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Hi! Please make sure you read the previous chapters before reading this one! Enjoy :)
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It's about 4:30 in the evening when we arrive at the cabin, which is located up in the mountains, down a desolate, rocky road. The sun is beginning to set, casting a beautiful glow among the high-standing, snow-covered trees. I roll the window down, trying to get some fresh air and instantly notice how quiet it is out here. There are no houses nearby, nor shops or other buildings. It is just him and I. I can see why Harry would come out here to clear his head and escape from reality, but it's not any more peaceful than the scenic outlook he's showed me before, so I am still confused as to why he owns such a place.
But as we pull up in front and my eyes fall upon the cabin, I can see exactly why he comes out here. Contrary to Harry's statement about the cabin being "not much", it is a beautiful, modern-style and somewhat large cabin that has tall windows and a warm, inviting appearance. As if it couldn't get better, the cabin is surrounded by the vast, Pennsylvania mountains and has a deck that leads down to a small, freezing-looking lake.
I step out of the car and let my eyes take in the breathtaking sight, my jaw slightly falling in awe. "I thought you said this wasn't anything special."
"It's really not," Harry chuckles, helping Diablo out of the car and Diablo immediately begins to excitedly sniff around the new area.
"This is like my dream home," I say in disbelief. How could he not think this is amazing? Yeah, his last house was incredible, but this- this is so much better. I am curious to see if everything is black on the inside.
"I just find it a bit boring. There's not much to do around here," he responds, shrugging his shoulders as he takes the first box from the trunk and heads towards the front door. I follow behind, eager to see what the inside will look like.
Harry flicks on the light and a warm glow instantly brightens up the first room, which is a spacious, cozy-looking living room. It's not as big as his other living room, but it consists of a fireplace, tv, bookshelf, a few couches, and other little things. I notice that a clearly used dog bed is placed near the tall-standing windows, which makes me realize that he's taken Diablo here before- unless he's had another dog before, which I don't think he has.
Connected to the living room is a small kitchen. There is no center island like the one back at home, but it is still lovely. The floors, walls, and ceilings are all wooden, and I am shocked by how there's not so much black. The kitchen counters are a dark brown and the cabinets are a light brown. The furniture consists of neutral colors, aside from a dark green couch. Diablo makes himself comfortable on the dog bed, which makes me smile.
"Has he been here before?" I ask the question that I thought of as soon as I saw the dog bed, directing my gaze over to Diablo who is now curled up on it.
"Do you remember after our motorcycle ride and before Jax gave me the mission to steal Mary-Kate's diamond necklace?" He asks and I nod. "That week that I was constantly gone and feeling stressed, I would come here with Diablo to unwind and cool off a bit. I knew if I went to the overlook, you could find me. And I really just needed to clear my head."
My lips part in an "o" shape and I nod my head in acknowledgment. I always wondered where he disappeared off to that week. "It's gorgeous. You don't think anyone will find us out here?" I question, slowly walking around the area to look at the tiny details of the house. He doesn't have many decorations, but the house still feels homey and comfortable.
"Nope. I made sure we weren't being followed," he states, leaning up against the wall while his eyes following my every move.
I stand in front of the tall windows and gawk over the sight. It really is amazing. There's got to be a trick. It's almost too perfect, which is unsettling when it comes to Harry.
Sure enough, Harry clears his throat, causing my eyes to divert over to him. He stands by the couch, awkwardly scratching at the back of his neck. "I- erm, there's just one thing."
"Yeah?" I ask, raising my eyebrow as I wait for him to continue. I knew there was a trick. What is it? Another locked room that I'm not allowed to step foot in?
"I know we are used to having separate bedrooms, but when I bought this, I wasn't expecting to ever have anyone here, let alone have a girlfriend, so there is only one bedroom," he nervously says, fumbling over his words as he twiddles with the rings around his fingers.
I silently stare at him with a shocked expression for a few seconds before a smile breaks out on my face. "It's not a problem to me," I say, half laughing. "Is it for you?"
He's so cute when he's nervous.
"Erm- no. I just wanted to check with you."
"It's not the first time we've slept together, Harry. It's okay, I promise. Can I see the room?" I reassure Harry and he smiles and nods before heading towards the narrow, spiral staircase.
I follow Harry up the steps and into the bedroom, which is the only room upstairs besides the connected bathroom. For what feels like the hundredth time, my mouth falls open at the sight of the master bedroom. Just like the downstairs, there's little decorations, but the room still feels complete. There is a stone fireplace that stretches from the floor all the way to the ceiling. To my surprise, the bed comforter, pillows, and small seats in his room are all a cream color, instead of his usual black. The only black thing in the room is the simple, tiered chandelier that hangs above the bed.
"I must say," I begin to speak, gawking over the room. "I am a little taken aback by the lack of black decor and furniture."
My eyes divert towards Harry and instantly lock onto his eyes, which were already focused on me. He has a small smirk on his face and his eyes light up in amusement. "I redecorated a little while ago."
"Why?" I question, my eyebrow cocking up in curiosity and confusion.
"It had been a plan of mine for a while," Harry shrugs his shoulders as if what he's saying is no big deal before he continues to speak. "While I did want to keep you safe by having you stick with me until this whole law was dropped, I wasn't sure if you'd ever forgive me for all that happened or if you'd ever actually want to stay with me. I didn't want to keep you if you didn't want to be kept. Once you heard me out and understood that what happened to your family was not really in my control and once you heard my reasons for wanting to keep you safe, I was going to give you the option to come live here alone, so that you would have your own safe space away from me and away from the world. But one thing led to another and I never got to mention it, but I did manage to get rid of all of the black decorations and make it more you."
It takes my mind a few seconds to process his words as I stand completely motionless, probably looking like a deer in headlights. He did all of this just so that I could have my own safe spot? My eyes glance around the room noticing white roses, which is my favorite flower, on the nightstand and a sherpa blanket that I pointed out to Harry one time in Target. This doesn't feel real. This whole time, I was feeling guilty about falling for Harry after what happened to family and I questioned whether or not it was a good idea that I was staying with Harry, but figured I never really had a choice. But it turns out I did have a choice after all; I just didn't know about it. If I knew about it, would I take his offer or would I stay with him?
Regardless of the 'what-if' question that is now trying to consume my thoughts, I love where and who I am with Harry, and I wouldn't want to change it for anything. I can't change the past, so I am choosing to not dwell on it and let it affect me too much.
Instead of mulling over what my decision would be, I snap my head out of thoughts and allow my legs to carry me over to Harry, closing the space between him and I. Without saying a word, I instantly bring my lips to his and I feel his body become tense with surprise and confusion, which makes it clear to me that I caught him off guard. After a few seconds, his body relaxes and his lips ease into mine, causing our mouths to move gently with each other. His warm hand rests against my jaw while his other hand remains on my waist. Before the kiss can devour us whole and lead to anything more, Harry pulls away.
"I'm sorry for not telling you sooner," he apologies, his eyes laced with concern. "And I'm sorry for stopping the kiss; I just had to get that out."
"It doesn't matter. I'd rather be here with you than here alone," I reply, and a grin takes over Harry's expression.
As he leans in to continue the kiss, we are interrupted by the blaring ringtone of his phone. He groans loudly, his lips barely grazing mine before he's forced to pull his head away and reach into his pocket to retrieve his phone. I glance down at the device and see that Louis' name is lighting up the screen. Harry's eyebrows are pinched together and his eyes glance to mine for a second before he looks back down at his phone.
He sighs and brings the device to his ear before speaking into it with an aggravated tone. "Yes Louis?"
I move to take a step away from Harry so that I can give him space, but his left hand reaches out and around my body, resting on my lower back as he pulls me to his side. With his phone to the ear, I notice that he holds up a finger to signal me to wait a moment.
"Yes, we are here. What is the problem? Why do you sound so frantic?" Harry questions, his eyebrows furrowing even further.
Silence fills the room before I hear Harry suck in a sharp breath. "What?" He says through gritted teeth. I step in front of him and mouth "put it on speaker", in which he quickly obliges.
"I must've dropped my phone at your house while I was leaving, so I went back to get it, but while I was there, I noticed a letter taped to your front door. I figured that I would just grab it while I was already there, but it- it appears to be from Jax," Louis speaks, his voice panicked and flustered and my blood runs cold.
"What do you mean a letter? What does it say?" Harry growls, his body rigid and his muscles tight. His voice sounds threatening and cold.
"It's a closed envelope with yours and Samantha's name on it and it says 'from Jax'. Do you want me to bring it to you?"
No. What we don't know can't hurt us. Let's just hide here forever, Harry.
"Yes. I'll tell you the address, but don't tell anyone what it is. I can't risk anyone finding us out here," Harry orders, moving past me as he runs a shaky hand through his hair.
"Okay, yeah. Of course. I'll leave right now," Louis agrees and Harry tells him the address before hanging up the phone.
Harry roughly shoves his phone into his pocket before storming downstairs, not exchanging another word or look with me. His nostrils are flared and his chest is quickly rising up and down as he begins to pace around the living room. I stand off to the side, unsure of what to do.
"Fuck!" Harry's thunderous voice echoes through the house, startling me as my breath hitches in my throat. He reaches for the lamp that is on the table to his right and as he rips the cord from the outlet and lifts the lamp into the air, my voice calls out to him; "Stop!"
His actions come to a halt and his eyes finally meet mine. His eyes are dark and his jaw is tightly clenched, causing a shiver to run through my body at how evil he looks. He defeatedly sighs before roughly setting the lamp back into its spot. With his hand still remaining on the lamp and his back now turned to me, his shoulders deflate and his head falls. I take this opportunity to move towards him, turning him around and enveloping his body into my arms with a tight hug. His head sinks into my shoulder, his curly hair tickling the skin as he groans.
I feel his breath on my shoulder as he begins to speak, his tone sounding murderous which causes every inch of my body to litter with goosebumps. "When I get my hands on him, I'm gonna fucking kill him."
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HARRY'S POV
Standing in front of the dark oak wooden door, I glance back towards Samantha who is quietly sitting on the couch with a distant look in her face before I sigh and turn my gaze back to the door. As soon as I open it, a distressed Louis holding an envelope between his two fingers comes into my view.
"Hey mate, here it is. I'm sorry," Louis apologizes, handing over the letter. "Please call all of us and let us know what it is and what needs to be done. I need to get home to Caitlyn though; I don't feel comfortable leaving her alone."
Once the envelope rests in my hand, my heart sinks to my feet, bile rising in my throat as my eyes stare down at the letter in my hand. I stand there dead still- not speaking or moving, and honestly for a minute I forget to breathe. Realizing that I am not going to answer, he gives me a pat on the shoulder and a look full of sympathy before returning to his car. I still don't move a muscle.
"Harry?" Samantha's sweet voice breaks the silent and snaps me out of my head. "What does it say?"
I close the door and remain frozen, eyes still glued to the familiar envelope that is a dark blue lined with gold edges- the type of envelope that I instantly recognize. Unable to answer her, she rises from the couch and slowly stalks towards me, probably noticing something is wrong. Stepping in front of me, her hands reach up and rest on my cheeks, moving my head from the note to her face, which forces my vision away from the card. I feel sick to my stomach and there is no doubt that all of the color is drained from my face, probably making me look like a ghost.
"What's wrong, Harry?" She questions, worry evident in her eyes as her words come out hesitant and almost shaky.
"This is from a pack of my father's special envelopes," I finally speak, disbelief and anguish taking over my tone. I flip the envelope over and sure enough, his name is engraved in small letters on the bottom causing my eyes to gloss over and my bottom lip to quiver. "He loved writing, especially when it came to writing and sending letters. He had these envelopes custom made so that he could send letters to family and friends, but they were always stored away in his office back at the old house. I-I, I couldn't bring myself to go back and clear out the house when they died, so everything still remains there, untouched and unmoved. Jax must've gone there and found it, but who knows what else he did."
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Poor Harry and fuck Jax :( Any guesses on what is going to happen next? It's going to be in Harry's POV!
I hope everyone had awesome holidays. I just got over covid, so I'm still a little tired and feeling blah, but at least I was able to get the chapter up! Anyways, I LOVE ALL OF YOU and thank you for keeping up with my story!
~Jess <3