“Me and your grandma are here for a visit. Your grandma was gonna call to tell you we were in town, but your ma said you’d be here tonight for dinner, so we thought we’d surprise you,” he says, and I rush up the stairs and wrap my arms around his waist. His arms close around me while his lips touch the top of my hair. “You doin’ okay?”
“Yes!” I squeeze his waist then tip my head back to look up at him. “Even better now.” I grin then whisper, “I’d like you to meet someone.”
“All right.” He touches his lips to my forehead again, then wraps his arm around my shoulders, tucking me into his side as I slide mine around the back of his waist.
Turning him to face Harlen, I smile huge and throw my hand out. “Grandpa, this is Harlen. Harlen, my grandpa.” I wave my hand between them.
“Nice to meet you, sir.” Harlen sticks out his hand, and Grandpa takes it, smiling at him.
“You too.” Grandpa looks from Harlen to my dad, and something I don’t get passes between them before he releases Harlen, looks down at me, and smiles.
Okay, super weird, but whatever.
“Is grandma inside?” I ask on a squeeze of his waist, and he shakes his head.
“Nope, your mom and her had to run to town to pick something up.”
“Oh.” I frown, and he grins.
“They’ll be back soon.”
“How long are you in town for?”
“About a week.”
“Are you here to look for a place to live?” I ask hopefully, and he shakes his head.
“No, sweetheart.”
“Darn,” I whisper. “I’ll keep wishing.”
“Or you could bring your man and come for a visit,” he suggests, hugging me into his side.
“Yeah,” I agree, looking at Harlen and wondering if he’s ever been to Florida before. Then I wonder what he would look like in swim trunks. Probably hot.
“Can your old man get a hug?” Dad asks, sounding impatient.
My eyes fly over to meet his. “Are you gonna be nice?”
“Yes,” he grits out, and I roll my eyes and go to him. Wrapping my arms around his middle, I hug him tightly. “In love?” he asks the top of my head, and I nod. “Fuck.”
“Dad.”
“I know, your bubble,” he mutters, sounding amused and annoyed, and I let out a short laugh before giving him a squeeze and letting go.
As I move close to Harlen, his eyes come to me and I take the dish we brought from his hands. “You want a beer?”
“Yeah, baby.”
“‘Kay, be right back.” I slide up on my tiptoes, kiss his bearded jaw, and then head inside. Setting the dish on the counter in the kitchen, I go to the fridge and grab a beer for Harlen and a soda for myself, taking both toward the front door. Just as I step out onto the porch, Mom and Grandma pull up and park. Seeing my Grandma wave through the windshield, I grin, hand Harlen his beer, and then skip down the steps right for the passenger door, swinging it open.
“My baby!” Grandma cries, getting out of the car and wrapping her arms around me in a warm, tight embrace, rocking me side-to-side the same way she’s done all my life.
“Hey, Grandma.” I lean back to look at her, and her hands frame my face. I’ve missed her. I’ve missed Grandpa too, but I’ve really missed my grandma. We’ve always been close, which made it really hard when the two of them moved away to Florida.
“You’ve been holding out on me, young lady,” she scolds, still smiling. “Your mom filled me in on this new man of yours when I got in this morning.”
“Sorry.” I look over the roof of the car at my mom, who smiles at us before slamming her door. “I hope she told you how awesome he is.”
“She did,” Grandma confirms, and my eyes go back to her. “Though, your dad does not seem to agree.” She winks, and I laugh.
“You can tell me what you think of him yourself, since he’s here,” I say, and she looks toward the porch, her eyes widening when they land on Harlen in his uniform of biker boots, dark jeans, and a long-sleeved navy blue Henley that fits him like a second skin showing off every one of his muscles.
“He’s big,” she whispers.
“Yeah,” I agree.
“And handsome,” she whispers again, and I smile.
“Yeah.”
“Perfect for my girl,” she finishes, and I feel my heart squeeze.
“I’m in love with him.”
“You didn’t have to tell me that.” She turns to me, cupping my cheek. “I see it in your eyes.”
“You do?”
“Yeah.”
“I just realized tonight,” I admit, and she smiles knowingly.
“Sometimes us women get so caught up in what’s happening that we don’t notice what’s actually happening.”
“This is true,” I murmur, and she laughs, wrapping her arm around my waist and pulling me into her side.