“Unless you need something else from me, I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Uh, sure,” she croaked. Cleared her throat. “Sure. I’ll see you at eight.”
As he descended the steps her breath eased from her lungs. One day down, thirteen to go. She nearly moaned.
Liddy gave her a pointed look. “What wasthat?” she whispered.
“What was what?”
“That.That thing sizzling between the two of you. I thought you were going to spontaneously combust.”
The bell downstairs jingled with Gray’s departure.
Shelby straightened an endcap book that might’ve already been straight. “That was just anger and bitterness.”
“Ha! Keep telling yourself that. He is not over you, friend, and I’m starting to wonder if the same can be said for you.”
Remembering the effortless way he’d slid into her heart all those years ago, Shelby resolved to fortify her defenses. “That... is not happening.”
Chapter 8
Eleven years ago
A strange sense of anticipation built inside Gray as he loaded the lawn mower into the truck bed of his dad’s old GMC. The tailgate squawked on the hinges as he shut it. He wiped sweat from his brow. It was at least eighty degrees at only nine in the morning. He crossed the freshly mown lawn, his mind already on the day ahead.
For the past week he’d been working on the bookshop’s landscaping for a few hours a day. The scraggly old bushes had been deeply rooted, making progress slow. But today he’d start preparing the beds for new plants and flowers. He was new at this sort of work, but he was learning from YouTube videos.
Initially he hadn’t been thrilled when his grandma informed him he’d be working in the middle of town this summer. But he hadn’t yet run into anyone from school, and he was actually enjoying the work.
But that wasn’t the reason for the anticipation making him all squirrely.
He rolled his eyes at himself as he took the porch step and poked his head inside the lake house. “I’m taking off now, Granny.”
His grandma glanced up from her coffee and crossword puzzle. “All right. Don’t forget the sunscreen.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He wouldn’t forget it. He just wouldn’t wear it because he never burned.
“Oh, can you pick up some 2 percent milk on your way home?” Granny asked just before the door fell shut.
“Sure thing. See you later.”
“Have a good day, honey.”
Granny’s smile lingered in his mind as he made his way to the truck. In some ways living with her was a huge relief. Since his dad was incarcerated Gray no longer had to worry when he left the house at night. Didn’t have to lie awake waiting for a phone call from Dirty Harry’s, the hole-in-the-wall bar his dad frequented. He’d bet Dad felt no relief, however. Guilt pricked at the thought of his dad locked away in that cell, and he pushed the image away.
Moving to Granny’s side of town hadn’t changed everything. His dad’s bad reputation still followed him like a nasty scent. And no matter how hard he tried to keep a low profile, trouble always seemed to find him. Somehow his academic performance flew under the radar, which was just as well. When it came to the Warner Scholarship, he hoped being underestimated would work in his favor.
The truck started with a rumble and he backed from the drive and headed toward the bookshop. He thought of that first day when he’d caught Shelby Thatcher checking him out from behind the store’s window. The way she’d jumped belatedly out of sight. The thought never failed to make him grin. A weight lifted at just the thought of her.
Oh, he wasn’t stupid. She was way too good for him. And ogling him didn’t mean she liked him. Only that she liked what she saw. There was an ocean of difference. Some girls were attracted to his bad-boy image. Some kind of thrill, maybe. A chance to tick off their fathers, perhaps—he counted Darcy Colbert in that last group. She was an old friend from the trailer park. They hung out sometimes.
He didn’t take Shelby for one of those girls though. She was just curious. No doubt with her perfect family, sterling reputation, and immense popularity, she could never understand someone like him. Much lesslower herself to befriend him. He suspected she might even fear him a little. Just as well.
She was going out with Brendan Remington, the biggest tool he knew, so she obviously had terrible taste in boys. Just because the guy was top of the class, star of the basketball team, and from a prominent family didn’t mean he was an honorable person.
It would be a real pleasure to steal that scholarship right out of Brendan’s greedy little hands. He didn’t need it anyway, what with his rich parents. His dad owned a business in town, which would likely be handed to Brendan someday, just like everything else was.
Taking the scholarship from Brendan was just a bonus though. The financial aid was Gray’s ticket out of this town, the only way he could afford college. He wanted to own his own business someday. Wasn’t sure what kind, but he’d be his own boss, make his own success. He wanted autonomy and job security, and he didn’t want to answer to people he had no respect for, no trust in. And he wanted to do it someplace far away from Grandville.
