Chapter 16
Michael
I didn’t get to talk to Grace that night or the next.
I texted her, apologizing, and she was sweet as always. Finally, the evening after that, I got a few minutes to breathe. It was Friday night, oddly enough, but there was an unusual lull right around nine pm that gave me the chance I’d been waiting days for.
I went out the pub’s back entrance for a breath of fresh air, both literally and figuratively. Without thinking I tapped Grace’s number. It wasn’t until the phone was ringing that I realized I should have texted first to see if she was up for a call.
“Hi, Michael.”
That soft voice of hers got me every time, like the stroke of her fingertips across my skin.
“Hey, Grace. I got a minute free and thought I’d call. Sorry I didn’t text first.”
“No, that’s fine.” I heard some shuffling. “I know you have to grab the chance when you have it. Though I’m a little surprised you have it at nine on a Friday.”
“Yeah, me, too.” I wouldn’t have long. “What are you up to?”
“Don’t tell Mercy but I’m measuring the chair and the couch. I decided I need to come clean with her next week and tell her I need to get a different set. You know how bad this couch is and if I keep breaking down the matching chair, she won’t be able to use the set for staging anymore.”
“I seriously doubt you weigh enough to break the chair down, but I see your point.”
She made no comment on my comment. “Anyway, I have almost enough saved to buy a set soon. I want to start looking at sales and I need to know the right size.”
I leaned against the back wall of the pub, feeling better than I had in a week. All because I was talking to Grace. About buying a couch.
Ace and Rycker would die laughing if they could see me.
Levi...somehow, I thought Levi might understand.
And Mercy would just stand there and blatantly listen in.
“Let me know if you want company. Shopping, I mean. I can help you with test lounging.”
Grace gave an amused little snort. “’Test lounging’?”
“Testing it out for maximum lounging comfort. It’s a thing.”
“Of course, it is,” she returned, the amusement now mixed with a touch of sass.
The pub’s back door swung open and one of the cooks stuck his head out, eyeing me as I smiled like a loon at nothing. I nodded at him and raised my hand in acknowledgement, and he ducked back inside.
I hurried to ask Grace what I’d planned to and finish up the call.
“They’re looking for me, so I need to go, but I wanted to see if you have anything on your calendar for a week from Sunday. It looks like these new cooks are going to work out so I should have the day off. I’m planning to go out to Levi’s if you want to come with me.”
She didn’t hesitate. “That sounds great if I’m not imposing.”
Imposing? Not at all.
Setting Mercy’s mind spinning with wedding planning? Probably.
Not that Grace needed to know that.
“You know you’re not. The others will be happier to see you than me.”
“That’s not true,” Grace demurred. “I hope you get a day off before then, though.”
“Not sure that’s going to happen, but that’s alright.” Having a day with Grace and my family to look forward to would make the week go by faster. “Have a good night and I’ll try to call tomorrow, okay?”
“Sounds good, and you, too.”
I resisted the urge to ask her to dream about me and went back in to finish the night, my head full of Grace and plans for the week ahead.