She smiled. Mitch. He’d kissed her. Then she’d kissed him back. It had been completely unexpected and the nicest thing that had happened to her romantically in a long time. At least since Ford Keating.
Hmm. From Ford Keating to Mitchell Ripley. The gossip sites would have a field day with that, but it wasn’t information they were ever going to get. She’d do her best to be sure of that.
She had a feeling Mitch felt the same way and not just because he was such a private person.
After the kiss, they hadn’t really talked about it, just started walking Archie again. They’d taken him back to the house, then they’d returned to Mitch’s and gone about things as though nothing had happened. Normal as could be. Or so she’d thought. Clearly, Frankie and Willa had picked up on something.
Made sense, though. She’d been in a bit of daze from that kiss. Had Mitch been affected the same way?
They hadn’t talked, so she had no idea. She went to check her phone to see if he’d texted, but she’d left it upstairs.
If Frankie and Willa had realized something was up, Joyce probably had, too. Would Joyce have said anything to Mitch? Probably not in front of Kyle.
Did Mitch regret the kiss? It hadn’t seemed that way in the moment. Maybe it had just been a silly impulse.
Maybe tomorrow he’d tell her he was sorry, and it could never happen again.
The thought filled her with an immediate sense of sadness. She took Archie back inside. She hoped that wasn’t what ended up happening, but if it was, she’d understand. Better to keep Mitch as a friend and employer than to lose him altogether.
Actually, what would be better would be to have him as a friend, employer, and boyfriend.
But this was real life, not fiction, and too often in life, sadly, there was no guarantee of a happily ever after.
Chapter Forty-Eight
Mitch had slept well. Now he stared at himself in the mirror, the bathroom lit by the overhead lights, since it was still early and dark outside. Nothing about his outward appearance had changed. He had the same lines, the same scattering of gray hairs. The same eyebrows that could use some grooming.
He didn’t look any different, despite how he felt.
Last night, for the first time in nearly thirty years, he’d kissed a woman who wasn’t his wife.
The moment had been earthshaking. A total game-changer. And yet, the reflection in the mirror was the same one he’d been seeing every day of his life.
How was that possible?
All because he’d kissed Harper. Then she’d kissed him. Then they’d both pretended it hadn’t happened. That wasn’t a good sign, was it?
He shook his head. Definitely not. He looked himself in the eyes. “You screwed up.”
But there was nothing he could do except move forward.
He went back to the bedroom and put his sneakers on. Then out to the kitchen to get the coffee started. He checked onRuthie, something that had become part of his morning routine. She was fast asleep and somehow more beautiful than the day before.
He touched her cheek ever so lightly, just to feel how soft and perfect her skin was. “Grandpa loves you, Ruthie.”
Quietly, he went down the steps and left the house. He walked to the end of the driveway, relishing the early morning quiet. It was just what he needed to plan out his apology to Harper. He did not want to lose her as a friend or business associate. Especially not with Kyle about to jump into the fray of publishing.
He needed Harper as part of his team more than ever.
He stuck his earbuds in and started to run.
It was good to pound the pavement. To exert some effort and move his body. After the overindulgence at dinner last night, which he did not regret, he needed this.
Just like he needed to fix things with Harper.
He didn’t think she was mad. He hadn’t gotten that vibe from her. More like she was probably confused and now uncertain as to where things stood between them.
He shook his head at his impulses. Why had he done that? What had come over him?
