by MJ Summers
“I will.”
Harper walked back into her dad’s room. Through the darkness, she could see that his eyes were now closed. “Go away.”
“It’s me, Dad.”
“I know that. It’s better if you just go. I’m not fit to be around anyone. I’m in a shitty mood and I’m just going to say something I don’t mean.”
Harper sat in the chair next to him. “Then we don’t have to say anything. I’ll just sit here with you and we can feel shitty together.” She took his hand and held it until the orderly came in to get him.
“I’ll be back tomorrow. We can talk or we can just sit. But I’ll be here.” She gave him a kiss on the forehead.
* * *
Late that afternoon, Harper sat out on the small deck in her dad’s backyard. Closing her eyes, she tried to drink in the warmth of the Colorado sun and breathe in the fresh air and quiet. But instead of finding the escape she sought, she felt miserable. She thought of her dad, lying in the hospital bed, unable to move. Her heart dropped at the thought of what his life would become if he ended up confined to a wheelchair. The man who could never sit still for long, who always had some ongoing wood-working project in his shop. She thought of how quiet he’d grown in the days since his accident. And there was nothing she could do for him. She couldn’t fix it. So far she could only bring him oatmeal and try to cheer him up. And what would the future bring him? Or her, for that matter? She’d lost her job, the one thing that made her who she was.
Tears of frustration and fear streamed down her cheeks and for once, she didn’t stop them. Tears for her dad eventually turned into tears for herself. She shouldn’t be here. She didn’t belong in Boulder and hadn’t for many years. Her entire adult life she had been Harper Young, fashion insider, and she couldn’t be that here. She finally straightened her slumped shoulders, resolving to keep her chin up, help her dad and then get the hell back to Manhattan the moment he was well again.
Going back inside, Harper was determined to feel better. She took a long shower then made herself up, complete with smoky eyes and light pink high-gloss lips. She swept her hair into a messy updo and stood staring at the clothes in her closet. Her eyes fell on the two ball gowns she’d allowed herself to keep. Reaching out, her fingers grazed the black, strapless Carolina Herrera gown with delicate embroidered daisies and full skirt. Why not? No one was here and it would make her feel better to completely glam it up. She made herself a small fruit plate, carefully arranging grapes, melon and strawberries in a pleasing way before grabbing a bottle of wine, a glass, a napkin and her tablet. Checking the time, she realized it would be hours before Evan was home from work. She could sit outside and no one would see her. Making her way out to the deck, she seated herself carefully so as not to crease her dress. She was going to eat and drink and pretend she was anywhere but here. Somewhere glamorous and happy.
She popped a grape into her mouth. The sound of Evan’s screen door slamming shut startled her, causing her to choke on the grape. She spit it discreetly into the napkin, praying he hadn’t seen what had just happened, then chanced peeking over the low fence and spotted him standing on his raised deck. Of course. He was going to see her playing dress-up. Maybe he wouldn’t look over. She sat frozen in place, watching as he stretched his arms over his head and rolled his neck to each side, as though he were trying to loosen sore muscles.
A wide grin spread across his face as soon as he caught her looking at him. “Well, if it isn’t the girl next door!”
Harper gave him a sheepish wave.
It seemed to take a moment for him to register her attire. His mouth fell open for a second. “You look gorgeous. Where are you off to?”
“Um, thank you.” Unable to think of a good reason to be dressed in a ball gown, she decided to ignore his question. “You’re home early,” she answered without thinking. Shit, why did I say that? Now he’ll think I’m keeping track of him. How to terrify a man in one easy step.
If he had noticed her stalker-like observation, he pretended he hadn’t. “I like to get everyone out a little early on payday. Seriously, where are you going that you need a ball gown?”
Closing her eyes, she could feel the heat in her face. “Once in a while, I do this as a pick-me-up.”
He gave her an appreciative look. “That’s . . . um . . . You’re the only person I know who does that.”
“Yes, well, frankly I have no idea why more people don’t do this. It really is a fast way to feel happy.” She spoke matter-of-factly, hoping to regain her composure.
“So, you’re not going anywhere? No plans? Other than . . .” He pointed at the tray of fruit and the bottle of wine.
Shrugging, she replied, “This is my plan. It’s sort of an escape, really.”
“Oh, so it’s an escape she needs,” he answered lightly. “Your wish is my command. Give me ten minutes.”
Harper sat, picking at the honeydew melon, wondering what had just happened and why the hell he always managed to catch her in life’s most embarrassing moments. After a few minutes, she started to think he had gone inside to get away from her. She must have finally managed to scare him off. But then she heard her doorbell ring.
She walked through the house to the front door and pulled it open. A small gasp escaped her lips. There he stood in a black tuxedo, looking as if he’d stepped out of a Hugo Boss ad. He held out his hand to take hers, delivering a soft kiss to the top of her knuckles. His dark hair was a bit damp, she assumed from a shower, and she could smell his aftershave, which caused an instant war between her dignity and her lust. Much to her relief, she was able to keep still instead of burying her face in his neck. “Your lip looks much better.”
“It was nothing. So, where to? While I was getting ready, I had a few ideas. An elegant dinner somewhere? Dancing? Maybe we could crash a wedding and do both?”
Harper laughed and shook her head. “I can’t believe you put on a tuxedo for me.”
“Why not? You said it’s a fast way to feel happy. I like happy. So, where to?”
“I have no idea.”
“Sounds terrific,” he held out his arm for her. “Let’s go.”
In her hurry to leave, she decided to forgo the search for the perfect heels and slid her feet into a pair of jewelled flip-flops sitting next to the front entry.
* * *
“You hungry?” he asked as he started his truck.
“A little.” She grinned at him.
“Upscale restaurant?”
Harper thought of the possibility of running into someone like Brent. “I actually don’t feel like being around other people right now.”
He glanced over at her, a knowing look in his eyes. “In that case, I know just the spot.”
Forty-five minutes later, they were a few miles outside of Boulder. They pulled off onto a gravel driveway that led to a treed property set into the side of a hill.
“Where are we exactly?”
“This is my secret hideaway. Wait here,” he said, getting out and walking around to open her door. He helped her down, his eyes locking on hers. “Let me grab the food.”
Tucking a plaid blanket under his arm, he picked up the pizza box and six-pack of cider she’d decided on, then led her to a gate. Unhooking the wire holding the gate shut, he pushed it open and started along a narrow path through the trees. When they reached a clearing, Harper sucked in some air. “Wow. This is beautiful.”
“Glad you like it.” He looked back at her. “I bought the place earlier this year. I’m going to build on it someday.”
The sun was just starting to go down, turning the grass and the trees that brilliant shade of green that happens only late in the day. The sky was pink and purple and orange, as though it had been painted just for them. For this one moment. Harper let out a long breath as she admired her surroundings. They had a perfect vantage point overlooking the rolling hills and a babbling creek below. In the distance, the city lights were becoming visible.
Fanning out t
he blanket with a snap, Evan let it drop to the grass, then arranged the pizza box and drinks. Offering his hand, he helped Harper as she carefully seated herself on the blanket.
She smoothed out her skirt. “This is not how I was expecting today to turn out.”
Evan laughed. “Me neither, but I’m glad we’re doing this.” He flipped open the box lid and served Harper a slice on a paper napkin. “How’d the pictures turn out?” he asked as he twisted the top off her bottle of cider.
“Pretty good, I think. Megan said they were perfect, but I think she was probably just being kind.”
“I don’t know. I was watching you and it seemed like you knew what you were doing.”
“I bet you say that to all the girls,” Harper answered.
His eyes rested on her lips for a moment. Then he cleared his throat to break the spell. “So, how’s Wes doing? I haven’t heard from him in a while.”
“He’s doing well. He might get leave soon to come and see our dad.”
“That would be nice.” He paused. “I can’t stop thinking about the other night. At the bar. I’ve been wondering how you’re doing.”
“Never better.” Harper gave him a smile that all but killed the comforting sentiment that was no doubt perched on the tip of his tongue. “Mmm, this is delicious. Very decadent meal, Mr. Donovan. And you somehow got the best table in the house.”
“I know the maître d’.”
“I’m sorry, but I still can’t believe you just threw on a tux and brought me here to eat pizza. You didn’t even seem embarrassed when we went into the restaurant, or the supermarket, for that matter.”
“Why would I be? We’re the best-dressed people in town,” he replied as he raised his slice of pizza to his mouth.
“It’s just . . . I didn’t know you had this side to you. That you would join me in my little fantasy world. I think most men would be worried about how it would look to everyone else.”
“You know something? I used to waste a lot of time caring about what other people thought. Somehow, losing everything put things into perspective for me. Now I go after what I want without caring about other people’s opinions. And look where it’s gotten me. I’m sitting here with the most beautiful girl I know, watching the sunset.”
Harper gave him a long smile. “Thank you.”
“Thank you.” His gaze was intense, his voice thick with emotion. There was a whole other conversation going on between them that had nothing to do with words and everything to do with wanting each other.
Harper broke her gaze to take in the view of the property again. “So, how much of what we’re looking at is yours?”
Evan pointed, drawing the borders for her with his finger. “Right down past the creek to the edge of the forest. And about a hundred feet into the trees on either side.”
“Wow. This is going to be quite a change from Maplewood Drive.”
“Yeah. I’m looking forward to it.”
“I hope you don’t mind me asking, but I’ve been wondering how you ended up buying your parents’ place.”
“Oh, my dad was just set to retire and they were going to move to Tucson to help Karen out with her kids. About ten minutes after they put their house up for sale, the market crashed.” He paused, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “I needed to unload my monster of a house, so it worked out pretty nicely.”
“That must have been a huge relief to your parents,” Harper answered. She knew he was leaving out a lot of the story, the part about downsizing so he could keep his crews employed. But she wasn’t going to push him on the topic.
He shrugged off her compliment. “It worked out well for me too.” Taking a sip of his cider, he gave her a curious look. “What about you? Where are you planning to set down roots when your dad is recovered?”
“I’ll be on the next flight to New York as soon as humanly possible.”
“I guess that makes sense. You haven’t necessarily received the best welcome home.”
“I don’t care about that,” she replied quickly. “My whole life is there. I can’t leave it all behind.” Harper looked over at him and saw a serious expression on his face. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he was disappointed.
They finished their meal in a charged silence. “What would you say to another cider?”
“I’d say sure, I’m not driving.” She took the bottle from him, feeling a little dizzy as his hand brushed hers, more from having just eaten a meal with Evan-from-Heaven than from the drink. The teenage girl inside her wanted to scream and jump up and down with excitement. The woman in her wanted to scream, jump up and down, then rip his clothes off.
A quiet fell over them as they sipped their drinks and stared out at the remains of the sunset. Soon, the only light would be from the moon. It was that do-or-die moment and they both knew it. They had reached the fork in the road where they either went for it or forgot the whole thing. And now that she’d told him she was leaving town as soon as possible, maybe he’d decide to forget the whole thing.
Clearing off the blanket, Evan lay down on his back. “Let’s do some stargazing.”
“Sure. We are in formal wear, after all, so we should surround ourselves with stars.” Harper lay beside him, resting her hands on her tummy and watching as the tiny lights appeared in the sky above.
“What would you do if you could do anything or go any place in the world right now?” Harper asked suddenly, glancing over at him.
Evan turned his head, his expression one of surprise. “That depends. Would there be consequences to my actions or would I just get a free pass?”
“Free pass all the way. Time stops until you say so. No one but you would remember.”
“Hmm. In that case, I’d do a lot of things. I’d want to empty out a bank vault, of course.”
Harper nodded. “Of course.”
Evan looked up, considering his answer. “Then there’s riding down a long stretch of highway on a motorbike, full throttle. Guys always wish they could do that.”
“Really? Me too.”
“Really?”
With a straight face, she said, “No. Not really. That would be a ridiculous waste of time.”
Evan chuckled at her before continuing. “Drink a six-pack on the pitcher’s mound at Yankee Stadium.”
“That I understand, except I’d go with chocolate cake and the Queen’s throne at Buckingham Palace.”
He gave her an impressed nod. “Oh, break the sound barrier in an F-22 Raptor,” he continued.
“I’m assuming that’s some type of airplane?”
“Uh, yeah.”
Even though this was fun, it wasn’t going the way Harper had hoped. Maybe they were heading down the “forget the whole thing” road. Damn it.
“Of course, I’d definitely want to take you to bed,” he said as a slow smirk spread across his face. “Yes, definitely. We’d need to stop time for a good long while on that one.”
A flicker of hope sparked her desire for him, spreading a warmth through her body. Maybe they were veering to the “let’s see where this goes” path after all.
“Is that so?” she asked, lazily running a finger over the back of his hand. “But I thought it would ruin me for other men even to see you without your clothes on?”
“Oh, it would, but you said I would be the only one to remember anything, right? If that’s the case, you’d survive.”
Harper laughed out loud, covering her mouth with her hand and blushing at the thought of him without his clothes.
“You’re thinking about it right now, aren’t you?” he asked, pretending to be shocked.
“You brought it up!”
“You’re the one who came up with the game,” he replied. “You had to know it would end there.”
“No. Certainly not,” she said. The skepticism on his face pulled the truth out of her. “Okay, I may have been testing the waters.”
He studied her for a long moment without answering, his face growing serious.
/> “What?” Harper asked, suddenly feeling exposed by the look he was giving her.
Evan shook his head as though in awe. “I’m just trying to figure out how it is that I never noticed you when we were kids.”
“You were a little busy with every other girl in Boulder hanging on your every word.”
“I don’t know about that, but right now it seems like it should have been absolutely impossible not to see you. You’re completely stunning.” He reached for her hand, lacing his fingers through hers.
“Stunning. That’s one of my favourite words,” she said, her voice so soft it was almost a whisper.
“You know this is probably a horrible idea, right? Wes is one of my best friends. This could turn out to be really complicated.” The lust in his eyes was in direct defiance of his words. “As a rule, I avoid complicated at all costs.”
“I know how to keep things simple.” She blinked slowly. “In fact, I’m exceedingly good at it.”
“I have a feeling you’re exceedingly good at a lot of things.”
Harper gave him a sultry look. “I am. But don’t take my word for it. You should probably find out for yourself.”
“I intend to.” Rolling on top of her in one swift move, he gazed at her for a moment, his eyes full of desire. Harper’s eyes grew wide in surprise and she let out a little laugh as she felt his weight pressing her to the ground. He lifted his hand to her face, skimming her lips with his thumb. And finally, he was kissing her again with an intensity that burned through her. There was nothing sweet or gentle about his kiss this time. It was rough and urgent and toe-curling, and she matched it with her response.
Harper’s hands moved quickly from his powerful arms to his hair, fingers weaving through it and pulling him toward her, bringing his kiss in deeper. Time stopped. Nothing else existed outside of this moment. Tongues danced, moans and sighs escaped lips as they gave in to their need for each other.
Pulling back for a moment, he asked, “Is this—”
“Yes,” she interrupted. “God, yes.” She tugged on the lapel of his tuxedo jacket, bringing him back for more.
They kissed wildly, her hands now yanking at his jacket to get it off. He leaned back on his knees, ridding himself of his tie as she frantically unbuttoned his shirt, leaving his chest bare. Running her hands over his chiselled abs, she watched as he made short work of his cufflinks and shrugged off his shirt. The look he gave her as he pulled up the skirt of her dress made her feel somehow weak and fully alive at the same time. Sliding his hands up her legs, he reached her black lace panties, pulling them down, his rough hands skimming along her outer thighs.
