Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Fun & Games, Wednesday Edition...

After Kelly's post yesterday, I'm sure you're all wondering exactly what is going on with Harper and Grace.  I'd be lying if I told I knew...cuz I don't.  Oh, well.  What are you going to do?

Enjoy...

“Tell her I said hi, too,” he responded automatically as all the different ways he could broach the subject of what may or may not have happened with Mr. Haas stumbled through his head. “How’s she doing?”


Truman rolled his hand in the air, frowning impatiently.

“Look, Harper,” he continued. “I need to—“

“Am I on speaker phone?”

“Uh…yeah.” The irritation in Harper’s voice was hard to miss, and he frantically groped for some explanation as to why he’d call her on speaker when he knew she hated that above all else. “Lucky was calling home when he got sick again, and well…it got ugly.”

Her laugh—shrill and borderline hysterical—shot through the air, a well-aimed bullet to his gut, and in that moment, he just knew. This was not a conversation to be had over the phone, with his brother and hers both listening in. He had to see her face, watch her expressions as she finally confided in him the true events of what happened that night.

“Listen, Harper. I want to finish that conversation we started earlier, but not on the phone,” he rushed to reassure her. “Can we…uh…meet somewhere? Lucky needs to get some coffee in him before I take him home, and Tru said he’d drop us off at this diner he knows—“

She whipped around, searching the darkness with wide, rounded eyes. Even from the distance, the panic stamped across her features was clear. “No, not there. How about we just meet up later—“

“Too late, Harpy,” Truman cut in, his patience clearly at an end. “We’re almost there. I can see you standing out front.”

The car lurched forward, and the bottom dropped out of Owen’s stomach the minute Harper saw the car. She hadn’t responded to Truman. In fact, no one had. And, it was a minute before Owen realized she’d ended the call. “Thanks a lot, Tru,” he muttered under his breath. “Way to be subtle. Don’t you have any feelings at all? Look at her! She’s an inch away from rabbiting.”

“She can’t outrun me,” he threw over his shoulder as he catapulted himself out of the car. In three long strides, he was at her side, or he would have been if she’d stayed in place. But, the moment Harper’s frightened eyes landed on her brother, she turned on her heel and marched back into the diner. He caught hold of her arm just as she opened the door. Spinning her around like a top, he yanked her up against him, folding his arms down around her.

“Get off me!” Balled up fists pummeling at his shoulders and a boot to his shin ripped howls of pain from him, but his hold on her didn’t loosen. “Truman. Let. Go. Now.”

“No.”

An ear-splitting screech cut through the night, and she redoubled her efforts. A few more jabs, a bite to his left bicep, and finally a knee to the one place guaranteed to bring down any man, and Harper was free. She stumbled back several steps, her chest heaving with each labored breath as she glared daggers at her brother.

“What the Hell, Truman?” Owen thundered. “Not cool, man. So, not cool.” He rushed to Harper’s side, hovering close all the while his glower dared Truman to try taking just one step toward his sister.

Unbelievably, Tru pushed up to his feet, dusted himself off, and grinned at Harper. “You know I’ll hug you again.”

She stared at him for an endless minute, her lips twitching—whether in anger, fear, or hysterics, Owen had no clue. Then, she laughed, a real Harper laugh. Stepping around Owen, she closed the distance between them, her hand outstretched, a tiny smile riding her lips. “Aren’t we a little too old for that game?”

He shook his head, circled his fingers around her wrist, and reeled her in, this time in a soft, brotherly embrace.

“What is going on here?” Lucky asked, confused.

“Hug war,” Grace answered, her voice only loud enough for the twins to hear as she stepped in between them, a wistful expression on her face. “When we were kids and Harper was ever upset about something, Tru would start a hug war…kind of like a playful game of tag, only with hugs to call ‘it’. They always ended the same way: both of them rolling with laughter and Harper having confessed to whatever was bothering her.”

“So…this is normal for them? O looked like he was about ready to pummel old Tru.” Lucky’s snort earned him a glare from both his brother and Grace.

Truman pulled back from Harper, his hands curling around her shoulders to put her at arm’s length. “I need to know what happened, Harps. You gotta tell me. It’s killing me, not knowing.”

“I told you—“

“Nothing happened. You keep saying that, but somehow, I just don’t believe it.” He shook his head, pulled her in again. “Let’s just go home and talk this out. We’ll both feel better when it’s all out in the open. I promise.”

Nodding, she pulled away, swiping at the tears streaming down her face. “Let me just go tell—“ She turned, stopped short. “—Grace.”

“No need to repeat yourself. I’m right here.”

Truman cringed as he took in Grace’s wounded doe eyes. “Gracie…” he trailed off, took a step forward, halted, and then shot a quick sideways glance at his sister. “We need to talk, Grace. I want to explain everything to you. I do, but Harper and I need to—“

“Go.” Swallowing the fast-forming lump in her throat, she nudged Owen forward. “All three of you. You need to sort this stuff out. I’ll take Lucky home.”

Not the most ideal situation, at least in Truman’s mind, but he couldn’t be bothered to let jealousy rear its head just now. His sister came before anyone else. Sadly, that included Grace. He nodded, looped his arm around Harper’s shoulders, and led her back to the car. He didn’t have to look over his shoulder to know that Owen was following close behind, but he did anyway.

Lucky and Grace watched silently as the threesome piled into Tru’s car and drove away. After a long moment, she heaved out a loud sigh. “Let me go get my purse, and I’ll take you home.”

He reached out, the pad of this thumb grazing her cold cheek. “Actually, I was thinking that we could stay a little while…have some pie.”

 
Hmm...so what do we all think?  Are you wondering what's up with Hass and Lucky's accusation of gayness?  Me, too!  Tune in next Tuesday to see where Kelly takes us :)

4 comments:

  1. Oooh, a threesome? *waggles eyebrows* My, this IS getting interesting.

    And, yeah, I AM wondering where in the heck Kelly is going to take this!

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  2. I love how everyone is so into this. Now I need to go and write some more. But I am a little sad that Grace got left behind. Isn't she supposed to be Harper's bestie? What's up with that?

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  3. you're just placating us. GIVE US THE DIRT, LADIES. what is up with haas and his avocados??

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  4. OMG. I'm getting ready to knock some sense into Harper myself! I mean, jeez! She's got people tripping over themselves to help her. Why won't she let them!?

    And thanks for the cool Wednesday treat. I hate THursdays 'cause I have to wait all the way until Tuesday for the next chapter. This makes up for that. Thanks, girls!

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