Glancing at Grayson, who’s running a hand through his hair and approaching us, I observe his set jaw and the strange expression on his face.
“There’s nothing going on. He knows it, and I know it. He’s a professor, and I’m a student. Period. End of story.”
“I’m not the one who needs to hear that.”
Looking up at Jake again, he dips his chin and tells me with his eyes that he’s serious.
“Good morning, Ms. Haywood.” Grayson’s voice is lighter than usual. When I face him, his eyes are warm for the first time since we ran into each other again, and I can feel my stomach starting to do its thing, but I push the feeling down.
“Hello, Professor Hayes.”
He looks at Jake, who’s about his same height and build. “Who’s your friend?”
“Jake Greymoore.” He sticks his hand out. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Grayson takes his hand, and his eyebrows knit together as if he’s connecting the pieces.
Here we go.
“Greymoore. That sounds familiar,” he says.
Fuck.
Jake shrugs. “Unless you’ve met my family, I’m not sure why it would, Professor.”
“My memory isn’t that great, so it’s possible.” I silently hope he changes the subject, and someone answers my prayers. “All right, Emma, you told me you wanted to help out. Does your friend here want to as well?”
“Oh, absolutely.” I pat Jake’s arm. “He’s the best person for the job.”
My friend gives me afuck youlook but remains all smiles with Grayson.
“Right, well, let’s go to the kitchen.” He begins to lead us from where he came, as Jake leans down to tell me something.
“Am I your chaperone?”
On instinct, I slap him on the arm, and the sound echoes in the room.
Grayson turns his head slightly before he continues his explanation of the soup kitchen in its entirety. Jake and I hold back our laughter as we listen.
“The weekends here aren’t as busy as weekdays,” Grayson continues. “I usually come to visit at least twice during the week, but there’s plenty of staff and volunteers to help out. Volunteers can help with meal prep and serving, but most of the cooks are friends or friends of friends who work in the field as well, and all of them take turns working in the kitchen. Finally, the hours today are from nine a.m. until one p.m., and weekdays are from eight a.m. until three p.m.,” he finishes right before we step into the kitchen. “There are about ten people in here at the moment, prepping. Most of them are cooks except for one volunteer who always comes in early to help.”
“Are the volunteers always students?”
He nods. “Most of the time, it’s students from the high school nearby or your university. Sometimes it’s regular folks helping the community.” Grayson claps his hands. “Hey, everyone! This is Emma and Jake. They’ll be helping us out today, and you might see Emma around a couple more times.”
I extend my hand to wave at everyone, and the woman who was hitting Grayson with a ladle earlier looks at me with a sweet smile while stirring something in a large pot. She lets go of the spoon, turns what seems to be the stove knob down to a simmer, and comes to face me.
Grayson moves a little closer to the lady with short brown hair and warm brown eyes. He rests his hand on her shoulder and looks at her with affection. It’s something I haven’t seenbefore. “Ms. Haywood, this is our head cook, Marina. She’s from Spain and has taught me most of what I know about Spanish food.”
Interesting.
Sticking my hand out, I open my mouth to properly introduce myself when she pulls me in for a hug. I’m surprised for a moment before I giggle and reciprocate the gesture.
I’ve always been a hugger, but most people I meet aren’t. This is a nice change of pace from a handshake.
She lets go and places both her hands on my shoulders. “I heard you’re writing an article about the soup kitchen and that grumpy one over there.” She points to Grayson, who rolls his eyes and gives a sexy half smirk that I don’t think he means to make, but causes my cheeks to warm. “I’ve known him since he was ten. I have some good stories I can share with you.”
“I cannot imagine a ten-year-old Grayson Hayes,” I reply. Having someone who has known him since he was a kid is exactly what I need for the job, but the woman also sounds and looks as sweet as pie.
