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“No, I’m okay,” he told her before she could ask. “I just had an idea.”
“And you couldn’t say that before abruptly stopping and making me think something’s wrong?”
“You’re right, I’m sorry.” Grayson cleared his throat. “What are you doing tonight?”
“Uh, making you dinner?”
Really? That’s what her life had become—taking care of him? He had to change this because she didn’t need to live like this. And neither did he.
“Tonight, we’re going out,” he told her, much to her surprise. Grayson took her hand in his. “Reid, would you like to go out with me tonight?”
She nodded. “Nothing crazy, though, okay?”
“I promise. Nothing outlandish.” She’d kill him if he took her to a dance club. Not to mention, he wasn’t sure his new heart was ready to get its groove on.
They climbed the stairs to their complex, and he held the door for her. Inside the elevator, he selected her floor, but not his, hoping she wouldn’t question him. When they reached her floor, he walked her to her door. “I’ll see you later.”
“What time?”
He looked at his wrist, fully aware he didn’t have a watch on, but he did so in hopes she’d call him out for being goofy. She didn’t.
“I’ll pick you up at five,” he told her.
“We live in the same building,” she reminded him. “I can come to your place.”
He shook his head. “Absolutely not. This is a date. I’ll pick you up.” Grayson winked and strode toward the elevator. “Nothing fancy, Sully, but we’ll have a good time.”
At least he hoped.
In his apartment, he showered. Even though he’d done it before heading to the doctor, now he did it with a purpose. Tepid water splashed onto his scalp, wetting his dark hair and matting the ends to his face, and then it dripped down his back, buttocks, and legs and finally circled the drain.
Grayson watched the water swirl around the silver drain cap. He likened the motion to his life. His recycle phase. The ultimate second chance.
The water turned colder than he preferred, and Grayson adjusted the dial. He could easily spend all day in the water, something he’d learned to love during his teen years of being a lifeguard at the rec center near his childhood home. Being paid to swim whenever he wanted, flirt with all the good-looking girls, and blow his whistle when kids became too rowdy added up to the perfect summer job for him. Thankfully, he never had to use the lifesaving skills the organization had taught him.
Grayson washed and rinsed before shutting off the water. One of the dates he would plan with Reid would be a trip to the beach. She deserved a getaway. She’d gone way above what a friend or even best friend did for another person. Grayson needed to thank her in ways only he could do.
He shook his head, spraying water droplets onto the already damp walls. Only after he’d slid the door back did he realize he hadn’t grabbed a towel—he was left with the choice of walking naked and wet to his linen closet or using the hand towel Reid insisted he keep in his bathroom.
“Hand towel it is,” he muttered as he reached for the monogrammed cloth. He had a set of towels that matched—a gift from Reid last Christmas—but they weren’t for everyday use, according to her. Household decorations were out of his realm. He didn’t understand the need to put something in his apartment that he couldn’t use. Reid and his mom had made his life hell when they’d shown up at his place with bags from HomeGoods.
Grayson rehung the dank towel on the towel bar, thought better of it, and took it, along with his clothes, to his hamper. If Reid used it to dry her hands after he’d used it to dry under ...Nope. He had far too much respect for her to allow that to happen.
In his bedroom, he stood in front of his closet, looking at his clothes. He’d lost a few pounds since his surgery, and most of his clothes were a bit baggy. Nothing a belt couldn’t fix. He pulled a pair of jeans from the top shelf, reached for a white button-down, and set them on his unmade bed. He groaned at the sight of it.
Grayson pulled his sheet and comforter up. That was the best he’d do when it came to making his bed. At least for now. As much as he wanted Reid in his bed, he was going to have to move slowly on building this relationship, and rightly so.
He dressed in sweats while he made plans for the night. They’d start off with dinner at the new salad place that had opened up not far from their apartment. This would appease Reid in the quest to keep him healthy, and then they’d go to the movies. He thought that keeping it low key was the best way to start. Of course, he’d invite her over for another movie or just to chill on the couch. Whether she came in or not, he still planned to walk her to her door, and if the vibe was there, he’d kiss her good night. Just a peck. One that lingered. And possibly showed her some promise.
THIRTEEN
NADIA
Nadia rolled onto her side and stared at the empty space next to her. The girls slept with her off and on, but last night she’d wanted to be alone. It was Rafe’s birthday. The first of many to come without him, and it would be a day of mourning, remembering, and crying. Not a day had passed since his death when she hadn’t cried. There was always something to bring on the emotion, and it was usually something as trivial as a sock on the closet floor that he’d left there the morning of the marathon, or the folded pile of his clothes on top of the dryer. This morning it was because of his birthday and the fact that his pillow no longer smelled like him. In fact, very little did, unless she opened his bottle of cologne and inhaled. His scent had long since dissipated from their bedroom.
Over the past few months, she’d waited for life to return to normal like everyone told her it would. She’d taken a leave of absence from work and had barely made the girls go to school. If they didn’t want to, she didn’t force it. On those days, they stayed huddled in their house, on the couch under a blanket, watching movies. She knew she needed to be a stronger parent and force her children to go to school, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. If she wasn’t going to work because of how she felt, why should the girls be subjected to the same thing.
Nadia brought Rafe’s pillow to her face and screamed into it. She let the anger flow. Her sounds were muffled by the place her husband used to lay his head at night. Life was unfair, and she didn’t know if she would survive the pain she felt in her chest. Nothing would ever be the same, no matter how hard she tried.
