40. True
Me:
I finally convinced grandma to pick up her cane from the pharmacy
Mama:
About time! What did you have to threaten her with?
I snickered at her quick reply to the message I’d sent in the group chat, holding tighter to my grandmother’s hand while we walked the short distance from the pharmacy on Main Street to Read the Room. She wanted to see Goldyn and I wanted to see how many books I could buy before I felt better about the way my day had started. The credit card Greyson never took back was suddenly burning a hole in my pocket.
I typed out the next message with one hand.
Me:
No threats. The PT said if she kept overworking her hip, soon the cane wouldn’t be an option. It would be a necessity.
Dad:
Trust me, that IS a threat to your grandma. You know she doesn’t take well to having to sit down and let people do stuff for her
Me:
Dad! When did you rejoin the group chat??
Dad:
Last night
Before I could comment on his emoji choice, another message appeared on my screen.
Daddy:
True, baby girl, why does your mother say you aren’t coming home for dinner next Thursday?
Me:
Because I have a wedding reception to go to the day after, Daddy. I don’t think Camryn has a quick back and forth trip in him. You know he needs a few days to settle
Mama:
Especially if it’s snowing.
Daddy:
Fine. But Christmas, you’re coming home. At least a week. And we’ll talk about that car of yours then
Me:
You sound like your mom. So bossy
Wynton St. John was a carbon copy of Ruby Jean. He got some of my grandfather’s mannerisms, but he looked just like his mama. And was just as bull-headed. My mother double texted while I kept my eyes ahead. The cold air had my eyes watering and my grandma was on my right, not batting an eye at the frigid chill that had settled over Bliss Peak in the past two days.
Mama:
As long as you’re not alone
You’re not gonna spend the day alone, right True?
My mother’s concern was valid. My built-in best friend was no longer on this earth and she wasn’t near me to make sure I was good. Without a doubt, I knew she wouldn’t hesitate to hop in her car and drive across the state to get to me on Thanksgiving if I answered wrong, so I rushed to quiet her concern.
Me:
I’ll be fine. I have grandma and grandad. And Noah and Greyson
Mama:
Oh, that’s right. Your neighbors
I hadn’t told any of my parents about the turn that relationship had taken and my heart knocked in my chest at the thought of having to. Not because I thought they would care I was dating two people. But because it would put them on alert that this temporary hiatus in the mountains was possibly going to turn into more. And honestly, I didn’t have the words to reassure them that it wouldn’t. It was only a matter of time before one of my grandparents spilled the beans and I planned to enjoy whatever time I had left in the meantime.
Stuffing my phone in my coat pocket, I reached for the door of Read the Room and waited for my grandmother to walk in ahead of me.
The scent of pinecones and cinnamon permeated the book shop, mixed with the aroma of fresh baked goods from next door. I could never walk in this place without my mouth watering. And even though I was still full from the breakfast I had with my grandparents, there was no way in hell I was leaving here without something sweet.
For the next hour, I alternated between texting my parents and walking through the store, slowly collecting books before adding them to a pile at the checkout counter. Since my grandfather dropped us off at the physical therapist’s office, Noah had volunteered to pick us up. But I sent him a voice note, explaining that he didn’t have to give up his lunch break because my grandma and I would be at the bookstore for a while.
I didn’t know why he always communicated in voice notes, but I loved hearing his voice every time he texted me, so I followed his lead. Sometimes, when he was working he’d send me five-minute voice notes and it was the first thing I heard when I woke up. I fucking loved it.
A few seconds later, a new message from him arrived.
“Shit, I already told Greyson to go get you. He left a little while ago. He should be there now.”
My stomach plummeted at his words, but I cleared the prickly emotions from my throat and said, “Okay.”
Okay?
Why had I wasted a voice note on that? Goldyn saved me from obsessing over it too long when she let out a startled gasp. “I’ve never seen you buy this many books. What’s the occasion?”
With an unconvincing hike of my shoulders, I said, “Just felt like getting more fiction on my shelf.”
The shelves were hypothetical because these books were joining the neat stack at the foot of my bed. They wouldn’t see an actual bookshelf until I got back to my room in King’s Town.
I’d read Sweet Heat in less than two hours the day after the Fall Festival, and I’d just picked up a copy of each of the polyamorous books she still had on display. One thing I could say about Goldyn? She had top tier taste in romance.
She scanned all my books, bagging them in four separate bags so the weight was distributed evenly. Then she smiled warmly and asked, “Will that be all?”
I looked over at my grandmother who was on the couch under the staircase reading a magazine. “Ring up whatever she’s reading too.” My eyes flitted around the checkout counter. “Oh, and this bookmark.”
“Okay and how will you be paying for this today?”
I reached in my purse, ready to pull out the titanium card I hadn’t used since Charlotte when a short stack of crisp bills landed on the counter. My brows creased at the same time Goldyn’s eyes swelled. Then I looked up at the man who smelled like leather and tasted like sin.
Greyson.
His right hand balanced a cup holder with four different coffees and a paper bag from next door. His dark eyes were cloudy with…fear? He looked at me before turning his attention on Goldyn and the money she was counting with a smirk.
“Is that enough?”
Goldyn pursed her lips. “Well, if you’re feeling generous?—”
“Goldyn!” I hissed lowly to which she simply grinned at the cash register, sliding the bills into the right slots.
“Fine. Here’s your receipt. Come back and see me soon.” She winked at me, handing Greyson his change, and suddenly I couldn’t help the smile on my lips.
Turning to Greyson, I licked my lips, telling him, “Just so you know, I was gonna use your credit card before you swooped in here.”
The look he gave me was assessing. But tender. And possessive. It sent a flurry of emotions through my already overwhelmed body, so I gulped and walked over to my grandmother to help her up and tell her it was time to go.