Always

Chapter 46

I lay curled up in Harry’s arms for hours, not moving, not speaking, not sleeping; just lying there, reveling in the warmth of his arms around me, feeling his peppered kisses, focusing only on his words.  Not once, over the several hours we laid there, did he cease his actions. 

He didn’t sleep, didn’t stop whispering comforting words, didn’t stop holding me.  Grateful wasn’t nearly a strong enough word for what I felt. 

My parents had given me a little over an hour of solitude before calling my cell phone over and over again.  I watched it vibrate nearly constantly as it sat on Harry’s bed across from me.  The screen would glow, begging me to answer, only to darken for a few seconds before lighting up again.  After nearly an hour of this, I couldn’t take it anymore.

“I’m not coming home,” I spit into the phone, my voice cracking from not speaking for so long before I aggressively ended the call and turned it off.  I had already decided I would not be spending the night in my house; I couldn’t, especially without Harry.

I turned myself around, rolling to my other side so I could face him.  My head rested on his bicep as his other arm stayed draped over my hip.  My fingers reached up to run along his sharp jaw before falling to his chest.

“Thank you so much for everything, Harry,” I said softly.  I felt like I was always thanking him for something, but I didn’t know what else to say to him when he was always so wonderful. 

He reached between us to grab my hand and bring it to his lips, pressing a kiss to my palm before bringing it back down to his chest. “Of course, love. You don’t have to thank me, I’ve told you that before.” His voice was gentle as he spoke, his lips shaping carefully over the words that slipped out.  His hand squeezed mine softly as he trialed his thumb across the back of mine.

“I just can’t tell you how much it means to me to have you here,” I told him, my voice seeming to grow even softer.

He studied me intently, lips pressed together tightly before he relaxed his jaw, the muscles flexing beneath his skin.  “You don’t have to, I know.”

I felt a whoosh of relief wash through me.  At least now I didn’t have to try and find the right words that could never do justice to how I felt; he knew.  For now, that was enough. 

I smiled softly at him, which he returned, causing his dimple to lightly dent his cheek.  Leaning toward him, I pressed my lips to it, leaving a light kiss on his skin. 

“Do you want to stay here tonight?” he asked, as if reading my thoughts.  He knew me too well.

“Yes,” I answered. “Please.”

“Okay,” he said, kissing me lightly on the lips, lingering for a few seconds before pulling back.

“How well do you know my dad?” I asked him suddenly.  It was something I had been thinking about for a while now.  At first, I had been so distracted by my parents’ confession that I hadn’t worried about my father recognizing Harry.  Now that I thought about it, however, it seemed kind of strange.

Harry hadn’t been surprised when my father had seen him, nor had he ever mentioned knowing him before.  While my dad had never really been around for long periods of time, I couldn’t remember him ever having many friends, much less Harry’s dad.  It struck me as odd that no one had ever mentioned it before.

“I used to know him pretty well,” he admitted, ripping me back to the present. 

“How long did they know each other?” I asked.