Page 10 of All I Need

He laughs all the way up the stairs and the second he’s out of eyesight I dart to the small guest bathroom off the living room and check the mirror.

“That little liar,” I whisper, inspecting my head for any signs of grays.

“Made ya look,” I hear from behind me and whip around to see Grayson peeking his head around the door frame. I lunge for him and he quickly moves away, howling in laughter all the way up the stairs.

An hour later we’re on our way to church. Every time I look at Grayson he has a smirk on his face. “Stop it already.”

“Stop what? Knowing the truth? You always said that it was smart to pay attention to human behavior so I could have empathy for people’s needs.”

“What made you such a smartass?”

“Becoming a teenager. I’m pretty sure it’s in our DNA.”

“Good thing we’re heading to church. You need prayer.”

“We all do, Uncle Walker. To pretend otherwise is just insane,” he scoffs.

“You used to be sweet and innocent. What happened to you?”

“Probably technology.”

I groan. He has an answer for everything.

A few minutes later we pull into the parking lot next to his mom’s car. Not surprisingly, she’s still sitting in it. Even at thirty-five she hates going into crowded places alone. Grayson climbs out and opens her door.

I round the front of the pickup just in time to hear him tell her, “Uncle Walker has a new crush.”

“You have such a big mouth and I do not.” I try my best to protest.

“Look at him. Have you seen him this dressed up for church in years?”

I glance down at my pants and realize he’s absolutely correct. Our church has taken a more casual tone and we tend to wear jeans most days. It’s not like I’m wearing a three-piece suit but the black dress pants and charcoal gray button down I’m sporting is definitely a step up from my usual Sunday attire.

“Crap,” I mumble.

“You weren’t joking when you said you had an interesting night,” my sister teases.

“Let’s just go in.”

They follow behind, chuckling the entire way.

My eyes immediately seek out Miss Polly the second we’re in the building. She sits in the same general area every single week. At least she does the weeks she manages to convince me to be in attendance.

My heart deflates when I find her and don’t see Ellie sitting by her side.

The three of us find a seat and settle into the section of seats across the aisle from her and back a few rows. Polly glances over her shoulder and looks right at me. She winks and turns around to face the front right away. I scrunch my eyebrows but shake it off.

For as amazing as a human as Miss Polly is, she’s also a little bit eccentric.

I’m fidgeting in my seat, feeling uneasy for a reason I can’t identify when the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. I turn just in time to see Ellie breeze past me and find her seat next to Polly. This time when Polly glances in my direction I know exactly what she’s trying to convey in her look.

Told you she was here.

Grayson starts nudging me with his elbow then I hear him lean over and whisper to his mom something about the woman beside Miss Polly. I roll my eyes, knowing this is going to screw me over so bad.

I don’t hear anything the preacher says in the service. Every time I manage to tear my gaze away from the back of Ellie’s head, I feel that pull and can’t stop my eyes from drifting over in her direction.

“She’s not going anywhere.” Grayson leans over to whisper.

---