Page 60 of Keeping You

Grayson offers me a hand, and I climb off Rosetta before he does the same. He ties the reins loosely around a low-hanging branch of a nearby tree. He slides the backpack off my back and places it at the base of the tree. He leans in close, heat radiatingoff of him as he whispers, “Your bucket list item. Welcome to Wisteria Falls.”

My jaw drops as I turn to look at him over my shoulder. He grins before pulling his shirt over his head and stepping out of his jeans, leaving him only in his swim trunks. I follow suit, tossing my clothes with his and joining him at the edge of the pond. Dipping my toes in, I shiver. The water is much colder than the hot summer air, but it’s refreshing. We slowly make our way into the water until neither of us can touch the bottom and we’re swimming. Grayson swims over to the waterfall, and I watch the powerful muscles in his back as they ripple with each movement of his arms.

He stops in front of the rushing water and turns to me, calling, “You coming?”

I make my way over to him, and he reaches for my hand before we dive under the water and come out behind the waterfall. I’m grinning when we come up, and the look on Grayson’s face has me wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. His hands find my ass as he holds me close.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

“You’re welcome.”

I stare into his deep-blue eyes, finding myself getting lost in them. He’s holding secrets I can see he wants to release but can’t. He tucks my hair behind my ear and delicately runs his thumb over my cheek. I lean into his touch, savouring the way it feels. A stray tear runs down my cheek, and I brush it away before climbing out of his hold.

It hurts knowing I missed his gentle touches and what we could have been because of fucking Samantha and her throwing herself at Grayson. But it’s not just on her. I didn’t stop and let him explain. I’ve deprived myself of something that could have been so good, because I had let my mom’s horrible marriagesjade me. I was so quick to believe Grayson would cheat on me, because I couldn’t let myself believe I deserved a happy relationship. All I had known was my parents’ failed marriage and my mother’s multitude of relationships. I shouldn’t have let her failure guide my thoughts.

Grayson swims behind me and pulls me into his chest.

“What’s wrong?”

I take a deep breath and plaster on a fake smile and turn in his arms. “Nothing.”

His face is solemn, and he cups mine. “Hannah, you don’t have to hide with me. You can talk to me. I won’t push you, but I’m here. When you’re ready, I’ll listen. No matter what it is.”

I nod, and he releases my face and backs away. That small gesture of giving me space tells me that he knows me. He can read my emotions and what I need. Maybe I shouldn’t be writing this marriage off as an immediate divorce. I only wonder if we can really succeed outside of this little bubble we have right now.

CHAPTER 22

Grayson

We continue swimming in silence. I watch as Hannah floats on her back, smiling when she gets close enough to the waterfall that the mist hits her face. When she rights herself, she gives me a soft smile before swimming to the shore, and I follow behind her. I grab towels out of the backpack and hand her one. When I’ve dried off, I grab our stuff and move to a spot in the grass that’s in the sun, laying out my towel and settling on it before pulling out the food I packed. Hannah joins me, and I pass her a sandwich.

“This place is gorgeous,” she says before taking a bite.

“Yeah, it’s one of my favourite places on the property. No one really comes out here, so I can just be alone with my thoughts.”

Her eyes are soft as she looks at me. “Thank you for sharing it with me.”

I clear my throat quickly and say, “Of course.” Hannah still doesn’t know I want to share everything with her.

“So, Chloe doesn’t come out here?”

I shake my head. “Not really. We each have our own little places that we like to visit. I’ve brought her here before when we were younger, but it’s not really the place she likes to come.”

Hannah adjusts herself and stares out over the pond and the waterfall. “I could spend hours out here and never get bored,” she whispers. I knew this would be a place she’d appreciate nearly as much as I do.

When we finish eating, we lie back on our towels, staring up at the sky. Birds fly overhead as they move from tree to tree. Hannah’s hand reaches for mine, and she entwines our fingers. My breath catches. It’s such a small act of affection, but here, where no one else can see and it’s not for show or for anything other than to be close to me, it means everything.

I turn my head and look at her. She looks so peaceful, a small smile on her face as she just enjoys being out here. My phone eventually rings, and I look over and see my mom’s face flash across the screen.

“Hi, Mom,” I answer.

“Hi, Honey. I just thought I’d check in. I’m getting everything ready for dinner and wanted to make sure you two are joining us.”

“Yeah, we’ll be back for dinner.”

“Okay, Honey. Well, it’s getting late, so if you’re in the woods, I’d start to head home soon,” she says in her overprotective, motherly tone.

“Yes, Mom. I’m only twenty-nine and grew up on the property.”

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