“You should have come with me,” he said. Before I could react with my usual dismissal of his advances, Grant stumbled, crashed into me, and sent both of us tumbling into Colin.
I was certain we’d all go down, but after a couple of awkward moments of unsteadiness, Colin straightened us all out and motioned for us all to follow him. As I tried to let the embarrassment of the near-fall not take over me, we all slipped through the crowd and out toward the fringes where we might have some space and hear each other talk.
“How are you doing, buddy?” Colin asked first. He put his arm around my waist, holding me close to him.
Grant looked at Colin without saying a word. I couldn’t read his expression, and I chalked that up to his being inebriated. It was probably the most uncomfortable thirty seconds of my life when he looked around at all of us silently.
Kaitlin, probably having had enough of their “date,” jumped in. “He’s probably not feeling too well. Ready to go?”
Grant scoffed and told her, “I’m fine. I’m not ready to go yet.”
Less than half a second passed before she looked at her phone, perked up, and announced, “I’m going home, everyone! My Uber should be here in a few minutes.” She waved her phone at us and stalked off.
Sure, Kaitlin was probably annoyed at Grant giving me attention, and hewasdrunk, but her immediate departure must have meant that something else had gone on between them from when we’d been at the picnic table to when we met again in front of the stage.
I stepped out of Colin’s hold and took a step toward Grant.
“You should go after her,” I said.
“Pfft. Why? We both know I couldn’t care less about Kaitlin,” he said.
My eyes widened as I tried to communicate nonverbally how much of an asshole he was being. I’d gotten used to it at work. Ignored it. Put up with it. Dismissed it. Attributed it to all the shit he’d let slip through the years about what he’d gone through as a teenager after both his parents died.
Light bulb moment.
That’swhat had kept me from discarding Grant altogether—how amazing he was at listening and comforting me whenever I had a down day. The shared experience of losing a parent was something that seemed to bond us in a way I couldn’t with anyone else.
“Why did you come out with her if you ‘couldn’t care less’ about her?” Colin asked from behind me. I closed my eyes and bit my lower lip…hard.
I opened them after two seconds to see Grant watching me.
“It’s not a love match,” Grant muttered, his gaze wavering between me and Colin. I breathed a little easier. He still sounded like a jerk, but at least he wasn’t drunk enough to reveal our investigation.
“It happens,” Colin said. “Can we give you a ride home?”
I looked back at him, surprised and impressed by his offer. I gave Colin a smile, appreciating that he was as thoughtful as I’d come to believe. Whatever he was hiding, either he had a good reason, or he really was the most skilled conman.
“You guys go on ahead with your night,” he said with a sigh, looking down every so often toward the crowd. “I’ll be fine.”
I looked at him, worried. “You’re staying?”
“Yeah,” he said. “There’s good music.”
Colin must have noticed my apprehension at leaving Grant in this state, and our attention was called back to how drunk he was when again he tripped over his own feet and this time landed on his ass.
“Grant! Are you okay?” I rushed over to help him up. As I struggled with the weight, Colin swooped in and helped him up, steadying him for the second time that night.
“Come on, buddy. Let me drive you home. Kate here will be worried if we don’t get you home safely.” Colin’s hand was still on Grant’s arm, his fingers white with the force of his grip.
Grant gave me a quick glance, and then his head hung down for a second. He brushed his fingers through his hair and said, “Yeah. Okay.”
Colin released him, and Grant wobbled along with us toward the exit. He remained silent as he stumbled into the back seat, and even when I turned in my seat to look back at him as Colindrove us out of the parking lot. Grant stared through the window until suddenly, sharply, he looked at me. I gave him a small smile, but his face was expressionless.
I turned to face forward again and took a deep breath, relieved that Grant let us take him home but more confused about everything than ever.
If I quit, all of my problems would disappear. I’d never have to deal with either of these men again. I wouldn’t give Maggie, her disappearance and reappearance, and her connection with Colin any more space in my head for as long as I lived.
Poof. Like magic.
