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“You’re too sweet.”
Her cheeks turned an adorable shade of pink.
“I’m going out,” Jackson remarked rather loudly before leaving in a huff. I had no idea what crawled up his ass, but I let it go. Hopefully he’d be in decent shape for Christmas breakfast, otherwise it was none of my business what he did with his free time.
Nathan also slipped away, saying he was tired.
It left just Harper and me.
“You tired?” I asked her.
“Not really.”
“Would you like to go for a swim?”
“At this hour?” she laughed.
“Why not? The views are stunning at night.”
Harper seemed to mull it over for a second before saying, “Sure, let me just go change into my suit.”
The idea of seeing her in that bikini again sent all the blood in my body south. I couldn’t deny that it had played a big role in my proposition. I smirked as I followed her up the stairs to our respective rooms. It only took me a second to slip into my swim trunks, and a few moments later there was a knock at the door.
I stepped out to find Harper in the blue bikini from earlier, but with gray sweatpants and matching cardigan which I hoped she would lose once we got downstairs with the heated pool.
Her curls were pulled back into a high, but loose ponytail, soft tendrils of red slipping free from the elastic and delicately framing her face. She was makeup free and wearing her glasses, which I figured she would lose downstairs as well. Freckles dotted her cheeks, and I remembered a time when we used to make fun of her for them, but now I couldn’t imagine anything more adorable. Having seen her in a swimsuit earlier, something she never would have been brave enough to wear as a teen in front of us, sadly, I noticed the freckles didn’t stop at her face—they covered her shoulders as well, and I had so badly wanted to trace them with my fingers, to draw designs onto her gorgeous body.
“Ready?” she asked, oblivious to the fact that I was admiring every inch of her.
“Yes,” I said, motioning for her to lead the way so I could check out that gorgeous ass as she walked in front of me.
She didn’t stay in front of me for long, choosing to walk side-by-side most of the way to the pool.
“So… Kat went out tonight, huh?” I asked her.
She snickered and covered her mouth but didn’t confirm or deny anything. She wouldn’t tell her best friend’s secrets, I had to admire her for that.
“So she’s seeing someone?”
She pretended to zip her lips, but the look on her face was enough of an answer for me. Harper didn’t have the best poker face, her expression gave her away every time.
“Is he a local?”
Harper shrugged and reached for the door to the pool room.
So… hewasa local. My little sister had found herself a French lover. I was amused by this for some reason, considering Kat mostly kept to herself, and she didn’t speak a word of French as far as I knew.
Nevertheless, I was happy for her. Kat tended to be by herself a lot. She never brought the boys home. It had been just her and Harper for so long, and when Harper moved away, she threw herself into her work and her art, often staying home. She still lived with Mom and hadn’t expressed interest in dating or marriage or kids. I had feared she might not have many goals other than her tattoo work, but it seemed to bring her happiness. I knew Mom hoped Kat would marry one day, just like she hoped that for all of us. It’s just how moms were, I supposed.
We entered the heated pool room and steam hovered above the water, inviting us into the warmth. Harper slipped her sweats off and dropped them on a chair near the pool. She took off her glasses and laid them gently beside her clothing.
“Can you see without those things?” I asked.
“Sure. Not as well as with, of course. I’d get a headache if I read too long without them, and some things that are far off are hard to make out, but I can see everything directly in front of me just fine.” Her eyes moved over my body as if to make her point.
“Well what do you think about this?” I asked, placing my hands under the elastic of my swim trunks and sliding them down on my hips. I moved slowly, giving Harper plenty of time to tell me to slow down or stop, but her gaze moved lower on my body and her cheeks flushed. She didn’t say a word though.
I continued sliding the shorts off and stepped out of them.
