More Than Friends

Part 161 (Tessa)

"Hardin!"

"Sorry, baby, I'm on a mission."

"Slow down!" I beg as Hardin quickly drags me up the stairs.

When we get to the entrance of our room, Hardin scoops me up in his arms, and somehow manages to open the door and carry me through it.

"Hardin, enough!"

"Exactly. I've waited long enough!" he warns as he rushes closer to the bed.

"Hardin!" I shriek as he gently tosses me on the bed. I watch as he quickly removes his shirt. Before he undoes his belt, I stop him. "Hardin, we're not having sex right now."

"And why not?" he asks sternly.

"Well, for one, our dinner will be here soon..."

"So? We'll start with dessert tonight."

"And two..." I glare at him. "I'm not in the mood right now."

"Tessa!" he whines.

"Hardin, I want you to enjoy your surprise, not rush through it."

"Tessa..." he continues to whine.

"Just be patient a little bit longer."

"I've been patient all weekend. I've done so many girly things, I'm not even sure if my manhood is still there."

"Well, I'll be sure to check for you later." I wink.

"You're seriously leaving me with that line? You're a cruel, cruel woman."

"It will be worth the wait," I promise as I run my finger over the tattoo over his heart.

"After dinner, then? You promise?"

"Yes, Hardin, after dinner."

Thanks to Hardin's persistent thoughts, I'm sure, suddenly there's a knock at the door and our dinner is delivered.

I watch as Hardin digs in, scarfing his food down within minutes. "Oh, yeah... Watching you eat like that is really helping to put me in the mood." I roll my eyes.

"Whatever works for you, baby." He chuckles.

"Well, you can just watch me eat now. I'm not rushing through dinner," I huff.

"Fine," he groans and leans back on the bed with his hands behind his head.

When I finally finish with my dinner, Hardin lunges toward me. "Okay, let's do it now."

"What are you? A horny teenage boy?"

"No, because a horny teenage boy at least gets some."

"Gosh! If you can hold it together for a few minutes, I'll go get your surprise ready."

"Yes... finally!" he says in relief.

As I'm about to grab my surprise for Hardin from my bag, there's another knock at the door.

"Ignore it, Tessa," Hardin warns.

"It'll just take a minute," I say as I walk toward the door.

"I mean it, Theresa. If you answer that door, I'm leaving you!"

"Oh, don't be so dramatic." I laugh. I wait to make sure Hardin isn't going to say anything else before opening the door.

"I'm so sorry to bother you, dear," Betty says.

"Oh, you're not bothering us!" I smile.

"I have a bit of an emergency."

"Oh, no. What happened?"

"Our delivery truck broke down. I make homemade pies and a few other goodies that we deliver to the stores and bakeries around town to sell for us. Unfortunately, we won't be able to deliver them tomorrow because we can't get our truck to start. With bills increasing lately, well, we need the extra money from selling our baked goods."

"Oh, that's awful, Betty."

"Yes... Um, I was wondering... is Hardin any good with cars? I was hoping that maybe he could help us out."

"Well, actually..." I begin to say as I turn to look at Hardin, who is hiding behind the door.

Hardin is frantically waving his hands and mouthing the word 'No' to me.

"I'm sure he'll be able to help you fix your truck," I say with a smile.

"Oh, thank goodness! That's such a relief. Thank you so much, dear. Please, send him down when he's ready."

I close the door and turn around to see a fuming Hardin.

"Theresa Lynn Young, explain yourself!"

"Hardin... they needed help."

"So? Call a mechanic!"

"It's late, and they probably can't afford it."

"Not my problem," he says and crosses his arms over his chest.

I reach up and uncross his arms for him. "Hardin... Please go help them," I beg.

"Tessa, we have plans."

"Hardin..." I reach up and hold my hand over his chest. "I know there's a kind heart inside this toned and incredibly sexy chest of yours."

"Flattery isn't going to work, Tessa," he says sternly.

"Hardin, she's such a lovely woman. She's been nothing but kind to both of us." I give him puppy dog eyes.

"Tess..." Hardin says in a soft voice. After a moment, he sighs. "Fine."

"Thank you." I smile and then kiss his cheek.

"You owe me big for this," he says before leaving to go help Betty and Ed.

While Hardin's gone, I try my best to wait up for him, but he's gone for such a long time that I start to feel sleepy. After trying to fight my tiredness, I finally decide to crawl into bed.

Just as I'm about to drift off to sleep, Hardin finally walks through the door. "That was torture, but I got their truck working. Now, where's my surprise?"

"Tomorrow. I'm too tired now."

"How about you just lie there and I'll do all the work?"

"Forever the romantic." I roll my eyes. "Goodnight, Hardin. I love you."

Hardin crawls into bed and mumbles something under his breath as he turns away from me.

Moments later, I feel him shift in the bed and his hand wraps around me, pulling me into his chest. He mumbles, "I love you" into my hair.

I fall asleep with a smile on my face, knowing that deep down Hardin is just a big softie.