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Chapter Ten
Flynn
WeekThree
Without a gaggle of women present, the inn felt homey. The recent renovation had updated it, and the care Colton gave to the wood cascaded everything in warmth. I’d struggled to feel it so far in this journey, but I felt it now.
In an attempt to stay quiet and foray through the giant house uninterrupted, I’d toed off my boots at the entrance. It was early enough that the filming crew wasn’t on scene yet, and the morning light was still dim. Going from room to room in the main areas, I quickly searched for Harper.
I finally landed in the library and found her staring out the window, curled up on the window seat.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” she whispered back, without turning around.
“Do you know anywhere else we can sneak off to?”
“Are you kidding? No one is coming in here. There’s books.” She chuckled, and not for the first time, I wondered what I’d gotten myself into.
“How are you holding up?”
“I’m fine.”
Short answers weren’t always a good thing with Harper, or they weren’t when we were younger. Something was on her mind.
“Are you okay?”
“Honestly? No. I’m wondering what I was thinking when I agreed to this.” She continued to stare out the window, and an uneasy feeling gripped my stomach.
Agreed to competing for me? Agreed to dating me?
What had changed since the group date at The Chocolate Chalet?
“It’s a lot, I know.” I shoved my hands into my jeans, unsure of how much to say. This wasn’t like conversations with anyone else, this was Harper. We had to be careful, for so many reasons.
“You can’t possibly know.” She shook her head, her tone bitter. “Madison warned me, but she was also so excited for me to be on here.”
“Of course Madison encouraged this.” I chuckled quietly.
“She’s happy, so she thinks everyone else should be happy.”
“She’s not wrong.” My response came out before I could stop it. I thought I’d lost my chance with her a long time ago over a stupid decision I’d made when I was younger. Being here, together, meant something.
She simply shrugged.
“Harper.” Cautiously, I closed the distance between us and settled onto the window seat next to her. “What’s wrong? Something’s happened.”
“I’m not having this conversation before coffee. I’d rather not have this conversation… ever.”
“It’s now or in front of cameras later.”
She grimaced but still held strong.
“Talk to me, Harper.” My fingers itched to reach out and pull her close, but I needed her honesty.
She sighed and turned to face me, her eyes red rimmed. Protectiveness bubbled up inside me before I could stop it.
“Talk to me. Is someone in here the reason for this?” I asked through gritted teeth. “Tell me who, and I’ll take care of it. I’ll send them home immediately.”
