Page 72 of Reckless

“Well now.” Erin paused. “Your dad told me he thought you were falling in love with her. He was right.”

“What gave it away?” Miles asked, laughing.

“You’re very protective of your friends so I’d have expected your concern about Harlow and her mother. But it’s the way you thought about what you were going to say to me about her, the way I know you weighed what you thought she would want you to reveal to anyone else. That’s a different level of connection. And then the threat to show up at a woman’s door after you called her a bitch.”

“I respect women!” he protested. “This particular terrible person happens to be a woman who is also a bitch.”

“If I thought for half a second that you didn’t, I’d show up at your hotel in ten minutes with your mum and we’d both kick your ass. Hell, I might even bring Raven along for that. This Gloria character sounds like an absolute miserable bitch. She’s got all my mom hackles up. But she’s got yourthis is a threat to the person I lovehackles up. You’re more intense than I’ve seen you over anyone you’ve had in your life.”

“There’s nofallingabout it. I’m there.”

“I really can’t wait to meet her. Your mom and I are here in Vancouver. I probably should have led with that, but I wanted to take the temperature first.”

He snorted, unbelievably pleased. “You’rehere?”

“Okay, well, it’s not just me and your mum. Todd, Ben, and your dad are here as well. Kelly and Vaughan too because they want to see Maddie.”

Miles waved at his sister to call her over.

“How many of you so Poppy can let the box office know?” he asked, thinking it shouldn’t be that hard to accommodate seven people.

“Is this going to be too much? The most of the entire crew is here including part of Hood River and Bainbridge. It took us four giant SUVs to fit everyone. We want to get a look at you and Poppy and obviously Harlow, but there are twenty people. Will that be way too much of us and scare her?”

So much for seven. “Hang on.” He looked up at Poppy. “Mum and Dad are here along with pretty much everyone else. Let the front know we’ve got twenty guests coming tonight.”

Poppy’s eyes got wide a second and then she laughed. “I knew it. I knew they couldn’t wait for the Gorge shows.”

Erin interrupted, “Miles, we’ll be there for Above Me’s set too. We’re staying at the same hotel you all are apparently. Jeremy hooked your dad up with the info and also got us all seats.”

“Of course he did.” He and his sister gave one another a look. “Poppy’s going to doublecheck and make sure everything is in place. Text when you arrive at the venue so we can come meet you.”

“So you think this will be okay for her? Last chance,” Erin said. “We’re a lot. We want you to keep her, not freak her out.”

“Just use your manners and don’t rush up to her all at the same time asking questions. No one gets to ask her what her intentions are with me. And please don’t mention this ugly business with her mother.” Harlow felt enough guilt that didn’t belong on her shoulders because of Gloria, Miles didn’t want to make it worse.

“I think we can manage not to act like animals,” she told him and in the background, Miles heard his mother’s voice asking if he said they could go.

“I didn’t ask if we could come see him. We’re here, Gillian and that’s that. I just asked if all of us would freak the girlfriend out,” Erin told Miles’s mum.

Harlow came into the room and his heart lightened.

His mother got on the phone. “Hello, darling. I would apologize for all of us showing up here, but that would be such a terrible lie. We miss you and Poppy and after all the pictures we’ve seen on the internet, we want to meet your Harlow.”

“Everything is fine, Mum. We’ll see you all later.”

“Later? You didn’t tell him we were already here?” his mom asked Erin.

“I don’t need tonow, do I?” Erin said.

“You’rehere? At the arena? Now?” He stood and Harlow backed up toward the door and he pulled the phone from his ear. “No, wait. Not you, Mum. Poppy will bring you—are youallhere?”

“Not all. It’s me and your dad along with Erin, Todd, and Ben. Everyone else will wait another two hours or so. Your uncle Brody wanted to be sure we told you he agreed to stay back at the hotel, but he got the first hug after you came off stage.”

Miles didn’t even know how much he needed to see his family until right that moment as joy crashed through him.

Over the line, Miles heard his sister’s voice which meant she’d already reached the front office. “Mum, we’ll see you shortly. Poppy will bring you back here.” He disconnected and took two steps and Harlow took another back. “I guess you heard part of that?”

“Your parents are here right now? Here at this venue?”

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