Page 115 of Falling Into Forever
My face grows hot, and my jaw nearly hits the floor. What the hell, Saylor?
“Not the details, thank God.” He sounds a little queasy, and I chuckle. “For future reference, that girl has no filter.”
“Okay, good to know. And? Don’t draw this out on my account, Grady. It’s not like I don’t have years’ worth of work to do in a few days’ time.”
“I just wanted to say that whatever game your fucked-up mind came up with, it’s working. I’ve never seen her so…”
“So, what?”
“Energized.”
Maybe she’s having more orgasms than she’s admitting. The thought makes my cock jump to attention.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah,” he grumbles. “But she’s also writing faster than I’ve ever seen her. You’ve been gone a week, and she’s a quarter of the way through a new book already.”
This has me sitting up straighter. “How is that possible?” Worry deflates my erection faster than ice water.
“I don’t know, Thompson, but her fingers fly across the keyboard. She said something about chasing Meghan Quinn’s daily word count. I don’t even know what the fuck that means. But she’s okay. She’s eating, which is a good sign. She could do with a shower, but that’s probably a side effect of being in the zone more than anything else. It wouldn’t be the first time she’s lost track of time. She’s fucking weird when she’s on a deadline.”
I don’t like the thought of her sitting in her office for so long that she forgets about basic grooming. And I especially don’t like that Grady knows intimate details about her process.
“Don’t go getting all jealous. Get over yourself and accept that some things will take time to learn.”
“Whatever, Grady. What else?”
“That’s it. I told her I was calling you, by the way. I’m not going behind her back, but I’m proud of her, and I thought you’d want to know.”
I do. And as much as I hate admitting he’s right, he is. And for the first time, I can appreciate his loyalty to my girl. We’ve lost a lot of time and changed a lot these past six years, but we have a lifetime to make up for it.
“Thank you for checking on her,” I say. “Are the vultures still outside?”
“Yes,” he grunts. “But considering she has a garden hose attached to the kitchen sink, I’d say she’s pushing them back when she’s overwhelmed by it. But whatever she’s doing, they seem to love her.”
Of course she’s protecting herself, and for once, the media is loving her prickly attitude.
“I asked her not to take her midnight walks while I was gone,” I say. “I don’t even know what path she takes.” Still, it was an asshole request. I don’t want to be someone who dictates her life, but people do stupid shit, and I’d lose my mind if I wasn’t positive she was safe.
He sighs heavily. “She never lets anyone accompany her. The few times I tried to follow her she hid behind a tree and threw pinecones at me when I walked by.” He’s quiet for a minute, and I hear him shuffling papers. “I think she’s too scared because of the crowd, but she’s going outside. Adam and I take turns dropping off burgers when we shut down the brewery, and she’s always on the back deck staring at the stars.”
That piece of information eases some of the worry that’s taken up residence in my heart. The deck is better than that dock I want to destroy with my bare hands. “Thanks, Grady. How’re Lena and Poppy?”
The silence pings all the nervous energy surrounding me. Did the call drop?
I’m about to dial him back when he speaks. “They’re good.”
“Grady?”
“They’re good,” he repeats. “Lena is excited about the salon. Did she tell you she started the process for her Connecticut cosmetology license?”
“She did.” I smirk at how uncomfortable he sounds talking about her.
“Did you find that asshole brother of yours?”
That wipes the smile right off my face. “No,” I growl. “But I will.”
“Have you seen the news?”
