Page 98 of Eleanor & Grey

“You don’t know anything,” he argued.

“I know you miss your wife.”

His jaw went slack, and he narrowed his eyes. That hit him hard. Those cold, gray eyes… “You should stop speaking.”

“Yes, you’re right, I should, but I won’t because I get it. I know you miss her, Greyson, and I know when you look at your daughters, you see so many parts of her in their eyes, and that has to be hard. I’m sure sometimes it feels as if grief is swallowing you whole, but you can’t allow it to consume you. You have two beautiful daughters who are looking toward you for guidance and love, and the last thing they need is this, this monster version of you that randomly shows up and rocks their world sideways.”

Even though my voice trembled, I stood tall before Greyson. I knew this wasn’t him, this ghost of a man. Sure, we’d missed a few years, but deep down inside of his darkness was the boy I’d once loved so much, the gentle boy, the kind boy, the boy who’d saved me.

I had to believe my Grey still lived inside of this man. Otherwise, the world was lost.

“Well, aren’t you a know-it-all,” he sarcastically remarked.

“No, but I know enough.”

He huffed at my words, obviously irritated that I had the nerve to speak to him in such a manner. “Then, please, Eleanor, do tell me. It seems you have been sent to me to tell me about all my faults. You’re here to throw your truths into my face about me and my family, so tell me! Tell me what it is that my children need?!”

“Their father!” I cried, my voice cracking as I marched toward him. I still wasn’t backing down, which somewhat surprised me. Maybe because this felt personal. Maybe it was because I knew what it felt like to be those girls, because all the words I’d never yelled at my father were now pouring out of my soul. So, I couldn’t back down, because my heart was pounding too hard in my chest. I couldn’t back down, because my soul knew how important it was to help Greyson find his way home. We were face-to-face, his breaths heavy with annoyance, my chest puffing in and out from my irritation at him being so shut off. His hot exhalations hissed against my skin, and each time he blinked, I waited for his stare to return to mine.

There was such a heavy tension in the space. Each inhale felt harder than the last, and my heartrate never took the time to slow down. I would’ve kept the intensity going, too, if it wasn’t for one small thing.

Every so often, he’d blink, and he’d look absolutely shattered. As if every single piece of his soul was being set on fire.

Out of all of the emotions that sat within Greyson the one that shone through the most was his exhaustion. He seemed on the brink of exhaustion as he looked at me.

For the first time since I stormed into his office, I studied his face; the curves, the creases, the lines.

His lips…the way they turned upside down into sadness.

His eyes...the way they told the history of his past.

I backed down.

I was the one to break, because it was clear there was nothing left to shatter within him.

“It’s you, Greyson…” I looked away and brushed my thumb against my chin. My shoulders rounded forward in defeat and I shook my head gently. “They just need you.”

The room filled with silence as he kept his stare on me.

I took a step backward. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I was out of line.”

“Yes, you were.”

“I just wanted to say—”

“You’re fired,” he blurted out.

“Wait, what?”

“It’s clear that you have a problem with the way my household is run, therefore this is not the right match for us all.”

My chest tightened as panic started rushing through my entire being. “But, I mean, I know I was out of line…”

“Exactly, and that’s all there is to it. Strike three.” He turned his back to me, and lowered his head as he gave me one last order. “Close the door on your way out.”

39

Eleanor

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