Abby met Harper at the Tijuana airport. The ten-hour flight from Tampa had hit more turbulent pockets than all the other flights she’d ever taken combined. Not fun.
She tossed her suitcase in the backseat of Abby’s gold Kia Optima and climbed in the passenger side.
“How was your trip?” Abby asked as she pulled away from the curb.
Harper knew that would be the first question her friend asked. She’d thought about the answer during her flight, but she still hadn’t figured out a good enough one.
On one level it seemed ridiculous that with every mile she traveled toward home and away from Sully, unhappiness inside of her grew. She’d known from the onset their lives couldn’t mesh. But the intellectual side of her that had driven her entire life was now overruled by her heart. All the way home she’d told herself the intense yearnings she had for Sully weren’t really love, even though she knew this was the first time in her life she’d felt passionately.
She’d been worried and concerned when he’d gotten injured. After driving him to Fort Myers ER, she’d held his hand as they took blood samples, and he’d wanted her to stay with him. His sense of humor over the situation tickled her; the nurses had appreciated it, too. Funny, the intense emotions during all of that remained with her still. Her feelings for him were so loving and tender, wild and over-whelming. She simply didn’t know what to think. Except…she loved him.
Abby shot her a sideways glance at her hesitation.
“My vacation was excellent,” Harper finally said. “Not what I’d expected, though.”
The car turned sharply onto Mex 1 for the long drive south. Abby pressed her lips together, seeming to be warring between being a good friend and being a nosy-nose.
“Go on… “
Harper sighed in resignation. She might as well get it over with. “The short version is that my boat broke down, I was rescued by a deliciously hunky sailor, we spent a glorious two and half days at a stunning resort, and voilà, I’m home.”
Abby angled a questioning brow. “But you’re not the same woman you were when you left?”
“You’re too observant for your own good.” Harper crossed her arms in front of her. “But you’re correct. Something’s changed.”
“Spill.”
Harper took a deep breath and rushed on while she still had the courage. “His name is Sully McGlamery. We went to high school together. Back then he never knew I existed. Today he is a brilliant, popular singer.”
“And he popped your cork?”
Harper tipped her chin down and looked at Abby from under lowered brows. A clear You’ve overstepped your boundaries expression. She was not willing to talk about the special moments she and Sully had shared, even with her best friend. “That’s need-to-know, and you don’t.”
“I see.” Abby grinned. “And so now…you’re unhappy?”
“I… I don’t know what I am. I need some time to figure it out.”
“And then what?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know that, either.”
“Harper, you can’t just sweep your feelings under the rug like you do the dust bunnies in your apartment.”
Harper huffed. “I do not have dust bunnies.”
“My point exactly.”
She uncrossed her arms and ran a hand through her hair. “Just drive.”
* * *
Sully picked up speed on his treadmill, pushing himself harder. He’d spent a lot of time in his personal gym since he’d been home. And he wasn’t lying to himself. He knew precisely why he’d been charging full speed in every direction possible. Because the heartache set in every time he stopped.
The time he’d spent with Harper meant more than any other in his life. When he took a dip in his swimming pool, he thought of her. When he fixed his morning coffee, he thought of her. When he put his socks on, his toe completely healed now, he thought of her. When he closed his eyes and remembered the softness of her lips…a fist squeezed in his chest. He wanted to spend the rest of his life holding her, loving her.
As crazy as it seemed, in the short time they were together, he’d fallen in love with Harper. And he needed to discover if she felt the same. How did he do that when they were living miles apart? He couldn’t.
So he worked. In two weeks, he’d cut the final two songs for another album, collaborated on a TV pilot he had in the works, and agreed to perform a special Christmas program to benefit Habitat for Humanity.
Paul, his friend and manager strolled in then. “Shit, Sully. You’re going to run yourself into the ground. Something bad must have happened in Florida. You’ve been like this since you got back.”
Sully wound down to a walk and then to a stop. He waited until his breathing evened out and wiped his sweaty brow with a towel, then said, “You’re right, my man. I need to figure this out.”
“Anything I can do to help?”
“Nope. This is something I have to do alone.”
But in his heart he already knew. He was in love with Harper, and he had to at least find out if she could ever feel the same about him.
He went to his office and studied his calendar. Since he’d worked like a madman when he returned from Florida, he was way ahead of schedule. His obligations had been met, and he decided not to take on any more for a while. As a matter of fact, he may just take a trip and purchase an acre or so in Baja California.