25. Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Five
“G rey, please! Help me!” I panicked. My words were quick and smushed together, but I was desperate for him to intervene.
In a blur, he was there.
He ripped the man away from me by the collar of his shirt and bodily threw him in the opposite direction. “Get the fuck away from her,” he yelled, his voice laced with anger. The man stumbled and fell to his knees and his accomplice quickly ran to his rescue.
Grey snapped his eyes in my direction, his hands rubbing up and down my arms. “Are you okay? What happened? Who is that?”
I couldn’t respond. Instead, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, my head falling onto his chest. The familiar scent of him sent a sense of safety to my brain.
“Yeah,” I breathed. “I’m fine. He didn’t touch me. They’re just some drunk, pissed-off customers that were in the bar earlier.”
“I would’ve killed him if he laid a single finger on you.”
I used the rhythm of his steady heartbeat against my ear to calm down. The sense of security at having him here made me feel weightless, like I was floating.
Grey’s presence almost made me forget that the two drunk asses were still here. Looking over, I watched as the man peeled himself off the ground.
I stepped away from Grey, using his protection as an excuse to speak up for myself. I grabbed his hand before I spoke. “You two are real pieces of shit, you know that.”
The man spit back, “And you’re still a bitch.”
Grey took a subtle step in front of me. “Don’t you dare talk to her like that. You’re just begging for another taste of that pavement, aren’t you?”
The man stood, presumably calculating his next move.
“And don’t think about ever stepping foot back in this bar,” Grey went on. “You’re damn lucky you didn’t touch her, because if you had, you wouldn’t have been able to drag your sorry ass off the ground, I can promise you that.”
The man chuckled as he and the woman turned to leave.
“You heard them. Get your ass off my property before I call the cops.”
I swiveled toward my dad, who stood under the light at the back door, and sent a soft smile his way.
“This bar is a piece of shit anyway,” the woman screamed.
“And the bartenders fucking suck,” the man added.
Grey’s hand clenched in mine. He took another step forward, clearly with every intention of saying or possibly doing something more, before I pulled him back.
“They’re not worth it. Let it go,” I whispered.
The two culprits stumbled down the street and into the darkness.
“You okay, sweetheart?” Dad’s tone was littered with concern as he moved closer to the two of us. “What happened?”
“I’m fine, Dad.” I let out a deep breath. “Those two were in the bar earlier and tried to cause a scene. I guess they didn’t like it when I politely told them to ease off.” I rubbed a hand down my arm, the night air suddenly cool. “Anyway, I’m just grateful Grey was here,” I said, my eyes gleaming up to his.
“What in the actual hell. Did you recognize them?” Dad asked.
“No. They were loud and rowdy. I figured they were probably on vacation by the way they came in thinking they were better than us. They were less than pleasant to deal with, but I didn’t peg them as the dark alley kind of people. Just goes to show that you never know.”
“I don’t understand the audacity of some people,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m sorry. I should’ve been there earlier to help, but a few shipments got delivered and I was restocking in the back.”
“Don’t be sorry. It’s not your fault.”
“I’m just glad—” Dad looked at Grey, clearly having forgotten his name.
“Grey. Grey Prescott, sir.” He pulled his hand free from mine and threw it out to meet my dad’s in a firm shake.
“Grey. It’s nice to meet you. I’m grateful you were here to help my daughter.” A full smile spread across his face, making me nervous for what he was going to say next. “You wouldn’t happen to be the same G who sent the hydrangeas for my daughter, would you?”
“Dad!” I gasped.
“Ha. Yes, sir. That would be me.” Grey’s genuineness toward my dad sent sparks of happiness all around me, like a Fourth of July firework.
Dad looked at me first, smiling. “What? The flowers stick out like a sore thumb. I wanted to know where they came from.” He chuckled before facing Grey. “But based on the mile-wide smile that’s plastered on my daughter’s face, I’ll let this one slide.”
I was so caught up in their exchange I didn’t realize they were both staring at me, and that smile dad mentioned was still very much plastered across my face.
“MJ, why don’t you head home? I’ll finish closing up. I love you big.”
“I love you bigger. Thanks, Dad.”
“It was nice to meet you, Grey. I hope I’ll see you around.”
“You too, sir. Next time I send your daughter flowers, I’ll be sure to send them to her house.” He chuckled, reaching to shake Dad’s hand again.
“Good man,” Dad said, shaking his hand and walking back into the bar.
“Thank you.” My eyes met his. “You don’t know how glad I am that you were here. That you’re here now. I don’t want to know what he would’ve done had you not stopped—”
“Don’t finish that sentence,” he said, one hand in his pocket, the other just barely grazing his chest.
My face scrunched in confusion.
“Don’t finish that sentence because I don’t even want to think about what could’ve happened. The thought makes me fucking furious,” he finished, his fingers still putting pressure on the left side of his chest.
“Grey.” I grabbed his shirt and pulled him toward me. “I’m okay. A little shaken up, but fine…” I tugged him even closer, our lips dancing with one another. “Because of you.”
Deleting the little space left between us, I pushed our lips together. A kiss so vulnerable, my knees went weak. His hands reached for either side of my face while my hands wrapped around his waist. Our lips pressed together, our tongues syncing in perfect rhythm.
“Damn, I’ve missed you.” He smirked. “Can I walk you home?”
I bit the inside of my cheek. “I’d like that.”
Turning away from The Wharf, I grabbed Grey’s arm, and a sense of never wanting to let go wandered through my brain as he walked me home.
Walking out of my bathroom after opting for a somewhat cute matching set, I scanned the room for Grey, finding him in the corner of my room near my desk. Noticing the familiar Word document on my screen that was a compiled jumble of all my inner thoughts that I hoped to one day turn into a story, I immediately felt like I could vomit.
“What’s this?” he asked when I approached.
“Oh. That’s just a mess of words that I wrote.”
“MJ, this is good. Like, really good.”
“How much did you read?” My heart sank, realizing that a character in my so-called story eerily resembled him. If I wasn’t already mortified, now I wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out.
“Enough to know that you have serious talent.” He rested his lower half on the edge of my desk, folding his arms across his broad chest. “The way you pick each word and connect it with the next is addicting. I didn’t know you were a writer.”
“I guess you could say that. Although, I’m more of an aspiring writer.”
More serious this time, he spoke again. “Do you write?”
My face shifted into a puzzled gaze as I stared at him. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, do you write?” He lowered his hands, placing them on my desk behind him.
I hesitated. “Yes—”
“Then you’re a writer. Not an aspiring writer… an actual writer. It’s as simple as that. Don’t sell yourself short, MJ. You write, and from the little I read, you’re damn good at it.”
Listening to the words coming out of his mouth, I believed what he was saying. How did he make it sound so simple, so matter of fact, when I’d spent years trying to decide if I had what it took to call myself a writer.
Grey stepped closer, sliding his arms through mine and landing on the small of my back. One hand stayed put while he placed the other under my chin, lifting it until our eyes met. His alluring expression was one I didn’t want to look away from.
“Got it?” he demanded, his fingertips dropping to my exposed collarbone.
His confidence in me sent my body into a frenzy.
“Got it,” I whispered.
“Good.” He barely stepped back, holding up his pointer finger. “But I do have one question.”
“Shoot.”
“How do you track your progress when your goal is to write a whole-ass book?” he asked, and his interest in my work made me swoon.
“Simple. A word count. It can get overwhelming if you try to dissect it more than that. So, you just take it one word at a time.”
“Oh yeah, I’m sure it’s as simple as that,” he joked, pulling me into him again.
He softly kissed my lips, then trailed down the length of my neck, the scruff on his jaw tickling my skin. A few giggles slipped from my mouth as he slowly worked his way back up to my lips, planting one last kiss.
I instinctively pulled him into a hug, squeezing him tighter. “I’ve never felt safer than when I heard your voice in that parking lot.”
“I’m just really glad you’re okay,” he replied, sounding grateful.
Even though I could’ve stayed in his arms for the rest of forever, we released each other at the same time.
“Now that I know you’re home safe, I’m going to head out. But we’re still on for tomorrow, right?”
He stepped toward the door and so did I.
I reached for him, grabbing his hand in mine. “Stay?” I sighed. “Because I’ve missed you too.”
His gentle eyes brightened as they looked me over once more.
“And I’d rather not be alone tonight,” I added.
His soft grin eased the anxiousness in the pit of stomach that was still hanging around from earlier. “If it were up to me, you’d never have to be alone again.”
Feeling content with asking him to stay, I walked out of my bedroom and toward the kitchen.
“Want some hot tea?” I asked, banging around the cabinet in search of a mug.
“No, I’m good. But do you want me to find us something to watch?”
“Say less.” I giggled. “I hate trying to decide on a movie, so you better surprise me with something good.”
“No pressure or anything.” Grey slumped onto my couch.
Peering over the counter into the living room, I smiled as I watched him casually sitting there. His light-wash jeans, cuffed at the bottom, lay perched on my ottoman. His upper half was covered with a tan-colored Henley, two of the three buttons undone. He was resting his right hand over his head while his left hand messed with the remote.
I never saw myself here, with him, enjoying a casual movie night, but here we were.
“ Blue Crush , seriously?” I asked, strolling into the living room.
Grey moved his hand, making a perfect spot for me to plop into. “What? Not a fan?” he asked.
“No, I actually love this movie. I just never would’ve guessed this as your pick,” I said, holding my warm mug with both hands.
“This movie is one of the most underrated movies of the early two thousands.”
Our laughter filled the little space there was between us. I nuzzled myself right up next to him, finding that I fit perfectly in the space he’d left for me.
Somewhere during the private surfing lessons, I started to doze. Our bodies melted into one another, the sound of the movie playing in the background. His body was behind mine, my head resting on his arm. Neither of us spoke, but we didn’t have to, because our silence said everything.