Page 20 of Grant’s Heat

“Sometimes the crew gets a beer or two after a long day. I’ve seen it on a lot of jobsites. It builds morale, and the guys bond that way. It’s not unusual, Rio.”

“It wasn’t really the beer, honestly.” I laughed before continuing. “I know what family I married into. If drinking bothered me, I’d be in a world of hurt.”

“So what was it?” He leaned in. Not by a lot, but enough. “Really?”

“Perhaps just the straw that broke the camel’s back,” I confessed, jerking a shrug that felt ridiculous. “I’m probably being tired and melodramatic. But I’ve literally been sitting at home alone, night after night, for a month. Talking to a stray cat for company. And then he—” Another stupid shrug, this time filled with a lot of the hate I was directing inward. “God. Let’s change the subject. I know I sound petty and selfish…”

“How’s the infertility stuff going?”

I stared at him. Stared some more. “I’m not talking to you about that.”

He threw his head back and laughed. Freaking laughed! “Why not? Because it involves sex? Oh, no!” He mock-gasped. “Not that!”

“Stop! Seriously.” I shook my head, attempting to laugh too, but sobered much too quickly at the reality of the situation. “Nah, there’s nothing to talk about.” I paused, running my fingertip along the woodgrain of the fancy table. “Literally…nothing.”

Grant grew serious too. “So him working late every night is tough for a lot of reasons. I got you. Well, let me see what I can do, okay?”

I snapped my head up to stare even harder at the man—enduring a flood of panic through my body. “Wait. What?” I shot to my feet, stabbing my chipped black nail at him. “What are you talking about? Don’t you dare say anything to anyone, Grant Twombley!”

Grant, however, remained as cool as could be. “What’s the big deal? One quick call, and I can make sure he’s getting out of work at the regular time.” He shrugged his muscular shoulders, and I was momentarily distracted, watching the way the cotton of his dress shirt pulled tighter against his form. “Problem solved. Why won’t you let me fix this for you?” the handsome bastard had the nerve to ask.

But his frustration was seeping through the cracks—the little tells that I’d gotten to know in the time we’d spent together rarely surfaced. But at that moment, when he thrust his hand back through his artfully messy blond hair, I knew I was making him a little crazy now too.

I flopped back down into the chair and buried my head in my folded arms. “Oh my God. How stupid are you?”

I could hear his weight shift in his chair. “Beg your pardon? I’m trying to help you. How is that stupid?”

I raised my head. “You can’t just go busting in and fix everything wrong in the world like that, Grant.” I smacked my forehead with my palm. As the crack echoed around the room, I invested in a moment of feeling like crap about it. He was staring at me so earnestly. Holy God, he was truly confused about all this. “I was just venting to you, like a friend would. Like you encouraged me to do. Don’t go embarrassing both of us and make things really worse and awkward with my husband by telling his boss to send him home early to his needy wife!”

“Okay, okay.” He held his hands up, flat palms facing me. “I get it. I get it.”

“Do you?” I demanded. “Really?”

“Yes, damn it. Of course. When you say it like that, I can see your point. I’m just a problem solver, Blaze. It’s my nature. Hell, it’s my job around here. I fix things for Shark minute by minute. I’m programmed for it.” He looked apologetic then. “Sometimes it’s hard to shut it off.”

“Fair enough. But please, Grant. I’m beeeggggging you.” As I drew out the word, his eyebrows jumped. By a lot. At the same time, a sly grin spread across his sinful lips. “What?” I gritted, still feeling pissed off and fired up. “What is that look right now?”

He was the one to give his head a solid shake this time. “Never mind. Sorry. You were saying?”

“To just drop it. Okay?”

“Okay.” He straightened in the chair, parking his elbows farther back on the rests. “I give you my word. This stays between you and me.”

A breath rushed out of me. “Thank you.”

“And thank you for trusting me and talking to me. You know you can call me anytime, right? I’ll always pick up when I see your number.”

“That’s very kind of you. But I’m a big girl, Grant.” I stood and started gathering my things to leave. “I have to handle my own shit.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t lean on a friend once in a while.” While he helped me clean up the dishes and trash, he said with soft sincerity, “Thank you for lunch.”

“That’s why they pay me the big bucks.” I added a wry smile to the quip. Suddenly the air between us felt way too serious.

“Rio.” He waited until I stopped shuffling around and looked back at him. “It’ll even out. The job. The hours. And it’ll be worth it then. The job is stable and long-term. And I know Bas made sure Sean was taken care of, salary-wise. Try to hang in there.”

His explanation was thick with more of that addicting sincerity, leading me back to more of my default defenses. I went with an extra-light clip. “All good here.” My cheer almost sounded fake, but it was a necessity. Otherwise I’d go to pieces. His kindness was bringing emotion up from the pit of my stomach, and I didn’t like it one bit. “I appreciate you letting me vent. Or…release into the universe or whatever happy Buddha horseshit you were spewing.” I narrowed my eyes at him, looking way up across the ridiculous height difference between us. “I don’t even know you sometimes.”

“Yeah? That makes two of us. Now get out of here,” he said, pulling me in for a sweet hug.