Page 66 of Almost Ours
Would she still look at me the way she does? Would she still let me be a part of Connor’s life?
Probably not.
I rake my hands through my hair, exhaling hard as I pull into Harper’s driveway. Throwing the truck into park, I letting my head fall back against the seat for a second.
Fuckkkkkk.
She’s too good for me. Way too fucking good for me.
That doesn’t stop me from wanting to be here, though. From needing to see her. To see Connor. To remind myself that at least foroneperson, I did something right.
I take a steadying breath before knocking on the door, shifting the coffees and cookie in my hand.
Harper answers a few seconds later, and damn, she looks exhausted. Still beautiful as ever, but there are dark circles under her eyes, her hair pulled into a messy bun like she hasn’t had the energy to brush it.
I can’t blame her. I didn’t sleep at all last night either, and I wasn’t the one sitting beside my kid in a hospital bed making sure he kept breathing.
She blinks in surprise when she sees me, then her expression softens into something that looks a hell of a lot like relief.
“Hey,” she says, stepping aside to let me in.
“Hey,” I reply, stepping past her and into the house.
Connor is curled up on the couch, wrapped in blankets, eyes glued to the TV. I take one step inside before second-guessing myself.
“Shit, I probably should've called first–”
“Ryan!”
Connor’s head snaps toward me, his face lighting up. He throws the blanket off like he’s about to jump up and run over, but Harper stops him with a look.
I grin. “Hey, buddy. How you feeling?”
“Good!” he says, then his voice turns suspicious. “Wait, did you bring me anything?”
Harper laughs, shaking her head. “You hear that? Every time this kid sees you, it’s like Christmas morning. Must do wonders for your ego.”
I smirk, handing her the coffee. “I don’t mind it.” I nod toward the bag. “There’s something from Benny in there for you and a cookie for him too.”
Connor gasps dramatically. “Acookie?”
Harper rolls her eyes, then grabs it and walks it over to him. The second she hands it off, he tears into it like it’s the best thing he’s ever been given in his life.
He looks up at me, mouth full. “We’re watchingSonic!Can you stay?”
I glance at Harper, waiting for her to be the voice of reason, to tell him I probably shouldn’t intrude.
Instead, she nods. “Yeah, stay.”
Like I was going to say no to that.
I walk over to the couch and sit down on one side of Connor while Harper settles on the other.
For a while, we just watch the movie. Connor gets about halfway through before his body starts going limp, his head eventually rolling onto my lap, his legs stretched out over Harper’s.
I glance over at her, and she just smiles, brushing a hand over his blanket-covered legs.
Hesitating for half a second before I lift my arm onto the back of the couch, pulling her closer. She doesn’t even question it, just leans in, resting her head against my chest like it’s the most natural thing in the world.
