Page 58 of Redeeming Harmony

He hesitated for a few seconds longer before jogging past his truck in the parking lot and over the small footbridge that crossed the stream separating the clinic from the house. He didn’t know shit about cars, but he couldn’t resist the opportunity to try to help Harper, to be close to her for even a little while. Maybe it’d be something simple like a dead battery.

He could hear her cursing a blue streak as she peered under the hood. He deliberately coughed and cleared his throat as he approached, so he didn’t scare the crap out of her. Knowing Harper, she’d probably kick him in the balls instead of screaming.

She ducked out from under the hood, staring at him as he jogged up to the car. It was cold enough for a jacket, but she wore just a thin t-shirt and a pair of leggings with her bare feet in flip flops. “Hey, you having car trouble… Harper, what’s wrong? Are you crying?”

She swiped at the tears on her cheeks. “My stupid fucking car won’t start, and I can’t… I don’t have time for this. Addie needs me, and this piece of shit won’t start, and I don’t know what’s wrong with it, and I…”

She burst into tears, and he automatically pulled her into his arms, wrapping her in his embrace before kissing the top of her head. Her hair was damp, and her warm, vanilla scented skin was rapidly cooling. “Hey, it’s okay. Don’t cry. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“Daniel’s been in a car accident. He’s at the hospital, and they’re prepping him for surgery, and Addie is freaking out. She needs me, and I can’t get there because of my fucking car. My best friend needs me, Nathan.”

More tears slid down her cheeks. Goosebumps had erupted on her arms and her upper chest. Nathan wiped her tears away with his thumbs before rubbing her cold arms. “I’ll drive you to the hospital.”

“I can’t ask you to do that,” she said.

“You didn’t ask. I offered. Come on, let’s go.” He took off his jacket and held it open. “Put this on.”

Without arguing, she slid her arms into the jacket, and he zipped it up. It was comically too large, but at least it would keep her warm. She grabbed her bag from her car and slung it over her shoulder. He took her hand, and she linked her fingers with his, giving him a grateful look as they headed back toward the footbridge.

“Thank you, Nathan.”

“You’re welcome, Harper.”

* * *

“Addie!”Harper dropped his hand and hurried over to where Addie sat on a plastic orange chair in the emergency room. Addie’s tattoo artist boyfriend sat next to her, and he nodded to Nathan as Addie and Harper embraced.

“How is Daniel?” Harper asked.

Her face pale, Addie said, “He has a broken left arm. The orthopedic surgeon on call arrived about half an hour ago and said Daniel needs surgery to fix it, but…”

“What?” Harper said.

“Daniel’s too drunk for them to do the surgery tonight.” Addie started to cry, and Harper hugged her again. “He drove while he was drunk, Harper.”

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry,” she said. She wiped the tears from Addie’s cheeks and kissed her forehead. “It’ll be okay, pinky-pie. Here, sit down before you collapse.”

Addie sat down, taking Preacher’s hand and holding it in a tight grip as Harper took the empty seat next to her. Feeling a little awkward, Nathan wasn’t sure if he should stay or leave. Before he could decide, Harper held out her hand to him. He sat in the chair on her other side, taking her hand and linking their fingers together again. It made him weirdly happy that she didn’t want him to leave and seemed to take comfort from holding his hand.

Telling himself not to read too much into it, he listened quietly as Addie talked.

“Mom and Dad are with him right now, but he’s so drunk, he’s not really with it,” she said. She looked at Preacher, who leaned down and pressed a kiss against her mouth.

His kiss seemed to bolster her a bit. “I don’t know all the details of what happened. Mom called me after Gideon called them and just told me to come to the hospital, but I do know that it was a single vehicle accident.”

Her lower lip trembled, and she leaned against Preacher, who put his arm around her and pressed another kiss against her temple. She bit at her bottom lip before saying, “Thank God he didn’t hurt anyone else, Harper. If he had… if he’d…”

“He didn’t, pinky-pie,” Harper said, squeezing Addie’s hand. “And a broken arm can be fixed.”

“I can’t believe that he drove. He’ll be arrested for a DUI, and he’ll be fired from his job, and he loves his job, Harper. Loves it!”

“I know, honey,” Harper said. “Daniel needs help for his addiction, and we’ll help him.”

“He has to go to rehab, but what if he won’t? What if he still refuses? You know how stubborn he is. He still isn’t even talking to Dad.”

“We’ll convince him,” Harper said. “I’ll be right here with you, honey. Whatever you need. Okay?”

Addison nodded, fresh tears welling up in her eyes. “Thanks, Harper.”

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