“Afraid I’ll embarrass you?” he asked teasingly.
“Nope. Afraid she might kill you.”
“Puhlease, she’ll love me. Every woman loves and wants me,” Jason said, nodding sincerely.
“I’m glad to see that you’re so humble,” Haley said, chuckling.
“That, I am,” Jason said as Haley began to load his arms with plates of food to take out to the grill. “So, you mentioned inviting her over. I’m guessing that the two of you are close.”
“I am. She raised me off and on until I was ten and then took over full-time,” Haley said, opening the screen door for him. “Anyway, I decided to cut my visit to my parents’ house short today.”
“Why?”
“Because I told her to. That’s why,” a woman’s crisp voice answered.
Jason looked up to see an elderly woman in a wheelchair being pushed towards them by a thin man with thinning gray hair. By the looks of the man, he was Haley’s grandmother’s helper.
“Are you my Haley’s boyfriend?”
Haley felt her face burn as she waited for the earth to open up beneath her and drag her under. Prayed for it.
“No, Grandma, he’s not my boyfriend. He’s my friend from next door,” Haley quickly explained, hoping that would be the end of it.
Grandma’s eyes narrowed on Jason. Haley was about to tell her grandmother to cut it out. That look had sent many friends and boyfriends running, but to her complete surprise, Jason didn’t cower.
He reached over and shook her hand. “My name is Jason Bradford. I’m the neighbor from hell.”
Grandma’s lips twitched. She looked over at her companion. “Chris, be a dear and go get the items we picked up.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Chris said, leaving Grandma alone with them. He sent Haley a warm smile before he hurried off. No doubt, he was expecting Grandma to tear into Jason. Hell, that’s exactly what she was waiting for.
“You also work with my granddaughter, Mr. Bradford. Isn’t that correct?”
Without asking, Jason pushed Grandma to the small patio table and locked the wheels for her. “Yes, I make her life a living hell there as well.”
“You sound proud,” Grandma noted.
Jason walked over to the grill and started placing the meat on it. “I am,” he said, smiling.
Grandma did something she’d only heard when it was just the two of them. She laughed. It was soft and musical and immediately brought back memories of a happy childhood to mind, making Haley smile. Jason caught her eye and winked.
“I like you,” Grandma announced.
“Thank you, Mrs.-”
“You may call me Grandma,” she said in a tone that let him know that she would not tolerate being called anything else.
Haley sat there, stunned. She was the only one allowed to call her Grandma. The rest of her grandchildren called her Grandmother once they’d started to take after their parents.
“Okay, Grandma, it is,” Jason said with an easy smile. Wow, the man really did have a way with women, Haley thought, shaking her head in wonder.
The sliding patio doors opened, drawing their attention just as Chris stepped outside from the kitchen, where he’d probably just put away an insane amount of groceries that had nothing to do with a barbecue. It was one of Grandma’s sneakier ways of helping her out since Haley refused to accept financial help from her family. Grandma was always looking for ways to help her, whether she wanted help or not.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, ma’am, but it seems that some of the guests from the last barbecue followed us here,” Chris said softly.
“Who is it?” Haley asked, unable to help but frown as she tried to figure out how many burgers she should add to the grill. Not that they’d eat anything she made, she thought, biting back a sigh.
“Your cousins, a few aunts, and I believe both of your sisters came as well, Miss Haley,” Chris said.
