“Okay. Um, I guess I’ll go with her. I’m her neighbor, but I don’t know who to call for her. I’ll just run and lock her door.”
“Okay, sir.”
I run inside her place, thankful to see her keys hanging on a hook by the door. After grabbing them and locking her door, I watch them carefully get Harper on the gurney and put her in the back of the ambulance. I climb in beside her and hold her hand. I hope she’s okay. She’s so independent and headstrong. Shaking my head, I brush her hair from her forehead. She should be able to ask her neighbor for help, but why would she? I’ve been nothing but a jerk to her.
As we start traveling, Harper is silent and unmoving. It's freaking me out that this vibrant, smart mouthed woman is motionless. I suddenly crave her singing Christmas songs that just last week I found annoying. I want her smiling at me, prodding me with her teasing. I want her to be okay.
At the hospital, the paramedics take her out and wheel her inside, explaining what happened to a nurse. I hover behind, not sure what to do now. They start to wheel her to a room, but Harper mumbles and her eyes flutter open again. She sits up and looks confused. I rush to her side as she focuses on me.
“I’m here, Harper. Can you speak?”
Her brow furrows. “Brendan?”
I nod. “Yeah. How do you feel?”
“What happened?”
“You fell from the roof.”
“Roof?”
I squeeze her hand. “Does anything hurt?”
“Where are we?”
“Hospital.” She groans in response. “I didn’t know what else to do.”
“I’m fine.” Her eyes shift to the nurse. “Vertigo.”
“Vertigo?” he repeats.
“Yeah, heights cause it sometimes. I got too close to the edge.”
“What does that mean?”
Harper looks at me. “I have vertigo. I get really dizzy and lose my balance.”
“So you got on a roof by yourself?”
“I did.”
“Why?”
“I never know when it’s going to happen.”
“Exactly the reason you shouldn’t have been up there.”
“I have to live my life, Brendan.”
"You scared the shit out of me. You tumbled down, and I barely made it in time to catch you. You could've been seriously hurt."
“Please don’t be mad at me.”
“Mad?” Gazing down at her, I immediately calm down. She’s so beautiful, and right now all her tough talk is replaced by this slightly scared and vulnerable woman. “I’m not mad, Harper. I’m worried. That’s different.”
“Thank you for getting help.”
“Of course.”
The nurse steps closer. “Let’s get you an x-ray and make sure you’re okay. Are you still dizzy?”
“Just a little.”
He starts to roll her away, but I quickly follow. “Can I call someone for you?”
“No. I don’t want to worry more people. You can go if you want. I’ll figure out how to get home later.”
She waves as she’s wheeled down the hall. I glance around wondering what to do with myself. One thing’s for sure. I’m not leaving her here alone.
Chapter Six: Harper
Reaching up to rub my head, I curse myself. I can’t believe I was so stupid. Showing off in front of Brendan backfired big time. Now I’m in my least favorite place in the world. I rise slightly to speak to the nurse.
“Can I just go? Nothing’s wrong with me. It’s just vertigo.”
“Miss, you fell from the roof of your house.”
“Brendan caught me he said.”
“He broke your fall, but you still fell. You were unconscious for several minutes.”
“It always happens. It’s like shock or something. I blackout every episode. I’ve been dealing with it for years.”
He stops walking and puts his hand on his hip. “It’s your right to leave, but what harm would a quick x-ray do just to be safe?”
I exhale slowly. “You’re right. I just hate it here. No offense.”
He smiles. “None taken. We’ll get you out of here quickly. You picked a good day to fall. It’s slow today.”
“Bright side, I guess.”
“There you go.”
He wheels me into a room where another woman takes over. I'm helped off the gurney and wobble just slightly. It's always strange for a few hours after an event.
“Does anything hurt?” the technician asks.
“No.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. I actually feel pretty good all things considered.”
“Okay.” She takes my chart. “Name and date of birth, please?”
“Harper Rose. March 15, 1988.”
She smiles. “Okay, Harper. Let’s do your x-ray.”
Not long after, I’m back on the gurney, waiting in a room with a curtain drawn around me. A doctor pops in, looking down at my x-ray results.
“Hi, Harper. I’m Doctor Davis. How ya feeling?”
“Good. I want to go home.”
"Okay. Your results look good. No concussion and your vitals are stable. I see no reason to keep you, but if you start to feel any pain, come back, and we'll check you out."
“Thank you.”
I sign my release papers, and after refusing a wheelchair, I walk out front, quickly realizing I don’t have anything with me. No wallet, no phone. I shake my head. How the hell am I going to get home without calling family? Dad will lose his shit if I tell him what I did now. I guess I have no choice unless I can talk an Uber driver into waiting to get paid until we get back to my house.
When I enter the waiting room, I stop in my tracks. “Brendan?”
He looks over at me, setting the magazine down he was reading. “Hey, you. How are you? Everything okay?”
“You waited?”
“Of course. I know I haven’t been the best neighbor, but even a jerk like me wouldn’t leave you after this. I had to make sure you got home okay.”
I almost can’t speak. “That’s really nice.”
“You’re shocked. I get it. Somewhere in here, there might be an ounce of kindness. I just used it on you I guess.”
“Thank you.”
He bows his head slightly. “You’re welcome.”
“For everything. For catching me. For getting help. For staying.”
“I’m totally pissed off at you for this. You know that, right? You had no business up there.”
“Lesson learned.” I lift my hand like I’m under oath. “Promise.”
Brendan smiles. “Vertigo, huh?”
“Yeah. It’s been happening for a few years. I went through a really stressful event. Since then, it just randomly happens, but especially if I’m up high.”
“Like on a roof.”
“Yeah. I got up there fine, but when I looked down at you, that was it.”
“If you weren’t so intent on decorating every square inch of your house this wouldn’t have happened.”
“You can’t hate Christmas that much. Who hates Christmas? Are you Jewish or something?”
Brendan laughs. Actually laughs, leaving me once again speechless. “I’m not Jewish, Harper. Let’s get you home.”
“Why won’t you talk about it? Did something happen to you? Something bad at Christmas time?”
He looks hard at me before exhaling loudly. “Yes. And that’s the end of this topic. Please.”
I nod. “Sure, Brendan. Sorry.”
“It’s okay. I just… I can’t.”
“I get it. Sometimes things hurt too much. I understand, probably more than you know.” He searches my eyes for a moment, opening his mouth as if to speak, but staying silent. “If you ever decide you want to talk, you can talk to me. I’ll listen.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Ready to go?”
“Yeah.”
We walk out together, and as I stumble slightly, Brendan gently grips my arm for support. It’s
nice to know he does have some manners. We stop at the edge of the parking lot.
“Stay here. I’ll bring the car around.”
“Car? I thought we came in an ambulance.”
“We did. I found out how long you were going to be back there, so I grabbed a cab to run me home real quick.”
“Oh. I’ll pay you back.”
He tilts his head. “For what?”
“The cab ride.”
He shakes his head with a smirk on his face but walks away without saying anything. I didn't think he had a nice bone in his body, but here is he practically doting on me. All I had to do was nearly kill myself falling from a roof.
The sexy beast pulls up and comes to a stop directly in front of me. Brendan steps out and rushes over to open the door for me. “You do have manners.”
Brendan nods. “Occasionally.” Once I’m settled in, he joins me on the other side. “No damage?”
"Nope. I'm sorry I scared you. I black out when it happens. The doctor told me it's my defense mechanism kicking in. It happened once when I was driving. Luckily Elise was with me, and she took over the steering wheel before we crashed."
“How scary.”
“Yeah.” I nod. “I was so scared I didn’t drive for three weeks. Now I practice some de-stressing techniques, and I haven’t had an episode in months until today.”
“You seemed okay up there.”
I glance at him as he puts the car in gear. “I leaned forward too far when you started to walk off.”
“Why?”
I shift my gaze out the window. Why? Because you’re the hottest man on the planet and I live for every interaction even if you’re rude. “No reason.”
“I feel like I’m the one that owes you an apology, Harper.”
I look back at him. “What for?”
“You should feel like you can come over and ask for help when you need it. I should do things like hang lights and shit.”
“Because you’re a man?”
“Exactly.” I raise my eyebrow before falling into a fit of laughter. Brendan peers at me. “Why are you laughing?”
“You think I’m a damsel in distress that needs a man to save me?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“You think I need a man to do things for me?”
“Also not what I said.”
"Well, what are you saying?"
He jerks the car to the right and pulls over, shutting it off abruptly. “What I’m saying is that hanging lights on a roof is a challenging task that two or more people should do." I start to speak, but he lifts his finger to silence me. "I'm also saying, that as a single woman living alone, there may be times you would like someone to help, and as a man that, believe it or not, was raised properly, you should feel like you can count on me, but you can't because I've been a dick." I start to speak again, but he shakes his head. "And you can laugh all you want, but if you didn't need help, we wouldn't be sitting here in my car right now after a trip to the hospital."
I twist my lips. He’s got me. “Can I speak now?”
“Sure.”
“I’m fiercely independent.”
“A fact I’m well aware of.”
“I don’t like being treated like a fragile doll because I’m a woman. I mistook your comment. I appreciate everything you did for me today.”
He smiles, leaning closer as he does. “You’re welcome.”
“I don’t try to annoy you with my Christmas cheer. It’s just that it’s my favorite holiday. It’s very important to me to celebrate in the biggest way possible.”
“I don’t try and kill your joy. It’s the worst possible time of the year for me. I wish I could just disappear the entire holiday season and come back in January. I haven’t figured out how to do that yet.”
I nod, knowing he doesn’t want to talk about it. “So every December we’ll both just annoy the shit out of each other.”
“I guess that’s the plan.” He pats my leg. “Let’s get you home. Are you hungry?”
I shake my head. “No, I’m usually nauseous for a few hours after.”
“Gotcha.” His eyes linger on mine for a moment before he restarts the car and pulls back into traffic.
We ride home in silence. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but I have a million questions. “Brendan?”
“Yeah?”
“Why don’t you have a girlfriend?”
“Why don’t you have a boyfriend?”
“Can’t find a good one.”
“Same.”
“You can’t find a good boyfriend?”
He shakes his head. "Oh, now I'm gay?"
“I’m kidding. You’re obviously not gay.”
“Why is that?”
Because the universe is not that cruel. Because you are perfection. Because then I can’t fantasize about you. “I can just tell.”
“You are correct. I’m definitely not gay. What I am is a picky fucker. As you can probably guess, I’m also not the easiest guy in the world to get to know.”
“Clearly. What are you looking for?”
“Nothing.”
“Okay, let me rephrase that. What’s your ideal woman?”
Brendan glances at me before shifting his eyes back to the road. “I don’t know. I just know what I don’t want.”
“And that is?”
“I don’t like high maintenance, needy woman. I don’t like superficial women, or people in general for that matter, that only care about things like status and money.”
“Says the man that drives a sports car and wears expensive clothes.”
He chuckles. “I didn’t say I didn’t like nice things. I said I don’t like people who only focus on those things.”
“Fair.”
“I cannot stand ignorance. There is simply no reason for it.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“I’m a very moderate person. I don’t do anything in excess for the most part.”
“Well, I’d probably annoy you.”
“Why?”
"I think it's fun to let loose occasionally. I'm responsible most of the time, but why not now and then drink a little too much, laugh a little too hard, fall from a roof.”
Brendan smiles as he drives. “I could stand to be a little more like you, minus the roof part.”
I laugh softly. “What do you do for work?”
“I’m a financial advisor. You?”
“Graphic designer.”
“Interesting.”
“I enjoy it.”
“You must be doing well to buy your own house.”
"I've been saving a long time so that I could have a solid down payment."
“At least you’re responsible with your money.”
“Yep. I have to be able to afford all my Christmas decorations.”
Brendan just shakes his head as he turns onto our street. We pull into his driveway, and he shuts the car off. “Can I help you inside?”
“I’m fine.”
“Let me say this a different way. I’m helping you inside. I won’t be comfortable until I know you’re settled in okay.”
“Well then okay.” I wait for Brendan to come to my side and open the door. He guides me inside by gently holding my arm. I am a little wobbly still so I’m kind of glad he’s helping. We walk up the stairs, and he pulls my keys out of his pocket.
“I took the liberty of running inside to get your keys so I could lock up. I hope that’s alright.”
“Of course. Thank you. I really put you out didn’t I?”
“No.” He unlocks the door and helps me over to the couch. I sink into it, happy to be home and out of the hospital. Brendan hovers over me, watching me with concern.
“I’m okay now. Thank you for your help. I’ll just take it easy the rest of the night.”
“Promise?”
“I promise. It takes a lot out of me. I need to rest.”
He nods. “Why don’t you take my number and if you need anything, just call
me.”
My eyebrow raises. “You live five steps away.”
“And if you fall? You’re gonna walk to my house?”
He’s being very overprotective, but given the prior hostility, I’ll take it. “Okay, thank you.”
“Where’s your phone?”
“Kitchen island probably.”
“Be right back. You want water?”
“That would be great, actually.”
He nods before heading for my kitchen. I assume our floor plans are the same. I hear him opening cabinets and then the water running. He comes back a few minutes later with a glass of water and my phone.
“I programmed my number in your phone.” He hands it to me. “Don’t hesitate to use it if you need me.”
“I won’t. Thank you again.”
“You’re welcome. Sure you’re okay?”
I nod. “I’m sure.”
“Okay. See you later.”
“Bye.”
I watch him walk out and then exhale slowly. That was so unexpected. He’s nice! I dial my sister, tapping my foot until she answers.
“Hello?”
“Elise. Guess what?”
“Tell me.”
“Scrooge is nice.”
“No way.”
“He is. Really nice.” I scrunch my face when I realize I’ll have to admit what I did today to tell her how I know Brendan is nice. Dammit.
“I don’t believe you.”
"Well, he is. I, um, I tripped today, and he was really worried and went out of his way to help me."
“Tripped? Doing what?”
“Stuff around the house. Outside.”
“Harper?”
“Yes?”
“You’re lying.”
“Not exactly.”
“Spill.”
I exhale. “If you promise not to tell dad.”
“Okay.”
“Promise me.”
“I promise. Tell me what happened.”
“I was hanging lights.”
“And then?”
“I, um, had a vertigo spell, and I fell.”
“Fell from where?”
“The roof.” I squeeze my eyes shut waiting for her to scream at me.
“What?!”
“Brendan caught me. I blacked out like I do, and he called an ambulance and got me to the hospital.”
“Jesus, Harper! Are you hurt?”
“No. Not at all actually. They did an x-ray and a few tests. I’m fine.”
Brendan Page 3
