Page 24 of Somebody to Love

“Well, yeah. You’re so put together. Any woman would be lucky to have you.”

“Any woman?” I asked, a little mesmerized by her words.

Her cheeks flushed, but she kept her gaze on Evie and the playground. “Of course.”

We fell silent for a few minutes.

“Whatever happened with your ex? Everyone thought you two would get engaged.”

I scuffed the dirt with my toe. “Bianca cheated on me. She’d been doing it for a while before I figured out what was going on.”

Harper turned to face me. “You’re kidding.”

“She dated me because it was what her parents, and mine, expected. We were considered a good match, but I wasn’t what she wanted.”

“I can’t imagine the pressure to date a particular person. Someone your parents think is a good match.”

“I know my parents want the best for me, and despite the cheating, we had a good relationship. But looking back, we were better friends. The sex wasn’t amazing.”

She blanched.

“Too much?” I asked, slightly amused at her reaction.

Harper shook her head. “I don’t need to know the details.”

“You asked,” I said, enjoying her discomfort. I liked to think she didn’t enjoy the thought of me being intimate with someone else.

“I’m sorry. No one deserves to be cheated on.”

My heart clenched. I wanted to say no one deserved what she’d been through in her life—her mother’s inattention and Manny’s absence—but she had me and my family.

“What about you and Manny?” I asked, emboldened to ask the same question of her.

Harper shook her head. “I was going to break up with him when I found out I was pregnant. I told him I was keeping the baby, and he could be as involved as he wanted to be, but that we wouldn’t be together.”

I’d always thought Manny left when he found out about Evie. “You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.”

“I knew he couldn’t step up the way I needed him to. The way Evie needed him. I knew more than he did how hard raising a child was, and he wasn’t up for it.”

She was smart, practical, and strong. I admired her even more.

“Does he support you at all?” I asked, hoping I wasn’t overstepping.

“Occasionally, he’d give me money, but I filed for child support so that I’d have a record of him not paying. Sometimes we track him down and garnish his wages, but most of the time, he claims he can’t find a job.”

“You think he’s purposely not working?”

“He’s never been a hard worker, and he’s not good with responsibility.” Then she shrugged. “It is what it is. As long as I don’t expect much, then I don’t get frustrated. It’s just those times when he comes around, demanding more time with her, that it gets to me—”

“What do you mean?” I didn’t like the idea of him hassling her.

“Every so often, he shows up and acts like he’s a dad. He wants to see Evie. He wants to take her somewhere, but I don’t trust him. I don’t know if he’s dating someone who wonders where his kid is or if he wants to prove something to his parents. I don’t think it’s because he genuinely wants to be a father.”

“I’m sorry for Evie.” My heart ached for that little girl. To me, she was so bright and happy. I couldn’t imagine not wanting to spend time with her and supporting her mother. “I’m sure my family is a poor substitute for an absentee father, but you’re not alone.”

“I appreciate that.”

I liked Harper, and I wanted to give her everything she was missing. Was I crazy to think I was the right guy for her?

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