Through The Dark COMPLETED

Chapter 48

Harry took Julie to meet up with Amanda and Niall so they could all spend some time together before leaving Tahoe. They walked around some shops had a light lunch at the diner, and then went back to the shops they hadn't yet gone in. He wanted to observe Julie's behavior too. It seemed a little weird to do so, but he wanted to see her interaction with Amanda and Niall too. She wasn't herself. She smiled, but it seemed forced. She wasn't sassy. Niall tried to mess with her, as always, but she just didn't engage how she normally did. She seemed a bit sad. He knew that they needed to talk. He got that she didn't want him to leave, but there had to be more to this than him just physically leaving. He could guess all he wanted too though; he needed her to tell him. He smiled back at her when she smiled at him. He walked over to her; she seemed to be admiring some tea cups on a table. She seemed to like them quite a bit. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. "You like those?" He asked.

"They're beautiful. They remind me of here. Rustic, yet beautiful, like the snow." She set the cup down. She took his hand and started to move on.

Harry pulled her hand and stopped her. "You should get the set."

"No, I'm not working remember, and they're pretty costly. And no, I don't want you to buy them for me." She stopped him before he could even say it.

He laughed. "Why not? They aren't that much." He said still holding her in place.

"They are to me, Harry." She kept his hand, but she pulled him along.

Well, her stubbornness remained. Guess that was a good thing. He was going to get her the damn tea set anyway. But he would do it discreetly. He went with her walking around some more. She hadn't let go of his hand yet. It was a bit odd. Especially since they were out in public. He thought he understood though. He was guessing it stemmed from what they spoke about earlier, the fact that she didn't want him to leave.

Julie didn't let go of Harry's hand. She knew he wanted to buy her the tea set, but she didn't want him too; so, she wouldn't let him off by himself. She knew he probably thought it odd when she didn't let go of his hand, but that's just the way it was going to be. After a while, she began to get bored. She wasn't a shopper anyway, and with no money to spend, it was even worse. She knew that anything she wanted Harry would buy, but she wasn't letting go of her independence just yet. "Ok, I'm ready to go." She looked up at him. "Let's go back to the cabin, please."

"Ok, sure. Just give me a minute to tell Niall and Amanda." Harry said.

"We can do it together." Julie said looking into his eyes. "Harry, I don't want you to buy me the tea set. No sneakiness."

He chuckled. "Well, guess you can't say you don't know me. I don't know why you won't let me, but ok. Let's go back to the cabin." He would figure it out. If not this one, than another. She better get used to being spoiled, because he was going to do it. He wanted to. She had missed out on so much the past five years with everything she'd gone through. He was going to make sure that she didn't continue to miss out on things. Especially ones that were so easy for him to provide. She deserved to be surprised. She deserved to have things given to her unexpectedly. She may get a bit upset at first, but it wasn't going to stop him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and waved Niall and Amanda over.

Julie could sense what was going on in Harry's mind and decided to forestall it. "I do know you, and I do love your generosity, but Harry you've done so much for me. Things that actually matter, you secured me an amazing new home, you've taken me on amazing trips, to places I would have never gone probably ever, if it wasn't for you, but mostly you treat me with kindness and respect. I never knew that before. It's pretty nice." She shrugged and looked at Amanda. "Hey, we're going back to the cabin. I think I'm going to have him grab some grub and then just chill in the room the rest of the night." She took a deep breath. She did not want to leave tomorrow and have Harry go in the opposite direction. She wasn't used to these feelings, but all she wanted to do was spend time with him. Just his presence made her feel calmer. She had to admit part of her just wanted to run now. Get it over with and not have to think about it for another night. Part of her wanted to push away the strong feelings she was having about holding on tight to him and not letting him go. She had never experienced these feelings before. Then again, she'd never had anyone treat her so well. Oh, she should just face it. Johnny was it. There was no other relationship that she could even look back on to try and compare. And Johnny treated her as if she was barely human. He treated her as a possession that he could control. And she'd let him; she felt like such an idiot. She felt like she should have known better, like she should have known that's not how it was supposed to be. Why did she let it control her so much? Why did she let herself think that's what she deserved? She shook her head. Get out of the past. Stop thinking about it. She shook her head again when she realized Harry was talking to her.