Chapter 40
Chapter Forty
A fter a night of restless sleep, Harper got up earlier than intended, but there was no point in just lying there. She threw on shorts, a T-shirt, and flipflops and took Archie out to pee. He didn’t seem very interested in being awake, either.
He plodded along in the grass, damp from the sprinklers being on, yawning as he searched for the perfect spot to do his business on. At least it wasn’t raining today.
She took him off the leash and let him do his thing. He was too lazy to run off, and he also knew that breakfast awaited when they went back inside. Archie was nothing if not food motivated.
She sat on one of the lounge chairs by the pool, soaking up some of the early morning sun. It felt good. Maybe she could squeeze out an hour or so to sit here later. A nap in the sun by the pool sounded like the best thing ever.
They had dinner tonight at Mitch’s and she was looking forward to that. Not just to see Mitch, but to see Ruthie again. She was an adorably sweet child.
Confident Archie wasn’t going beyond the yard, she took her phone out and checked messages.
There were a few client emails but nothing she wanted to dig into just yet. And an email from Mitch.
She tapped on that one. He’d sent her Kyle’s book. Maybe that’s what she’d do today. Sit by the pool and read. She’d set up one of the umbrellas so she’d have some shade. Work and relaxation. What could be better?
Not much. Certainly not sitting in an office. And working by the pool wasn’t something that would ever happen in California. She didn’t have a pool there.
She sighed. Who was she kidding? She didn’t want to go back. She didn’t even want to go back to get her stuff, although she would.
What lunatic would walk away from all of this? Had Arlington known he was going to change her life with this house? Maybe. He was a brilliant man.
The place was beautiful. And it was all hers. Staying seemed like a no-brainer. More than that, being here would mean getting to live with her sister. After years of being separated, how amazing would that be?
Buck would only be two hours away. They’d be able to get to know each other.
But Mitch remained the elephant in the room. The handsome, charming, talented elephant. She laughed, wondering what he’d think of being referred to like that.
Archie, done with whatever he’d needed to do, came over and lay down by her lounger.
“Ready to go back in?”
He sat up.
“I thought so.” She got to her feet. “Let’s go get some breakfast.”
He had more energy going in than he’d had coming out. No surprise there. She gave him his usual scoop of kibble, rinsed out and refilled his water bowl, then helped herself to the coffee that had been made.
Through the glass doors, she saw Frankie with her laptop out on the back deck. Harper went to join her, stepping outside and leaving the door open behind her so Archie could come out when he was ready. “Am I interrupting?”
Frankie shook her head without looking at her sister. “Nope. Just answering a few quick emails from some potential clients.” She tapped a couple more keys then glanced over, smiling. “Morning.”
“Morning. Thanks for making coffee.”
“Thanks for buying it.” Frankie laughed. “I feel a lot better about the money Buck gave me this morning. I don’t know why but I woke up with peace about it. I mean, I still don’t love it completely, but I know he gave it to me with pure intentions and love. I can’t feel bad about that. I sent him a nice long thank-you email.”
Harper took the chair, since Frankie’s tablet occupied part of the couch. She slipped out of her flipflops and put the soles of her feet on the edge of the table. “I think that’s the right attitude. Buck is just so…he’s a good man.”
“He is,” Frankie said. “I wish things had been different. That we weren’t just meeting him now, but I also know we might not have had this outcome. I don’t know. Things happen the way they’re meant to, I guess.”
Harper nodded, swallowing the sip of coffee she’d just taken. “What would you think about sometime in the future inviting him and Glenda down to visit? They could stay in the guest house. Or the main house, if you’re already moved into the guest house.”
Frankie thought for a second, then nodded. “I would really like that.” A question seemed to pop into her head. “But won’t you be in California? When exactly were you thinking about inviting them?”
“Not right away. We need to get to know them a little more, I think. But maybe in a month or so? Buck was talking about how he’s tapering down the amount of time he works on the charter boat.”
Frankie set her laptop on the coffee table, picked up her cup, and leaned back. “I notice you didn’t answer the part about you being in California.”
“Because…” Harper took a breath. “I don’t think I’m going to be there.” She smiled, then sighed and stared out at the water. “I’d be an idiot to leave this place.”
Frankie gasped. “You’re staying? You really mean it?”
Archie trotted out, stopping by Harper’s chair for some scratches. She obliged him. Then, no longer smiling, she looked at her sister and nodded. “I am.”
Frankie’s brow furrowed. “So why do you look so miserable about it?”
Harper hadn’t planned on confessing what was really going on, but if she couldn’t talk to her sister about it, who else was there? “Because I’m kind of grappling with something. Something that I think is going to be an issue for me. Living here.”
Frankie seemed surprised. “What?”
Harper chewed her bottom lip. “Promise me you won’t say a word to anyone.”
“Cross my heart. I swear.”
“It’s Mitch.” Just saying it out loud took a little weight off of Harper.
Archie went to lay down in the corner where the breeze was best.
Frankie looked confused. “Now I really have no idea what we’re talking about.”
“I…like him.”
“I know.”
“No. I mean I like him. As in I think I have feelings for him.”
“ Oh .” Frankie’s eyes rounded. “Have you told him?”
“Um, no. Do I look crazy?” Harper huffed out a frustrated breath. “What am I going to do? Staying here means I need him as a client. But I can’t be involved with a client, so, obviously, I can’t say anything to him. But I don’t know if I can feel this way about him and not do something about it.”
“What would you do?”
“That’s just it. I don’t know. What if I’m over there one night and I’ve had a second glass of wine and suddenly decide to confess my true feelings? Or, worse, just kiss him and see how it goes?” Harper shook her head and leaned forward. “He’ll reject me. I know that. He’s still in love with his late wife.”
“Just because he loves her doesn’t mean he might not have feelings for you.”
“Frankie.” Harper rolled her eyes. “Come on.”
“I’m serious. Of course he still loves her. It’s not like they got divorced. She died . And she’s the mother of his only child. That kind of connection doesn’t just go away. But people are capable of loving more than one person at a time. Especially when it’s this kind of situation.”
Harper glanced at the water again. “I don’t know.”
“Don’t you think Mitch gets lonely? That he thinks about being with another woman? About the companionship he’s missing out on? It would only be human.”
“Okay, maybe he does. But…”
“But nothing. You should talk to him. Feel him out. Maybe even just tell him the truth. Wouldn’t that be better?”
Harper looked at her sister. “I’m not so sure about that. What if I’m not the answer to any of those questions? If I’m living next door to him and he rejects me, what do I do then? How do I keep working for him? Would he even want me to?”
Frankie inhaled, then exhaled before answering. “That’s the tricky part. What if…what if I talked to him for you? I don’t mean I tell him how you’re feeling. But maybe just feel him out about where he’s at with all of that? Kind of take his temperature on the whole relationship situation. I might even get the chance tonight at dinner.”
“I don’t know about that.” Harper shook her head. “I’d love to know. But I’m also kind of afraid.”
“Afraid of what?” Willa asked as she joined them on the deck, coffee in hand.
“Nothing you need to know about,” Frankie said. “Sister stuff. How’d you sleep?”
Willa gave her mother a skeptical look. “Sister stuff? That’s what you’re going with?”
“Yes,” Frankie said. “We’ll tell you if it turns into anything.”
Willa sat. “Is it about Buck?”
“Yes,” Harper said just as Frankie said, “No.”
Willa made a noise with her tongue. “Fine. Don’t tell me. What are we doing today?”
This time the sisters got it right. “Working,” they both said.
Harper smiled. “I hope to do some of that working by the pool. After all, if I’m going to be living here, I might as well get my new routine going.”
Willa gasped. “You mean it? You’re going to move here?”
Harper nodded. “I mean it.” There was still so much uncertainty about Mitch, but they were adults. What was the worst that could happen?
Well, she might be out of a job, for one. Would Mitch really fire her over something like that? No, probably not.
But would she be able to keep working for him with unrequited feelings?
No. Probably not.