As always with Harry, a mysterious amount of time had passed before we were able to tear ourselves away from each other. We were stood on his front porch, arms in various positions of embrace when he pulled his lips away from mine to give me a glowing smile that I couldn’t help but return.
“Want to come in?” he asked softly, knowing I wouldn’t want to go home and be alone after everything that had happened.
“Yes,” I said without hesitating, smiling in appreciation.
“My mom and sister are here and we were about to play a game,” he said, blushing slightly. “I know that doesn’t sound cool but… would you want to join?” He bit his lip as he studied my face for my reaction.
“That actually sounds perfect,” I said, meaning it. This was exactly the kind of distraction I needed, plus it gave me the opportunity to get to know his family better. I barely had time to feel nervous before he grinned wider and pressed a kiss to my cheek. He pulled on my hand, which he had clasped in his, and tugged me inside.
Once in the entryway, he turned to face me and give me a reassuring smile. He stepped a bit closer and rubbed his thumbs under my eyes, wiping away whatever make up had surely smudged during my crying.
“Thank you,” I said softly, looking up at him as he smiled gently at me.
“Sure thing, babe.” He kissed me gently on the forehead before taking my hand again and pulling me into the living room, where I saw a card table had been set up. Set up on the table were several boxes for board games, a plate of cookies, and several glasses holding beverages. Apparently this was a thing in his house, because they looked up expectantly when we entered.
“Joey!” Anne sang upon seeing me trailing behind Harry. I hoped my smile looked genuine as I greeted her. It wasn’t that I wasn’t happy to see her, because I was, I was just emotionally drained. I hoped this would help.
“Hi, Anne, how are you?”
“Lovely, dear, how are you?” It suddenly occurred to me that I didn’t know if Harry had told his mom or not about my family’s predicament. I couldn’t decide what I hoped he had done. Glancing at him quickly, I found him watching me, a soft smile playing on his lips.
“I’m fine,” I said vaguely. No need to go into details, because if I was honest, I was perfect and exceptionally happy yet devastatingly sad all at the same time, for two completely different reasons. In this moment, though, I was wonderful, because I was with Harry.
“I hope I’m not intruding,” I added, grinning sheepishly at the two women in the room. Gemma was smiling softly at me, similar to the way Harry was at this exact moment.
“Oh, of course not! You’re always welcome here,” Anne said sweetly, causing the grin on my face to grow.
“Okay, thank you.” Harry squeezed my hand and pulled me toward the square table, offering me the seat next to Gemma and across from his mom.
“So, we were just deciding what to play when Harry got up,” Gemma informed me. “So now you get to help us pick!”
I smiled at her before examining the selection of games on the table. I wasn’t surprised to see that I didn’t know how to play any of them; my family wasn’t big into board games. Or, really, spending time together in general. I felt a little embarrassed at this revelation.
“I don’t know how to play any,” I told her, nibbling on my lip.
Her head cocked slightly to the side in surprise before she recovered herself. “That’s fine! We can teach you any of them,” she said sweetly. She was much nicer to me this time than when we had first met; I supposed seeing that I was still with Harry and hadn’t done anything treacherous to him reassured her that I was sincere in this.
“Yeah, they really aren’t too hard,” Harry added. I nodded.
“Okay, you guys pick then and teach me whatever,” I said. “I’m up for anything.”
They decided on some game I had never heard of, but looked colorful and interesting so I was happy with it. After several attempts to teach me the rules, it quickly became apparent that board games weren’t my forte. I kept getting the rules mixed up or playing the wrong cards, but no one minded. They all chuckled along good-naturedly with me, gently correcting me whenever I did something wrong and teasing me lightly.
The simple act of playing a board game with these people made me feel surprisingly welcome. They had accepted me, it was clear, and it gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling. Gemma, it turned out, was very dry and sarcastic, similar to me if I was in the right mood. I thought she was hilarious, and couldn’t stop laughing at the playful little digs she took at her mother, Harry, and even occasionally, me.
They way they spoke together and teased each other was so easy and playful, yet carried strong undertones of love and affection. You could tell they actually enjoyed spending time together and didn’t just play games together so they could claim that they had ‘family time’ like I had heard so many others do. This was a real family, and I felt so privileged to be taken into it.
I had just messed up for what seemed like the hundredth time, earning a laugh from everyone, when I felt Harry’s hand land on my thigh under the table, squeezing reassuringly. I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my lips as I looked at him.
He looked so happy having me here with his family when we were all getting along so easily. He returned my smile, causing his dimples to deepen in his cheeks. I couldn’t stop thinking how incredible he looked.
His full lips were pulled into a genuinely happy grin, and his eyes, which were always so captivating, were practically glowing as he looked at me. His sharp jaw, one of my favorite features, looked stunning, as always.
Happy really suited him.
It was still hard to believe he was mine.
My hand, which had been tucked under my thigh, came up to rest on top of his, feeling his warmth. His skin was soft and smooth on the back of his hand where it was pressed to my palm. I flexed my fingers, bringing them to slide between the spaces his fingers created. He turned his hand over and I could feel his fingers trail down my palm before tickling back up my fingers.
I couldn’t help but shiver at the sensation. It was crazy that something as simple as our hands tangling together could have such an effect on me, but there was an undeniable sensuality to the movement that drove me insane.
His movements were slow, gentle, and at times, barely able to feel, but it was so much more than simply holding my hand. I could feel my body starting to buzz, my head getting cloudy. If he kept this up, I wouldn’t be able to continue with the games.
The worst of it was, he probably had absolutely no idea what he was doing to me. His innocent gesture of playing with my hand, meant to be comforting, had turned me into a mess in a matter of minutes.
“Joey?” Anne’s voice pried into my haze.
“Sorry, what?” I asked, eyes widening as I shook my head slightly. Focus, Joey.
“I said it’s your turn,” she said, a glint of humor in her eye as if she suspected why I had been distracted. “If you don’t get back to start, though, I win and the game is over.”
“So I think it’s safe to say you’ll be winning then,” I chucked. I really was shit at these games, despite how much fun I had had playing. Or rather, trying to play. Anne laughed as I gathered up the dice and threw them, not even knowing what I should be hoping for in order to continue the game. When the dice landed and Anne cheered from across the table, I knew enough to realize she had been victorious.
“Ah, Anne, congrats,” I said, smiling at her. “You win!”
“Yeah, mom, you finally won for once! Joey must be good luck for you or something,” Gemma teased. Earlier she had informed everyone that she was the reigning champion of this game, telling us to prepare for a devastating loss. “I pass the throne on to you, madame,” she laughed, tipping a pretend hat and bowing slightly.
“Thank you, thank you, I shall accept my winnings now,” Anne said, going along with Gemma. I giggled at their exchange and Harry’s hand squeezed my thigh again.
“What a couple of sore winners,” Harry joked, glancing back and forth between his mother and sister.
“Oh no, Harry dear. This is all the product of hard work,” Anne laughed, smiling at her son before starting to gather up the materials from the game. I started helping her while Gemma stood up and stretched her arms above her head.
“This was fun,” she observed. “Joey, you’ll have to join us next time, too.”
I grinned. “Yeah, I’d really like that.”
“Cool. But! I’ve gotta get going, I told John I’d be home over an hour ago, oops,” she said, grimacing playfully. I had almost forgotten she didn’t actually live here most of the time. She grabbed her jacket from the where she had slung it over the couch and pulled it on. She then crossed the room to hug her mother goodbye, followed by a hug from Harry. I was surprised when she came to me and, without hesitating, wrapped her arms around me. She squeezed gently before releasing me.
“Good to see you, Joey,” she smiled.
“You too, Gemma,” I said sincerely, returning her smile.
“Bye, guys!” she called as she waved over her shoulder and headed toward the front door.
“Bye,” we all chorused, returning to our cleaning up. Anne took the successfully repacked game and put it on the stack, grabbing them all and carrying them to the corner of the room to put them away while Harry folded up the table. There was nothing left for me to do so I just stood, somewhat awkwardly, observing them.
“Well this really has been lovely,” Anne smiled as she returned from the other side of the room.
“Yes, mom,” Harry said, a hint of appeasement in his tone. “It has.”
“I hate to say it, but I’m exhausted. I’m going to head up to bed, I think, but you’re welcome to stay for a bit, dear,” she told me sweetly. Again, I wondered if she knew what was going on in my family. It was hard to tell.
“Okay, thanks for everything, Anne,” I said.
She waved her hand, dismissing my thanks. “Anytime, dear, anytime.” She gripped my forearm briefly before releasing it and exiting the room. “Goodnight, dears!” she called over her shoulder as she started ascending the stairs, leaving Harry and I alone.
“Night,” we both called.
He crossed the small space between us, running his hand up my neck softly as he spoke.
“Was that okay?”
“It was perfect, Harry,” I said honestly, smiling at him. I felt his fingers tuck into my hair at the base of my neck and I had to stop my eyes from closing at the feeling.
“I like seeing you with them,” he told me, looking intently into my eyes with his, which were positively dancing in the soft lighting of the room.
“Oh yeah?” I asked, stepping closer to him and resting my hands on his chest. I had to tilt my head back to look up at him. He nodded.
“Mmhmm. It feels… normal,” he said, searching for the right word. It didn’t matter- I knew what he meant. It felt easy, normal, right. Perfect.
“I agree,” I told him. My hands reached around to run lightly up and down his back, feeling the firm muscles beneath his thin t-shirt, which was black today.
“You fit here,” he said quietly, our proximity making him feel the need to whisper.
“I fit wherever you are,” I said. His lips split into a grin, tilting up at one side before he leaned down to press them into mine. I felt both of his hands now cupping both sides of my face, both sets of fingers tangled into my hair. His lips shaped around mine as he kissed me, pulling gently on my lower one and earning a soft groan from me. I loved it when he did that.
The haze that had descending over me during the game was quickly returning, settling over my entire body as I pushed my tongue into his mouth, running it along his. My hands worked their way beneath his shirt, feeling their way across the skin that covered his back, his hips, his stomach.
When my hands settled over his waistband and let my thumbs tuck under the elastic of his boxers, he let out a quiet groan and pressed his hips into mine. It was blatantly clear that we were both hungry for each other, despite having such an emotionally exhausting day. Maybe we needed our bodies to help heal the mental damage we had both suffered lately.
His hands left my face to run down the sides of my body before settling on my hips. Squeezing gently, he worked his hands under my shirt to rest on my skin, pulling me into him tighter, increasing the pressure between us. His lips tore away from mine to leave a trail of kisses down my neck, biting gently on the skin there before lapping at it with his tongue.
I let out a sigh at the feeling, craving him more and more. The haze was back in full force now, but with it came a kind of clarity- a burning, wanting need for him. This was exactly what I needed, what we needed. We needed each other, in every way possible.