Page 26 of Rescued Hearts
I knew it would be a bloodbath after Savannah obliterated their last legal hope of blocking Golden Circle’s expansion two days ago. While one half of my family was relieved, the other half was furious.
And I was caught in the middle.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and when I checked to see what it was, I couldn’t help but smile. It was a selfie from Tess mid-run. It looked like she was in the park, grinning with her hair in a ponytail. There were some baby hairs slick with sweat framing her hairline, and her face was flushed from exertion, but she was glowing.
I leaned in closer, spotting the bubblegum pink shoes she had picked out a few days ago before the hearing. She had been so cute when she saw them, her whole face lighting up. And she was even cuter at the ice cream shop afterwards, trying new icecream flavors. She had settled on chocolate peanut butter while Luke went for a mess of strawberry and four different toppings.
Tess Hayes:Just ran a 10:40!!!! Slow but better than two days ago
I glanced around the restaurant,and there was still no sign of Preston or Grandfather, so I typed out a response, one that was probably a little heavy-handed, but I was so pleased to see her happy that I didn’t care.
Me:Keep it up! You’ll have to let me know when you go next time.
Me: We can race.
Tess Hayes: We both know you’d win in a heartbeat
Me: Don’t know… Maybe I’ll be feeling generous and let you win
My heart wasin my throat, wondering if the wink was too much, if I’d gone too far. I could tell her it was a typo, and that I hadn’t meant it.
But I had meant it. I wanted to experience her after a run, after ‘beating’ me. I wanted to taste the salt on her skin while I kissed her, wanted to get wrapped up in her victorious laughter, wanted to tell her how proud I was of her for trying new things.
Tess Hayes:You’re always generous Levi
Tess Hayes: It’s one of the many things I like about you
A pairof hands slammed down on my shoulders, and I jumped, my phone falling into my lap. “Jesus, you scared me,” I panted as Preston sat down next to me.
I locked my phone and put it back in my pocket, trying to steady my racing heart. Racing that I wasn’t sure had come from Preston…or Tess.
“You’re about to be a lot more scared,” he warned, unfolding his napkin and putting it in his lap with a flourish.
Great. At least it’d get my mind off what other things Tess could possibly like about me. Her words burned through my mind like wildfire. I felt like a middle school girl wondering about my crush, and not a grown man.
Grandfather wasn’t far behind him and sat down with a heavy breath. “Levi.”
I dipped my chin. “Grandfather.”
A waitress scurried over the second he joined us, eagerly waiting for him to speak. “Three bourbons, and three of the surf n’ turf.” My eyes went wide. What the hell?
“Grandfather, it’s noon,” I said, glancing between him and the waitress. “I have work to do after this.”
“It’s Saturday. One drink won’t kill you,” Preston said, already drinking one he must’ve gotten at the bar on the way in. I was fairly certain he was a functioning alcoholic at this point.
I looked at the waitress. “Just two bourbons. I’m fine with what I have. Thank you.”
She peered down at Grandfather as if he had some kind of say over what I consumed. He just waved a hand, dismissing her like she was nothing. My jaw tensed at the gesture.
Once we were alone, he rested his arms on the table, locking his fingers. “So.”
I glanced between him and Preston. “So?”
“You tipped her off, didn’t you?” Preston asked, leaving no room to guess whether he was pissed or not.
“Who?”
“Don’t play dumb. Savannah Hayes,” Grandfather said, his voice low. “She knew exactly what our plan was. Every time we threw something at them, she had a counter ready.”
