Harbor

“Ugh.” I toss my phone on the bed and grumble. It’s been two weeks since I’ve moved in with Ian and I’m still nowhere near finding another agent.

I contemplate asking Ian if he would put some feelers out for an agent, but he has already done so much for me, I hate having to ask him for more. My stomach flips as I think of Ian and I bite my lip, something my acting coach tried to get me to stop doing. Ian has been so nice to me. Everything I have right now is because of him. The clothes, even the underwear I have all are because of Ian.

Nope, I’m not going to ask him to help me find an agent. I’ll do it myself. I’ve found a few job prospects that have nothing to do with the industry, but I can’t very well go on a job interview just yet.

Thankfully, my ankle is healing nicely. Within two weeks I ditched the wheelchair for crutches and today at my doctor’s appointment I graduated to a smaller brace, a boot I can walk in. Goodbye crutches. The cut on my head is barely more than a bruise and I’m so thankful it isn’t going to leave a scar.

I can’t wait for Ian to get home so I can share my good news.

I hear the door open, and without thinking, I hobble out to greet him. He smiles widely when he notices the boot.

“No more crutches,” he says as he walks toward me.

“Nope, and I only have to wear the boot for a couple more weeks. And guess what?”

“What?” he asks when he’s right in front of me.

I falter. His coffee-brown eyes are sparkling and the grin on his face makes him impossible to ignore. I think my heart skips a beat, but I didn’t know that really happened to a person. The sexual tension between us is getting harder to hold back. Or at least it is for me. I can’t speak for Ian, and I haven’t had any real experience, just a few not so wonderful nights with a guy I dated in college. In fact, I’ve never had a boyfriend. My whole college career, I was so focused on getting to New York and making a name for myself I never gave the dating thing a chance.

Not that I think Ian wants to date me. I mean, why would Ian want some struggling actress when he’s rubbing elbows with the elite only New York has to offer? I had a thought the other day, that maybe I’m cramping his style and the reason he hasn’t brought another woman here is because of me. Even though I want to puke at the notion of him with another woman, curiosity about his sex life is driving me nuts.

“My forehead isn’t going to scar.”

Ian’s fingers lightly touch the small bandage on my forehead. Just from that small touch, my body is humming. The lust I feel for Ian notches up every time I’m near him, and with him touching me, it is skyrocketing.

I take a shaky breath and refuse to lean into his touch like I want to. Giving him an Oscar-worthy smile, I tell him what I need to say even though I don’t want to. “And now that I’m in this boot I can start really looking for a job and get out of your hair soon.”

As much as it pains me, I need to get out of Ian’s house. From what I’ve gathered from Ian, he’s a nice guy and I would hate to be the reason he isn’t living his life. He’s just too nice to tell me to get out.

“Harbor, I told you before, I don’t want you to move out. I like having you in my home. Do you not like it here?” he asks and I watch his face transform into worry. He snatches his fingers away from my face, my skin tingling where he’d been touching me.

“No, I love it here,” I tell him with more desperation than I wanted to be in my voice.

“Are you not comfortable? Do you need anything that I haven’t thought of?” Ian’s eyes scan over the apartment as if he can find the void he thinks is there.

I look with him. In the two weeks that I’ve lived here, the apartment has become more lived in. There are blankets and pillows gracing the couch, just in case my pain meds take hold of me before I can make it to bed. There are acting books on the table and my sweater is draped over one of the kitchen chairs.

“Ian, you have provided more than enough for me. That’s the problem. I feel like I’m taking advantage of you. I’ve already been here longer than I expected and I want to stop disrupting your life.”

Ian smiles and takes my hand, leading me to the couch. I sit next to him, his leg pressing into mine, and it’s doing funny things to me. Why does he have to be so damn sexy?

“Harbor, I never thought you were an unreasonable person.” Ian scrubs his hands over his face, his leg still pressing into mine.

It takes a moment to register what he said and I turn until I’m facing him. “I’m not unreasonable.” Heat surfaces on my face.

“No?”

“No. Why would you say I’m unreasonable?”

“Have I not opened my home up to you? Have I done nothing but try and make you feel comfortable?”

“Yes,” I stammer, but he cuts me off.

“Then why won’t you take my help? I’ve told you over and over again that I like having you here. And when I tell you money really isn’t a problem, I mean it. I haven’t built my business by not saying what I mean. And as for disrupting my life, that is ridiculous. All I have done the past six months is work on getting my East Coast branch up and running. Since you have been in my life, I’ve become well acquainted with the hospital.”

He smiles when I giggle at him, but keeps going. “I’ve been out more than I have in six months in the two weeks I’ve known you, and although I still hate this city, you have opened my eyes to why people would actually want to reside here. So please, can we drop this subject?”

“Ian, I’m not trying to disrespect you or your business ethics. And sure, money may not be a problem for you, but it’s a problem for me. I’ve never had to depend on anyone and I hate that I feel like I’m being a freeloader. As for exploring New York, at some point you would have ventured out into the city and found its charm. You don’t need me for that. I just want to get on my own two feet again.”

“Well then, it’s settled.”

His hand squeezes my knee and all rational thought flies out the window.

When I get my jumbled thoughts together, I’m still confused. “What’s settled?”

His finger bounces off the tip of my nose and he looks amused. “You’re not a freeloader because I want you to be here. You are a fantastic roommate and I like having you here.”

“From what you said, nothing seems settled at all,” I tell him.

“Sure it does. You told me that you wanted to become an actress since you were in kindergarten.”

I nod, still completely confused by what he feels is settled. He has the same look on his face he had at the hospital when he was convincing me to move in with him, and I have a feeling I’ve once again lost a battle to Ian Strong.

“So this is the perfect opportunity. There is no reason for you to get a job while you can use all your focus on breaking into the theater. You don’t eat much, your room was empty and would once again become empty if you move out of it. It makes no sense for you to go slave in a job you hate that has nothing to do with your passion, just so you can afford some shitty apartment when you have a perfectly good one here, and you can focus on what you love.”

His logic is definitely skewed, but his charming smile tells me he already knows he has me.

“Are you sure you don’t mind me being here?” I ask tentatively.

He presses his leg farther into mine and want shoots to my core.

“I don’t mind you being here at all. Now, can we please be done with this conversation?”

I nod and he leans in, his feather light kiss lands on my forehead and my heart starts beating erratically. What he is unaware of is that his tender, innocent kiss just undid all the hard work he put in convincing me to stay. I’m getting too close to having real feelings for him and if a tiny show of affection can turn me into a puddle of goo, I’m afraid of what would happen if he turned on his real charm.

I don’t let Ian know my thoughts and we sit on the couch eating dinner and watching mindless TV. After a while, the events of the day catch up with me and I relax into the couch. Ian surprises me by grabbing my legs and draping them across his lap. His hand grazes over my bare legs and goose bumps run up my skin.

Ian doesn’t say anything, but there is no way he doesn’t feel the pimpling on my legs. I peek to see what he is doing but he is paying attention to the TV as if he doesn’t notice my whole body responding to him. The soothing rhythm of his strokes pulls me under and sleep claims me.

A warm body is pressed against me and when I crack my eyes open, the TV is still on the same channel but Ian is now holding me snuggly to him as his warm breath brushes across my face. I push deeper into his chest and fall back asleep feeling safe and secure.

Later, Ian’s arms lift me from the couch and I give a sleepy smile when he tucks me into my bed. I almost reach out to pull him in with me, but good sense rears its head before I do. Ian brushes a light kiss over my forehead, telling me he has to go to work and he will call me later, before closing my door.

When I wake up, I feel alert and well rested for the first time in weeks. My body responded to having Ian cradling me, and it was the first night I was able to sleep without the need of sleeping pills. I check my emails while I linger in bed, and frustration pulses through me when I see none of the agents I’ve contacted responded.

This is all Mitch Southerland’s fault, and I decide I’m going to demand my money back since the sleaze has done nothing for me.

My voice abandons me when Mitch actually answers his phone.

There’s a long pause and I’m afraid he’ll hang up and never answer again when he hears it’s me. “Mitch.” My voice is harsh and I don’t bother curbing my tone as I tell him it’s me calling.

“Harbor, I’m so sorry. Where are you? The landlady said you never showed up at your apartment and—”

“Excuse me. I did show up. I pounded on the door for twenty minutes and nobody answered, then I was robbed of all my possessions, after which I was hit by a car.”

“What? Are you okay, Harbor? I was going to call you today. I had a family emergency out of the country and haven’t had service. I just assumed you would get settled into your apartment and go to the auditions I’d already set up until I got back, but like I said, the landlady said you never showed up at 4B.”

I open my mouth to give him an earful but then change what I was going to say. “You told me 5B.”

“No, I’m sure I told you 4B.” There’s a clicking in the background and I know he is checking something on his computer. “Harbor, I’m so sorry. I’ve been through a lot of family stress and I can’t believe I sent you the wrong apartment number.”

The sound of remorse in his voice is palpable and my heart gives in a little. Hearing him apologize makes my anger fade. But if he hadn’t given me the wrong number, I would have moved into my apartment that day, wouldn’t have been robbed of all my belongings and my car, wouldn’t have been hit by Ian’s car.

Wouldn’t have met Ian.

“Harbor, please let me make it up to you. I know I can get you more auditions. Let me make it up to you and make your name a name everyone knows.”

I smile at his enthusiasm and find myself nodding with each possibility he comes up with. We talk a little longer, Mitch apologizing over and over again. When we make plans to meet for coffee in the morning, I hang up and do a dance.

My first thought is I want to call Ian and tell him the good news, but I don’t want to bother him at work. Instead, I plan a fabulous dinner and wait to tell him everything when he gets home.