She Loves Me (Harmony Pointe #3) - Melissa Foster Page 0,106

hurt, showing up to help everyone whenever they needed anything. You are a sweet, caring person, Piper.”

“It’s okay, Dad. I know who I am. I was just pointing out that my sisters are sweet, and that makes them much easier for relationships.”

“You are tough by nature. I’ll give you that. But you have to possess tenderness to be a bighearted, thoughtful person. You have to care. Look at how you jumped in to help Harley with the girls. Someone who isn’t sweet wouldn’t give up so much of their time to do that. Debra told your mother that Jolie raved about shopping with you for her dress, and we both know you hate shopping.”

It was true, Piper wasn’t a big shopper, but she’d had a great time Thursday afternoon shopping with the girls and Delaney. Jolie had been happier than Piper had seen her in a very long time, which Delaney had said was because she and Jolie had shared a good cry and Jolie had admitted how scared she’d been about losing her. Piper was glad Jolie was doing better, and she was glad to have been included in their shopping trip. The girls had been hilarious. Sophie picked out dresses, some of which were meant solely to make everyone laugh, and Jolie had been a great sport, trying on each and every one. In the end, they found a simple light purple dress for the father-daughter dance, and when Jolie refused every pair of sandals, Piper suggested ballet flats. Jolie had wrinkled her nose at that, too, just like Piper would have at that age. Piper went with her gut and suggested a pair of light purple Converse, earning a squeal and a hug from Jolie and an invitation to help Sophie shop for her dress when it was her turn to attend the father-daughter dance.

“Don’t you see, pumpkin?” her father said. “The ease of a person doesn’t have to do with if they’re outwardly sweet or tough. Bridgette keeps the difficult stuff inside, and Bodhi had to work hard to unearth it. Talia is sweet, but you know she had a laundry list of things she wanted in a husband, and that wasn’t easy for Derek to work around. And don’t even get me started on Willow. Of all our children, I think Ben is the easiest when it comes to being in a relationship, but if you tell him that, I’ll have to kill you.”

She laughed. “We really are alike.”

“Darn right. Listen, Piper. I know how your brain works. You think your sisters are easier than you. I know better than to try to change your opinion. But the bottom line is, Easy doesn’t equate to better. Trust your gut with Harley. He knows exactly who you are, and he’s a smart man. If he wanted easy, he’d never have pursued a Dalton.”

“I guess you’re right. Thank you for the perspective. But I’m worried about all this stuff I feel. I just saw him this morning, and I already miss him so much it hurts. Everyone has their significant other with them, and I didn’t think to ask Harley if we could find a way to celebrate with both families. I’m sucky at this relationship stuff. But I want to try, Dad, which is new, and feels crazy, and you know I’m not a needy person. Is this the beginning of me changing everything about myself? Is this a red flag?”

“Dad!” Willow called from the patio. “Can you come here for a sec?”

Her father held up a finger in Willow’s direction and said, “Sweetheart, I don’t think you’re changing who you are as much as you’re finally letting someone get to you. In doing so, maybe you’re discovering parts of yourself that have been hidden, too. And that can be scary.”

“Tell me about it,” she said as they pushed to their feet. “But good, you know? I like it. I like him. A lot.”

“Does he know that?” he asked.

The fluttery feeling returned, and she said, “Yes.”

“Then you’ve opened that door. The question is, will you let him walk through it, or keep him out on the porch? What are you afraid of?”

For a second she wondered if her father knew she was worried about asking Harley to stay at her place, but quickly dismissed that idea. He designed and built homes for a living; of course he used similar metaphors.

“I don’t know.”

“The fact that you’re scared at all tells me this man is important to you