Grace
I left the office feeling gutted. It was still hard for me to believe that I had actually quit my job, but I had. After leaving Fletcher’s office, I had collected my things, marched over to HR and resigned. There was a part of me that thought I’d feel free, but I didn’t. I just felt empty and sad and completely broken.
Tears prickled my eyes as I walked down the street, but I refused to let them fall down my face. Fletcher was a dick who didn’t deserve my tears, or my sadness, or my heart. Unfortunately, I had given all of them to him already, but I was bound and determined to get all of them back.
I was about a block away from my apartment, when my phone rang. I had been in this exact situation so many times before, I should have known that it wouldn’t be Fletcher calling to apologize. Still, my idiotic heart filled with hope just to be broken yet again when I saw Harrington’s name on the screen.
Forcing my voice to sound happy and alive, I greeted, “Hey, Harry.”
“Hi, babe!” he exclaimed. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed your voice.”
My heart ached at his words and my stomach turned. Thanks to Fletcher, I had ignored Harrington’s calls the entire weekend. The only contact we had had was a brief text exchange the previous night where I had asked him to call me as soon as he got back in town. My intention with that was to meet him to break things off, but now everything had changed.
“Are you back?”
“Yeah,” he replied. “Just entered the city. If you can do lunch, I could swing you by your office.”
Harrington’s words made my mind go into overdrive. There were still two and a half hours until my usual lunch break, and we both knew that with his mother no longer in town, he had nowhere to go which meant he would just sit in his car or at a Starbucks until I was able to meet him. That in itself was a sign of care and devotion, and it made me think about how wonderful a man he was.
He was selfless, kind and clearly into me. Yes, the spark between us was pretty much inexistent, but with Fletcher so engraved into my heart, I hadn’t given him much of a chance. Maybe I should.
“I’m actually not at work today. If you want to come over to my place, we can hang out. I’ll even make us some lunch.”
“Sounds great!” The excitement in his voice was clear and surprisingly contagious.
Despite the hole in my chest, I smiled, and though the action felt incredibly weird and unnatural, it also felt like a lifeboat. It was like I was drowning and Harrington was the only thing keeping me afloat. For that reason, I was determined to hold on to him with every ounce of strength left in me.
* * *
The doorbell rang, and my dead heart skipped half a beat—which I considered a win. I knew my broken ticker would never have a full beat to skip again.
“Hi,” I greeted Harrington as I opened the door.
He looked handsome as always, in a casual blue t-shirt and black jeans. One of his hands was .hidden behind his back, and a broad grin was spread across his gorgeous face.
“You have no idea how much I’ve missed you this weekend,” he said as he leaned forward to give me a peck on the lips.
I closed my eyes and clasped my hand on the back of his neck. Opening my mouth to him, I tried as hard as I could to feel something. It didn’t have to be fire Fletcher ignited inside of me—it didn’t even have to be a spark, to be honest. All I wanted was to feel something, anything.
Taking my cue, Harrington deepened the kiss. His tongue stroked mine, his hand flattened against my lower back, and he pressed his taut body against mine. I cleared my mind of all thoughts and simply focused on the sensations his warmth brought me.
It wasn’t instantly, but about a couple of seconds into the kiss, I felt a light tingle in the space where my heart used to be. It wasn’t anything life altering or intense, but it was real. It was a possibility for something more.
When we finally pulled away from each other, I felt almost happy and hopeful.
“What are you hiding behind your back?” I asked as I opened the door wider for him.
His smile got even larger as he walked in and pulled out a gorgeous bouquet of red roses. “They made me think of you.”
This was the first time I had ever gotten flowers from a boy, and though my heart was a broken mess at the moment, it warmed a bit more toward him.
“You shouldn’t have,” I told him with a smile as I took the flowers and walked to my kitchen to get a vase.
“Of course, I should,” he said as he followed me. “A woman like you should get flowers every day.”
With the flowers in the water, I looked at Harrington with tears in my eyes. In all honesty, the tears were sad ones that belonged to Fletcher, but I hoped that Harrington took them as emotional ones devoted to him. It was, after all, a much better explanation for my reaction, and the one I deep down wanted to have.
With that loving smile he always had, he moved closer to me once more. Holding me tenderly by the hips, he pressed his forehead against mine.
“I know we haven’t been together for long, but I really like you,” he whispered, his minty breath fanning across my face.
He looked nervous enough for me to know where that speech was heading, and though I was nervous as well—for entirely different reasons—for the first time, I didn’t dread it. I wouldn’t deny that I still loved Fletcher and probably always would, but Harrington’s love and kindness made me want to change my heart. It made me want to love him instead.
I held his gaze and smiled as he went on. “I wanted to say this tonight after a nice dinner, but I’m afraid I’ll lose the nerve if I wait,” he started in a nervous tone. “I’m falling in love with you, Grace. I know you’re not there yet and I won’t pressure you. I also know your job and life are here, and I won’t ask you to give those things up. Honestly, I don’t know how we’re going to do this, but I know I’d like you to be my girlfriend. I want at least a chance to make you fall in love with me.”
The tears I had been holding on since I left Fletcher’s office, finally spilled down my face. Harrington’s words were everything I wanted to hear, and though the mouth saying them wasn’t the one my heart called for, I could see the potential for happiness I would never have with Fletcher and, at that moment, that was the spark I needed.
I had had passion and fireworks with Fletcher. Now, I wanted stability and companionship. It wasn’t as exciting, but I imagined that in the long haul it would be what was going to make me the happiest.
“Okay,” I said, and his smile almost touched his ears. “I’ll be your girlfriend and, if it’s okay with you, I’ll make your life easier by following you to Boston.” His nostrils flared, and his brows pulled together in confusion. I smiled at him and explained, “I quit my job today. As much as I loved working there, my boss was impossible, and I literally had enough of his crap. A change of scenery is exactly what I need right now.”
Harrington laughed and took me into his arms. He started babbling about how amazing everything would be and how much I would love Boston, but I was done talking. I was done planning and thinking and giving myself time and space to change my mind, so I pressed my lips to his and kissed him with every ounce of hope he made me want to have.
For the first time in the three weeks we had been seeing each other, I allowed myself to relax and enjoy his touch. Before I knew it, we were removing each other’s clothes and walking to my bedroom. Our lovemaking was as sweet and nice as Harrington himself, and though it was far from being life altering or exciting as it had been with Fletcher, I was perfectly okay with that.