34. Edu

34

EDU

Two miserable weeks passed with only the company of my teammates and one whiny princess who didn't like being followed around. Thankfully, her father didn't like hearing her complain and discharged us from his service.

Which was really for the best because using my hand in place of Harper was making me a grumpy bastard.

Brock slapped me on the shoulder. "Look at you. You made it through this whole job without breaking either of Harper's rules."

I glared at the man who used to be my best friend. Now, he was hovering dangerously close to an enemy. "You're so funny."

"What's funny is that you're falling for the woman who you thought was a stalker."

"I never said I was falling for her." Though I was pretty sure I told Lock I was when I was delirious from my stab wound.

"You don't need to say it. It's written all over your face. You didn't want to leave her. You've been grumpy the whole trip, and now that we've been let go, you're excited to get home. To her."

"To her pussy," I corrected.

"Still not willing to admit that she means something to you?" he chuckled .

"Alright, let's say she does mean something to me. You're blowing it way out of proportion. Yes, it's more than fucking, but?—"

"It'll never be more," he finished for me, shaking his head sadly like I was a broken record. "You really need a new line."

"What I need is to get home and bury my cock?—"

"Seriously," he cut me off. "Not everyone needs to know your plans for your dick later tonight."

I grinned at him, happy I could still throw him off kilter from time to time. "She doesn't know I'm coming home tonight, so this should be a night I'll never forget."

"Thank fuck I don't have to be there for the reunion. I still can't believe she forgave you for the stunt you pulled after the last job."

"The stunt I pulled? You were there too. You put fucking makeup on me!"

"To make you look like you weren't about to die," he said slowly. "You're the stupid fucker who allowed someone to shove a stake through your side."

He had a point there. It was an unfortunate accident that earned me not only a dressing-down from my girlfriend, but also a punch to the face. I could still feel the sting of her hit if my eye twitched the right way.

"It doesn't matter. This job went fine and nothing's going to happen to ruin my night."

He groaned, tossing his head back. "Really?"

"I don't believe in jinxes. Not anymore."

"Oh, suddenly it's all stupid?"

"Well, it is when there's no merit behind it."

With everything unloaded and nothing more to do, I shoved the last of my shit in my locker and slammed the door. "I'm heading home."

"Not to her place?"

"She can come to me," I said confidently. "We don't spend a lot of time at her place. Not enough privacy," I added.

He nodded, but was already walking out the door, ready to see his own woman. Whistling, I called Harper, waiting and waiting for her to answer. When it went to voicemail, I frowned. She never didn't answer a call when I was out on a job. I called again with the same result.

"Well, fuck," I muttered.

I really didn't want to go to her place, but it looked like that was what was going to happen. I grabbed my bag and tossed it in my truck, then drove the two minutes to her place. She never told me why they suddenly decided to move, but I didn't question it too much. After all, it wasn't like it really affected me one way or the other.

When I pulled into their drive, I noticed her car was there, along with Oliver's. Getting out, I was just about to knock on the door when it swung open suddenly.

"Hey," I grinned at Oliver. "Where's Harper? She wasn't answering her phone."

"Oh…uh…she's sleeping."

"Sleeping?" I scoffed. "It's seven-thirty."

"Well, she didn't sleep well last night and…she's not feeling good."

"Oh. Well, I'll just slip in and see if she's awake."

I shoved past him, not really caring that he tried to block my path. If she was sick, I definitely didn't want to catch it, but there was still that tinge of fear from the last time I hadn't heard from her, only to find out she had been in an accident.

When I pushed the door open and found her sleeping in bed, I exhaled a huge breath, grateful she was really okay. I shut the door behind me and crept over to the bed, slipping in beside her. When she didn't shift even a little, I ran my hand over her back, hoping I could "accidentally" wake her up. But she didn't even move.

Sighing, I laid back and stared at the ceiling, feeling my own eyes drift shut just a few moments later.

I sat upright in bed at the sound of vomiting. Rubbing my eyes, I slid my hand across the bed, only to find it empty. I rushed over to the ensuite and let myself in, finding Harper kneeling over the toilet. Fucking hell.

With a quick glance at the clock, I noted I had been asleep for ten fucking hours already. How had I slept that long? I grabbed a washcloth from the closet and ran it under cold water, then rang it out and placed it on the back of her neck .

"You okay?" I asked around a yawn.

She groaned, resting her head on the toilet seat, shaking her head slightly.

"You should call in sick today."

She nodded, but otherwise didn't move.

"All done?"

She nodded again.

I let her sit for another minute before removing the rag and tugging her to her feet. She was pale and her face looked a little thin, but that was probably from whatever nasty virus she picked up.

"Come on. Back to bed."

I helped her over to her bed, then tucked her in and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'm gonna head home. I'll bring some dinner by tonight. Maybe some soup."

"Sure," she grumbled, rolling over in bed.

With a shudder, I grabbed my stuff and headed out of the house, narrowing escaping before her demon cat tried to attack my leg. The last thing I wanted was to catch that shit and throw up right alongside her. This was not the welcome home I had been hoping for. Instead of burying my cock in her pussy, I was going home to once again pay homage to my hand.

After tossing my shit in the entryway of my house, I slumped on the couch, wondering what the hell I was going to do with the rest of my day. When I came home, I knew Harper would be at work, but I thought I'd get in at least a few rounds with her and then I'd sleep off the trip. Instead, something felt off. I couldn't put my finger on it, but there was definitely something different.

It was almost like I didn't feel right in my own house. Was it because Harper wasn't here? It wasn't like I could go get her and bring her here when she was sick. She might throw up in my truck on the way. And besides, it wasn't like people wanted to be moved when they weren't feeling good.

Still, I didn't like feeling so unsettled in my own house. I couldn't stay here knowing that she was over there. So, I showered, dressed in clean clothes, and was just about to head out when Fox showed up on my doorstep .

Letting out a deep sigh, I stepped out on the porch, refusing to let him in. "What do you want?"

"I have a present for you," he grinned.

"Well, I don't need any presents."

"Come on," he moaned. "This is a good one." He pulled a bag out from behind his back and shoved it in my face. "As a thank you for helping with the avocado farmers, I've made you a special guacamole that goes particularly well with shawarma."

My brows shot up in surprise. "Is there shawarma in here?"

He cleared his throat, shaking his head. "Uh…I sort of ate that already. But you can have the guac. I mean, what's left of it."

I opened the bag and pulled out the container that had clearly been scooped from already. "You brought me an almost empty container of guacamole?"

He ducked his head sheepishly. "Well, it was full. I got hungry!"

"You're always hungry," I said, shoving the bag back in his face. "Keep it."

Relief washed over his face. "I was hoping you would say that. This was a really good batch."

"Alright," I said, trying to shove past him. He stepped in my path and I sighed. "Fox, what do you want?"

He toed the ground, looking like a little kid who wanted to ask a favor. "She hasn't called."

"Who? Anna?"

"No, Anna always calls me."

"Then who?"

"Gram."

Gram. Who the fuck— "Harper's grandma?"

He nodded. "She said we were going to get together for a night of musicals. It hasn't happened yet."

"Did you call her? She gave you her number."

He winced. "I was kind of holding back. See, I wasn't sure if you and Harper were a thing, and I didn't want to make it…last longer if you were hoping it would end."

"Oh. Well, you don't have to worry about that. Harper and I are cool. "

"Really?"

"Yeah, I mean…we're just taking it a day at a time."

"Then I guess you'll be wanting this back," he said, shoving his hand in his pocket and retrieving the ring I'd given to Harper when we were pretending to be engaged. I stepped back, not wanting to touch it.

"Why do you have that?"

"I saw it in your cup holder in your truck." He snorted. "Dude, this ring was expensive. The least you could do is put it in a box until you're ready to use it."

"Use it?" I said incredulously. "What, you think I'm going to marry her?"

"Aren't you?"

"Why the fuck would you think that?"

"You're practically living with her. I just assumed?—"

"That I would run off and get married because she's good in bed?"

Anger rolled off his body in waves at my blunt statement. "You're an asshole."

"Yeah, I already told everybody that, including her. Why would you think any differently?"

"I don't know. Because you've spent way more time with her than any other woman? Because after her accident, you seemed like you pulled your head out of your ass enough to actually commit to another person?"

"I never promised her anything," I snapped.

"No, but you should have. Fuck, Edu, when are you gonna get your shit together? She's not gonna stick around forever, you know. One of these days, she's gonna get tired of being your mistress and she's gonna dump you for someone who's actually willing to commit."

"She's not my mistress," I snapped. "Nobody uses that language anymore."

"Then what would you call her? She's certainly not your girlfriend if you have so little respect that you would drag her along for the ride with no chance of giving her more."

I opened my mouth to argue with him, but realized he was right. I wasn't being fair to her. The plan had always been to end things when I knew I was getting too attached. But I'd allowed myself more time, knowing I didn't want to end things just yet.

But I wasn't willing to give her that ring. There was no fucking way I was getting married. All I could offer her was a live-in situation where we fucked and enjoyed each other's company. Maybe that was enough for her. Maybe she was fine with the way things were.

"You're right. She's not my girlfriend. Maybe it's time I cleared things up."

He shouted after me as I stomped down the steps. "Just don't break her heart, asshole!"