harperooneyâ:
Harper reached out to steady herself against the counter, head dizzy from the sudden movements she had taken. It was no secret that she didnât sleep well at night, usually tossing and turning to try and get into a comfortable position, but giving up after multiple hours. The dark circles under Harperâs eyes were a permanent trait now, but Gabe never ceased to look at her like she was the only person in the room, and thatâs where her concerns rested. He was married, he was older, and her was her boss. There would be too many lines to cross in order to be where she wanted to be, and she had convinced herself months before that it would never go there. With her fingers still gripping at the counter, the blonde took a deep breath and turned back to Gabe, one eyebrow lifting in curiosity. She reminded herself to keep her eyes on his face, and thatâs what she did.Â
âI show up at essentially the same time every single day and yetâŠthis is the first time Iâve nearly seen you naked.â These words came out in a sigh, her head tipping to the side as she observed his features. Sheâd memorized them a long time ago, nearly getting to the point of being able to feel them with her own fingers. But Harper only let herself imagine what he felt like, her chest heaving in a deep sigh as his towel nearly slipped off, another deep blush coloring her features. As he explained his new living situation, the blonde turned her gaze up to the ceiling. Sheâd helped him renovate that apartment for weeks, and she recalled it driving his wife nuts. They worked late hours, oftentimes taking long breaks and getting themselves into less-than-desirable situations when it came to his marriage. âWââ she paused, finally looking back at him and crossing her arms loosely over her torso. âWhy didnât you tell me?â
Gabe noticed her faltering and nearly reached out to steady her shoulders when he realized that might not be the best idea given his minimal clothing. The towel was loosely wrapped around him at best and had nearly fallen off once, he didnât need to have history repeat itself- or worst, flash her completely. Besides, Harper was a strong girl and never liked when Gabe took pity on her. He always insisted it wasnât pity, but rather that helping people was in his nature, especially when those people meant as much to him as Harper did. The man nodded, biting the inside of his cheek. âYeah, I know; I guess time slipped away from me today. I thought it was earlier than it was.â He chuckled softly. He was good at hiding that he lived upstairs, always closing up the door to the apartment and staying in the shop past after she left before he retired to bed. But now the facade was blown and she knew the truth. Better to rip the bandage off, he supposed. âLuckily for both of us, I wore a towel instead of just running down here commando.â Gabe teased, tone verging on flirtatious.
His own blush deepened to match hers, breaking his gaze and peering down at the floor for a moment to regain composure. The sexual tension was always heavy between them, but now it could be cut with a knife. As she spoke, his eyes fluttered up her frame before settling on her eyes. A wave of sadness rushed over him as he knew that now heâd need to come clean to her about what happened with Autumn. âI donât know.â He said after a moment, breaking the silence. âI was embarrassed, I guess. I was broken. I didnât want to put that onto you. After everything with my grandma and how busy weâve been, I didnât want to unload my problems onto you, so I just moved upstairs. I havenât told anyone in town, actually. And... I wanted to tell you. You donât even know how badly I did but how does a guy admit that he walked in on his wife screwing his old boss?â He rambled, weeks of words that were pent up flowing freely off of his tongue now.












