Chapter Thirty-Five
Holly
With my focus narrowed in on my speech, the rest of the room fades away.
The words flow from memory—rehearsed a hundred times with Grayson, and a few hundred more alone.
I reminisce about my time with Harry, how the loss of him will continue to haunt me, and how I wonder if his ending could have been different if his clinic hadn’t closed.
The occasional murmur sounds from the back of the room, and when I flick my eyes back toward the bar, I see Grayson standing near Geoff.
Geoff looks irate, his face is flushed in that way it used to get when he was either drunk or pissed off, but Grayson doesn’t seem phased in the slightest. He nods at me, giving that strong, steady look that always makes my chest tighten.
I return to my speech, making sure to pause for effect when I recount my experience in some of the smaller clinics, and where I believe financial donations would make the most impact.
Before I know it, I’m thanking the crowd, and a polite but steady applause sounds throughout the room.
I can hear another sound, a clapping, but one that’s louder than the rest and a little off beat.
When I turn to find Grayson, his hands are raised above his head, clapping loudly with the biggest smile I have ever seen radiating across his face.
I smile back, having to purse my lips together so I don’t start giggling from being so damn happy.
I nod politely at the crowd, and then Keith meets me at the microphone.
He says a few words, prepping the crowd for a short question and answer session, when whispers from the back steal some of the attention.
A few of the guests are turning in their seat toward the source of the noise, and then a crash echoes across the room.
My head whips up, and my breath catches. Near the bar, a pissed-off Geoff has slammed his cocktail glass to the ground. The brown liquid splashes over the leg of Grayson’s pants, but he doesn’t so much as flinch with the act.
His brawny forearms are crossed firmly over his barrel chest with a foreign look on his face. One that’s both pissed off yet amused. I see him brush a finger over his lips, as if he’s asking Geoff to please shush, and I can’t help the laugh that bubbles out of me.
Half of the room is now turned to watch Geoff’s temper tantrum. Some turn back to face me, but the more my gaze is locked on the scene at the back of the bar, I feel the urge to run to Grayson.
Gathering up the skirt of my dress, I mumble a soft “excuse me” to Keith as I make my way down the few stage stairs.
I weave through the dining tables, and within seconds, I’m back at the bar with my eyes locked with Grayson.
He reaches a hand out for me once I’m within reach, just like he always does, and I willingly slide into his embrace.
“You alright?” I ask Grayson, a hand sliding up to rest on his chest.
“I’m fine, baby, I’m sorry about this.” He gestures to Geoff with a nod of his head.
“Me?” Geoff scoffs, raising his arms wide. “I’m not the problem here.”
Grayson is about to interrupt him, to likely put an end to this, but I’ve spent too many years holding my tongue around people like Geoff.
I let him treat me like shit throughout our relationship.
I let him ignore me on the worst day of my life.
But that was before I met a man who loves me for me, imperfections and all.
“Geoff, you need to calm down.”
He slices out a hand to the side as if to silence me, and his attention returns to Grayson.
I slide to the slide, making sure that I’m in front of Grayson. “Excuse me? For one, you don’t get to decide when I get to speak. And you don’t get to decide what I get to say.” I lower my voice, just a little, not oblivious to the guests that have turned in their seats to watch the drama unfold.
Geoff’s face breaks out in a cocky grin, and my irritation grows.
“You know what?” Something flicks inside of me.
A switch, maybe. One that has been itching to tell Geoff off since that night in February.
Even longer than that, if I was truly honest with myself.
I reach back to snag Grayson’s hand, lacing his fingers through mine.
“Geoff, I mean this in the nicest way possible. But you can fuck off. Fuck all the way off.”
A low chuckle sounds behind me, and Grayson places his free hand on my back, steading my nerves.
“You would be the type of person to get in a pissing match at an event like this. And it’s sad, really, that you feel you need to stake a claim on something.
Something you don't even care about. There isn't a thing in this world you could do to hurt me anymore, and we have better things to do than to feed into your pitiful games, so, if you will excuse us…” I grip Grayson’s hand, moving a step toward the door. “We’re leaving.”
The microphone screeches, and Keith’s voice cuts through the static, trying to regain the attention of the room. “Please, everyone—if I could have your attention for a moment.”
Most of the guests linger, curious ears perked in our direction. A few start to turn back, and when I turn with Grayson toward the exit, Regina is at my side with a hand gripping my elbow. “Okay, damage control time. I’m going to need you back on that stage.”
“Excuse me?”
“We need to spin this. Let’s get the focus back on the Q&A.” She glances at Grayson, eyes flicking up and down. “Let’s reframe the disagreement, we can spin it to be a mental health need.”
I pull back from her, my body physically lurching at her words, and when I look around, a few pairs of eyes are on us. Keith is still on the stage with the microphone firmly in hand, likely waiting for a nod from Regina to announce my return.
“I won’t be going back on that stage, I can guarantee that.
” I pull my shoulders back, and take a long look around the room.
Tonight is supposed to be about coming together as a team, about helping communities that are different from ours.
Instead, it feels more like a competition, with hushed gossip and vanity taking priority.
Grayson and I have felt uncomfortable all night, outsiders in a place we were openly invited to, and that’s a place I’d never want to be when there is another place about seventy miles from here that has begun to feel like my real home.
That sobering realization smacks me right in the face. “In fact,” I tell her as a feeling of pride blooms in my chest. I turn to look up at Grayson, and his gaze is already on me, nodding once as if reminding me that he’ll support me in any way possible.
Turning back to Regina, I let my satisfied smile show across my face. “You can tell them that I quit.”