Page 53 of Curve Ball

“Harper…” he murmurs as he enters the room but I turn to stop him.

“Josh, I get it. I fucked up. I should have told you, and I know that now. But at the same time, I didn’t want you to worry. I didn’t want this to affect your game and I really didn’t want it to affect the way you see me.”

He says nothing, just stands there and watches as I throw all my clothes into my bag and zip it up.

“I went to the police, they were no help without proof, so I was trying to figure out a way to make this go away without it touching you.”

He sits on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands.

“Why haven’t they been posted online yet?” he asks and I wonder how much Angela really knows.

She knew about the photos because she either overheard Mel and I talking or found the hard copies in my desk, but clearly she didn’t tell Josh everything. When I sit next to him and explain about the note and the video, he’s up and pacing the room.

“For fuck’s sake, Harper, this is ridiculous!” he yells, making me jump. “What the hell were you thinking? How could you possibly think I wouldn’t want to know about someone filming us!”

I shake my head because there is no way I’m sitting here while he yells at me for trying to do the right thing.

I can’t.

I grab my jeans off the floor and pull them on as fast as I can and as I turn to leave, he’s right there, blocking the door. His hair is wild, shielding his eyes from me but I can sense the anger radiating off his body.

“Josh, let me pass.”

“No, we need to talk about this.”

I shake my head, dumbfounded.

“Now you want to talk? What happened to never speaking to me again, huh? I’ve tried to explain everything and more, and you’re still fucking pissed, so please let me leave so I can have some time to think things over.”

It’s his turn to shake his head as I push past him, heading into the living room.

“Of course I’m still pissed!” he yells after me. “I’m pissed because the woman I love decided that a bunch of fucking pictures were more important than our relationship!”

I stop dead.

“What?” I whisper, turning to face him and not believing what my ears just heard. The look of shock must pass over my face because he slowly walks over to me. “You what?” I ask again, needing to hear the words again to make sure they weren’t just in my head.

A big smile crosses his face as the pit in my stomach starts to slowly crumble.

He stalks closer and cups my face in both of his hands as the warmth of his touch elicits a moan from me that I’ve been holding in since he walked through that front door.

“I love you, Harper Stevens,” he says with so much conviction that every ounce of fight leaves my body and I fling myself at him. He catches me with ease as I wrap my legs around his waist as his lips softly touch my neck. “Sunshine…” he moans as he pushes me up against the hallway wall as his face leaves the crook of my neck and my gaze meets his.

“I love you too,” I whisper as his lips finally crush against mine.

My body melts into his as his fingers dig into my skin. I’m cursing my decision to put on jeans as I grind myself against him. His lips release mine, only to travel across my jaw and down my neck. I moan at the sensation of his lips against my skin as my entire body lights on fire.

We part slowly as his forehead rests against mine and we’re both breathing hard.

“Harper, I need you to know that I wasn’t upset that the pictures or even the video exist, it’s the fact that you lied to me.”

He’s right.

He walks us to the couch and sits with me astride his hips. “I remember asking you about some photos you were holding and you told me it was model headshots. It was them wasn’t it? You lied to me right to my face…Are you even looking for models?”

Shame washes over my entire body as I shake my head. I knew I should have told him that day. I know that if I left it too long, it would only cause more issues, but I was scared. He takes hold of my chin and brings my eyes back to his.

“I don’t like lying, Harper, even when you’re trying to protect me.”

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