Truth Sets You Free

Chapter 3

HARRY

I watch Bella from across the room as she talks to Jessica's parents. She's been busy mingling with everyone since she got here. I'm happy that she seems to be feeling well enough to do that, but I'd much rather her be mingling with me.

It was so great to have her in my arms again. Part of me was terrified of hurting her, but the other part of me was elated when she begged me to hold her tighter.

I'm not sure what I was expecting to happen between us when she showed up here today, and I'm also not sure what's coming in our future, but I do know that things seem to be off to a good start.

"If you're just gonna ignore me then I'm gonna go." Scott whines from where he's sitting next to me on the couch.

I almost forgot he was here. I invited him when I realized that I was going to be severely outnumbered by Bella's friends. Now he's sitting next to me shoving some crackers into his face.

"You haven't stopped staring at her since she walked in." He continues with a mouth full. "It's kind of creepy."

"You haven't stopped eating since she walked in." I fire back. "It's kind of rude...and gross." I laugh as he washes the food down with a beer.

"Why don't you just go talk to her, man?" He asks me, setting his cup down on the table in front of us. "And I mean actually talk to her...not just grope her."

I sigh and lean back against the couch. "She's busy talking to other people. Besides, she and I have a lot to talk about. I'd rather not bother her with all that right now."

That's the truth.

Scott looks like he's about to say something else, but he stops when my phone starts vibrating. I hold up my finger to him and slide the phone from my back pocket to see who it is. It's Thomas...again.

If it isn't obvious, I missed the first deal that he had scheduled for me because of everything that happened after Bella's accident, and I've pretty much been ignoring him since. The truth is that I've been way too busy to care about any of that shit, and even though I'll probably get into a ton of trouble for ending Thomas' call again, I do it anyway.

I set my phone down on the table and turn my attention back to Scott. He's rambling on about some team not making the playoffs when I hear my phone vibrate once on the table. Great...since calling isn't doing the trick, Thomas is going to start texting me too.

My finger slides across the screen to read the message from him.

Thomas- Pick up your damn phone. This is getting ridiculous and we really need to talk.

"Harry, could you do me a favor?" Someone says above me, and I look up to see Jessica standing over me. "Both of the ice buckets are empty, so could you grab the other bag of ice from the freezer and refill them?"

"I thought Matt was on ice duty." I drone, standing to my feet and slipping my phone into my pocket.

"Just do it, please." She scoffs before walking away.

I roll my eyes and make my way to the kitchen, thankful to see that Scott has indulged in a conversation with someone else. That means that I don't have to entertain him anymore. Thank god.

I place the two empty ice buckets on the counter and open the freezer to pull out the bag of ice. When I close the door, Bella is standing there, startling me slightly.

"Sorry." She apologizes to me with a shy smile. "I was just coming to refill." She explains, holding up her empty cup.

"Well, unfortunately, you're gonna have to wait just a minute unless you prefer your beverage to be warm." I make small talk as I plop the bag of ice down on the counter and rip it open.