Page 89 of A Home for Harmony

“I don’t know Harmony all that well,” Luke said. “Only from a few times Daisy had a party and we were all there. But she’s sweet. Wholesome. I guess pure might be a good word, even though it sounds stupid.”

“That’s her,” he said. “Not me. And that is where you’re going with this?”

“No,” Luke said. “Or maybe. It’s not me either. Where I came from and what I’ve done in my life. I didn’t think I was good enough for Heather. She has a lot of the same qualities as Harmony at the root. She’s sweet and the girl next door. If she knew me before I was an adult, she would have run in the other direction.”

Micah didn’t know anything about Luke’s background as a child and it wasn’t his business to know. He was more concerned about him as an adult. “She’s not running now,” he said.

“No. It was the luckiest day of my life she gave me a chance and I still didn’t think I was worthy of her. I didn’t think I deserved her, but I was wrong.”

Some thoughts he’d had in his head too.

“I think we all are harder on ourselves than others,” he said.

“I agree with that,” Luke said. “For what it’s worth, because I know you don’t care about other people’s approval, I think ifanyone gives you a hard time about the age difference, just tell them to fuck off.”

“I’m not sure I’d do that,” he said. Though he appreciated the support.

He’d said those things previously, but now, in his position, he was a bit more diplomatic about what he said and did in the public and to whom.

“I know you won’t,” Luke said. “But it’s no one’s business. Age is a number.”

“Her age doesn’t bother me,” he lied. Though he was getting to a better place in his mind with that.

He saw her interaction with her family yesterday and, though she was silly a few times, it was only with those she was close to.

There were a lot of serious intelligent conversations about her career.

Her family supported what she did. He expected her father, who was the most serious person he’d ever met, to not be supportive of his daughter having a career online, but that wasn’t the case.

He learned more than she’d told him about it. She talked about her business plan and goals and he saw a completely different side of her.

He’d never thought she was immature, but she was definitely more mature businesswise when she had that hat on. She knew what she wanted and how to do it and exhibited a confidence like he’d never seen before.

Was it right for him to think that part of her job was just frivolously taking pictures and silly videos?

“I hope you sound more convincing when other people bring it up,” Luke said, smirking. “I’m sure you know in a small town like this, it’s going to happen.”

“It is what it is,” he said. It was no different from the talk when Trinda got pregnant and they had a fast wedding.

Or when they divorced.

It was what small towns do best. Know everyone else’s business.

“That’s right,” Luke said and went back to his desk to get work done.

Micah looked at his watch and saw it was too early to call his parents with the time zone, but he was going to make the call today and sent them a text to reach out asking when they were around.

There was no reason he couldn’t let them know about Harmony. If he waited too long, his daughter would do it for him, he was positive.

It was three hours later when his phone rang and he saw it was his mother calling, so he got up and shut his door to answer.

“Morning,” he said.

“What’s going on?” his mother asked. “You never text that early and ask if we are around to talk. Is everything okay with Scarlet?”

“Everything is fine,” he said. He should have started the text off saying that so that he didn’t worry them. “I wanted to let you know I was seeing someone.”

“Oh,” his mother said. “I can’t remember the last time you told us you were dating someone.”