Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
ONE WEEK LATER
Harper
I took in a deep breath as Grayson opened the door to his grandfather’s home.
“Don’t be nervous. He’s going to love you.” He smiled as he gently squeezed my hand.
An older woman walked into the foyer with a wide grin on her face.
“Grayson. It’s good to see you.” She pinched his cheek.
“Celia, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Harper Holland. Harper, this is my grandfather’s housekeeper, Celia.”
“It’s such a pleasure to meet you. You’re beautiful.” She gave me a light hug.
“Thank you. It’s nice to meet you too.”
“Grayson, I thought I heard voices in here.”
“Grandfather, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Harper Holland. Harper, this is Leon Rhodes, my grandfather.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Rhodes.” I smiled.
“The pleasure is all mine, Harper. Come.” He took hold of my hand and led us into the living room. “Dinner will be ready shortly. Sit down. Can I offer you a glass of wine?”
“No. I’m good, thank you.”
Grayson walked over to the bar and poured himself a drink.
“I saw the design you did on the high rise. I must say, Harper, I was impressed.”
“Thank you, Mr. Rhodes.”
Dinner was served, and Grayson grabbed hold of my hand and led me into the dining room. The dinner Celia made was excellent as well as the fruit flan for dessert. We had a great conversation, and I really liked Grayson’s grandfather.
“It was such a pleasure to meet you, Harper,” he spoke as he lightly kissed my hand. “I’ll make sure I stop by your office when you’re there.”
“Thank you, Mr. Rhodes. I had a lovely time.” I smiled.
“Are you ready, sweetheart?” Grayson asked as he took hold of my hand.
That was the first time he’d called me that, making my heart flutter.
One Week Later
Grayson
It had been a week since my grandfather met Harper, and I needed to tell him she was pregnant before he noticed on his own. Just as I pulled my phone out to call him, he knocked on my office door and stepped inside.
“Grandfather, I was just going to call you?” I held up my phone.
“Were you now?” He smiled. “Well, I’m here. I just came in to check up on some things.”
“I wanted to know if you’d have dinner with me tonight at Daniel.”
“Sure. Is Harper joining us?”
“No. I thought it could just be the two of us.”
“Okay. I stopped by her office to say hi, and Curtis said she wasn’t in today.”
“She doesn’t work in the office on Thursday.”
“All right. I have some things to do. What time do you want to meet for dinner?”
“Seven o’clock?”
“I’ll see you then.”
I arrived at Daniel promptly at seven o’clock, and my grandfather was already sitting at a table waiting for me with a drink in his hand.
“How long have you been here?” I asked as I sat down.
“About five minutes.”
The waiter walked over and took my drink order as we looked at the menu.
“So, what prompted this dinner?” my grandfather asked. “I will assume it has something to do with Harper.”
“Actually, it does. You didn’t give me your thoughts about her.”
“I like her, Grayson. I like her a lot. She has a good head on her shoulders, she’s smart and very nice, not to mention she’s beautiful. You did good, son.”
“Thank you, Grandfather. I’m happy you approve of her. But there’s something I haven’t told you yet.”
“What?”
“She’s pregnant.”
“Is the baby yours?”
“No. Before I met her, she was already pregnant. The father isn’t in the picture at all.”
“I see. And you knew this when you met her?”
“Not at first. She told me during the interview and when I offered her the job.”
“And yet you still pursued her?”
“I did. How could I not?” I smiled.
“You really love this girl, don’t you?”
“I do. For the first time in my life, I finally understand what love is.”
Damn. I was good.
“I can tell she feels the same way about you. I was watching her at dinner, and every time you spoke her eyes lit up. I’m proud of you, Grayson. I knew one day you’d meet someone who would steal your heart. I can’t help but wonder about the timing though. It wasn’t too long after I gave you that ultimatum that you met her.”
Shit.
“She isn’t some random girl I just picked up. I told you how we met. She was in front of me in line at Starbucks, and we got to talking about the cranberry muffins. The more we talked, I found out she was looking for a job and I had her come in for an interview. I had no intention of pursuing anything with her at that point. But the more time I spent with her and got to know her, the more my desire to be with her grew.”
“Like I said. You did good, and I’m proud of you for wanting to take on the responsibility of her pregnancy.”
I gave him a smile as I finished my drink.