Forever Too Far

at me. “I just want to stay here with you,” he whispered before lowering his mouth to mine.
         I grabbed both his arms and held on to him as his mouth brushed gently against mine before he took a small lick at my bottom lip. I opened my mouth so he could taste more when another shrill scream came from downstairs. Rush pulled back and sighed. “Damn crazy family,” he muttered.
         “Go deal with it. I’m okay here.”
     A knock at the door surprised me and I pulled the towel tightly against me. Rush stepped in front of me to block anyone’s view.
     “What?” he called out.
         I peeked around his back as the door slowly opened. I was mentally preparing myself for Nan to come barging into the room. Instead, a girl about my age stood at the door. She didn’t look like anyone I would imagine belonged in this house. Her long brown hair brushed her waist in soft curls and was parted to the side. She had no bangs. It was all one length. Dark lashes framed her sultry looking hazel eyes but she wasn’t wearing any makeup. The straight-legged shorts she had on hit just at her knee and she was wearing a pale pink blouse that buttoned up the front. It was simple and classy.
         “Hello, Harlow,” Rush said , surprising me even further. “I’m on my way down. I hear her.”
         One of the girl’s perfectly sculpted eyebrows arched.  “I was hoping I could hide up here with you. You’re really going down there to deal with that?” The southern twang to her voice startled me. Who was she and why did she have a southern accent? We were in Beverly Hills.
         “That’s why I’m here. To help the situation,” Rush replied.
         The girl nodded and then her eyes shifted from Rush to focus on me. “You must be Blaire.” 
         “Yes,” I said, glancing up at Rush.
         Rush pulled me closer beside him. “Blaire this is Harlow. She’s Kiro’s other daughter. Harlow, this is my fiancée, Blaire.”
         “I know all about Blaire. Dean has filled me in. Do you mind if I stay up here with you, Blaire? Nan isn’t a fan of me and I like to stay away from angry people.”
         “She needs to get dressed and I’m not sure she—”
         “Yes, I’d like that. I’ll just grab something from my suitcase and slip it on. Won’t take but a minute,” I replied , interrupting Rush. I was normally a good judge of character and I liked Harlow. She seemed almost shy. She was soft spoken and there was no malice in her eyes. She also hadn’t ogled Rush when she’d looked at him. That was a major plus for me.
         “Are you sure? I was going to have you some food brought up and—”
         “The food sounds wonderful. Send some up for Harlow too, please,” I said before he could say anything more.
         Harlow’s laugh startled me and I looked over at her. “I’m sorry. It’s just he’s being so not like Rush. It’s fun to watch him like this.”
         Yeah. I liked her. “Let me get dressed and you go deal with Nan before she comes looking for you. I don’t want to see her just yet.”
         That seemed to snap Rush out of his determination to keep me bundled up in bed like an invalid. He wouldn’t want Nan near me while she was in this mood either. He nodded and headed for the door.
        Once he was out the door I motioned for Harlow to come on inside. “I’ll just go put on some clothes. Make yourself comfortable.”
         “Thank you. I’ve never been in Rush’s room before.  I typically stay in my room and read. But when Dean told me about you I was curious,” she admitted with a shy smile.
         “I’m curious about you too. I didn’t know Kiro had another daughter. The one I do know isn’t very nice. You’re nothing like Nan.”
         Harlow looked sad for a moment. “I was raised very differently from Nan. My Grandmama would have tanned my hide if I’d ever acted the way Nan does. I wasn’t allowed to be demanding or throw fits growing up. Grandmama made sure I was well behaved. I think that’s why daddy liked to come get me. I didn’t get in the way when I came here. I sat in my room and read my books mostly. When he had time for me he’d come get me and we would go to a movie or an amusement park. But other than that my life was with my Grandmama in South Carolina.”
         So that’s why she sounded southern. “I grew up in Alabama. I was wondering