Chapter 6 Evangeline #2
Somehow she found that almost heartbreaking.
Before long, they were back in the kitchen and Grayson had Leo in the crook of his arm, as the baby downed a bottle in record time.
“You were hungry,” he said, nodding to the boy.
Leo just wolfed down the last of his meal, too busy to reply.
The way Grayson smiled at him with such pride made Evangeline smile too.
“Never forget the towel,” Grayson said, turning to Evangeline. “He eats fast, so there’s spit-up sometimes.”
“Got it,” she told him.
“Okay,” he said to Leo as he draped the towel over his shoulder. “Let’s see if we can find your burp.”
She watched as he paced the kitchen, moving gracefully for such a big man, and gently tapping the baby’s back between the shoulder blades.
Sure enough, after about half a minute, the baby let out a sound like a gunshot.
“Wow,” she said.
“There it was,” Grayson said. “Good work, son.”
He turned to Evangeline with a proud smile and she smiled back at him, feeling like a lovesick fool.
Stop that, she told herself. You can’t fall for your boss just because he’s handsome and nice with his son.
She and Rory had always been so focused on survival that she hadn’t had a lot of time for crushes, let alone boyfriends. She’d always thought that was a good thing, but maybe lack of practice was making her brain confuse the respect she felt for the hardworking single dad with something else.
“I’m just going to put him down,” Grayson said. “If you want to get out our dinner, I’ll be right back.”
She knew she should probably follow him, but at the moment she figured she could use some time without him in the room just to clear her head.
“Okay,” she said, keeping her eyes on Leo. “Good night, sweet boy. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Leo’s little face was so sleepy, but he smiled at her as he nuzzled back into his daddy’s shoulder.
That look warmed her heart, and she felt a little better as Grayson padded off with him, humming softly.
As soon as she was alone again, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and counted down from ten.
When she opened her eyes, she felt almost like herself again. Rory had taught her that technique when they were kids and it hadn’t failed her yet.
She headed to the fridge and got out the sandwiches. She found some plates in the first cupboard and glasses in the next one over. There was a pitcher of iced tea in the fridge, so she put ice in the glasses and poured each of them a glass of tea.
She was just getting it all to the table when Grayson came back in.
“Hey,” he said. “You found everything.”
“You have a very well-organized kitchen,” she told him. “I poured us some tea. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all,” he said. “It’s nice not to have to get anything ready myself.”
There wasn’t much preparation involved in putting store-bought sandwiches on a plate for dinner, but Evangeline decided to just take the compliment.
“The man at the fire station said these were from Mario’s?” she said instead, by way of conversation as she took a seat.
“Yeah,” Grayson said, pulling out the chair opposite hers. “It’s a pizza shop, but they’ve got the best sandwiches in town.”
“That’s good to know,” Evangeline said. “Do they make a good cheesesteak?”
“Best around,” Grayson said with a smile. “They get a delivery of Amoroso rolls in every day.”
Evangeline nodded, feeling a little relieved. She didn’t eat out often, but it was good to know at least one place in this cute little town served her favorite food.
It was quiet for a few minutes as they dug into their meal.
Evangeline had grabbed a random hoagie and when it turned out to be an Italian she was really happy.
And the men at the firehouse weren’t wrong about the quality of a Mario’s sandwich.
The spicy salami was so flavorful against the savory provolone cheese that it was all she could do not to moan around every bite.
Of course, she felt almost inside out with hunger and exhaustion, so maybe that was what made it seem so delicious.
“Good?” Grayson asked when she finished the first half of the enormous sandwich and stopped for a sip of tea.
“So good,” she told him, feeling only a little embarrassed that she had scarfed down half her dinner so quickly. “I forgot lunch today.”
“Well, bring that appetite with you tomorrow,” he chuckled as he started on his second half.
“What’s going on tomorrow?” she asked.
“My mom’s good friend invited us over to the Inn for dinner,” he said. “Trudy is an incredible cook.”
“I’m invited too?” Evangeline asked, feeling a little stunned.
“I messaged her when I was upstairs,” Grayson explained. “Although there was really no need. She’s always hoping I’ll bring someone.”
He stopped suddenly and cleared his throat.
“I didn’t mean—” he began, his hand snaking up to rub at those scars on his neck again.
“My brother always hopes the same thing,” she said quickly. “But he’s my best friend, and I keep pretty busy with work. It’s not like high school when we both brought our friends over for dinner all the time.”
Grayson nodded, a tiny smile tugging up one corner of his mouth.
“I mean, of course, I’m just going with you as Leo’s nanny,” she said quickly, worrying that maybe he would think it was presumptuous of her to consider herself a friend. She had just wanted to avoid that awful awkwardness from before.
“Leo and I can use all the friends we can get,” he replied gently.
When she dared to meet his eyes again, his blue gaze was solemn now.
“Me too,” she heard herself tell him.
“Then I guess it’s good that we met,” he said.
Suddenly, the intensity of his gaze felt like it was taking up all of her senses. The kitchen faded away and there was nothing but Grayson Ward, his wide shoulders relaxed now, and his handsome face focused completely on her.
“I, uh, didn’t bring anything out here with me,” she said, forcing herself to look away. “It was supposed to be more of a scouting mission, but when Sam had me chase after you it felt like maybe all this was fate.”
“You can go home tomorrow to get your stuff,” Grayson said, sitting back in his chair. “You don’t have to start right away.”
“No, no,” she told him quickly. “I can do that on a day off. But would it be okay for me to take a bit of time in the morning to just get a cab into town and do a little shopping?”
She didn’t want to use her phone, and honestly didn’t know if Uber was even a thing out here, and there certainly wasn’t much chance that a bus ran past this remote location, so she figured a cab was her best bet.
“I’ll take you,” he told her. “Leo and I have some errands to run anyway.”
“Are you sure?” she asked. “I don’t want to be any trouble, and I’m sure you have work to do.”
Though suddenly she wasn’t so sure. What exactly did he do, if he’d been taking care of Leo by himself since Thanksgiving?
“You’re not any trouble,” he told her, wincing slightly. “It’s my pleasure.”
“Okay,” she said, wondering why he had winced. “Thanks.”
Silence fell over them again.
“Hey,” he said softly after a moment.
“Yeah?” she asked, turning to him.
“Are you going to finish that?” he asked, nodding to her sandwich.
She looked down and realized that she had wrapped it back up on instinct. Years of stretching the budget as far as possible had gotten her into the habit of saving half her meals as leftovers. It didn’t matter that there was already an extra one in the fridge.
“No,” she said, smiling. “Did you want it?”
“Only if you’re sure,” he said.
“I’m sure,” she told him, sliding it across the table.
“Excellent,” he said, opening it back up. “So let me tell you a bit about how Leo’s day normally goes.”
As he talked about the boy, Grayson’s expression relaxed, his shoulders went down, and his voice deepened.
It was clear to Evangeline that she’d been right before—Grayson was at his best when he was focused on his son.
And the way he spoke about Leo’s routines, down to the smallest details, told her all she needed to know about what kind of parent he was.
“I guess that’s it,” he said at last. “Though I’m sure I’ll think of more as we go. And if you have any ideas of things I should be doing, just let me know.”
“If I think of anything I’ll let you know,” she said. “But you know him better than anyone, and it really sounds like you’ve got everything under control. He’s a very lucky baby.”
Grayson smiled, and for just a moment she saw a light in his eyes that was so beautiful it made her heart skip a beat.
What is wrong with me?
“I, uh, guess I’d better head to bed,” she said, leaping up from the table.
“Of course,” he said, his eyes back on his extra sandwich. “You’re tired. I’ll see you in the morning.”
She scurried off toward the hallway.
“Evangeline,” he called after her.
“Yeah?” she said, turning back.
“Thank you for helping us,” he said. “I’m glad you’re here.”
She nodded, feeling too pleased to even reply, and headed toward her new room.
The day had been surreal and terrifying. But somehow she felt safe and calm now.
A pang of guilt twisted her stomach as soon as she stepped into her luxurious room.
I’m so sorry, Rory, she told her brother inwardly as she imagined him in a concrete cell in the city.
I’ll find a way to help you somehow.
There was soap in the shower, but no shampoo, and toothpaste by the sink, but no toothbrush. It was too late to bother Grayson about it, so she just made the best of what she had, and was honestly thankful to have that much after all that had happened today.
As she got ready for bed, Evangeline figured she’d be up for a while since she was in a strange place and had so much on her mind.
But the day had really taken a toll on her, and she was asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, with thoughts of Grayson and baby Leo dancing around her mind as she drifted off.