“Doesn’t seem too bad.”
Mathis and I both swing our heads to Shaw, my eyes narrowing on him. “You didn’t make it fourteen days until you moved to Charlotte.”
The argument is clear on his face, and I let out a fierce rumble. “Don’t you dare say anything you can’t take back. I fucking love Grace to the bottom of my soul. She’s it for me. Sometimes, the feelings are so strong I can’t put it into words.”
“Damn, brother, I think you just did.” Mathis gives a low whistle.
“That’s why I can’t take this opportunity away. She deserves the world handed to her, and I’m not going to let it slip away.”
“Sounds like your mind is made up. She’s going, regardless of her initial decision,” Shaw agrees under his breath.
He’s right. Hopefully, this will be painless, but my gut is telling me to be prepared.
Be prepared to do whatever it takes to get her to Seattle.
Chapter 24
Grace
Watching my mom flutter around the gallery, talking with the customers, should have me smiling. Instead, there’s a weight in my stomach that gets heavier as the day goes on.
Something’s not right. I can sense it. There’s not one thing I can pinpoint that’s out of order, but the nagging feeling is still present. And it started when Nick came home on Monday night.
I expected him to pounce on me, knowing he’d expect an answer about living together. There was no pouncing, jumping, or leaping. Gone was the confident, smug man who’d left me that morning with the promise of getting an answer out of me. Instead, he fixed me a light dinner and took me to bed, saying he was exhausted from practice.
The next night was the same, except this time, he made love to me so tenderly, so sweetly, I cried when he fell asleep. But since my family arrived on Wednesday, we haven’t had a chance to be alone. Knowing my family’s traditions, he didn’t argue when I explained I needed to stay at my place with my grandpa while Mom and Dad stayed at Logan’s.
Even after his win on Thursday and our Thanksgiving meal, Nick stayed unusually quiet. He didn’t even crack a smile when I served him a piece of the peach pie my mom made that morning.
There is so much happening around me. My parents and the Bennetts hit it off immediately. My Grandpa has declared he’s in love with Claire, which had Mathis offering her to him for a week, jokingly. Melanie is back in the picture, too, fully involved with our crew. But my mood is sinking by the minute, my mind swirling with things I could have said or done wrong.
Nick is upset, and I can’t figure out why.
“Grace, which picture did you mention to me you loved?” My mom’s voice breaks me out of my Grace Space, and I glance up to see Maria with her. I didn’t even notice her come in.
“Let me show you.” Anxiety spikes as I walk to the back. This was going to be a gift to Nick when I moved in.
“It’s perfect,” Maria gushes. “Where would you hang it?”
“In the entryway hall.”
Luckily, there’s no more time for conversation because another customer walks in and I rush to her, desperate to get away.
The afternoon drags on until I’m delirious with worry. Finally, when Logan takes Mom to his place to meet Dad, I break down and call Nick, ready to get to the bottom of this.
“Hello.” His tone is sharp, jarring me.
“Nick?”
“Hey, Grace, what’s up?”
“Nothing, I haven’t heard from you today. Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I’ve been busy. Doing some shopping.”
“Shopping?”
“Thought about getting a new TV, so I’m at the store.”