Chapter 31
Harper unbuttoned the top of her jeans as they walked into the house. She felt like she was still going to be full two days from now. “I ate way too much. No real regrets, though. That man can cook.”
“You can say that again.” Frankie let out a happy sigh. “I mean, the chicken was so good. But then that pineapple cobbler he made was crazy. I didn’t even know pineapple cobbler was a thing.”
Harper took the leash off Archie before collapsing onto the couch with a grunt of satisfaction. He trotted over to his water bowl and drank noisily. “It should be a thing everywhere. Pineapple cobbler with toasted coconut ice cream is now officially on my death row menu.”
Frankie flopped down on the couch next to her. “Your death row menu?”
“You know, if I ever kill anyone and end up on death row, that’s going to be one of the things I request for my final meal.”
Frankie made a face at her even while smiling. “You’re a weirdo.”
“And you’re my sister, so what does that make you?”
Frankie snort-laughed. “Fair point.”
“Hey,” Harper said. “What time is it? One of my clients is on Jimmy Kimmel tonight.”
“That’s not until eleven thirty. It’s only quarter after ten. But there’s no way I can stay up that late. Not with all that food in me.”
“I’m feeling that way, too.” Harper knew Mimi would be expecting her to watch.
“Can’t you just watch it on streaming in the morning?”
“I might have to.” All Harper wanted to do was put on her nightshirt and climb into bed.
“I’ll watch it with you. We’ll have our breakfast right here.”
Harper groaned. “How can you even talk about eating again?”
Frankie nodded. “I know, trust me. I might just have coffee.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Archie came over, lay down on the rug between them, and seemed to fall asleep. A few moments later, he was snoring.
Harper looked over at her sister. “I guess I’m not taking him out one last time before bed.”
“After all that running around he did at Lucas’s, I’d say he’s as ready for bed as we are.”
“Good, because I’m out of energy.” Harper smiled, thinking about the evening. “You and Lucas sure hit it off.”
“He’s a really nice guy.”
“Plus, he’s hot and he cooks. Win-win.”
“He’s not interested in me. He was just being neighborly.”
“I don’t know…” Harper pursed her lips. “I’m sure there are a lot of people he could have invited over to help taste-test his new recipes. But he picked you.”
“Only because we ran into each other on the beach and—”
“Frankie, he likes you.”
“I don’t think so. Not in the way you’re implying.”
Harper stuck her hand out. “Ten bucks says he calls or texts you tomorrow.”
Frankie rolled her eyes but shook her sister’s hand. “Ten bucks is too rich for my blood, but since you’re the one who’s going to be paying, I’m all right with it.”
“You’re going to owe me. You’ll see,” Harper said, still smiling.
Frankie leaned forward. “You keep dreaming. I’m going to bed to do some actual dreaming. See you in the morning.”
“Night,” Harper said. She hauled herself off the couch and headed for the bedroom, but stopped when she realized Archie hadn’t moved. “Archie. Bedtime.”
He slowly got up and wandered toward her, looking very much like he was still half-asleep.
She ruffled his fur as he walked by. “You had a good time with Scout, didn’t you? We’ll see if you guys can’t get some time at the dog park. Now that I know there is a dog park.”
She brushed her teeth and changed, getting into bed with the intention of reading, but she was too tired. She closed her eyes and quickly drifted off to the sounds of Archie’s snoring.
When she woke up, soft light was streaming through the windows. She’d forgotten to close the blinds.
No big deal. She’d slept hard and needed to get up anyway. Mimi would probably want to talk about her appearance on the show sometime today, which meant Harper needed to watch it as soon as possible.
She went out to the kitchen to start the coffee, then came back to get ready for the day. There were no major plans, but she knew she’d have to fix herself up later if Mimi wanted to Zoom again. For the moment, comfort was more important. She knotted her hair on top of her head and went with leggings and a tank top.
Frankie came down as Harper was pouring herself a cup of coffee. She took another mug from the cabinet and filled it as well. She put the mug on the island, closer to her sister, then got out the sweetener and creamer and two spoons.
Frankie slapped a ten-dollar bill down on the counter before fixing her coffee.
“What’s that for?” Harper asked.
Frankie stirred her coffee. “Lucas texted me this morning to say how much he enjoyed having us over and asked if I wanted to walk Archie with him and Scout today.”
“Your first unchaperoned date. Things are getting serious,” Harper said.
Frankie picked up her mug of coffee and took a long sip. “Hush your mouth. It”s just two neighbors walking their dogs together.”
Harper cupped her mug between both hands and leaned against the counter. “Sure, that’s what it is.” She couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she said it, though.
Frankie wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know what it is. I don’t know what to think.”
“He likes you. That’s what you should think.”
“I don’t know.” Frankie shook her head. “Seriously. He probably just wants help with his logo and recognizes a sucker when he sees one.”
Harper frowned. “You’re not a sucker. What makes you say that?”
“Free help is free help.” Frankie stared tentatively into her coffee. “Look at me. I’m nothing special.”
It hurt Harper to hear her sister say that. “Don’t do that. You’re amazing. You’re beautiful. And you’re a smart, capable, talented woman.”
“Who’s carrying forty extra pounds and needs to color the gray in her hair.”
Harper went into secret keeper-life coach mode. “First of all, none of that matters. Mature women are hot. They know who they are and what they want out of life. And in bed.”
“Harper!”
“Well, don’t you?”
“I mean, I guess.”
“Also, for your information, a lot of men don’t like stick-thin figures. They want curves. And a woman who doesn’t eat a tablespoon of food and call it a meal. That’s no fun. Especially on a date. There’s nothing sexy about dieting, either.”
Frankie glanced up.
“Secondly, who cares what he wants? All that matters is what matters to you.”
“You should put that on a T-shirt.”
Harper cocked her hip out. “How do you know I haven’t?” She winked at her sister. “If you want to help him for free, then do it, but personally, I think you should take a business card along on this walk and let him know what your rates are.”
A smile inched up the corners of Frankie’s mouth. “Thanks. I still don’t think he likes me as more than a friend, but I’m okay with that. Lucas Prime would be a pretty cool friend to have.”
“And who knows? If you help him with his logo, maybe he’ll give you a shoutout on his social media and you could get more business out of that. But don’t do it just for the mention.” Harper raised her brows to accentuate her seriousness. “He has money. He can afford to pay you. Then you can list him as a client, too. And that would be impressive.”
“Hmm. I never thought about that.”
“When is this walk? Because Archie needs to go out now.”
“Not until nine.”
Harper looked at the time. It was not quite eight. “All right. I’ll take him out, then when I get back, we’ll watch the show and see how my client did.”
“Okay. I’ll be right here.”
Harper grabbed Archie’s leash and got him down the steps and out into the backyard. She glanced over at Mitch’s.
He was on the back deck, coffee cup in hand. She quickly averted her eyes and pretended she hadn’t seen him. Despite their civil interaction yesterday, she doubted he’d like her spying on him. Which was exactly what he’d think she was doing.
“Morning, Harper.”
She blinked at the sound of his voice and looked back in his direction. He was waving.
Stunned, she waved back. “M-morning, Mitch.”
He gave her a nod. And a smile.
How about that.