Page 29 of Cowboy of Convenience
Unsure.
That was why the thought of walking away from the life she’d always known was so fucking terrifying. It wasn’t just losing the money or her family. She had practically no real-life experience outside of her time here in Moss Creek. She didn’t have a credit card. Didn’t have any money outside the nest egg she’d managed to stash by selling handbags and other luxury items to her friends in New York. And most of that was gone, spent on her car and groceries and rent. If she walked away from her family she would essentially be destitute.
It was terrifying. Left her caught between wanting to walk away and be free and just accepting her fate and being taken care of.
Evelyn sighed, letting her head fall back. "I don't really know what I want them to be."
"Then I guess you’ll have to figure it out." Grady's hand left her skin and he rolled away, putting his back to her. "Good night, Ev."
CHAPTER TEN
GRADY
“I THOUGHT YOU two woke up at five.”
Grady squinted one eye open to find Gram-Gram glaring at him in the dark room.
“I think you forgot to reset your clock, Gram-Gram.” Grady blew out a sharp breath, using his tongue to rid his mouth of the strands of hair stuck to his lips. “We’re two hours behind New York.”
Gram-Gram’s already thin lips flattened even more and she continued staring at him.
Grady reached up to fish the rest of Evelyn’s dark hair out of his mouth. “Is there something I can help you with?”
Gram-Gram shifted on her feet, looking surprisingly uncertain. “I don’t know how to work the coffee maker.”
Grady almost snorted in amusement but caught himself. He was supposed to be making this woman think he was happy to have her here. Thrilled a sour-ass old woman was waking him up at three in the morning to make her coffee. “Okay.” He went to work unwinding himself from the body sprawled across his.
Evelyn wasn’t quite the violent sleeper she claimed to be, but she was sure as hell a clingy one. The woman stayed on her own side for all of an hour before migrating to his section of the mattress, worming her limbs into any nook and cranny she could fit them. By the time he finally fell asleep, she was all but attached to him.
Not that he was complaining. It wasn’t the worst thing that could have happened to him.
Torturous, yes. Terrible, not by a long shot.
Gram-Gram was huffing by the time his feet finally hit the floor, so he dragged the whole thing out a little longer, taking the time to carefully tuck the covers back around Evelyn’s snoring form before leaning down to press a kiss to the top of her head.
“Should I come back later?” Gram-Gram’s indignant tone made him smile.
“I’m coming.” He wiped one hand down his face, scrubbing away the last of the sleep blurring his vision. “Remind me to set the coffee to start automatically tomorrow.”
Gram-Gram stayed hot on his heels as he walked down the hall. “I don’t know what that means.”
Grady bit back a sarcastic retort, struggling to fall into the amiable temperament he carried while on the clock. “I can set the maker like an alarm clock, only instead of going off it makes coffee.” He padded into the kitchen and flipped on the lights, wincing a little at the change in brightness.
“Holy mother of God.” Gram-Gram stumbled back, clutching the pearls looped around her neck with one hand. Her eyes fused to the morning erection tenting the front of his boxer briefs as she leaned against the fridge, scandalized.
“Don’t have a heart attack on me, Gram-Gram.” He smothered a smirk as he went to work scooping coffee into a filter. Luckily Evelyn had a whole coffee station set up on the counter, saving him from being forced to guess at the location of the items he needed, so the process was smooth and their secret remained safe. Once the reservoir was filled he switched the base grade machine on and turned back toward the bedrooms. “Cups are in the cabinet. Milk’s in the fridge. I’ll see you in a couple hours.”
He made a stop in the bathroom before falling back into the bed and closing his eyes, ready to sneak in a little more sleep before five actually hit.
He made it all of ten minutes.
“Do I put milk in this?”
Grady sighed. “I don’t know, Gram-Gram. How do you take your coffee?”
The room was silent for long enough he thought she’d left.
“I don’t know.” Gram-Gram sounded pissed. Like she thought it was his fault she didn’t fucking know how to make coffee.
