His Naughty Lessons
Chapter 72: Fool’s Revelations

Chapter 72: Fool’s Revelations

** Eli **

Eli wasn’t a fool. With Harper clinging onto him even tighter as they left the restaurant and ambled down the brightly lit streets, it became all too obvious what she was trying to do.

Well, maybe he was somewhat of a fool to not have realized it till now. Looking back, the signs had been there for a while already — the accidental brushings of shoulders last weekend at the book fest, the popsicle, the kiss on the lips when he gave her the rose. He had simply been too caught off guard at the time to consider the possibility that it was all part of her plan ... This little vixen, since when had she learned to flirt so smoothly like a pro?

Eli smiled silently into the dark. Then he caught himself, slightly alarmed by the fact that he was ... enjoying this.

Ever since his early adult years in college, flirting had been an almost natural part of his life, something that he could do without a thought, probably even in his sleep. It had never meant anything to him though. Whether he was the one offering teases, or the one receiving suggestive jokes made with purrs and batting of lashes, it had always been mere play, rarely deserving half of his attention and never leaving a lasting impression on his mind.

But with Harper, with the delicate press of her hand in the crook of his elbow and the warmth of her body leaning against his, he realized he was affected. He liked it, and he wanted more.

He wasn’t sure how to process that revelation. Especially when this was not a date. Especially when he had another not-a-date waiting for him this weekend, which he almost wanted to tell her about but kept finding the topic too hard to bring up ...

"Mommy, look! She has a flower in her hair!" The high-pitched ringing voice of a young girl broke the silence of the night. They were walking past a family of three dressed in matching jerseys for the local baseball team. The child, a little girl of three or four, was bouncing in the dad’s arms and pointing excitedly at Harper. "She looks pretty! I want to wear a flower too!"

Harper and Eli slowed down.

"I know, it looks beautiful on her, doesn’t it?" The mom caught the girl’s hand and smiled at them before turning back to add, "You have a garland at home, honey. Do you want to wear it to the game next time?"

Eli glanced back at Harper. She seemed amused by this random encounter, a beautiful and genuine smile curving her lips. "You’re lovely too in that Chickadees shirt," she said to the little girl, nodding at her baseball team jersey. "I bet even more so with a garland."

The little girl grinned. Eli had a feeling that Harper had found the kid’s excitement so cute that she almost wanted to give the girl a hug.

"You like kids?" he asked casually once they passed the family.

"Oh yes. Aren’t they adorable?" Harper was still smiling. "Especially at this age, they are the cutest little angels."

Eli felt silent. Well, he honestly couldn’t agree. Children always tended to remind him of unpleasant things like families and relationships and responsibilities. He preferred to avoid such reminders by staying away from them, and he had always thought it was a natural, completely reasonable choice. But now, seeing the look on Harper’s face ...

He wasn’t sure why he was suddenly feeling a bit uncomfortable with his own take on the matter. It was yet another revelation that he didn’t know how to process.

Fortunately, he didn’t get much time to think too deeply about it. "Chickadees must’ve won tonight," Harper said, the conversation about kids completely forgotten already. She was looking ahead at a bigger crowd of people coming in toward them, everyone dressed in baseball jerseys again. "Look how excited they are!"

The group was chatting and laughing boisterously, particularly loud for the otherwise quiet night. Clearly high on the booze. The wind picked up, knocking the cap off of a man’s head. He yelled, sprinting to chase it, and his friends laughed drunkenly behind him.

"Yep, probably a big win judging from the alcohol consumption," Eli speculated.

"Hmm ... That would make lots of equally drunk and much less happy fans for the other team." Harper grinned, looking around them curiously. There were no fans from the guest team to be seen though. "Do you follow the games, by the way? The only one I’ve been to was back in college for some orientation party."

Eli shook his head. "Same here, last time I went was in college too. I heard things have gotten a lot more exciting since then, especially after they won the world series two years ago."

Harper looked up at him. Her eyes suddenly sparkled with the telltale look that she had just come up with an awesome idea. "Do you want to go see a game?" she asked, tugging his arm slightly. "My friend Chelsea — the one that sent my web novel to you — is a huge Chickadees fan, and she works at Voyage Bank, the sponsor for the stadium. She gets free tickets to the games all the time, for company parties."

"... You want to crash their company party?"

"Nah, not crashing! She’s invited me a few times already. Apparently everyone brings plus-ones and plus-twos. Besides, her company is huge, and most of the employees don’t even know each other. It’s basically just a glorified frat party that welcomes whoever gets in."

Hmm. A glorified frat party didn’t sound like Harper’s usual style at all ... But she looked excited and serious about it, so he nodded. Maybe she was in it for more adventurous new experiences. "Sure, let me know when—"

The sound of a rumbling thunder suddenly broke free from the clouds above them.

"... Uh-oh." They both looked up and said at the same time.

Of course, there was a thunderstorm coming. That was why the wind had been picking up since dinner, though they had been too distracted by conversations to notice it. The gentle breezes from before had turned into strong gusts, sweeping the streets with echoing whistles. It was probably going to rain anytime now.

"Well, my place is just a few more blocks away," Harper said hastily. "If we run, we might still be able to make it before—"

A bright bolt of lightning cracked through the air, followed by another thunder, roaring closer.

"Shit." Eli quickly took off his suit jacket, draping it over Harper’s head. "Do it, run!"

They took off, and then the downpour came like a waterfall crashing from the sky.

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