Dash is hovering around her and she rolls her eyes at me when he shuts the door. I grin and wave at them as they drive out of the lot before I turn and head over to my car. I’ve got to go tell my best friend that I love him.
Chapter 8
Harry
* * *
I’ve been pacing the floor all night.
After I talked to Mrs. Porter and Mr. Rogers, I realized that they were right. I was letting my own self-doubt get in the way of what could be between Bella and me. I’m not going to let my head or my grumpy attitude mess this up.
I know Bella and she wouldn’t just run and disappear. She wouldn’t have said that she was going to come back if she intended on leaving. My Bella isn’t like that.
While the knowledge that Bella didn’t leave because of us sleeping together, that still didn’t make me feel better. If she didn’t intend to stay away then that meant that something was keeping her from coming back to me. Her cell phone has been going to voicemail all night and that hasn’t helped ease my worry either.
Around two in the morning, when it was obvious that Bella wasn’t going to be back soon, I had started calling hospitals. I drove by her apartment and saw that both her car and Gracelyn’s were missing from the lot. After that I just started driving, looking around some of her usual haunts but she wasn’t anywhere to be found.
It’s close to noon now and I’m just pulling into my drive. I’m half out of my mind with worry. If something has happened to Bella I don’t know what I’ll do. She’s my life, my everything. I’ll be lost if she’s gone.
Going back inside feels like I’m letting Bella down and I wrack my brain, trying to think of what else I could do to find Bella. It’s still too early to call the police and report her missing. Gracelyn’s phone is going straight to voicemail too.
I run my hands through my hair, tugging on the ends in frustration. I turn the key in the ignition, turning my car back on. I’ll head back to their apartment and see if she’s there.
I’m just about to back up when Bella’s car pulls down the long driveway. I’m out of my car and running over to hers before she can even park. I rip open her door and pull her into my arms.
“Jesus, Bella. I was so worried,” I say against the top of her head.
She melts against me, her curves pressed up tight against me and it feels like all is right in the world. She’s still wearing her yellow Beauty and the Beast dress from last night and I have a million questions to ask her but they don’t seem as important now that I know that Bella is safe and where she belongs.
“I’m sorry that I left without saying goodbye. I came down to make sure everything was alright with the party and to call Gracelyn but then I saw that I had a voicemail from her. She was in a car accident and was at the hospital.”
“Is she alright?” I ask.
I’m not as close with Gracelyn as Bella but I still like her and I know that my Bella would be devastated if something happened to her.
“Yeah, she’s just a little banged up. A deer ran out in front of her car. She’s going to need a new one and to take things easy for a few days but she’ll be fine.”
“Do we need to go to your place to watch her?” I ask, noticing that Gracelyn isn’t in the car.
“No, uh, Dash, the Thanksgiving client, showed up.”
“Why?”
“I think he’s in love with her.”
I can feel my brows hit my hairline at that.
“Huh,” I say as I wrap my arms tighter around Bella.
“It was so sweet how he just showed up and was so worried about her,” Bella says dreamily and suddenly, I don’t like this Dash guy so much.
“Anyway, Dash is going to watch her today. I’ll have to go help her with the planning of the Thanksgiving party tomorrow but today, well, today I’m all yours.”
She gives me a flirty smile and I lean down, brushing my lips against hers.
“What were you doing out here?” Bella asks as I wrap my arm around her waist and lead her up the front steps of the house.
“I’ve been driving around all night trying to find you. Your cellphone was going straight to voicemail and I was worried that something had happened to you.”
“Sorry, my phone died and I couldn’t find a charger and –– wait. You left this place? You never leave your place.”
She stops and stares up at me like I just told her that I can fly.
“I was worried about you. I would go anywhere, do anything for you Bella. I should have told you last night. Actually, I should have told you years ago. Bella, I love you. You mean everything to me. I’ve wanted you since we were kids but I was afraid that I would tell you and you wouldn’t feel the same. I never want to do anything to ruin that friendship that we have but now that I’ve had you, I don’t think I can go back to being just friends.”
Bella’s eyes are glassy by the time I’m done baring my soul and my heart starts to crack when I see the first tear slip free.
“I love you too, Harry. I’ve been in love with you since we were just little kids. You’re all I’ve ever wanted.”
Bella’s arms twine around my neck and our lips meet. I can taste Bella’s tears but mixed in is hope and love, so much love.
I know then, dressed in our Beauty and the Beast costumes, in my driveway that I’ve finally got the girl of my dreams. Bella and I are finally together and nothing is going to stop us from getting our happily ever after.
Chapter 9
Bella
* * *
One Year Later…
* * *
“Harry, can you grab that tray of caramel apples?”
“Of course,” he says.
I smile as I watch him shift our baby girl over to his other side. He coos at her, calming her down as she dozes on his shoulder. With his other hand, he grabs the tray of apples and follows me into the living room.
It’s Halloween and we’re getting ready for another party. This one is way different than last years though. Instead of a late evening party for adults, it’s earlier and we have games and treats set out for all of the kids. Harry invited his whole company and Gracelyn and I planned it.
A lot of things are different from last year.
Harry proposed to me a week after Halloween. He said he had planned to wait and surprise me at Christmas but he didn’t want to spend any more time without me as his wife. I of course said yes and Gracelyn and I threw ourselves into planning the wedding.
Two weeks later, I found out that I was pregnant. I had wondered how Harry would take the news. Would he be mad that we just figured out our relationship and now he had to share me?
Turns out it was dumb to worry. Harry was over the moon happy. I think that part of the excitement was that he was determined to give our children a happier childhood than he had.
We had our daughter, Rosie Marlowe a few months ago and she stole our hearts the second that she was born. I had worried that I would have to cut back on my hours and I hated thinking about saddling Gracelyn with more work because I was home but Harry had that covered.