Chapter 6
Chapter Six
HARPER
“ A re you sure you don’t want me to come with you today?” Rina asks.
“I’m good. I promise.” I woke up this morning feeling better.
Grabbing my coat, I lock up my apartment and head out to my car. “I’m a big girl and can go look at houses by myself.”
“You don’t have to say yes to anything if you don’t like it.”
I roll my eyes at her even if she can’t see me. “I know that.”
“Okay. Well, keep me posted on how it goes.”
“I will.” There’s a beat of silence. “Ask.”
“Ask what?”
“Rina. You are not as coy as you think you are. You want to know about him.”
The first time we had a girls’ night together, I had one too many glasses of wine and ended up spilling all about him. And given that she asked at school the next day about any late arrivals, I had to let her know .
She put it together immediately by just his first name.
“Can’t even say his name, hmm?”
“Rina. Stop it. I can too say his name.”
“Then say it,” Rina prods. “Just so I know you can.”
“Marcus.” I spit it out, even though it takes like battery acid on my tongue. “Marcus, Marcus, Marcus.”
“You didn’t have to say it three times, you know. It’s not like Beetlejuice. You’re not going to summon him.”
“Yeah, but saying it twice is weird.”
“Do you want to slap me for making you say it?” Rina laughs.
“Only a little.”
Clicking the fob on my car, I drop my bag into the front seat of my small Civic and get in.
“I still love you even when you want to slap me.”
“I still love you even when you make me say his name. I’ll text you updates.”
“Have fun, bye.”
“Bye, Rina.”
Tossing my phone down, I head toward the first address that my realtor texted me.
I keep thinking about Marcus as I’m driving. I don’t know how our paths haven’t crossed at school before now, but since his daughters aren’t in my class, maybe I won’t see him again.
It’s okay.
It’ll be fine.
Fine.
I wonder how many times I’m going to have to tell myself that to believe it.
I push those thoughts aside for now. I have better things to do today. Like house hunting. It’s something I’ve wanted for so long and it’s hard to believe the day is finally here .
Pulling up to the first house—the first in this neighborhood, as there are a few for sale—my realtor is standing outside waiting for me.
“Hey, Harper.”
“Hi, Heather.”
“Are you excited?” She’s brimming with her own as she walks up the short sidewalk to the red brick house in front of us.
“Excited. Nervous. Anxious.”
She flips her brown hair over her shoulder and punches a code into the lock box on the door. “Perfectly normal. It’s a big life change.”
“One I’m ready for.”
“Take a look around and let me know if you have any questions.”
“Thanks.”
The house is different from the pictures. I’m not sure if they made it look better for pictures and then moved things back, but it’s different. There’s more furniture in here which makes it look that much smaller. The walls are painted a bright purple color.
“This is quite the choice in paint,” I tell Heather before walking into the kitchen.
“Definitely something you’d want to change. But the kitchen is fabulous.”
“You’re not wrong.”
It’s completely renovated—and stunning. Marble countertops. White subway tile. Light gray cabinets with a darker gray on the bottom. New hardwood floors throughout. Stainless steel appliances.
“Think you could get over a purple living room for this?”
I smile at her. “I think I could manage.”
She follows me around the rest of the house as I take in everything about the small house. The bedroom isn’t as nice as the kitchen—it doesn’t look like they made many updates to the small room, but I like this place and it’s in budget.
“What do you think?” Heather asks when I come back in the living room.
“I like it. Let’s see the other one.”
“You got it. It’s only a few houses down if you want to walk?”
“Sure.”
It’s a cloudy fall day, but it’s an easy walk around the corner.
“I think you’ll really love this one,” Heather tells me. “It was only just listed last night, which is why I haven’t sent it to you. I got in early with the other realtor, so if you like it, we’ll have to move fast.”
“Does that mean it’s good?” I’m excited.
“I’ll let you decide.” Her smile is bright as we turn the corner and the house comes into view.
“Oh my God. It’s gorgeous.”
A gray, hardwood house overlooks a small hill behind it with views of the city. The front door is a bright pink that welcomes you inside.
“Just wait until you see the interior.” She pushes the door open and lets me go in first.
“Oh my God. Are you kidding?”
The open floor plan flows from the living room through to the kitchen and toward a back deck I can see from the entryway. The living room is focused around a black, stone fireplace.
“I knew you’d love it.” Her phone buzzes. “Sorry. I need to take this. I’ll be right back.”
“Sure, sure.” I wave her off as I head into the kitchen to check it out. It’s like the other house, but better somehow. I don’t know if it’s the gold fixtures, the window that overlooks the sweeping backyard, or the fact that the living room walls aren’t purple, but it’s perfect.
I can imagine walking in here after a long day of work, eating dinner at the island, and then cozying up by the fire with a good book.
It’d be even better with Marcus.
God, I hate myself for even thinking that thought. I don’t even know where it came from.
“Sorry about that,” Heather tells me, coming back inside.
“No problem.”
“My sister is getting married and a wrench got thrown into the plans, so she might have to delay.”
“Oh no. What’s wrong?”
“Apparently she got married in Vegas a few years back, and they told her they didn’t sign some paperwork so the marriage wasn’t legal. Turns out, they were wrong.”
“What?” That gets my attention.
“It was her college boyfriend. They were drunk off their asses and thought it would be funny, and they were told the paperwork wasn’t valid for some reason, but apparently whoever told them that was wrong. So now she’s trying to track down this guy to get a divorce before she gets married.”
My mouth is suddenly dry. “So she’s still married?”
“Yeah. But enough of that. What do you think of the house?”
“The house?”
She looks confused. “Come on. Let’s go see the bedrooms.”
Right. The house that we’re standing in that I’m hoping to buy. Heather leads me through the rest of the house, but I don’t see any of it. Refinished hardwood floors in the main bedroom? Don’t even notice. Brand-new bathrooms? I can’t even look. The dark gray accent wall? Don’t care.
What if…what if that’s what happened with Marcus and me?
Over the past seven years, I can count on one hand the number of times I thought about him. Okay, fine…maybe two hands. He walked out on me, so why should I give him the time of day?
Except now that I’ve seen him again, it’s hard to push this thought out of my head. Why is this all happening right now?
I’m supposed to be thriving. Buying a house and enjoying a great career. Good friends that I love and a family that I can see when I visit California.
I have a good life.
So why is all of this happening right now?
“You think you want to put in an offer?” Heather asks.
“Oh. Yes.”
Heather eyes me. “Are you sure? I don’t want to force you into anything if you don’t want it.”
“Can I get back to you tomorrow? Sorry. I’m a little overwhelmed with all of this, and a few days would help to think about everything.”
“Absolutely. Why don’t you get back to me on Monday? I think we’ll be okay.”
“And if not?”
She nods, tapping away on her phone. “I’ll give you a call, and if you want to get an offer together, we can make it happen.”
“Thanks, Heather. I appreciate it.”
“We still have a few more places to look at. Want to check them out?”
I shake my head. “Would you mind if we went next weekend? I love this place and don’t think I need to see anything else.”
Heather gives me a bright smile. “Sure thing. Keep me posted, okay?”
“Will do.”
I watch as she strides down the driveway before I pull out my phone.
My fingers can’t type fast enough as I search for the information I’m looking for. The white blank screen as it loads ratchets my panic higher and higher.
I remember that phone call about a week after we got home from Vegas. They asked if we could come back in and sign some paperwork because something was missed and they couldn’t file the license. Until we came in, we weren’t legally married.
Marcus and I laughed it off. We told ourselves we would do it later. It didn’t change how we felt about each other.
We knew we were destined to be married. But to be married this whole time and not know it?
This can’t be happening.
This really can’t be happening.
The website opens and I enter my name.
There in black and white are our names and our marriage date.
We’re still married?!
You’ve got to be kidding me.