Devil's Due [h.s.]

Chapter 77

Chapter 77

For the following few days, there wasn't a moment where life stood still. Things passed in a whirlwind. Harry, coming and going multiple times a day in order to fulfil tasks for his own job, while Morgan and I did very much the same, the two of us working ourselves to the bone in order to get the gallery showing complete and organized.

I was eternally grateful for her help, made sure to tell her so every hour, and wasn't sure if I'd be half as sane as I currently was without her here. Morgan, true to form, had merged right into party planning mode. How she managed to adapt so easily to whatever she was doing was astounding, I was in awe of her, laughing at the way she was yelling at caterers over the phone or demanding a reprint on the invitations because they were slightly off-center.

Harry found me sitting outside on the patio Friday evening with my knees curled into my chest, gazing down at the city below us, willing the world just to remain stagnant for a few seconds.

We hadn't really talked about the car since the first night he'd given it to me. Not that there was really anything to discuss, nor could we have found the time to anyway. We'd taken the moments under the stars a few days ago for granted, neither of us having expected how hectic things were about to become.

Part of me felt bad trying to harbor anger towards him about buying it for me anyway when I knew full well that he'd only done it with the best in mind. Realistically, how could I get mad at him for looking out for my safety? It felt wrong to want to fight with him on it, especially when I was keeping a secret of my own, something that had taken a few days for me to work up the courage to mention to him.

"Hi, pretty thing," Harry murmured, taking a seat beside me. He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, letting the pad of his thumb run over my cheek. "What are you doing out here?" he asked, leaning in to place three soft kisses up the length of my jaw. "You okay?"

"I'm okay," I said softly, resting my head on his shoulder. Harry slid an arm around me. Almost instantly, I reared back with a sneeze. "Oh god," I muttered, sneezing for a second time. Harry was laughing as I tried to compose myself. "Sorry, sorry. Did you adopt a cat or something I don't know about?" I asked, wiping my eyes. When I finally felt the slightest bit better, I asked, "How's work?"

Harry exhaled deeply, lulling his own head to rest atop my own. "Busy," he muttered. "Annoying."

Idly, my hand drifted toward his head. I buried my fingers in his hair, pulling him closer against me. "Same," I responded. Though truthfully, things hadn't been the worst. It had taken my mind off everything, especially working with Morgan. "What can I do to help?"

Harry let out a short laugh. "Nothing, baby," he murmured. We were both still staring ahead at the city down below. "You're sweet for askin' though."

"I wish there were something I could do," I said back, my voice a bit small. "I hate that you're so stressed all the time."

"I'm not actually as stressed as I let on," Harry replied, humor laced in his tone. He shifted in my direction a bit. "Being with you helps a lot." He turned to place a kiss on my cheek. Against my skin, he said, "I only really stress about your wellbeing."

His words struck a nerve in me. "Harry," I choked out, the unspoken words about Olivia leaping into my throat. I clamped down the urge to release them, shifting around to face him. His brows twitched together at my apparent shift in expression. "I need to tell you something."

"What's up?" he asked, concern gracing his features. His hand slid up to cup my jaw. "What's going on?"

"I didn't tell you earlier because I knew you had a lot going on and I didn't want to add any additional stress, plus I didn't really think it was anything to be concerned about until I ended up thinking about it a little too much–"