Page 34 of Stopping Short

“What? We talk to each other on video chat all the time.” I smile, loving seeing this vulnerable side of him.

“Yeah, and I see all of your photos on social media, but seeing you in person… man, you took my breath away. When I got to the bar, I actually watched you for a few minutes before I even approached you. I was mesmerized.”

“Jackson,” I whisper, looking into his eyes and seeing the raw emotions staring back at me.

“I love you, Harper. I want to say I always have, but that’s a little creepy with our age gap.” He shakes his head, but he’s chuckling. I open my mouth to respond, but he stops me. “I don’t want you to say it back. I don’t want you to say it just because I said it. But I needed you to know I'm happy to have you here. I'm more than happy to have you close or to have you sleep in my arms. And I want you to come with me to work tomorrow.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. I feel like we can’t just hide here until Evan is dealt with and even though Owen told me I could stay home, eventually I need to go back to work. Owen told me you’re welcome at the stadium whenever you want to come. You can either watch me practice or you can hang out with Charlie or Macy. I'm not sure if any of the other girls will be there, but those two will. Macy had a baby recently so she’s not super active at work, but she’s there. And Charlie’s baby will be there too, but she’s a little older. I’m sure you could hold a baby or two throughout the day too.”

“Ok. That sounds like fun. I think I’d rather watch you though… When’s your next game?”

“Tomorrow night. I have practice in the morning, then I have a few free hours before I have to be back. I was thinking we could go see your dad between practice and the game.”

“That sounds perfect.”

Chapter 22

Jackson

When my alarm goes off in the morning, I let out a groan and blindly slap the top of my nightstand looking for my phone. I'm exhausted. I’m definitely not prepared to have practice and a game today.

“What time is it?” Harper’s voice comes out raspy and I love it. She sounds so perfect.

“Seven. I have to be at the stadium in an hour and a half.”

“Ugh, I'm so tired.” She pulls the blanket up to her neck and closes her eyes again.

“We can just stay here, sweetheart. All I have to do is call Owen and let him know.” I press a soft kiss to her forehead before climbing out of bed.

I head straight to my bathroom and begin my morning routine. Even if I don’t go to work, I need to get up and be active in some way. If I'm not, the game tonight will be rough. Five minutes later, I'm sorting through my drawer, looking for athletic shorts and a sleeveless shirt.

“I'm getting up so we can go to the stadium, but I'm still not a morning person.” Her statement is punctuated with a loud yawn as she stretches her arms over her head. “I need to grab some clothes from the car though.”

“How about you get ready while I bring them in? I’ll place them all in the spare bedroom.”

“That would be great. Thanks.” She slowly climbs out of bed and stops in front of me as I slip my shirt over my head. “Thank you for keeping me wrapped in your arms all night. I felt so much safer like that.”

“I’ll happily sleep like that, babe, anytime you want.” I grin. It’s definitely not a hardship to sleep with a beautiful woman in your arms.

As soon as Harper goes to the bathroom in the spare room, I quickly change into my shorts and slip on my shoes. It only takes me a few minutes to grab all of her bags of clothing from the car and place them in her room.

Then I move into the kitchen and start pulling out what I need to make my protein shake for the morning. I know I don’t have a lot in the fridge, I planned on calling Maria today to see if she’d do a grocery run for me.

Maria is amazing. She’s a maid, but she’s also like a personal assistant. She works for me and the rest of the team that lives in this development. She understands our demanding schedule and that sometimes we need her to run little errands for us. She’s more than happy to help us with whatever we need.

I pull up my text thread with her and ask her to pick up some things today. I list all of Harper’s favorite foods, hoping they haven’t changed much over the years.

“Whatcha making?” Harper glances at the protein shake and frowns. “That looks gross. Why is it green?”

“Kale.”

“Yup, I was right. Totally gross.” She scrunches up her nose in disgust.

“Do you drink protein shakes? I don’t have much else in the house. I planned to go on a grocery trip today.”

“Well, I don’t eat green things. Do you have frozen waffles or something?”