They’ve both been staying at my place, and honestly, it’s been so easy having them there. For the first time in a long time, I haven’t had to put on a show or act like an asshole for adoring fans who expect the worst from me. I haven’t even needed alcohol to help me through the day, or find myself in need of escape.
“Can I have a taste?” I ask as Harper puts the last touches on a cake. I reach out, and she whacks my hand.
“You’re as bad as Gavin,” she says.
Gavin’s head lifts at the sound of his name. “Mommy, I want a taste too.”
“Fine.” She grabs the beaters and hands one to Gavin and the other to me, and as we lick them, she just shakes her head at us. Tonight, I’m going to hang out with her friends, and I’m excited to meet them, although big social gatherings really aren’t my thing, but I’ll have Harper at my side, so my anxiety isn’t too high.
She checks the time. “We should probably get going. Gavin, do you have your bag packed?”
Gavin jumps up and little feet sound on my stairs as he runs up them. Damned if I don’t like the sound they make. I stand, and circle the island, stepping up behind Harper. “Stop,” she says, as I nuzzle her neck. “Gavin will be back any second.”
“I know,” I say. “I just can’t help myself.” Harper has been sleeping in my bed every night, and sneaking out before Gavin wakes, and I have to say, the second she leaves, I miss her presence, the soft little sounds she makes in her sleep. That thought makes me laugh, because it wasn’t too long ago that I wanted nothing more than to sneak out under the cover of darkness so I could wake up alone.
Footsteps pound on the stairs, and I back away. “Did I tell you how gorgeous you look?” I say as I take in her little black dress, which has no dog hair on it. Not that I mind the dog hair. It’s what makes her special.
“Only one hundred times.” She points the spatula at me. “But you know you don’t have to flatter me, Liam. I’m kind of a sure thing.”
I laugh. “It’s not flattery, it’s true. You’re gorgeous, and you’re mine.”
“For a little while longer, anyway,” she says reminding me we agreed to have a secret hook-up until I leave for training camp. We also agreed that we wouldn’t let what was going on between us affect my relationship with Gavin.
“You all ready, kiddo?” I ask, and try not to give any consideration to the knot in my stomach. This is just a hook-up. Neither of us are looking for anything more, right? Just then, my cell pings and I see that it’s Jeremy. Christ, it was just the other day he told me it might not be a bad idea if Harper and I were photographed together. He’s not wrong. Pictures of the three of us would serve me well, show my fans that I’m cleaning up my life, and give the endorsement company the clean-cut image they’re looking for. I just hope my fans will stick with me. While I like to make them happy and give them what they want, all that no longer seems as important as it once did. No, hanging with Harper, seeing life through her eyes, has shown me what’s really important in the big scheme of things.
“I have to grab this,” I say to Harper, and step into the other room. “Hey, what’s up?” I ask when I answer the call.
“Just checking in again to see how things were going with the big brother program. You’ve been so quiet lately.”
“I thought you wanted me to stay out of the papers.”
“I wanted you to stay out of trouble.” A dog yips in the background, and I have a hard time envisioning Jeremy with a small yappy dog. “You still going to that party tonight?”
I walk through my living room, grab the remote and shut off the game Gavin had been playing. “Yeah, why?”
“Because it’s my job to make sure you keep your endorsements.”
“Doing my best.”
“Have fun, and I’ll talk to you later.”
I frown. “What the hell was that all about?” I mumble to myself as I end the call. Harper pokes her head in.
“You talking to yourself in here?”
I quickly shove my phone into my pocket as she steps up to me, a curious look on her face.
“Everything okay?” she asks.
“Ah, yeah, I think.”
She smooths her hands over my dress shirt and looks like she’s about to say something else, but closes her mouth when Gavin comes running in. “Mommy, why can’t Holden and I stay here?”
“Because your babysitter doesn’t live around here, which means you’re going to sleep in your own bed tonight so she can watch you.”
“Why can’t I live here?” he asks, and her face falls as she ruffles the Shooters hat on Gavin’s head. It has jelly stains on it, but he won’t take it off to get washed. He sleeps in the thing.
“Because we have our own home.” She taps his nose. “I told you, we’re only staying here for a bit, because I hurt my ankle and Liam is helping out. Now get your stuff.
