Worth Every Cent (Worth It 2)

Then I cleaned myself up, got myself dressed, and let Gray drive me to the diner.

“So, I was thinking,” Gray said.

“Don’t hurt yourself,” I said with a grin.

He tossed me a look before he reached for my hand.

“I was thinking if Anton’s house sells, we could go out for a nice dinner to celebrate,” he said.

“That’s fine with me, if you want to,” I said.

“It’s taken me a lot longer than I figured to settle his estate, so I thought we could cap off the venture with a nice meal in one of the surrounding cities.”

“Then you better hope that house sells.”

I honestly wasn’t as happy that the house was being sold, however. Though I smiled and agreed to the dinner, I felt sad inside. Mr. Anton had helped me, and so many people in this town, in ways none of us could ever understand. Gray included. I missed him, and selling off his house left an ache in the pit of my gut I couldn’t shake. I held his hand tightly while we drove through town, then we pulled up to the entryway of the diner.

I looked over at Gray and wondered if he had ever opened up about his childhood to anyone.

“Here we are,” Gray said. “Time for the working gal to get to it.”

But I took a second to study him. To really take him in.

The journey Gray had been on was astounding. An angry, beaten, abused little boy had been set on a path that had turned him into a billionaire. A football player the masses embraced. Into a man the world loved and a man countries welcomed into their arms. My eyes danced across his face as my lips grew closer to his, encompassing his warmth within mine for a sweet, decadent kiss. I gripped his hand. I swirled my thumb on top of his skin. I wanted him to know I was there if he wanted to talk. There if he wanted to open up.

And as I stepped out of the car and walked into the diner, I found myself hoping one day he would share it with me. If only so I could hold him to let him know he was finally okay.

Chapter 19

Grayson

The realtor told me the buyer would be at Anton’s around six, so I headed back to make sure everything looked perfect for them. But I had to admit that I felt slightly regretful about having to sell the old place. I had a lot of good memories within those walls. And I found myself forming new ones with Michelle. It seemed a shame to unload the house so soon after Anton’s death, but I didn’t really know what else to do with it. I couldn’t keep it. I’d never come back to it. And giving it away to someone seemed almost cheap. This had been the only place I really called home until I moved to Napa Valley. I couldn’t give it away to just anyone.

I ran my fingertips along the back of the leather couch. The house felt like a link between me and Michelle. I felt like the house kept bringing us back together, and if I sold it off then that link would dissolve and we would no longer be. I’d have to excuse to stay and no rational reason to come back to Stillsville.

What would become of the connection between us?

The doorbell rang and it ripped me from my trance. I drew in a deep breath, preparing myself to show the house. Or at least get out of the way so they could see it for themselves. I headed for the door and opened it up, and the second I took a look at who was standing there my jaw dropped.

“Cecily?” I asked. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Is that any way to talk to a prospective buyer?” she asked.

The smile on her face was positively devilish. I furrowed my brow while taking her in, looking at the cheap fur coat she had wrapped around her body. It had definitely seen better days.

She couldn’t possibly be the client. She worked as a waitress, and Anton’s estate was on the market for almost three hundred thousand dollars. So why was Michelle’s—whatever she was—pretending to be interested in the place?

After our last encounter, I was on my guard.

“Aren’t you going to let me in?” Cecily asked.

I frowned, but stepped off to the side and let her walk through a threshold she didn’t belong in.

“So, where does our journey begin?” she asked.

“You’re seriously here to look at the place,” I said.

“I seriously am,” she said.