“Thanks. You must be hungry. Wanna come over for supper? I have a pizza in the freezer with your name on it.”
He pushed his chair back from the desk, his eyes piercing hers. “Come here, honey.”
A nervous chuckle escaped. “Tired of pizza? I can grab takeout. The Savory Spoon’s still open.”
He held out his arms. “Come here.”
His somber tone and knowing eyes made her want to run the other way. “I don’t like that look.” But she approached anyway. Sank onto his lap and curled into him.
He grasped her, holding eye contact for a long, torturous moment. “We have to talk about this. My presence is putting you at risk, putting your business at risk. This can’t go on. It’s not safe.”
“It’s not fair. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“That doesn’t matter at this point. All that matters to me is you. Last night proved it’s not safe for anyone to be around me. Your nephew could’ve died. Any of us could’ve died—and the simplest solution is for me to—”
“Don’t say it.” She tightened her arms and buried her face in his neck. “Don’t say it.” She wanted to just hide here until this was all over. But how would it ever be over? If the police let this go as Gray feared, what hope was there? The violence could escalate. Something terrible could happen to Gray. Something far worse than his leaving town. Tears stung her eyes. She didn’t want it to be true, but it was.
His hands roved over her back in slow, comforting strokes. His breath fell on her neck, where he placed a tender kiss.
Darn him for making her face the thing she’d avoided since last night. If this person was serious enough to fire a gun, Gray’s life was in danger and staying here would be foolhardy.
She made a decision. Pulled back, making eye contact. “If you’re leaving, I’m going too.”
“Shelby...”
“I mean it. If this town won’t have you, I won’t have it.”
He thumbed away a tear. “You can’t leave your grandma’s store, honey.”
“Ican.”
He regarded her silently as memories of Gram washed over her. Memories of her pulling herself up after her husband’s death and opening this shop. Her second story. She hadn’t wanted another man. No one could replace her husband of forty-six years. She just wanted to pull the community together and use her passion for books to accomplish it. And she’d done just that.
Until Richard Remington had interfered.
Selling the store would be impossible given their current financial situation. If Shelby left now, she’d have to close it. She’d have to empty these beloved shelves, sell off what was left, and turn the sign to Closed for the last time. Her heart gave a loud, sharp crack at the thought.
She buried her face in his neck again. Breathed in that familiar smell of him. Threaded her fingers into the dark hair at his nape. Tasted the salt of her own tears. “I don’t want you to leave.”
“And I don’t want to leave you. But I would’ve been going in a few weeks anyway.” He gave her a squeeze. “You always believed in me, Shel. You’ll never know how much that means to me.”
“Stop it. This is not good-bye.” She clung to him as if she could hold him there. But he was right. He wasn’t safe here. That was the important thing. “When are you leaving?”
“Now.”
She jerked back.“Now?”
A sheen of tears covered those beautiful eyes. “I already packed up my things.”
This was hard for him. Nothing about his whole life had been easy. She wasn’t going to make this hard for him too. She pressed a kiss to his lips. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Chapter 44
Gray tried to put on a brave face as Shelby walked him to the door. But the boulder in his throat and grit in his eyes made it almost impossible to pretend this parting wasn’t wrenching him in half.
He tightened his hand on hers as if he could keep her at his side. But drawing this out would only make it harder on both of them. She seemed to think they could make things work, even from a distance. But he wasn’t so naive. He couldn’t live here, and she couldn’t leave Grandville and her gram’s shop. Where did that leave them?
