Hold On For Dear Love (Sequel to WILD)

Harry’s POV

I walked off the private plane onto a small airstrip located in Brazil. It was warm, but not too hot. Sean was met by someone who I immediately recognized as Emily’s older brother, Matt. Seeing him made me sick to my stomach. He didn’t even come to Emily’s funeral. He just took off and didn’t tell anyone where he went. I didn’t really blame him though. I barely convinced myself to go.

“So, Matt. Are you guys going to tell me why we’re here?” I asked them.

“All in good time. You remember Sean right?” Matt asked me.

“Yeah, of course”

“So how have you been?” he asked.

“I’m....better, I guess” I shrugged.

“I’m glad to hear that. Sorry I couldn’t make it to the funeral. I had important business to take care of. I know that sounds horrible of me to miss my little sister’s funeral for business, but you’ll understand when we get to the house” he said.

“The house?” I asked.

The two of them just smiled at each other and started walking, completely ignoring my question. They were obviously hiding something from me, but I decided to just leave it alone and trust them.

The car ride was long. The road we took went through a few cities before finally coming out into the countryside. I looked out the window, seeing the ocean in the distance. We turned off on a gravel road leading towards the coastline. The car came to a stop a few minutes later, then we all stepped out of it.

They led me up to a small house that stood at the edge of the beach where the pavement met the sand. I couldn’t help but smile at the memory that came to mind.

*Flashback*

“Hey, Harry?” Emily asked, making me turn my attention away from the array of colors that reflected on the ocean. We had been sitting on the beach for hours just talking and watching the sun set in the distance.

“Yes, love?”

“When we get tired of the spotlight and just want to settle down, I want to live on the beach.”

“Why is that?” I asked curiously.

“It’s so peaceful out here...Quiet. No paparazzi trying to get pictures of us or fans screaming.”

“Yeah...A beach house it is then.” She looked up at me with that beautiful smile of hers spread across her face. After seeing that I just couldn’t help myself. I leaned forwards and kissed her soft lips, both of us smiling into it. I could get used to this. Just sitting on the beach with the love of my life, away from all the cameras and fans. It’s just...perfect.

*End Flashback*

“You alright, Harry?” Matt asked me.

“Huh? Oh yeah...it's just...Emily always wanted a beach house.” He nodded, a smile forming on his lips.

We stepped up onto the wooden porch and he knocked the door. I was surprised to see Sara, Emily’s old tour manager before stepping inside, Sean going in behind him. I went to follow them, but stopped when I saw movement further down the beach. There were three figures down by the water. One of them was a man wearing khaki shorts and a bright blue button up shirt, his head bare. There was something familiar about him. He almost looked like...no. That was impossible.

I shook the thought from my head and looked at the other two. There was a little girl who looked to be almost two and wore a pink sundress, her curly brown hair falling just under her chin.

The woman wore a dress as well except hers was a darker blue color. Her wavy brown hair fell perfectly over her bare shoulder, making her look almost angelic.

There was something about her that drew me in, causing my feet to carry me towards her on their own. As I got closer I began to pick up on the little details that felt so familiar. The way she stood with her weight on one side. How she ran her hand down the middle of her hair to push it out of her face.

Then I saw it.

The faint outline of a tattoo on her right hand.

My heart started pounding so hard in my chest that I thought it was going to burst out. My feet moved faster and faster, carrying me closer to the three people. The man turned and I stopped in my tracks.

No...That’s....That’s impossible.

It was Jack.

He smiled at me and turned to the woman, tapping on her shoulder. When he got her attention he said something that made her turn around to look at me.

The moment I saw her face I broke into a run, nearly tripping on the soft sand as I sprinted towards her. It seemed like an eternity before I was finally able to pull her into my arms. I clung to her for dear life, letting tears stream freely down my face as I sobbed into her shoulder. I didn’t care if this was just a dream I was having. If it was a dream, then I sure as hell didn’t want to wake up from it.

A few moments passed before I finally pulled back to look at her face. She looked slightly older but still as, if not more, beautiful than before. My trembling hands reached up to touch her tear stained cheeks, looking into her bright blue eyes that were staring back into mine.
Emily’s eyes...

“I-I...I heard the gunshot...I-I don’t” I stammered, in complete shock.

I looked up at Jack, confused as all hell.

“And you...I-I saw you die. I was at the hospital when they pulled the plug.”

“It was all fake. I'm so sorry, Harry. I didn’t want to hurt you, but we had to do this in order to protect you and everyone else until there was enough evidence to convict my mom and the others.” She began explaining the story to me, and suddenly everything made sense.

*Flashback*

~Emily’s POV~

I woke up to find myself in an unfamiliar room, lying on an old beat up couch. I slowly sat up and brought my hand up to my head as if it would ease the dizziness that was in my head.

“The dizziness will go away momentarily” I hear a familiar voice say.

My head snapped up and my eyes went wide in shock.

“Dad?” I asked, still unable to believe it. He looked almost exactly the same except for the fact that he grew out a beard and mustache.

This can’t be real. Maybe I passed out at the bar and this was just some weird dream I was having. I watched as he slowly got up and walked over to me, stopping when he stood just a foot away. His hand touched my cheek, proving to me that he was real. He was alive. I jumped to my feet and threw my arms around him, tears streaming down my face as I hugged him tightly. His arms wrapped around me, holding me close to him. He kissed my head.

“H-How….I don’t…I don’t understand. Y-you died. I was there!”

“No, it was made to look like I died. I really did get hit with the bomb shrapnel, but I survived. When your uncle Sean got there we put our plan to work. We had been expecting an attack like that, so we came up with the idea of faking my death. That way I would be able to keep a better eye on you and get closer to finding proof that they were behind everything” he explained.

I was even more confused now. “What do you mean? Who was behind what?” I asked.

“The ones behind the fire, and the multiple threats on your life” he answered.

“Y-you know who it is? How did you figure it out? Who are they?”

“The day you took off to go see Harry after you got dropped from Starlit Records, Eric stopped by to talk to me. He said that he was being forced into this plan that your mother, Bella, and Ryan were all a part of. One to get rid of you since their plan to destroy your career failed.”

“Mum was behind this? And Ryan? I don’t understand, why would he be in on it?”

“Your mother was married to Ryan and he is just as crazy as she is, and also Bella”

“That I can see” I mutter. “So why did you kidnap me from the club?”

“Because it was the only place that we could get you alone. We had to do this…Eric told us that their next target wasn’t going to be you…It was Harry”

The breath caught in my throat and my eyes widened slightly. No, nothing could happen to Harry. He had his family, the boys, the fans. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to him because of me.

“So, now what? You brought me here just to tell me that?” I asked.

“No, I brought you here because we have a way to protect him…The only option you have” He said softly.

“What option is that?”

~.:o:.~

“No, I can’t do this. This will crush him, Dad. I can’t do that to him” I said as they got ready to dial the number.

“Do you want to protect him or not? This is only temporary until we find enough evidence to convict your mother and the others. He’ll be fine” he argued with me

I bite my lip and look at him for a moment. I knew he was right, but I didn’t want him to be. I didn’t want to picture Harry’s broken face when we did this. If he did this to me then I wouldn’t know what to do.

I wouldn’t be able to go on without him. I’d just be some empty shell, being constantly reminded that the person I loved wasn’t coming back.

But no matter how hard it would be, I knew I had to do it. I had to protect him. I wouldn’t let him suffer because of me. It would be hard for the both of us. I would have to completely cut off contact with him, but it had to be done.

“Alright. I’m ready”

~END FLASHBACK~

“I had to do it to protect you, Harry.” Emily said once she finished explaining. “I’m so sor-”

I cut her off, pressing my lips to hers with as much passion as I could muster. My lips moved hungrily against hers, not wanting to separate when our need for air became too great. Her lips left mine for a quick breath before I brought her back in. My arms snaked around her waist, pulling her body as close to as humanly possible to my own. I felt like I could breathe again for the first time in two years. Like I was whole again. I pulled back, leaving butterfly kisses all over her face before I wrapped my arms around her in a tight hug.

“I love you so much” I whispered into her neck.

“I love you, too” She said softly.

I closed my eyes and just held her there until I felt a slight tug on my pant leg. I pulled back, my eyes wandering down to the source, finding it to be the little girl. She looked up at me with bright blue eyes, identical to Emily’s.

My eyes widened when I remembered finding the pregnancy test in the bathroom. I looked up at Emily who was smiling softly at me. The little girl turned to Emily and tugged on her dress before reaching her arms up to her. I watched in shock as Emily lifted the girl into her arms before turning to me once again. With the two of them together side by side I could clearly see the resemblance.

“Harry, this is Rosalie” she said slowly, her eyes staring into mine for my reaction, but I kept my eyes on the girl in her arms. Emily gave her the name that we picked together when we talked about what we would call our kids if we had any. She had my dimples and curly brown hair, but Emily’s lips and bright blue eyes that reminded me of a clear sky in the middle of summer. She was beautiful.

“When?” I managed to choke out, my emotions once again getting the better of me.

“I found out a few days before I left. I didn’t tell you right away because I wanted to wait until after the wedding to surprise you, but then all of that stuff happened and I had to leave. She was born on March 25th. I’ve been showing her pictures and videos of you so she knows who you are” she explained.

I let out a small laugh of happiness, my hand moving up to cover my mouth. I almost couldn’t believe it. Right here in front of me was my little girl...The child I always wanted to have with Emily, but never thought I would. Tears started to stream down my face when I saw her smile. She had dimples on both cheeks with two bottom teeth coming in. She stared at me for a long moment before reaching her arms out to me. I immediately pulled her into my arms, holding her small body as tight as I could without hurting her. When I pulled away she put her hands on my cheeks and looked into my teary eyes.

“Daddy”

My heart melted inside my chest. I looked up at Emily who was smiling at me with so much love in her watery eyes and I don’t think I could have been any happier in that moment. I turned back to Rosalie and kissed her head.

“Yeah, baby girl. I’m your daddy” I choked out, pulling Emily into my embrace as well and close my eyes as I held my daughter and the girl I fell madly in love with in my arms. I was finally whole again...

Despite all the hell I went through in the past couple years, I was happy. And from that moment on, nothing could break it.

Notes