe diem! Seize the day. Because tomorrow is never promised.”
He heard the unspoken meaning in her words. She would live her life to the fullest, in case she wasn’t one of the lucky ones.
Jax nodded, not sure what to say. Becoming aware of just how short life could be made him wonder—what if he never got the chance to really get to know Harper because he let his race to the top remain his priority? Mortality was a rude wake-up call.
Harper relaxed back onto the tube, closing her eyes again.
They didn’t speak for a while, making a full circle around the park before Jax asked, “What do you want to do with your life, Harper? For a career, I mean?”
“I want to be able to use my talents and creative brain, but I don’t want it to consume my life. I like writing, actually. Always have.”
“Why did you go to college for communications instead of English?”
“My parents,” she answered honestly. “I try to make them happy, and at least I could convince them that communications could be applied to Daddy’s business. I took a lot of extra classes on creative writing while I was there. I minored in English.”
“Oh, I had no idea. What do you like to write?”
“Stories mostly.” She blushed.
“What kind of stories?”
Harper opened her eyes and looked at him. “Love stories and romance, usually.”
“Like erotic romance?” Jax asked, sitting up, suddenly more interested.
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” She teased.
He squeezed her ankle. “Will you let me read one sometime?”
Harper bit her lip. “I don’t know. Only Isa, that same friend from college, has ever read anything I’ve written. And my professors.”
“Well, I want to read one.”
“I’ll think about it.”
They completed one more pass around the water park on the lazy river before they got out and changed back into their clothes. Harper had also bought them two bright pink towels at the shop. She handed him one with a smile.
“Thanks,” he said, looking unimpressed.
“Jax, don’t tell me you’re one of those guys who thinks pink is just for girls?”
“Pink is for girls,” he deadpanned.
“Pink is a color; it has no gender,” Harper said, rolling her eyes. “Seeing you wrapped in the hot pink towel and shirtless is a sight I will keep locked in my memory bank forever.” She laughed.
He had his own fair share of images from the day for his memory bank too.
They made their way out to his car. He was thoroughly tired, but it was the good kind of exhaustion. A day well
spent.
Harper climbed into his Audi, holding the bag with her wet bathing suit and towel. He started the car and put the radio on before he drove her home in silence.
She fell asleep and he relaxed to the hum of the car and low music. He pulled up at the curb in front of her house, looking over to see her resting against the seat, still fast asleep. He smiled, and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
Jax got out and went over to open her door. Leaning over her body to unbuckle her, he placed his hands on her shoulders so she wouldn’t fall. “Harper, we’re here.”
She stirred. “Hmm. Oh,” she said, wiping the tiredness from her eyes.
She got out of the car, and he kept his arm around her to keep her steady, seeing she was still half-asleep. They got to her door and she pulled out her keys and opened it. She hesitated and looked up at him. “Want to come in? We can order dinner. I’m too tired to cook, but we can go over the plans for this week.”
He rubbed the back of his neck and licked his lips. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Oh,” she said, with a defeated expression.
“I’m just exhausted and I need some sleep before our early flight tomorrow.” He was tired, but being alone with Harper in her house while their kiss burned fresh in his mind was too dangerous.
She looked into his eyes. “Right. Well, thanks for coming with me today. I had the best non-date ever.” She winked.
Jax laughed. He liked the way she could pick herself up so quickly. “Me too,” he said honestly.
“See you at the airport tomorrow?” she asked.
“See you in the morning.”
Jax waited while she went inside and shut the door. He walked back to his car and drove off towards his house.
He needed to talk to someone who could help him sort this out. Once he was home, he called his friend Ethan.
“Hello?” Ethan’s heavy Ghanaian accent greeted him.
“Hey, man. You got a sec?”
“For my brother, always,” Ethan answered.
“I need some advice.”
“And you came to me? I am stunned. Why not River?” Ethan asked.
“It’s complicated,” Jax said, setting his keys on the kitchen counter in his loft apartment.
“Alright, go ahead. You have my full attention.”
“I met someone, but being with them would mean I could lose everything I have worked for, even relationships that are important to me,” Jax explained, sitting at a bar stool next to the counter.
“Do you love her?”
“No. I mean, I care about her a lot, but I don’t love her like that.” Jax couldn’t love Harper. They were not even in a relationship. Could he?
“That’s a lot to risk for someone you don’t love, man.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
“Why would being with her ruin everything? Who is she? Do I know her?”
“Uh…” Jax didn’t want anyone to know about his feelings towards Harper, but he also knew Ethan could keep a secret. “Harper.”
The phone was silent for a full minute.
“E? You still there?”
“Holy shit. Did you say Harper? As in Harper Parker, River’s little sister? Your boss’s daughter? That Harper? Or is it your American accent playing tricks on me?”
Jax cringed. “Yeah, that Harper.”
“That’s quite the clusterfuck. Does River know?”
“Absolutely not. You can’t say anything either.”
Ethan sighed through the phone. “That’s a big risk, man. You don’t usually see a girl more than once either. Is that what this is?”
“No!” Jax said defensively.
“Chill, man. I had to ask. If you really like her, why don’t you talk to River about it? Feel him out.”
Jax said sarcastically, “Hey, River, I know you have known me since we were fifteen, which means you know how many women I have slept with, and what I said about them; by the way, I want to date your sister.”
“Okay, I get it. I just think you should say something to him if you do decide to get involved with her. I would make sure you want this though. Because if it doesn’t work out, River might kill you and you will be out of a well-paying and secure job.”
“Yeah. Those are the exact reasons I needed to hear to keep me focused on what is most important. Thanks, man. It was a stupid thought, a weak moment.”
“She’s a lot younger too,” Ethan added.
“She’s all grown up now,” Jax explained. That was the reason he was in this mess in the first place.
“Look, brother, if this is the real thing, I say go in with your eyes wide open. Unless you are absolutely sure this is worth risking everything you have worked so hard for, and your bro-mance with River, don’t do it.”
“I won’t,” Jax promised. “Thanks, E. I’ll miss practice this week, on a business trip to Virginia. I’ll make the game Saturday though.”
“I’ll let the team know. Night.”
“Night.” Jax ended the call.
His mind was made up. Now that Ethan had helped clear his thoughts, he could see the facts of the situation without the memories of their touches during the day, and the fun they’d had together, marring his choice. Harper was his friend and business associate, nothing more.
He almost believed himself.
Chapter 11
Harper was late boarding the plane. Jax looked at the empty seat next to him and checked his phone one more time. Her words from five minutes ago, Boarding now, filled the screen. Jax shook his head and wondered what was taking her so long. Just then, Harper appeared at his side, sliding her carry-on into the compartment above, looking frazzled. She had on tight pink yoga pants and a black tee shirt.
“Hey, let me help you with that,” Jax said, standing up and squeezing his broad frame into the aisle.
“I got it,” Harper snapped, closing the compartment.
“I saved you the window seat,” Jax offered.
“Great. Now I will have a first row seat to our deaths,” Harper said, taking her seat and fumbling with the buckle.
She smelled like whiskey. Jax eyed her warily and took his seat next to her. “Are you scared of flying?” Jax asked after a moment of silence.
“Aren’t you Captain Obvious today,” Harper deadpanned while closing her eyes and clasping her hands in her lap.
The flight attendants sealed the door to the airplane and started going over what to do in case of emergencies. Jax watched Harper take exaggerated deep breaths.
“You know flying is safer than driving, right?”
“I can’t control a plane. I can control a car,” she answered through gritted teeth.
“I can understand the need for control. Hey, if we die, at least we will be going down together,” he said.
Harper didn’t smile, but opened her eyes to glare at him.
“Okay, bad joke.”
“Look, thanks for trying, but I promise once we are in the air, I will feel better. It’s taking off and landing…and any turbulence that makes me uneasy.”
“Don’t you fly all over the world?” he asked.
“Yes, and I get nervous every time.”
“Why do you do it then?” He glanced at her, genuinely curious.
“Why let fear stop me from having an amazing experience that I know I won’t regret,” Harper stated.
Jax was surprised yet again with her answer. The plane started to move and she closed her eyes, pushing a deep breath out through her mouth. Jax reached over and grabbed her hand instinctively.
She squeezed his hand as the plane readied for take-off.
Once they were safely in the air, Harper visibly relaxed. Jax didn’t bother to take his hand back, and she seemed to want his connection.
“Tell me s
omething about you, as if I just met you, and had not known you since you were ten,” he said.
Harper smiled, bringing a warm sensation to his heart. “Hmmm…well, I don’t like flying much.” She laughed and he could tell she was loosening up. “I have so many things I want to do with my life that it is hard to pick just one. Which is why I have let the wind blow me wherever it chose to up until this point.”
“Why are you working for your father? It doesn’t seem like he…well, like he believes it’s the right fit for you.”
Harper looked outside the window at the white clouds below them. “I wanted to try it, and see if it was a life I would enjoy. My parents don’t think I can do it—or anything—very seriously. I want to prove them wrong. I guess I want to show them that I can be serious and focused. There is more than one way to do things.”
She was silent for a minute so Jax added, “I think you have a unique perspective on things, and that’s a strength your father could use for the business.”
Harper turned to look at him. She bit her lip. “Thank you for saying that.”
“I meant it.”
“What about you, Jax? Tell me something I don’t know about you.”
“I was captain of our soccer league last year, but stepped down so that I could travel more for the company.”
“That isn’t what I meant. Tell me something about you, Jax. What are some things you are afraid of?”
Jax scratched his short beard. “Uh, I’m not really afraid of anything.”
“That’s impossible. Everyone is afraid of at least one thing, real or imagined.” She smiled and rubbed circles with the pad of her thumb against his hand, comfortingly.
Her touch, so tender and gentle, unraveled him from the outside in. Jax thought about his answer long and hard before speaking. “I’m afraid to fail.”