My Forever Valentine

by Melody Heck Gatto

“You’re pretty popular,” Spencer commented, not being able to stop himself.

  She shrugged, seeming uninterested in the messages. But he was growing more concerned.

  “Har, what’s going on? Is there something you’re not telling me?” He hated himself the moment the words came out of his mouth. He never wanted to be that kind of boyfriend. And yet, here he was.

  “Spence, it’s nothing important,” she said, but the fact that she didn’t meet his gaze wasn’t lost on him.

  They didn’t keep secrets. But she was acting suspicious, and that had him worried.

  Spencer cracked his knuckles and went to the kitchen under the guise of getting another beer, but really, he needed to get a little distance before he asked her point blank who had been calling. He wanted to be a good boyfriend and give her space. Maybe it was nothing, and he didn’t need to be concerned.

  He was talking about Harley. Spencer tried to assure himself that his worries were all in his head. He was the one that made other guys jealous, not the other way around. I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation.

  But nothing made him feel better. His heart felt constricted in his chest, and a bitterness pooled in his stomach. He was jealous. And he hated being this way.

  She had never given him any reason to be jealous or think there might be someone else. And he wanted to keep it that way. He took a swallow of his beer to tamp down the jealousy, and returned to the living room with the two beers.

  Spencer handed her a beer as he sat down.

  “Oh, babe, no more for me. I have to work at the diner tomorrow afternoon. And I want to be sure to be able to get up nice and early so we get enough quality time before I need to leave.”

  Nodding, Spencer put both beers on the coffee table in front of where he sat. If her phone kept ringing, he might need both of those. “That’s a reason I can get behind!” Doing his best to push the messages out of his mind, he slipped in next to Harley and put his arm around her. Putting on his best suave voice, he wiggled his eyebrows. “Speaking of school and work, how’s your schedule looking on Valentine’s Day?”

  “Valentine’s Day? Hmm... I don’t know.” Her devilish grin made him want to squeeze her tight. And when she followed it up with a laugh, she was so damned cute. This girl made his heart soar. “What day is that again?” She joked.

  She had gotten the rise out of him that she wanted, because he couldn’t help the smirk that formed on his face at her teasing. “Oh, really? I think you know what day it is.” He chuckled and began gently tickling her sides.

  “No! Don’t tickle me!” She giggled hysterically, pushing his hands away. “Of course I know what day it is. It’s our day.”

  Her smile was so sweet, so sexy, so inviting that he couldn’t help but kiss her.

  “Mmm...” Her lips moved against his as she whispered, “Will Valentine’s Day consist of a lot of this?”

  He nodded. “I think we can make that happen.”

  “Then I’ll make sure I come home directly from my last class.”

  “I think we can make that work. I already cleared my calendar.” He kissed her neck. Standing up, he took her hand and pulled her to his side. “Maybe we can relocate upstairs to discuss this further.”

  “That sounds like a plan.” Harley smirked. She moved to grab her phone.

  “No,” Spencer said abruptly. He pulled her hand from the cell phone.

  There was no way he wanted to be interrupted by another one of her mystery messages. And he didn’t want to think about who was calling, or even ruin the moment by asking her. He just wanted quiet time with Harley.

  “But I need my alarm.”

  Spencer just smiled. “Then I’ll set my alarm for you, and I’ll make sure to wake you up the best way I know how.” He ended with a waggle of his eyebrows so she would understand his meaning.

  A grin filled Harley’s face. She moved into his arms, leaving her phone behind. “Okay,” she agreed. “Problem solved.”

  SPENCER ROLLED OVER and stared at the clock. It was four in the morning, and he couldn’t sleep. Harley was curled up beside him, sound asleep. He wished her constant notifications weren’t eating away at him, but they were.

  Quietly slipping out of bed, he grabbed a pair of shorts and then closed the bedroom door behind him.

  The thought of sneaking a peek at her phone crossed his mind. But he really didn’t want to be that kind of boyfriend. Maybe a slice of cold pizza or a beer would help clear his mind. He opened the refrigerator, grabbed both and sat down on the couch. With the television turned on with the volume low, he sat back, and tried to relax.

  He didn’t know why he was so worried. Harley loved him, and he loved her. And on Valentine’s Day, he was ready to prove it.

  Uninterested in the replay of the hockey game that was on television, he moved to his desk and opened the top drawer. There sat a red velvet ring box.

  Spencer had known that she was the one for him since the day she showed up at his apartment to tell him that she’d broken up with Isaac. That night she told him that he had her heart. He knew right then and there that he would marry this girl. She was his everything.

  His mom had always told him that he would know when he’d met his destiny. That person would complete him, be cautious of his feelings, and understand everything about him. Harley was that person. Even though they had grown to know one another as friends first, he knew she was it for him.

  He’d been so sure that she was the woman for him, the next day he’d skipped his morning classes and gone shopping instead—ring shopping.

  Last Valentine’s Day she had run to him to confess her feelings.

  This Valentine’s Day he’d declare his.

  It wasn’t that she didn’t know how he felt about her. But they hadn’t actually said those three little words yet.

  Opening up the ring box, the most perfect diamond ring sat inside. When he looked at the ring, he saw Harley. He saw their future.

  He’d been waiting a year to give her this ring.

  February fourteenth couldn’t get here soon enough.

  Chapter Three

  HARLEY

  Harley sat on her bed with her laptop open, studying. Today was a typical Monday. She had been tired from the weekend with Spencer, work, and then she was up late last night finishing up her paper. She hadn’t expected to get much of it done while over at Spencer’s place, and she was right. But that was okay with her. Time with him was time well spent.

  However, that made it tough to stay awake in her first class, so she recorded the lecture and was trying to catch up on her notes now.

  “Harley? Are you ready? It’s almost time!” Lily called up the stairs.

  Lily was not only her roommate and best friend, but she was like a sister to her.

  “Be right there!” she yelled.

  Tonight, they were having a virtual cooking class with Mrs. Wilson.

  Spencer’s mom always wanted a girl to pass her recipes down to, and she was over the moon that Harley and Lily were eager to learn to bake.

  “Haaaarley!” Lily bellowed.

  “Be right there, Lil.” Harley shook her head as she finished the last few notes that Lily was going to let her take. She’d completed most of the class and could finish the last few minutes later. Over a week ago, she’d made plans with Mrs. Wilson and had been looking forward to some laid-back time in the kitchen.

  Closing her laptop, she hurried down the stairs to the kitchen.

  “Okay, I’m ready!” she called, as she rushed in the kitchen.

  “Hello, dear. How are you doing?” Mrs. Wilson’s voice startled her.

  Looking at the laptop, she realized that Lily had already started the video call. “Mrs. Wilson, hi. I didn’t realize you were already on... I’m doing well. How are you and Mr. Wilson?”

  Spencer’s mom smiled. “We’re doing fine over here. It’s too bad that we couldn’t do this in person though.”

  “I agree. Maybe we can plan some
thing soon.”

  “I would love to have all four of you over. The guys can watch sports, and us gals can make my famous pumpkin pies!”

  “That sounds delicious,” Lily exclaimed.

  Mrs. Wilson winked. “We’ll figure something out. Okay, let’s get cooking!”

  Tonight they were making oatmeal cookies from scratch. Harley had never made oatmeal cookies; she usually bought those. But she was getting pretty good at peanut butter cookies from scratch.

  They didn’t own the best mixer, and she wasn’t well versed in adding ingredients to it. So by the time they poured in the flour mixture, she had the beater going too fast, and a cloud of white flour covered the kitchen counter.

  “Woops,” she said, in between coughing.

  Lily had to wipe the screen of the laptop off, too; it was covered in flour.

  Once they had the first batch in the oven, Mrs. Wilson asked, “So how are my boys doing?”

  “They’re working hard as always,” Lily answered.

  “Glad to hear it.” Spencer’s mom beamed. “Staying out of trouble, I assume?”

  “Of course,” Harley said with a nod.

  “I’m sure you ladies are working equally as hard,” Mrs. Wilson added.

  “Always,” Harley said, with a sweet smile.

  Lily nodded in agreement.

  “That’s my girls!” Mrs. Wilson said proudly.

  Lily took the cookie tray out of the oven and showed it to the camera.

  “Looks good! You ladies are naturals.”

  They were just putting the last batch in the oven, when there was a knock at the door.

  “I’ll check who it is,” Lily said, snatching up a dish towel and wiping her hands.

  A moment later, Harley heard the door open and then close, and Lily came back into the kitchen. “It’s just the guys on their way home from work,” she said, smiling.

  Spencer and Zane were in the living room talking in low voices, and there was a rustle of their coats being removed before Spencer strode into the kitchen with Zane right behind him.

  “Hey, babe.” As Spencer kissed Harley hello, he slightly jumped when he noticed his mother on the laptop screen. “Oh, hey ma.”

  Harley couldn’t help but chuckle at how adorable he looked when his face turned red with embarrassment.

  “Hi, Aunt Alice.” Zane waved before kissing Lily on the cheek.

  “I am so happy to see you boys!” Spencer’s mom beamed. “We were just talking about you two.”

  “Uh-oh,” Spencer said.

  “Don’t worry, hon, it was all good. I just had to make sure you were treating these ladies right,” She teased.

  “Always, ma.” Spencer wrapped his arm around Harley and pulled her close, this time planting a kiss on her cheek. “You have them baking cookies tonight?”

  Spencer grabbed one off the cooking rack, and popped it into his mouth. He mumbled, “Mmm-Hmm,” and gave Harley and his mom a thumb’s up.

  “Glad to hear you approve, son,” his mom said with a laugh.

  “I better taste test, too. Spence will eat anything,” Zane added, and took a bite of his own cookie. “Mmm. Very good!”

  Lily beamed with pride and hugged her man.

  “You ladies are doing great. And I love teaching you. I can’t wait till we do pies.”

  “Pies?” Spencer asked, interested.

  “Yes. Our next lesson. But we need to get these girls out here to my kitchen for that. I think they are just as excited as I am for that baking lesson, so you boys figure out what weekend you can all come out.”

  Spencer responded with a laugh, “Will there be a home cooked meal involved?”

  “Oh, Spencer. Obviously. Have I ever let you leave here hungry?”

  “Not that I remember.”

  “That’s because you always remember good food and good company. And when you’re home, you get both of those,” his mom said.

  “Don’t worry, Aunt Alice, we’ll make a plan. I could use a good home cooked meal,” Zane added.

  “I know your father will be happy to have you boys here for the day,” Mrs. Wilson said.

  Harley loved being part of this interaction and being part of Spencer’s family. This was what she always wished she had, and now she did.

  “Okay boys, I’m going to get going. I have to get this mess cleaned up, and you need to help Lily and Harley clean up.”

  “Wait, we weren’t even baking!” Spencer fake complained.

  “Spence, I taught you better than that. If you’re going to eat those cookies, then you can help those young ladies clean up.”

  “I know, Ma. I was just teasing.”

  “I know dear,” Mrs. Wilson smirked. “Okay, give me a call with the plan for making pies, so I can make sure I have what I need.”

  “Alright, mom. Love you. Tell dad we said hi.”

  “Goodnight, Aunt Alice. Give my best to Uncle Eddie.”

  “Goodnight, boys. Be careful going home. Harley, Lily—nice job, ladies. Can’t wait to see you. And my love to you all.” Spencer’s mom signed off.

  Zane took another cookie. “Ladies, you did a great job. These are really good.”

  “Yeah, they’re delicious. And I’m sure you made my mom’s night, too,” Spencer said with a cute smile.

  “Well, who else is she going to pass on her recipes to?” Harley teased. As soon as the words left her lips, Harley wished she could take them back. She knew that Spencer was the one for her, but although he had been the perfect boyfriend, he’d never hinted at forever. Her heart warmed at the thought of forever with him and his family, and being a ‘daughter’ to his mother.

  Zane raised his hand. “I’m willing to learn how to cook.”

  “What exactly is your specialty, Z?” Spencer asked with amusement.

  “Boxed Mac’n’Cheese. But at least I don’t burn it.”

  Harley grabbed the cookie sheets and began washing them.

  “It’s okay, we’ll teach you,” Lily said sweetly. “Har, you don’t have to do that. You have work to do. I can take care of all this.”

  “You still have homework to do?” Spencer asked.

  “Yeah, sorry. I should’ve told you before you came all the way over here. I had a shift at the bookstore after class today.”

  “That’s okay. Mind if I stay anyway?”

  “You just want to sit and watch me review a lecture and take notes?” Harley asked, not really surprised, because she often did her homework while he watched television.

  “Yeah, why not? As long as you don’t mind.” He placed a kiss on her cheek. “After all, I did come all the way over here to see you.”

  “You’re crazy,” she teased.

  “Crazy about you!” Spencer said with a loving smirk.

  “You’re both weird,” Lily said. “It’s getting late. If I were you, I’d just skip your first class tomorrow. Spend some time with Spence tonight, and finish those notes tomorrow when Spencer’s gone to work.”

  “Lil, if I skip the class, then I’ll have twice as much work to do.”

  “Okay, you’re right.” Lily pushed Harley towards the stairs. “You guys go upstairs and get that homework finished. Zane and I can finish cleaning up.”

  Zane nodded and waved them on.

  Harley didn’t feel right about letting Lily and Zane finish cleaning up, but she wanted to get her homework done before it grew too late.

  Feeling anxious that Spencer had an early start at work tomorrow and couldn’t stay long, she hurried through the lecture and her notes so they would have plenty of time to cuddle and watch a little television.

  After saying goodnight to Spencer, Harley made herself comfortable on her bed and turned on her television for some mindless distraction until she fell asleep.

  Just as she cuddled up with a pillow, her cell phone rang.

  Thinking it was Spencer, she grabbed for her phone, but it was her mother. Which was unusual, considering she hadn’t heard from her since Chri
stmas.

  Well, it’s either an emergency or she butt-dialed me.

  But family time with Spencer’s mom and a phone call from her own mother in one night? She’d take it.

  “Hey, Mom. What’s up?”

  “Harley, hi it’s your mother.”

  “I know, Mom, that’s why I said ‘Hey, Mom,’ ” she said with an eye roll. It obviously wasn’t an emergency; there was no urgency in her mom’s voice.

  “I just wanted to let you know that your father is out of town on business, and he said your monthly allowance will be a little late.”

  Yep, this wasn’t a loving mother call.

  “That’s fine, mother. I don’t need it anyway.” She sighed. Her paychecks were more than enough to support her, she didn’t need or want her parent’s money. “Is that all you needed?”

  “Yes. Keep an eye out for that bank deposit. Talk to you soon.” Her mother hung up before she could say anything else.

  Harley put the phone down and lay back on her bed, now stressed and tense.

  Her phone buzzed with a message.

  What does she want now?

  But when she looked at the screen, she saw it was Isaac again.

  And she thought her night couldn’t get any worse after that call with her mother.

  Already annoyed with the messages, she began to wonder if every cell phone had this glitch, or should she be searching for a new model as soon as she got her next paycheck? Maybe she could get a new number while she was at it and be off Isaac’s radar all together.

  Her phone buzzed again. This time with a text message. It couldn’t be Isaac; she’d already blocked his texts.

  Looking at her phone, she saw it was a text message from Spencer.

  Spencer: Goodnight, Babe. Sweet dreams. Maybe I can make you cookies next time.

  Harley: I’ll hold you to that. Goodnight.

  She and Lily had sent the guys home with a container of cookies, because they didn’t need two dozen oatmeal cookies hanging around here. They had turned out really good, and she knew she’d surely eat more than she needed to.

  Her heart warmed as she read his text, making her forget all about her mother and Isaac, and helping her to drift off into dreamland happy.