Wynona followed, putting her hand on his chest and leaning in.
“Maybe I should wait outside,” I mumbled, looking at the floor.
“Unnecessary,” he replied at the same time as Wynona said, “Good idea.”
I backed out and leaned against the wall next to the door, taking a deep breath.
Grayson followed a few seconds later, and I shoved off the wall.
He held out his arm. “Ready to go?”
I stared at the offered arm, then at Wynona, who had appeared by his side. “I can wait if you guys need some time.”
Before Wynona could respond, Grayson shook his head. “No need. We’re done.”
So, under the she-devil’s watchful gaze, I linked my arm with his. Holding on to him was the single most exciting thing that had happened to me in years. The connection felt right, and I relaxed into him, my body taking over.
Grayson towed me down the hallway, calling out to Wynona over his shoulder, “I’ll see you tomorrow morning to go over the contracts.”
I didn’t dare look back, afraid her glare might turn me to stone.
He navigated the countless hallways in the old mansion with ease, and we were soon standing in front of his shiny black car. He opened the door for me, and I slid onto the cool leather seat. Before I had a chance to reach for the door, he’d closed it, rounding the car to get in on his side. The engine purred to life with the click of a button, and we were off.
“You’re going to love this place. They make the best burgers.”
I turned to Grayson, my voice bouncing with excitement. “You’re taking me out for burgers?”
He chuckled. “I guess they’re still your favorite food.”
“Just don’t take me to some fancy place that puts anything but meat in their burgers. I want Carl’s Jr. Or somewhere without cutlery.”
His laughter filled the car, wrapping me in its warm embrace while at the same time sending a stab through my heart. I’d missed this more than I ever thought possible. And having a taste of how things used to be between us was almost cruel. In the end, I would be without him again.
He shot me another grin. “I know the perfect place.”
Thirty minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant that looked like it was about to be closed down. The paint was peeling off the walls, the parking lot had more potholes than actual asphalt, and the sign was illegible.
“I hate to sound like the snob I mocked only moments earlier, but what are my chances of getting food poisoning tonight?”
Grayson put his arm around my shoulders as soon as we were out of the car, making me tense up at the sparks shooting up and down my body. They didn’t know which way was up and which was down. “Don’t worry, it’s clean inside. And they have the best burgers.”
A waitress greeted us as soon as the bell over the door jingled. “Welcome to Hal’s Seafood Palace.”
I shot a raised eyebrow at Grayson, who winked at me before turning his attention to the waitress. “Do you have anything outside?”
The place was busy, not a table unoccupied. At least that was a good sign.
The table we ended up at was on a huge outside terrace overlooking the ocean. Since I didn’t know my way around LA, I had no idea where Grayson had taken us. And I was speechless. I’d always wanted to see the ocean in real life.
“I found this place when I first moved. The food is almost as good as Bo’s Diner. And despite being a seafood place, they do the best burgers.”
I missed Bo’s burgers. But I couldn’t get myself to go there without Grayson. It had been our place. Every time I so much as thought of setting foot inside, I chickened out.
My eyes were glued to the sparkling blue water. The sun was sitting low over the horizon, its rays reflecting on the surface. I couldn’t wait to experience a sunset over the ocean. My throat closed up, and I took long breaths in through my nose to calm myself.
It’s just water. No need to get so emotional.
But I knew my wayward emotions had more to do with the man sitting across from me than the ocean. This was harder than it looked. Here I thought being without him was the hardest thing I’d ever done; turned out being with him, but not really being with him, was even harder.
