Page 46 of Harper

“What the heck would I do with it?”

“Maybe Avery would like to wear it?”

“I told you—”

“I know what you told me,” she says. “I also know you dropped my eyes when you said it. She may not be your girlfriend, but there’s more than ‘nothing’ between you two.”

“I didn’t mean to lie to you,” I tell her, feeling a quick and dirty flash of guilt. “You asked if I was “with” anyone, and I’m not. Avery and I are casual.”

“I get it,” she says.

“It’s just a sometimes thing.”

“Okay.”

“Doesn’t mean anything.”

“Right.”

I grab her hand. “Harper.”

She turns around to look at me, her face bathed in the golden light of the nine o’clock sun. “What?”

“You believe me, right? That it’s nothing?”

“It doesn’t matter, Joe. Either way, it doesn’t matter.”

“It’s over with Avery,” I blurt out. “As of now.”

“Does she know that?”

“I’ll text her. She won’t really care. I told you, it’s—”

“Casual,” she says. Her expression softens. “You don’t have to text her. It’s okay, Joe. You don’t owe me anything.”

The Nova sounds her horn—a warning bellow that she’ll be leaving port soon, and suddenly I’m scared that if I drive Harper home, what she said about this being a one-time thing will come true. I don’t want to drive her home. I want tonight to last as long as possible.

“Harper.”

She looks away from the ship and back to me.

“Come home with me,” I say, putting my hands on her hips and pulling her toward me. She looks up at me with those cornflower-blue eyes, so filled with sadness, it breaks my fucking heart. What happened? What happened to you? To us?

“I can’t,” she says, but she makes no move to leave my arms.

“Please, Harp. One night.”

She leans into me, resting her head on my shoulder with a soft sigh. It’s the same sound I’d make sinking into my couch after a long hard day on the job. It’s the sound of coming home. It’s the sound of surrender.

“One night?” she asks in a whisper.

“Please,” I beg softly, resting my lips on her soft blonde hair. “Come home with me, Harper. Just for tonight.”

“Okay,” she murmurs.

I jerk away, looking down at her.

“Wait! Did you just say yes?” I ask, scanning her eyes to see if I’ve somehow dreamed her consent.

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