It wasn’t until he heard soft splashing and went to the windows that he found them. Joyce and Beryl were in the pool with Ruthie. Kyle looked very much like he was asleep on one of the lounge chairs, his laptop on the small table nearby.
Mitch smiled. Good for them. Then his smile faded. Now was the perfect time to talk to Harper.
He went to the bedroom and made sure he was presentable. He combed his hair. It didn’t need it, but it was as good a way to procrastinate as any.
He put on shoes, then slipped out of the house, through the path, and came to a stop at Harper’s front door. Reluctantly, he knocked.
Harper answered in shorts, a tank top, and bare feet. Archie stood behind her, tail wagging, looking eagerly like this might result in him going for another walk. “Hey, there. You want to come in?”
“Um, sure. Is this a good time?”
“Yep. Willa’s taking a nap by the pool and Frankie just left to see Lucas.” She backed away to let him enter. “What’s up?”
He stepped inside. He didn’t really want to get too far into the house in case she ended up throwing him out. But she didn’t seem mad. At all. He raked his hand through his hair. “So about last night—”
“Great dinner.”
“Yeah. I didn’t mean the dinner, though.” It was cowardly of him, but he couldn’t look her in the eyes. He didn’t want to see her opinion of him diminishing.
“Oh?”
“About the, uh, kiss.”
“Oh. The kiss.”
Was that amusement in her voice? He glanced at her. The sparkle in her eyes and the slight upturn of one side of her mouth was unmistakable. She thought this was funny. Or he was funny. Or his attempt to apologize was. He scowled, not quite understanding what was going on. “I’m trying to apologize.” In case she didn’t get that.
“For kissing me?”
“Yes.”
Her brows bent. “Why?”
“Because I shouldn’t have done it.”
“Why?”
“Because…we work together.”
“I had you sign an NDA not ano fraternizationcontract.”
He stared at her. This wasn’t going how he’d imagined it. Had he misread things that much? “You’re not mad?”
“No. Should I be?” She crossed her arms. “Are you mad that I kissed you back?”
“No, but…I just thought, that is, after it happened, we sort of pretended it didn’t.”
“Because we were surrounded by friends and family and what was the alternative? To stroll back in and announce what had happened?” She was grinning now. “Mitch, we’re two consenting adults. Kissing is okay.”
He scratched the back of his head.
She gently touched his arm. “I understand if you’re having some guilt issues with this. If you feel like you’ve betrayed Jeanie in some way. Maybe you thought you were ready for something new only to discover you weren’t. However you feel about it, I’m okay with what happened and I’m not going to judge you for whatever you decide.”
“I don’t feel guilty. I thought I might, but I don’t. I mostly thought you might feel like I’d taken advantage of the situation. Or something.” Honestly, standing here with her, he couldn’t remember half of what he’d imagined.
She shook her head. “Like I said. Two consenting adults. Who apparently find each other attractive. Acting on that is only human. Wanting companionship and intimacy is part of that.” She stepped closer to him, the amusement in her gaze replaced by earnest intention. “Is that what you want? Companionship? Intimacy?”
He nodded, the need for words gone. He kissed her again.
