I surprised myself by being so calm while talking with my mother. The shock had passed, but still, just listening to her as she explained where she'd been all this time, was surreal. Like a dream come true, in a weird way. I had wanted an explanation after all these years, but actually seeing her and hearing it from her lips wasn't what I expected at all. A major puzzle piece in my life had been put in its place, even if it was no longer a perfect fit.

I found myself simmering more about my father. Okay, yeah, I got it. He didn't want to tell me when he got the first letter from my mom. I was maybe 13 or 14 and had finally come to grips with the fact that she wasn't coming back. He didn't want to give me false hope or to crush me further by telling  me she had started a new family. It was a wise move, but I was still....unsettled by it. 

Harry sensed my unrest about the whole situation. When we got back to our hotel room, he locked the door and wrapped all of himself around me. And I just let myself be held. Warmed. Comforted.

"I'm sorry you have to go through this," he finally said. I could feel his mouth moving against my hair as he still held me tightly. 

"In a way, the timing sucks because you were immediately dragged into major family drama. But on the other hand, the timing was perfect." I pulled away just enough to look up into his perfect...damn, what was that shade of green again? His eyes changed with his moods, I think. In any case, I looked up into his eyes and continued. "The timing might have been perfect because I don't know if I could go through this without you." 

"I don't doubt your strength to manage this on your own, but I'm glad it worked out this way, too," he said, holding me in his steady gaze. "I'm glad I can be here for you. I'd do anything for you, Harper."

His words sunk deep into my heart. "Thank you," I spoke in awe. "I'd do the same for you."

He kissed me again, slowly, just prodding a little bit with his tongue, but not becoming forceful. It was just enough to back up the words he just said. Funny, how something as simple as a kiss could communicate so many different things. 

He finally released me and called room service to bring us some lunch. He didn't even ask what I wanted, but I didn't care. He ordered a large variety, and I assumed we'd have enough for dinner, too. 

When he hung up, I said, "Sorry, this has to be the most boring date you've ever been on."

He came and set next to me on the bed. "Now that's just nonsense. I love you, Harper. This is the only place I want to be. It doesn't matter to me at all if we stay here. The producers would probably want it that way anyway because they don't have any planned outings, meaning no security coverage. They're happier if we just lay low."

"I guess neither of us can complain since we have the room to ourselves for another night," I said with a hint of suggestion in my voice, raising my eyebrows.

"I like the way you think," he said,  moving towards my lips. But he was interrupted by the ringing of his phone. The conversation was short. "Yes, we're here," he said to the caller. "That's fine. See you in a few minutes." 

"Who was that?" I asked, cocking my head in a curious fashion.

"Claudia," he said with a small huff. "I'm used to dealing with managers, producers, public relations specialists," he said, making air quotes around the last phrase. "That's just code speak for We will tell you what you can and cannot say."

"She seemed pretty pissed at the cafe," I commented.

Harry pulled my hands to stand up in front of him. He enclosed me in his arms and said, "I don't care. She works for the show and she's not my manager. Honestly, you don't even have to say anything. Just let me do all the talking."

"Okay," I said, but I still didn't feel settled. 

Claudia knocked a few minutes later. Harry welcomed her graciously. As soon as she sat down at the table, he said, "You don't have to worry about us. We can keep everything quiet until the final episode. We've already talked about it."

Claudia shrugged with a fake smile plastered to her face. "Oh, don't be silly. It's no big deal at all. That's all I wanted to talk to both of you about, so we're on the same page, it seems. Neither one of you is allowed to tell the other women what went on here this weekend. Not even about Harper's mom." 

Harry shook his head. "I already told Victoria. Harper needs support for this. Don't you realize that this was traumatic for Harper? She needs to be able to confide in her friends."

She looked angry again, but managed to keep her fake smile. Ignoring Harry's somewhat rhetorical question, she said, "Okay, well, no one else knows then, right?"

"Maybe Ariana," Harry said, without a hint of intimidation.

"Oh, for heaven's sake! What were you think-"

I interrupted and said, "Victoria, Ariana and I are very close friends, so I'm actually happy that they know. They don't specifically know about Harry and me, and I'll keep it that way. And they wouldn't have any reason to blab about my mom, except to talk to me about her and to listen. Because that's what friends do," I said, emphasizing that we were friends, not competitors.

Claudia kept this very calm and peaceful facade, but I could almost see the anger boiling under her skin. Over the past five weeks, I'd noticed more and more that she was a control freak, wanting the women to "play their role" and acting like a movie director, telling people what to do and say. Now, too many things had gotten out from under her control, and she wasn't happy about it. But as long as we weren't shouting anything to the outside world, I didn't see the harm in all of us supporting each other. 

"Fine, well, just say as little as possible, please!" Claudia urged us both as she hastened to the door. She turned to deliver one last snide remark, towards me, specifically. "Friends, ha! We'll see how long that lasts after this is all over." 

Harry closed the door behind her and said, "Don't worry about her. What could she possibly do to mess things up now? She can't force me to pick someone else, so I don't care if she wants me to jump through a few hoops." He hugged me again and touched his forehead to mine. "I already have what I want the most."

* * *

When our food arrived, we ate some lunch and turned on the TV for a bit, snuggled up on the small sofa. It felt nice to do something so normal. We ended up falling asleep and dozed til almost dinner time. When I woke up, I stretched out long and hard, breaking Harry's hold on me. He yawned and went right back to snuggling.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm all right, I think." 

"We don't have to talk about this if you don't want to," Harry began. "But some of the things your mom said - about sending a letter to your dad and calling on your birthday - you didn't know about any of that, did you?"

"No, I had no idea at all. I thought my dad was as clueless as me. I'm actually glad to know that he finally had an answer. It probably helped him to get over her. I just don't know why he would keep it from me."

"I'm sure he had a good reason, Harper. I can see how much he loves you."

"I know," I said. "But it's normal for me to feel a little bit betrayed, isn't it? I mean, I've wondered about her for all these years and he had the answers."

I turned and laid across Harry's torso with my legs stretched to the end of the sofa, while his remained on the coffee table. He held me like a baby, his Baby, which he had apparently decided to call me. I didn't say anything because I loved it. 

"I think you have every right to feel a lot of things. Sounds like you know that your dad wouldn't intentionally hurt you, but you wish he would have handled it differently. So, what do you do now? Do you get angry with him and hold a grudge? Or should you just accept that he did the best with what he had?" 

"You're so wise, Harry," I said. "That actually sounds exactly like my dad, doing the best with what he had. I think that's part of why I love you, because you're very much down-to-earth. He's like that, too. I think you two will get along great." 

"I haven't spent much time with him, but he seems a wonderful fellow. I'm flattered that you'd compare me to him. Besides, look at the amazing job he did raising you. The man definitely has strength." 

"Are you saying that I was a difficult kid?" I accused playfully.

"No!" He laughed. "I was saying that your father is a great man, simply for going through all the tough times with you. Think about it - he must have gone through his own bouts of sadness and grief, right? But I'm guessing he never let it get in the way of being there for you."

"You're right," I said. "Thank you." 

Harry pulled me up just far enough to lean down and capture my mouth in a kiss. A steamy, not at all simple kiss. I thought I might be happy just to stay there for the rest of the night. Or maybe the week? A month, perhaps? But we finally had to come up for air.

I sat up and faced him, crossing my legs. "I love you," I said.

The grin he had on his face when he said it back was nothing short of glorious. How was he so pretty? 

"I love you, too. Would you like to call your dad?" He asked. "You can use my phone. Or Face Time him?" 

"No fair," I grumbled, pretending to be resentful. "Why do you get  your phone when we had to forfeit ours for the whole six weeks?"

"I'm special," he said, giving me a goofy grin that turned into a laugh.

"That you are," I said, shaking my head. 

"Hey now," he said. "No teasing me." He grabbed after me, but I ran into the bathroom and locked the door behind me. "Why are you running away from me?" He asked in a whiny voice.

"Because I have to pee," I laughed back. "And I don't usually have an audience." 

I heard him laugh really loud, and then he was silent. What was he up to? I cautiously stepped out of the bathroom, and he came barreling at me from the other side of the room. He scooped me up into his arms and said, "Haha, now there's no escaping!" 

I gave him a lazy smile and said, "Like I'd want to." He sat us down on the bed and pulled out his phone. While he waited for me to give him the number, I pondered whether I really wanted to talk to my father. 

"I don't know, Harry," I sighed. "Maybe I should just wait. I don't think I can handle any more emotional drama right now. He held the secret for years. I think can wait another week to talk to him."

"If you're sure that's what you want," Harry murmured, nuzzling against my ear. "Maybe that's better. I said I'd be here for you, but I hate seeing you get so upset. We'll have a lot of time to work through things after this is over."

I wrapped my arms around his waist and he pulled me close against him. "I love it that you're talking about us, not just me or you. Us, as in our future together."

He kissed my forehead. "Harper, you are my future." 

_____

Okay, can I just ask that we NOT call Harry and Harper "Harpy"? A harpy is a mythological creature that's half woman, half bird and it's not at all the vision I see when I think of Harry and Harper, lol. Google it and you'll see what I mean! ;)

Double update coming your way! <3