Page 90 of Happy Harbor
“I believe in going after what I want.”
“And you want me?”
“I’ve said it several times, Josie.”
“I thought maybe you’d changed your mind.”
“I asked you a question.”
She paused, unsure of what to say. Of course, she liked him. Really, really liked him. Wanted-to-grab-his-face-and-kiss-him kind of liking him. But once she said yes, once she started down that road, her heart was vulnerable to getting smashed all over again. Was she brave enough to admit it?
“I do... have feelings for you.” Now she’d done it. She couldn’t suck the words back inside and swallow them. They were floating around out in the ether, out of her control now.
“You do?”
She looked up at him and threw her hands in the air. “Yes. Fine! I do. What do you want from me?”
“This,” he said, putting his hands around her waist and pulling her closer. He leaned his head forward and pressed his lips to hers, and suddenly she wasn’t in Happy Harbor anymore. She wasn’t standing on planet Earth. She was floating around in space, somewhere between Saturn and a sappy romantic comedy on TV. She didn’t know which end was up, nor did she care. When they finally broke for air, she stood there, staring up at him, her eyes wide. “Was that okay?”
Josie smiled. “I don’t know. Let’s try again and see if we can do better.”
* * *
The next morning, Josie was exhausted. She couldn’t stop thinking about her walk home with Walker the night before. In fact, it had kept her up most of the night. Trusting someone with her heart was the last thing she thought she would do in Happy Harbor.
And then there was that kiss. And the ones that followed. She’d kissed enough men in her life to know this one was special. Had he gone through special training to learn how to kiss like that? If so, bravo to his teacher.
Today was going to be much like yesterday, with all kinds of games and events throughout the day. Nobody knew about the special concert Walker had planned, and she prayed it would be enough of a draw to make up the rest of the money they needed. She wasn’t totally sure how much they had raised because they had an accountant handling everything, but she had heard they were getting close to what they needed.
As she put on her clothes, she thought about how thankful she was to share this with her daughter and her mother. Just a few short weeks ago, she would’ve never expected to be spending time with her mother, much less enjoying it.
“Are you about ready?” she heard Diane call through her door. Josie opened it.
“I’m ready. Should we eat some breakfast first?”
“Definitely. It’s going to be a long day. Hey, do you smell bacon?” Diane asked, lifting her nose into the air.
“I know it’s not my daughter. She can’t cook a thing.”
“Thanks a lot,” Kendra said, walking out of her bedroom and joining them in the hallway.
“Wait. If we are the only three that live here, why are we smelling bacon?” Josie asked. They all ran down the stairs as quickly as possible. When Josie turned the corner, she saw Walker standing there, a pan full of bacon in one hand and a plate in the other.
“Good morning, ladies.”
“So, are you just letting yourself into my house now?” Josie asked, putting her hands on her hips. She was very well aware that this was not a good acting job. After last night, she would’ve gladly left him a key under the mat.
“I didn’t think you’d mind as long as I fed you breakfast. Are y’all hungry?”
“Starving!” Kendra grabbed a piece of bacon straight out of the pan and walked over to the kitchen table, sitting down.
“Manners, Kendra!” Josie said, playfully chiding her.
“Eggs?” Walker asked, holding up another pan with scrambled eggs in it.
“How long have you been here?” Josie asked, laughing.
“Not too long. I figured we’d all be hungry and need our energy before this long day of panhandling.”
