CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
“Houston, we have a problem,” Harper said out loud to herself. If only NASA would swoop on in and help her right now.
Her suitcases wouldn’t shut.
She hadn’t realized how much shopping she’d done over the past two weeks, or quite how much space five pairs of shoes, two hats and three new handbags would take up.
Not that she was in the business of calculating the velocity of...whatever. Stuff just didn’t fit.
Crap.
There was no way she was leaving it here. She’d spent a small fortune and loved everything she’d purchased. Then she remembered her favorite item, which she now wished she hadn’t brashly returned.
Her Cartier watch.
She loved it.
Not because of its value, but the meaning and memories of her time with Daniel.
She’d finally looked at his message this morning, then stared at it for ten minutes as her heart pounded. Harper didn’t know what it meant. Eventually she had put her phone down, remembering he was good with words. He’d told her he loved her, but they had also just been words. Without action, there was little substance.
What was he expecting her to say in response? Thank you?
She didn’t have anything to say in reply, so chose to wait until she landed in New Zealand.
She flopped on the bed beside her suitcase and looked around the penthouse.
She sighed.
Harper reflected on her vacation. Though it had been a rollercoaster, she’d gained so much clarity about her life here in Hawaii. Looking back, she recognized she’d never been in love with David. In fact, she was grateful he’d left her. Without him setting her free, she may not have secured her tv deal with BookFlix, and most certainly wouldn’t have experienced the most passionate holiday romance of her life.
To date.
Even through her tears and broken heart, she would never regret a moment with Daniel. She loved him and it would just take time to heal.
Cooper had shown her there were men willing to put a woman first and one day she’d find it. Both of them knew it wasn’t with him, but she was glad they had their moment together.
Daniel's text came to mind.
What did it mean?
A tiny bubble of hope rose to the surface. Harper wondered if perhaps the love she and Daniel shared would see them come together again one day.
She wouldn’t wait for him, but if Daniel was a man who stood by his words, then he’d show. Not just tell her.
Either way, she was carrying on with her life.
Harper let out a long sigh and glanced at the clock. She had breakfast to attend, and hopefully she could recruit the three amigos to help her with her luggage issues at the end of it.
She raced downstairs and found them in the restaurant as planned.
“Have you started without me?” she said, sitting down next to Graydon and staring at them.
“You’re fifteen minutes late.” Luke shrugged. “We’re growing young men.”
She let out a snort. “Hate to break the bad news, but you are all completely grown.”
Cooper lifted his arm to expose a deliciously tanned bicep and nodded. “Yup.”