Chapter 15
Grant called her Saturday morning. She wasn’t expecting it; she’d given up on thinking that they were going to have a chance at any kind of happiness. She was hung over from the night before, but it was fairly mild. She’d stopped after the second drink at the restaurant, choosing to go to bed when she got home. After some coffee and Advil, she didn’t feel absolutely terrible. By the time her phone rang, she was pretty much human again.
“Grant?” she said in surprise when she picked it up.
“Yeah, hi, Alex. Are you busy today?”
She paced around her small kitchen and ran a hand over her ponytail. “No, I don’t really have any plans.”
“Do you want to come over?”
She stopped walking. “To your place?”
“Yeah. Or I can come to yours if you’d rather.”
“Uh, no. Just give me some time to shower and get dressed. What’s your address?” She wrote down what he told her and then said she’d be there soon.
After they hung up, Alex raced to the shower and got started on getting ready. She wound her ponytail into a bun and stuck a shower cap on. The last thing she wanted was to spend hours drying her hair. She washed thoroughly but quickly and hopped out, trying to decide what to wear as she dried off. The weather was turning cooler, and she had to wear pants if she didn’t want to be cold. That thought made her stop all movement. She was already picturing this as a booty call and nothing more. She had to be okay with that, she reminded herself. It was what she agreed to. Sighing, she threw down the towel and stalked to her closet, jerking items off the hangers and tossing them on the bed. She was angry with herself for getting any ideas about something progressing with Grant. Relationship wise, they were right where they were supposed to be.
So, she told herself to shut up and got dressed. She glanced at the directions to be sure she knew where she was going and left her apartment. He was only ten minutes away, and her nerves hadn’t had time to die down when she pulled into his complex’s parking lot. Alex rubbed her hands on her jeans to dry the sweat that built there and got out of her car. She found the sign on the building directing her to the correct unit and went for the stairs. She took a steadying breath and knocked.
He flung the door open almost immediately. She smiled to think he’d been waiting on her and drank in his appearance. His beard was neatly combed and he grinned at her.
“Come on in, Alex.”
She followed him into an apartment that was slightly bigger than hers. She saw a hallway with a few open doors, an eat-in kitchen to her left, and a decent-sized living room. It was tidy, and there was nothing too fancy on the walls or shelves, but they weren’t empty. “I like your place.”
“Thanks. Would you like something to drink?”
“Um. First things first.”
Alex stepped up to him and lifting the few inches it took her to reach his mouth. She cupped his face, feeling a thrill when he shoved his hands into her hair. It wasn’t an easy kiss of greeting; she sank into him, pressing her body to his and relaxing as his scent and warmth enveloped her. She’d missed him.
She pulled away, and he pressed two more brief kisses to her mouth before he let her go. “Drink?”
“Yeah, do you have soda?”
“I do. Come on.”
He led her to the kitchen and opened the fridge. She selected a can and sat at the table with him. She liked the windows in there. They brought in a good amount of light. “So,” she said, turning back to Grant.
“So.” He fiddled with his soda can instead of opening the conversation.
“You invited me over, remember? Did you want to . . . talk?”
“Yeah.” He shifted nervously in his chair. “I need to tell you some things.”
“Okay.”
Grant ran his hand over his mouth and pinched his lips briefly, then he cleared his throat and began. “Okay, I know what I said in the beginning, but I was wrong. I hope you agree with me because I don’t like doing the casual thing. You deserve more than that, and Iwantmore than that with you.”
She closed her eyes and let out the breath she was holding through his short speech. “Oh, good.” She opened her eyes when she felt his hand on hers.
“Yeah? You want to have more?”
“I want to make this a real relationship. I was doing my best to abide by the guidelines we set, but it’s just not how I’m built.”
“Me, either.” He shook his head. “I’m sorry I was avoiding you. I didn’t know what to do. I guess I scared myself.”
