Secrets, Lies, and Summer Skies

Chapter Twenty-Six

Despite missing Grayson when he wasn't home, the solitude gave me an opportunity to cool my feelings for him. Nothing could erase them entirely, but it was much easier to dismiss them as my being caught up in the moment when I didn't see his face all day.

Thank God I hadn't said anything while we'd been wrapped up in each other on the pool lounger. If I had, things would've been beyond awkward for the rest of the summer. Hell, probably for the rest of our lives.

Of course, Jenny was no help. I didn't dare to confide in her after all her comments about a wedding. It might've been a big joke in her opinion, but my every waking moment was consumed with ideas about how we might continue our relationship after Dad came home. It was why I dodged his emails when they arrived or only sent curt replies. Just enough to stop him from panicking about my well-being, but not enough to give anything away. I didn't want him to come flying home because he was worried about me and cut my time with Grayson short, but I also couldn't lie to him. Saying nothing at all was better for my conscience.

Not much better, but you know, it was bearable enough to live with.

I passed the next few days by cleaning around the house, dumped the final few reminders of Trey in the garbage where they belonged, and dodged telemarketing calls which had arrived on my phone with increased frequency. The caller never spoke when I answered and dropped the call whenever I transferred them to voicemail. You'd think they'd have gotten the message that I wasn't interested in whatever they were trying to scam out of me, yet still, they persisted.

Another such call arrived on Friday morning as I walked into the kitchen in tiny pajama shorts and a t-shirt. I'd expected to be alone just like every other weekday, so when I was met by the delicious, rich scent of buttermilk pancakes and maple syrup, I was so startled that my cellphone almost slipped through my fingers. I slapped my hand against the screen, briefly connecting the call. I tapped furiously at the screen to disconnect it and locked the cellphone.

"Aren't you meant to be at work?" I asked.

Grayson stood before the stove with a skillet in hand. He turned and tipped another pancake onto a neat stack, turned off the heat, and brought the two plates to the kitchen island. Two glasses of orange juice had been poured, and a fresh pot of coffee waited on the counter. It felt weird to say it, but it was almost like the old days when I'd lived at home with Dad. Most of the time he was cooped up in his office, but when he was present, I could often find him in the kitchen making something because he'd decided that we needed to spend time together.

"I took a day off." Grayson kept one hand on the kitchen island as he rounded it slowly on the approach. "I've got a few things to take care of."

I set down my phone. "What kind of things?"

His hands landed on my hips and Grayson pulled my body flush to his. "Nothing that I can't put off if you're free to spend the day in bed, Kitten..."

I placed my hand on his chest. "I'm not having you put off plans for the sake of fucking me, Grayson."

"Pity. You're always so sexy in the morning." He pecked my lips with a chaste kiss. "You're sexy any time of the day."

"Are you going to tell me what was so important that you had to take a day off work for it?" I asked. "Or should I guess?"

"You can try, but you won't figure it out." Grayson's hands skimmed around to my rear, and he squeezed my ass appreciatively. "Although they do involve you, so if you don't want me to bend you over the counter and fuck you, you should probably go upstairs and change."

"Can't I wait until after breakfast?" I smiled sweetly at him. "Since you were nice enough to make it and everything."

"I guess..." Grayson pulled away to fetch some cutlery. "Who was that on the phone, by the way? Jenny?"