Secret Lovers (A Jordan Knight Fanfiction)

7

Harper wakes up alone in her bed. The smell of Jordan still permeates her bed. She runs her hand over the pillow next to her, it's already cold from his absence. Disappointed that he didn't even say goodbye, she buries her face in his pillow, inhaling his scent. Maybe he had to go to work, or he had to go home for clean clothes.

Or maybe he had to go home to his girlfriend, or worse, his wife and three kids. Having to tell them some story about why he was out all night. Harper's phone rings, bringing her back from her dark thoughts. She answers without looking to see who's calling, always a mistake.

"Hello?"

"Hey Harp, you finally answer one of my calls."

Harper closes her eyes, she curses at herself for not looking before answering. "Michael, hey, how are you?"

"I'm okay, I mean I'm as well as can be expected. How are you? I've been worried about you."

"Michael, I'm fine. No need for you to worry about me."

There's a long silence before either speak again. "Harp, I can't help but worry about you. This isn't like you. To just leave like you did. And then not to call anyone, not even your mother, to let us know you're okay. Amy says you haven't even talked to her. Are you really okay?"

"Yes, I'm really fine. I haven't talked to anyone because I needed to figure things out on my own. That was the whole reason I left, to figure out who I am on my own." Harper gets out of bed and slips into an old tshirt and shorts.

"You could have figured out who you are a little closer to home."

Not really wanting to have this conversation, again, and especially before she's had a cup of coffee, she heads to the kitchen to start a pot. "No Michael I couldn't have done it closer to home. I would have felt pressure from you and everyone else about the wedding, until you guilted me into going through with it." Harper turns into the kitchen, she almost drops her phone when she sees those dark brown eyes looking right at her.

"I can't talk right now. I gotta go." She disconnects the call and sits her phone on the counter. "Hi, isn't this a nice surprise, I thought you'd left."

"Good morning. Coffee?" He starts pouring her a cup before she can answer. "Cream? Sugar?"

"Thank you and yes to both. Here, I'll fix it. You're quite an early riser." He's staring at her. The look on his face says he wants to ask her a question. She waits for it. "Yeah I'm used to getting up early. Can I ask you something?"

"Yes, of course you can Jordan. What do you want to know?"

"Where you engaged before you moved here?"

"Yes, I was."

"I'm sorry I heard part of your conversation as you walked in. I wasn't trying to eavesdrop or anything. But I heard you mention a wedding."

Harper sits down at her kitchen table with her cup of hot coffee. "Yeah we were supposed to be getting married the day I decided I had to leave. I was standing there, in my wedding dress, looking at myself in the mirror. I started thinking about my mom and how lost she was since my dad died. They had been together since high school just like Michael and I. She didn't know who she was without my dad. She could barely take care of herself. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I didn't want to end up like her. So when Amy came in to check on me, I ran. We snuck out the back of the church, just like a Runaway Bride."

Jordan looks across the table at Harper and is speechless. She sees the apprehension on his face. "I'd been offered this job in Boston, a job I hadn't even told Michael I was applying for. They needed an answer and that's when I decided to take it. I left the church and went home to pack. Michael and I were already living together so he finds me at the house packing and I finally came clean to him about my feelings and the job and told him I was leaving. I felt horrible, telling him all this while he stood there in his tux. But I knew I had to do this. My whole life had been planned out for me by Michael and our families. And it was a life I didn't want anymore. So here I am, starting over. And so far things are looking up for me. Leaving was the best decision I ever made."

Jordan looked up into her eyes, a hopeful expression on his face. "So you have no regrets about moving? Or about last night?"

"None whatsoever. Last night was amazing, like I felt alive for the first time in a really long time. Thank you."

"No, thank you. I feel the exact same way." It amazes him how much he already likes her. He likes how open she is with him. Openness seems to come so easy to her. She seems so innocent to him. She's only been with one other man before last night. Knowing he's only the second man Harper's ever been intimate with makes him feel special. And special is something Jordan has never felt before. He thinks he could get used to it, it's a feeling he really likes, a lot.