Page 23 of How He Got the Girl
“No.” She lets out a dry laugh. “I don’t think love is for me.”
“Love is for everyone.”
“Debatable.” She tilts her head. “Although it appears you’ve found it.” I furrow my brows. “Shouldn’t you be in LA with your costar girlfriend?” She spits out the words like they’re venom.
I look around, trying to make sure no one is listening in on our conversation. “I can’t talk about Brittany here, but I’ll tell you everything in a private setting, if you’re willing to hear me out.”
“I don’t need to hear any more lies from you.” Mallory glances at her phone. “Lucky you, I graced you with six minutes instead of five.” She pulls her beanie back on and grabs her drink, raising it toward me. “Have a nice life, Griffin.”
I open my mouth to say…anything. But I don’t know what to say to the woman I’ve been waiting three years to find again, who seems glad to have lost me. My hand itches to reach out and stop her as she breezes past me. But I don’t even get out so much as a goodbye before she’s out the front door of the coffee shop and my life.
Yeah, this chance encounter is nothing like the movies. Because if it were, we’d be walking out of this shop hand in hand.
And I’d never let her go again.
“I don’t need you to fuss over me.” Granny swats my hand away. “It was just a hip replacement. I can hold a fork.”
I place the utensil on her napkin. “Sorry, go ahead.”
“Your kind, caring heart is my favorite quality about you.” She leans forward and pinches my cheeks. “That’s why you’ll always be my Griffie boy.”
I take it like a champ, even though it hurts like the dickens. For such a small woman, her fingers sure have a mighty grip.
“Are you ready to fess up to naming my fandom the Griffies?” I ask as she takes a bite of salad.
She offers me a closed-lip smile, her eyes crinkling at the corners. Once she’s finished chewing, Granny shakes her head. “Never.”
I walk into the small kitchen in her room at the rehab facility, making two plates of tri-tip steaks and baked potatoes with all the fixings. I carry them to the table, placing one in front of her and the other in front of my chair.
“You’re spoiling me.” She looks from the steak to me with wide eyes.
I take the seat across from her. “You deserve to be spoiled.”
“What would I do without you?” Granny pushes her salad aside and cuts into her steak. After she eats a bite, she dives right back in for more. “You outdid yourself.”
“Steak is one of the few things I know how to cook.”
“You won’t hear me complaining.”
I dig into my plate. This cut of meat is my favorite, and something I treat myself to often. Life is too short not to eat your favorite foods.
I’m diving into my baked potato when Granny clears her throat. “You know that I love having you here, but I feel like I’m keeping you from your life in LA.”
She would scold me if she knew that I have an offer on the table for another rom-com right now that I planned to pass on to stay here while she recovers. An opportunity I’m for sure going to pass on now that I know Mallory is here, too.
Granny already put up a fight about me paying for her surgery and her stay in the rehab facility. If she knew how much I was paying for my rental house, she’d probably insist on paying me back. Money means nothing in comparison to her health. I don’t want her to feel like I’m missing out on something from being here, even though I am.
Family is my priority. They always have been.
“I’m in between projects right now,” I fib. “You know I always travel back and forth as my schedule allows.”
“This center gives me everything I need and more.” Granny tuts. “I’ll be here for at least a few months. I don’t want to be a bother.”
I reach across the table and set my hand gently on hers. “You’re never a bother or a burden.” I want to sell the fact that I want to be here. An idea pops into my mind, and my mouth is already moving before I can even think about what I’m saying. “I’m here for another reason, too.”
This lie has Granny raising her eyebrows. “Do I have to pry it out of you?”
“I wanted to visit my girlfriend.”
