Page 40 of Fake It Till We Fall
My phone buzzed in my pocket, dragging me back to the moment.
I pulled it out and read the text from Brody.
Family dinner tonight. Don’t be late.
Wasn’t that what we did last night at the restaurant? I stopped myself from sending the reply. I knew exactly what kind of response it would get. Our family was intense about our weekly dinner dates. Even when Dad passed and years later, Mom moved down South to escape the cold winters, the carryover from our childhood persisted. Somehow, the tradition we’d found annoying as kids had become something we all looked forward to.
Mostly.
I’d never had a reason strong enough to blow off the weekly date before. But then again, Harper had never come back before now. She’d never been standing in front of me, her eyes shining with happiness that I’d helped put there as she began decorating her Christmas tree.
Bring Harper.
The second text came through as if Brody had read my mind. I hesitated, the idea more tempting than I wanted to admit. But Harper was already elbows-deep in her second box of ornaments, oohing and aahing over each one she unearthed.
I stuffed my phone back in my pocket. “I should probably head out,” I said. “Dinner with the family.”
“Oh.” Harper’s head shot up. “It’s family dinner night? Did you want…should I…”
My heart squeezed at the unasked question. “No,” I said. “You should stay here with your grandma.” I smiled. “That big tree isn’t going to decorate itself.”
Her soft smile hit me in the gut.
“You should stay, Grayson,” Willa said. “I have a pot of soup on. We could use the help. It would be just like old times.”
It was tempting.Verytempting.
“As much as I’d love to,” I said after a moment, “I think I’ll leave the two of you to it. If I don’t show up to dinner, I’ll never hear the end of it. Brody doesn’t seem to care that we see each other almost every day—we need to sit around a table and share food weekly to be a real family.”
“Never take family for granted, Grayson,” Willa chided me immediately. “You never know when they won’t be around.”
“Grandma!” Harper’s face fell, and at once, I felt the burn of guilt.
“You’re right, Willa.” I stooped to press a kiss to her cheek. “I’m grateful every day for them. Even when they make me crazy.”
She patted my cheek and smiled. “That’s better.”
“Enjoy your evening, ladies.”
When I turned, Harper was behind me. “I’ll walk you out.”
I wanted to argue and tell her to stay with her grandma and soak up the moment. But more than that, I was hungry for another minute alone with her.
The back hallway was narrow and dark as we made our way down the stairs to the back door that led out to the alley behind the plaza. I hesitated, my hand on the door handle.
“Thank you for today,” she said softly. “For the tree and…well, for all of it. You were right. Cutting down the tree was special. I really appreciate it.”
Her eyes searched mine in the dim light and for a second, I forgot how to breathe. The memory of her lips on mine in the snow slammed into me. It took everything I had in me not to pull her in close.
“Of course,” I said, my voice rough. “You know I’d do anything for you, Harper.”
The words hung heavy between us, but before she could respond, I cleared my throat. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Have fun tonight.”
She swallowed hard and nodded, her sweet smile back on her face. “Tomorrow.”
I stepped out into the cold, the sound of the door clicking behind me, and wondered how the hell I was supposed to sit through a family dinner when all I wanted was to be back upstairs with her.
Chapter Eleven
