His Naughty Lessons

** Eli **

The last couple of days of the week passed agonizingly slow for Eli. The meetings at his own company were too boring compared to the eye-opening experience of learning Harper's game design, and the usual entertainment for his downtime was too bland compared to the thrilling fun of hearing Harper's roller coaster screams. The only solace he managed to find was the text she sent him on Thursday, ecstatically telling him about her project approval and promotion. That had kept him delighted for quite a while.

And now, he was glad that Saturday night had finally come. As he walked down the hallway toward Harper's door at their usual meeting time, he felt his spirits brightening by every step — he had been waiting all this time to say congratulations in person to her promotion.

The thought gave him pause. When was the last time he had felt so genuinely invested in someone else's personal business?

The door swung wide open upon the lightest knock, giving him no more time to ponder further. "Good eve— Wow!" Harper gasped as soon as her eyes landed on what he was holding in front of him. "Aww, you brought me flowers? Thank you … They are gorgeous!"

Yep, definitely spirit-brightening to see her pleasantly surprised like that. Eli smiled. "Congrats again on all the good news at work." He handed over the large bouquet of lilies, sunflowers, and roses.

"You shouldn't have, this is supposed to be about me thanking you." Harper chuckled somewhat embarrassedly, then sniffed the flowers. "But I do love it. It smells so incredible."

She thanked him again and gave him a big, warm hug. Over her shoulders, the sweet fragrance of the lilies blended into her scent of honey and vanilla, and Eli felt tempted to agree that everything smelled incredible indeed.

"It'll look so perfect as a centerpiece for the table," Harper said when she pulled away. Turning back, she headed toward the living room, and Eli followed her to find a full set of delicacies laid out already, waiting for his arrival.

"Wow," he said, halting in his tracks.

She had obviously cleared up a lot of space just for this. The small dining table had been extended, moved to the very center of the living room, and laden with various hors d'oeuvres. A charcuterie board of an assortment of cheese took the center, surrounded by trays of crackers, fruits, and miniature sweets. A bottle of sparkling rosé sat chilled on the side, and a pair of flameless candles danced on each side of their seats. Soft music hummed somewhere in the background, swaying in the air with a soothing rhythm.

A classy yet cozy setting, totally befitting Harper's style. That feeling from the night at the park suddenly returned — an easy, pleasant closeness that made one feel right at home.

Harper placed the bouquet at the center of the table, rearranging the plates and candles around it. "You know, it's hard to meet the expectation when you've already upped the game so much … with that dinner last week and the amazing trip to the park. But I did get these from the best place I could find, so I hope it'll pass."

She bent over to carefully orient the flowers, and Eli caught sight of how lovely the bold yellow and red of the petals contrasted with her skin, glowing the softest shade of pink under the candlelight. It made him feel an utter sense of contentment at his floral choice.

"You've just upped the game some more with that ambiance," he replied. And it was true. The air was almost romantic, if he wasn't reminding himself every other minute that "romantic" wasn't the way things were between them, and that he had to be careful not to mislabel their already complicated friendship with the wrong words. "Did you get the menu inspiration from your promotion celebration? How was it, by the way?"

There was a noticeable pause in Harper's movements as she straightened the tissue paper around the bouquet. "Oh … It was nice," she said, in a somewhat odd tone. "It was a ladies night out, so nothing too crazy. They did try to get me drunk though, but sadly for them, I have a pretty decent tolerance."

"… A ladies night out? And trying to get you drunk?" Not quite a typical promotion celebration then. "Were they trying to pry some kind of scandalous secret out of you?"

Harper lowered her head and … blushed. "Nah, never mind them. It was just silly gossiping." She reached over for the rosé. "Should we start? Would you like to do the honor?"

Eli regarded her with an amused interest. The way her eyes flickered told him that whatever topic she was trying to dance around, it was related to either him or his company. "Something about our adventures at the park?" he guessed.

"What? N-No …" She glanced away. "I mean … How would anyone in my office know about that?"

Harper was a bad liar, and Eli loved how adorable she looked when she bit her lips nervously. A naughty thought came into his mind. "You know we're due for another 'practice session' tonight," he teased. "You're getting me curious enough that I might consider using that opportunity to get the truth out of you."

Harper stared at him blankly for a moment. Then the tease registered. "Eli!" A sweep of flames rolled over her cheeks.

He laughed. "What? That will also conveniently provide you with more writing inspirations. Would you rather not look forward to it?"

Harper let out a muffled expletive, and Eli chuckled again. Having heard her curse nonstop on the roller coaster had made him familiar with the sound now, though it was even cuter coming out of her in a calmer voice. Then his chuckle turned into an ouch, when she pressed the icy rosé bottle to his arm and chilled a trail of goosebumps in its wake.

"Open the bottle!" she chided with those still flaming red cheeks.