Harry’s single note of laughter isn’t amused. “You’re the least convenient woman I’ve ever known, Winter.”
I sigh softly, my emotions jumbled.
“I’m questioning whether I still hate you. That’s progress.”
This time, Harry’s laugh is genuine. “Okay, I’ll take it. And I have this whole weekend alone with you to try to convince you to be more than my roommate who doesn’t hate me.”
I grin over at him in the darkness. “Has a nice ring to it, though, right? You could introduce me to your friends that way. ‘This is Winter, my roommate who doesn’t hate me.’”
“That’s not gonna work for me, smart-ass.”
“Better than when I hated you. I won’t swap out your coffee for decaf anymore.”
“I knew you did that!” Harry reaches over and hooks an arm around my waist, pulling me down on the bed. “I knew you did something to my coffee; I could barely keep my eyes open during my work meetings.”
“It was a long time ago.” I try not to laugh, but fail.
“Not that long ago. What kind of animal switches out the coffee of a man while he has a newborn baby at home?”
“A vicious one,” I say, trying to wiggle away as he tickles my side.
“I’ll show you vicious,” he teases, tickling me until I can hardly breathe.
“Stop,” I finally manage to say. “Kiss me instead.”
He stops, and I’m still breathing hard when he leans down, stopping when his lips are an inch from mine.
“Say you’ll be with me,” he says, a note of pleading in his tone.
“I’ll think about it,” I say. “Now kiss me, Harry.”
Chapter Twenty
Winter
“I knew it!” Aubrey cries into the phone. “I knew you guys would end up getting together.”
“Don’t get too excited, there. Don’t want you to hurt yourself or anything.”
My sister laughs. “I had a baby, Winter. I’m fine. The vag is still intact and everything.”
I can’t help myself when I burst out laughing. “Oh my God, Aubrey! Only you would say that. And you’re supposed to be recuperating, you know.”
“It’s all good, promise.”
“How is my super handsome baby nephew, by the way?”
Aubrey sighs contentedly. “Absolutely perfect. I’m so in love with him.”
“How was your labor?”
“Ugh, about as expected,” she says groaning, and I know it was probably incredibly painful, “but so worth it.”
“And is Big Chance helping with the baby?”
She snorts. “Big Chance is a little too helpful. He’s trying so hard; he’s like a helicopter mom, except it’s helicopter husband. But I love him so much.”
“I’m so happy for you.”
“Thank you. Now tell me all about you and Dirty Harry.”
“Uhhh…” I laugh, glad she can’t see me blushing. “Turns out the nickname is very, let’s say, well deserved.”
“I’ll just bet it is. I’m glad you finally stopped being so stubborn.”
I shift Avery in my arms so she can look out the windows at the city skyline. Harry and I have been back from our trip for a couple days now. Viv left yesterday, promising to return next month, and Harry is back at work. It’s just Avery and me at the apartment today and I can’t stop thinking about the weekend.
“It doesn’t mean we’re together,” I clarify.
“Right,” my sister draws out the word, sounding unconvinced.
“It doesn’t.”
“What do you think it means?”
I smooth back Avery’s dark hair. It’s growing out and starting to show a hint of curl. She’s drooling, so I grab the cloth draped over her tummy and gently wipe her chin, balancing the phone on my shoulder.
“Why does it have to mean anything?” I ask. “Can’t it just be two single, consenting adults having a fun weekend together?”
“Yeah, it can be. But I can tell by your voice it was more than that.”
“I don’t know. Part of me wants to be more and part of me doesn’t.”
“Did something new happen, or are you hesitating for the same reasons as before?”
Avery is starting to doze off on my shoulder, lulled to sleep by my pacing. I hold her close as I try to sort through my jumbled feelings.
“Both, I guess. I knew Harry wanted to sleep with me, but I didn’t realize he wanted a potential relationship.”
“So, he said he wants you guys to be more then?” Aubrey asks.
“He said he wants us to be together. Exclusively.”
“Wow,” she says softly. “And that came as a surprise to you?”
“More like a complete shock. He said it feels like we’re already a family.”
“Awww.” My sister is a complete romantic. I can’t help but roll my eyes.
“I have to be smart,” I say sternly. “Avery is the most important person in the world to me. I don’t want my relationship with her to be contingent on how my relationship with Harry is going.”
“You think he wouldn’t let you see her anymore if you guys broke up?”
My arms are starting to tire from carrying Avery around, so I sit down in Harry’s favorite recliner and resituate her in my arms.
“I don’t think he’d cut me off, no. But I’m still…”
“Afraid?” she finishes.
“Yeah, that’s a good word for it.”
“I know that feeling.”
“I feel so guilty that I’m here, living the life Mallory wanted. It’s so unfair.”
“It is, but she wanted you to raise Avery. She knows you’ll love her like she’s your own.”
“I will…I mean, I already do. But how would Mal feel about me being with Harry?”
Aubrey sighs softly. “Don’t ask yourself questions like that. She’s gone, and she’d want you to be happy no matter who you end up with.”
A lump forms in my throat. “She would.”
The sound of an infant’s cry in the background makes me smile. “Is that my nephew?”
“Yes. I think he’s hungry again. He’s always hungry.”
“Go take care of your boy. I’m so freaking happy for you, Aubrey, and I’m dying to meet him.”
“We need to get together soon. I mean, not in the next month, but you know what I mean.”
I laugh. “Yeah. Soon-ish. Love you.”
“Love you back.”
I end the call and set the phone down on the arm of the recliner. Avery is sleeping peacefully and I just watch her for a minute, gently putting my index finger in her little hand and wondering if she’ll clasp onto it in her sleep.
I was hoping talking to Aubrey would make things clearer, but I’m more confused than ever. Hoping to clear my mind, I open a reading app on my phone and pick up where I left off in the latest Daniel Silva bestseller. I’ve gotten through a few pages when a text appears on my screen.