Page 65 of Gabriel & Skye

“That’s good. I won’t have to give him the hard word when I see him tonight.”

“Oh, you’re going out too?” Uh, oh. There’s only one place to drink in this town. And it’s Moose’s.

“Yeah, me and a couple of the guys, Gabe included, are having a few drinks at Moose’s.”

Voila. Of course they are. “What a coincidence, me, Georgia-Blue and Celeste are going there tonight too. I thought it might be a good way to mingle and meet a few of the locals.”

“I’m glad you’re making friends easily,” Gran says with a smile, tucking in to her roast.

“Sure you don’t mind hanging out in the same bar as your little sister?” I poke my tongue at him.

He rolls his eyes. “I’m sure I’ll cope.”

“I think Gabriel Bassett would be a wonderful catch,” Gramps says, catching me off guard. “I’m just saying. He’s got a good, steady job. Dresses impeccably; I’ve never seen him not in a suit. He comes from good stock. The Bassetts are the original founding family. They’re good people. And a bonus; he has an adorable little girl. If a man can raise a child on his own, that says a lot about his character.”

I burst out laughing. “Gramps!” While he’s not entirely inaccurate about any of that, I know exactly where he’s going with it. “I’m just here to babysit his child. I don’t have any interest in him in that way.”

Travis looks up. “Gramps has a point. You’re not getting any younger, old girl.”

I shoot him a glare. “Thank you for the pep talk, but I’m good. Worry about your own love life, or lack thereof.” I give him a smug smile.

I can tell he wants to flip me the bird – that’s his usual MO – but he won’t at our grandparents’ table.

“In all seriousness, I feel bad we fell out of touch when we moved,” Trav goes on. “I think being back will help me reconnect and plant some roots of my own.”

“Well, you know the odds are in a woman’s favor in this town. There're more men than women, unless there’s a cute deputy at the station.” I giggle.

Trav shoots me another glare. “There isn’t. The deputy is Marjory Fuller, and she’s already riding my ass and I haven’t even started yet. The woman could shoot fireballs from her eyes.”

“Language, Travis!” Gramps warns.

“Sorry, Gramps. I like her and all, but her view of how this town should be run leaves a little to be desired.”

“I think you’ll find Marjory wants to move to Florida to be closer to her kids,” Gran tells us. “But you didn’t hear that from me. Stick it out. You’ll be fine. Just remember, the folks in this town are set in their ways. They’re not gonna like change very much, but that’s no reason not to shake things up. You’ll find a rhythm honey, and people will respect you for it.”

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” Gramps offers. “That’s what they say, anyway.”

I love that our grandparents have always given good, solid advice without being biased or hurtful to others.

I feel that tightness again in my chest at the thought of anyone hurting Gabriel and Trinity.

I can’t even imagine how hard it is going to be when he has to explain to Trinity about her mom leaving as she gets older. Surely she’d have questions. I mean, she’s only five. It’s the kind of thing that could break your heart.

The fact Gabriel is going to be at Moose’s tonight could be interesting, but that’s no reason to not enjoy myself. I mean, I don’t want to make a fool out of myself and get smashed, but I think a couple of cocktails could be in order. I wince — do they even do cocktails in this town?

After dinner, I take a little extra care with my hair, makeup and outfit tonight. I haven’t been out in forever.

I have two best friends back in North Carolina; Nadine, who I met when I was in college, and Isabelle, who I’ve known since high school. The last time I went out was with them a few weeks before I headed to Stoney Creek — my unofficial send off. I’ve been keeping them updated on all the town gossip going on around here, and what I’ve been up to via text. They also know Gabriel Bassett is my new sexy, single CEO boss and happens to have a gorgeous daughter that I already adore.

Isabelle and I had a little text-a-thon this morning, which went a little like this;

Izzy

I had a dream last night that you fell in love with your boss and didn’t end up coming home!

I nearly spluttered my tea all over the counter when I read the message.

Me

---