Chapter 318 – Beginning with a Daring Encounter

“I told you I was going out, didn’t I? Don’t worry, I’ll find my way back to the house when I’m done,” she assured him, and Harry sighed as he pulled the car over by the side of the road for her to get down.

“Are you sure you will be fine on your own?” Harry asked with concern as she opened the door.

Jade hesitated as she turned to look at him, “Are you going to come with me if I say I won’t be fine on my own?”

“No. I’ll rather stop you from leaving,” Harry said, and Jade rolled her eyes.

“I’ll be fine on my own. See you when I see you. Goodnight,” she called to him as she got out of the car and shut the door.

Harry didn’t drive off immediately. Instead, he watched her through his rearview mirror as she walked away from the car and flagged down a cab.

He waited until she got into the cab, and just as the cab drove past his car, she blew him a kiss, and Harry chuckled as he drove off.

Inside the cab, Jade turned in her seat to look at Harry’s car, and she watched as he took the next bend while her cab drove straight ahead.

Harry. He had surprised her a lot in one day, and even more surprising for her was the realization that she was beginning to find him intriguing. Initially, she had just wanted to know him mainly because he was Benne’s best friend, but now she was curious about him on a different level.

Once she was done taking care of Jero and the cartel, she would revisit her newfound interest in Harry.

No matter how much Harry tried to get the much needed sleep he craved, he couldn’t seem to find it. He turned and tossed on his bed for over an hour until he finally gave up and got off the bed in frustration as he tried to figure out what was bothering him.

He picked up his cellphone from his nightstand as he walked out of the bedroom to the living room. Once he got there, his eyes fell on Jade’s duffel bag which he had dropped on the couch earlier when he brought it from the car.

It was Jade. She was the reason he couldn’t sleep. He was worried about her. How was he supposed to get any sleep when he didn’t even know where she had gone to or what she was doing? What if something happens to her? How would he explain to Benne that he didn’t even know the whereabouts of his sister, who he had entrusted to him? Maybe he shouldn’t have let her go out all by herself. Or he should have just convinced her to return to the house with him and go have fun after she joins her family the next day.

If he had known he wasn’t going to be able to get any sleep, he would have just gone with her to wherever she had gone to, especially as she kept making it so obvious that she wanted him to go with her.

He picked up the duffel bag and carried it over to the guest bedroom she had used the previous night. Immediately he walked through the door, he was greeted by the floral fragrance he had begun to associate with her, and he held his breath involuntarily.

Realizing what he was doing, he released his breath and carefully placed the duffel bag on the bed before walking out of the bedroom as fast as he could.

Immediately he returned to the living room, he headed straight for his minibar and poured himself a glass of wine. Just as he took the first sip of wine, his cell phone rang out, and he almost jumped out of his skin in shock.

He quickly grabbed the phone thinking it was Jade, and he sighed when he saw that the call was from his father. He was surprised that his father had not called him back since the last time they spoke, and he embarrassed him in the presence of Jade.

“Hey, dad!”

“Hey, you! You no longer care about your old man, do you?” His father asked, and Harry frowned as he dropped his wine glass.

Somehow hearing his father ask that made his heart ache. They were both everything to each other so he didn’t understand where that was coming from, “You know I do. I always will. Why would you even say that?”

“Yet you haven’t called in days? Why? Are you that pissed because I embarrassed you in front of your girlfriend?”

“Dad, I told you already. Jade isn’t my girlfriend…”

“Why not? Is she in a relationship?”

“No, she is not. I am…”

“Then ask her out,” his father cut in again, making Harry sigh.

“Dad, can you at least let me finish what I’m saying?” Harry asked in exasperation.

“Not unless whatever you wanted to say was going to end on a positive note. That’s the only thing I’m interested in hearing,” his father said, and Harry shook his head.

“Anyway, I was not pissed. I didn’t call because I have been really busy these last couple of days. I’ve barely had a good night’s sleep. I’m sorry. I will do better.”

“Sure, I know you love me half as much as I love you. And I also know you were busy, hence I didn’t call you either. I was only pulling your legs. By the way, I saw the news about Benne. He even has a girlfriend now, yet you don’t.”

Harry groaned inwardly, “I miss you, dad. I should visit you soon. Or maybe you can pay me a visit,” Harry suggested, wanting to change the subject.

“Perhaps I should. And then we can go clubbing. Who knows? Maybe I can find you a girlfriend this time,” he suggested, and Harry chuckled.

“I’m never going clubbing with you. Not after what you did the last time,” Harry said, recalling how his father had walked up to a couple of the ladies at the club and tried to get them to talk to him. That had to be the most embarrassing night of his life.

“Alright. I give up. You don’t have to get married if you don’t want to. You can stay married to your job if that’s what you want. Why don’t we adopt a kid then? Maybe a little girl? Or you don’t like kids too?”

“Dad, I love kids, and I’m definitely going to get a girlfriend and get married eventually. I just want something special like what you shared with mom. You of all people should understand that. So can you please give me some time?” Harry asked, and his father sighed.

“It’s not like I have a choice, do I?”

“You don’t,” Harry said and glanced at his phone’s screen when it beeped with an incoming call notification from Aurora.

“I have to go now, dad. I will give you a call tomorrow, okay?”

“Alright. Take care of yourself. And my regards to Benne’s sister,” his father said, and Harry heard the disconnect tone before he could protest.

Harry hesitantly received Aurora’s call, “Hey!” He greeted and waited for her to scold him or complain that he had failed to call despite the fact that she had set reminders on his phone.

“Hello, Harry! How have you been?” Aurora asked in her usual easygoing tone, which made Harry’s conscience prick him

“I’m alright. You?”

“I’m fine. I was just thinking about you and wanted to hear from you. You’re haven’t returned to Serenopolis yet, have you? You still owe me a date,” she reminded Harry, and he shut his eyes.

He had completely forgotten about that. He cleared his throat, “I’m very sorry I didn’t reach out to you earlier. Something came up, so I had to leave sooner than planned,” Harry explained apologetically.

“Oh, no! I hope everything is alright?” She asked in a concerned tone.

“Yes. Everything is okay. I’m resuming work tomorrow, and as such, I won’t be able to return to Varis anytime soon. I’m sorry,” Harry apologized once again.

“That’s fine. I can come to you if you can’t come to me. Is that okay with you?” Aurora asked, and Harry didn’t have the heart to turn her down, considering the fact that he had disappointed her so many times already, yet she had remained calm and understanding.

“You can visit, but I’ll have to arrange for you to lodge in a hotel…”

Aurora laughed softly, “There won’t be any need for that. I can handle the details of my accommodation myself. All I need is for you to make yourself available for the date,” she said, and Harry let out a sigh of relief. He had been worried that she would want to stay at his apartment during her visit.

“Alright. Let me know when you are ready, and I’ll keep the day open,” Harry promised.

“That’s good to know. What about Jade? How is she?”

Harry groaned inwardly once he remembered once again that he had no idea how she was doing. He was going to have to call her and find out where she had gone to. It was obvious he wouldn’t be having any sleep until she left his house, so it was as well he continued to keep his eyes on her.

“She is fine. I need to go now. It was nice hearing from you,” Harry said before hanging up.

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