Ghostly Issues (A Harper Harlow Mystery Book 2) (10 page)

Eric tugged on Harper’s arm to get her to leave, frantically trying to pull her away before Jared could approach. The cop stopped him before he had a chance to achieve his goal.

“If you have somewhere to be, Eric, I’ll walk Harper back to the office,” Jared offered.

“No … I … no.” Eric shook his head.

“In that case, can you give Harper and me a moment to talk?” Jared asked, his eyes flashing with warning in case Eric tried to put up a fight.

“Sure,” Eric replied, dejectedly kicking at the ground as he moved several feet away.

“Well, that got us absolutely nowhere,” Harper grumbled when it was just the two of them.

“I don’t know. I feel like I got somewhere.”

Harper wanted to scowl, but Jared’s grin was so cute she couldn’t help but return it. “You’re starting to wear me down. We both know it.”

“I
do
know it,” Jared agreed. “That’s why I want you to go to dinner with me tonight.”

“I thought you were supposed to cook Zander dinner first?” Harper challenged.

“I want our first official date to be just the two of us,” Jared replied. “I will cook Zander the dinner of his dreams once we’ve had a chance to spend time together and I know you’re okay being with me again.”

Harper sighed. “I really want to be mad at you.”

“That’s what your head says,” Jared countered. “What does your heart say?”

“I’ll meet you at the steakhouse on Gratiot at seven.” Harper gave in. It was only a matter of time. She didn’t want to fight his pull for one moment longer than necessary. It was too much effort.

“I’ll pick you up at your house at seven,” Jared corrected. “We’re going on a proper date. That means I’m walking to your front door to collect you and opening the car door for you. That’s what you do on a proper date.”

Warmth spread through Harper’s stomach. “Does that mean I have to wear a skirt?”

Jared grinned. “Those are the rules.”

“I’ll see you at seven.”

“How do I look?” Harper’s hands shook as she stood in front of Zander thirty minutes before Jared was due to arrive. “Do I look desperate?”

Zander glanced up from the magazine he was perusing on the couch. “You look like a school teacher.”

“Is that good?”

“Let me rephrase that,” Zander said. “You look like a school teacher from
Little House on the Prairie
. What was her name? We used to love that show.”

“Are you saying I look like Miss Beadle?”

“Miss Beadle!” Zander slapped his knee. “I loved her. I loved that episode where Mary thought she was never going to attract a man because all the other kids made fun of her glasses and then Miss Beadle showed up with a boyfriend we never saw again and Mary realized men like women who wear glasses.”

“Wow. That’s thirty seconds of my life I’ll never get back,” Harper deadpanned. “Did you have a point with that little diatribe?”

Zander’s expression softened. “You’re nervous and it shows. You’re so cute.”

“You’re not helping me!” Harper exploded.

Zander made an exaggerated face and tossed the magazine on the couch. “You need to take it down a notch,” he said, getting to his feet. “I’m here to help you. This is why I told you to get dressed early. I knew you would pick the wrong outfit and need my expertise.”

“I’ve been dressing myself since I was eight.”

“And I’ve been redressing you since we were twelve,” Zander countered. “Come on.” He stalked into Harper’s bedroom, glancing at the mountain of clothes on the middle of her bed before turning toward the closet. “We should’ve gone shopping when Jared was out of town and gotten you something sexier to wear. Your clothing options are tragic.”

Harper watched as he pulled a few items out and made faces. “Zander … .”

Something about the way she said his name caused Zander to look up. He knew Harper as well as he knew himself, and he was keenly aware of the anxiety rolling through her. “Harp, it’s going to be okay,” he said, his expression softening. “Jared likes you. You like Jared. This is a good thing.”

“But … .”

Zander shook his head. “No. You want this. I know you do. You need to get over yourself and let it happen.”

“What if he changes his mind?”

“You just spent two days torturing the man and he kept coming back for more abuse,” Zander pointed out. “He’s not going to change his mind. I … suck in a breath, Harp. Sit down.”

Harper did as instructed, fanning herself as her face reddened. “I think I really like him.”

“I know you really like him,” Zander said. “Harp, tell me what’s really going on? Are you nervous because of Jared, or are you afraid because you haven’t had sex in so long you’re worried everything has changed?”

Harper’s mouth dropped open. “We are not having sex tonight!”

“I wish you would,” Zander countered. “If we have to go through this every single time you two go out on a date, you’re going to give me an aneurysm. I want to get everything out and in the open as fast as possible. You shaved your legs just in case, right?”

“Yes,” Harper admitted, mortified. “I even used that Body Shop margarita lotion you got me.”

“Good girl,” Zander said, pulling her in for a quick hug. “I promise this is going to be okay.” His voice was barely a whisper as he rubbed her back. “This is going to be good for you.”

Harper sucked in a steadying breath. “What should I wear?”

“You don’t have a lot of options,” Zander replied. “You’re going to have to wear this black skirt and this purple top.” He pressed the clothing items into her hands. “Put those on and then I’ll fix your hair.”

“What’s wrong with my hair?”

“Nothing once I fix your makeup, too,” Zander said. “Now … come on. You’ve got a man coming and you’re running out of time. Chop, chop.”

JARED
wiped his sweaty palms on the front of his trousers before lifting his hand to knock on Harper’s door. He was taken aback when the door opened and he found Zander staring out at him. For some reason it made him feel better knowing Zander was about to give him grief. That would take the edge off.

“I’ll make your dinner another night,” Jared said. “Tonight I want it to be just her and me.”

“I don’t care about that,” Zander said, pushing Jared out onto the porch and silently shutting the door. “She’s still getting ready. It’s been … freaking drama.”

“What’s wrong?” Jared’s stomach twisted with worry. Was Harper going to cancel the date? “If she’s trying to back out … let me talk to her.”

“She’s not going to back out,” Zander said, keeping his voice low. “She’s so excited she can barely contain herself.”

“So what’s wrong?”

“She’s going to be nervous for the first half hour,” Zander cautioned. “Talk to her like you normally would and try to pretend you don’t notice her acting odd.”

The realization that Harper was more worked up than he was relieved some of the tension building in Jared’s heart. “How does she look?”

“I have to take her shopping.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

“She looks beautiful,” Zander said. “She always does. She doesn’t see that about herself sometimes. You’d better tell her.”

Jared scowled. “Thank you for the dating tips.”

“Make sure she eats something,” Zander instructed. “She’s going to do that girl thing and order something cheap … or a salad … but she needs fuel so make sure she eats something hearty.”

Jared nodded. “Anything else, Dad?”

“Yes,” Zander replied, not missing a beat. “I’m going out on my own date. If something goes wrong, she’s going to balk at calling me. Make sure she calls me if she starts panicking.”

“Why would she panic?” Jared asked. “It’s a date. I’m not going to pressure her into doing something she doesn’t want to do.”

“That’s very nice,” Zander deadpanned. “She shaved her legs and she’s good to go on that front. You bring her back here to do that because she’ll be more comfortable in her own home. I probably won’t be back until tomorrow morning if she doesn’t call, so you’ll have the house to yourself.”

Jared was dumbfounded. Was Zander really telling him to make a move on the first date? “Don’t you think it’s a little soon for that?”

“No.”

“Okay, I’ll bite,” Jared said. “Why would I push her to do that tonight?”

“Because it’s the one thing that’s going to relax her,” Zander answered. “We’re going to go through this ten more times if you don’t wow her now. So … get her naked and do your thing.” Zander patted Jared’s back. “You’d better be good in bed, too. If you’re bad after all this build up I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“Well, that’s not putting too much pressure on me or anything,” Jared grumbled.

“She looks like a dream and you clean up well, too,” Zander said. “She’s the love of my life and I will beat the crap out of you if you hurt her.”

“Duly noted.”

“You still owe me a home-cooked dinner, too,” Zander added. “Now … go and make my girl happy. I’m counting on you.”

Jared’s heart rolled at the emotion flitting through Zander’s eyes. The love reflected there was nothing short of amazing. “That’s all I want.”

“I know. That’s why I like you.”

“THIS
is a nice restaurant,” Jared said, pulling Harper’s chair out and making sure she was settled before sitting across from her. “Have you eaten here before?”

Despite her earlier nerves, once she was in Jared’s truck Harper managed to relax. Jared matched her nervous glance for nervous glance during the drive, and she couldn’t help but be relieved. “Zander and I ate here once a few years ago,” she said. “He declared the steak ‘to die for.’”

“That sounds good,” Jared said. “You can’t come to a steakhouse and not have steak.”

Harper was conflicted. “I was thinking of maybe getting a salad,” she said, flipping open the menu.

“No, you weren’t,” Jared shot back. “You’re having a big dinner and I don’t want to hear one argument about it.”

Harper pursed her lips. “What did you and Zander talk about on the front porch tonight?”

Jared feigned ignorance. “What do you mean?”

“You were out there for five minutes before you came inside,” Harper said. “Don’t bother lying. I saw Zander sneak out and head you off before you could knock. What did he say to you?”

“He said if I hurt you he was going to kill me.”

“That’s it?” Harper was surprised. “He didn’t say anything about me?”

“He said that he wished he’d taken you shopping – although I think you look beautiful and he’s being dramatic – and that I still owed him dinner,” Jared replied. None of those things were lies. If she pressed him on the rest of his conversation with Zander things would be uncomfortable.

“You look handsome,” Harper said, looking him up and down appreciatively. “I’ve never seen you out of your jeans and button-down shirts.”

“I don’t dress up a lot,” Jared said. “I like to be comfortable. This is a special occasion, though.”

“I’m surprised you still wanted to go out with me after I was mean to you.”

“I’m surprised you said yes after I was such an idiot.”

Harper bit her lip to keep from laughing, and then gave in. “I was nervous earlier. You have a way of putting me at ease, though. I can’t explain it.”

“I was nervous, too,” Jared admitted. “I’m still a little nervous, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere but here with you.”

The waitress picked that moment to arrive, and after placing their orders Jared turned to the next order of business. “I want to know everything about you.”

Harper snorted. “That’s … not going to take up very much of the night.”

“Well, I’ll direct you where I want to start then,” Jared said. “Tell me what the deal is with Eric.”

Harper balked. “What do you mean? He’s my employee. He’s a good guy.”

“I’m not saying he’s not a good guy,” Jared said. “It’s obvious he has a crush on you, though. It’s not the first time I’ve noticed it. He almost had a meltdown when we talked about going on a date earlier.”

“He’s just … trying to find himself,” Harper explained. “He looks at me and thinks I’m exotic because of the ghost thing. He’s a few years younger than me and ignores clues … like the fact that I’m not sexually attracted to him. If he would turn around for five seconds he would see that Molly
is
attracted to him and she adores everything he does.”

“How is Molly?”

“I think I’ve been too overprotective,” Harper replied. “Eric and I had to go out and survey a house that’s up for sale because the real estate agent is convinced it’s haunted and we talked about Molly today. He says I’ve been coddling her when she really just wants to be part of the group. I think he’s right.”

“Was the house haunted?” Jared was intrigued by Harper’s ghost vision. He couldn’t deny it.

“Not that I saw,” Harper answered. “I think the real estate agent – her name is Jenny Porter, we went to high school together – is looking for an excuse why she hasn’t sold the cottage yet. She claims things keep moving around, but I didn’t see anything.”

“What keeps moving around?”

“Mostly dishes. I think she’s just looking for an excuse.”

“Well, I like how honest you are,” Jared said. “Someone else in your position might claim a ghost is there and take money to do nothing. I’d like to go with you on a job one day … if you’re okay with that.”

Harper was surprised. “You would? Really?”

“I want to see all of it, Harper. I want to … do … all of it with you.”

Harper’s cheeks colored. “Sometimes I think you’re too good to be true.”

“Even though I was a moron and didn’t call you?”

“Even though,” Harper said.

The duo eyed each other for a moment, something sweet passing between them before the heat ratcheted up a notch. Suddenly Jared wasn’t so sure Zander’s suggestion about taking things to the next level that night was such a bad idea.

“I … .” Jared didn’t get a chance to finish because a blond ball of energy hurried up to the side of the table and cut him off.

“Well, isn’t this cute.”

Harper pressed her lips together and internally chastised herself for picking a restaurant her mother regularly frequented. “Mom … I … what are you doing here?”

Gloria Harlow smoothed her black miniskirt down and graced her daughter with a long-suffering look. “I’m on a date. What are you doing here?”

Harper swallowed hard. “I’m … on a date, too.”

“So I noticed,” Gloria said, swiveling and fixing a bright smile on her face as she looked Jared up and down. “I’m Gloria Harlow. I’m so pleased to meet you.” She extended her hand.

Jared stood and shook her hand, fighting the mad urge to laugh as he stood toe-to-toe with Harper’s mother. She obviously didn’t remember him. “We’ve actually met before.”

Harper mimed zipping her lips, but it was too late.

Gloria knit her eyebrows together. “I don’t think that’s possible,” she said. “I would remember meeting you.”