After his orthopedic appointment, he got the green light to resume any activity he could tolerate on the crutches. In another two weeks, he might be able to go without them. I hoped that meant he would stay off rooftops for a while, but I wasn’t about to lecture him on work safety. We had enough to worry about.
Today, he was checking on the rental properties, and I hadn’t seen him smile like that since the accident. It was nice to see the gleam in his eye and his pretty white teeth again. I wasn’t sure how much more grumpy Grey I could take.
I was in full accounting mode. I used the calculator I bought for my first statistics class at Carolina to project the expenses for the month. We needed more income.
My phone rang. “Taylor, hey.”
She squealed into the phone. “I did it! I finally did it.”
“Did what?” I was completely distracted.
“Last night, I broke up with Jesse.”
“Oh, wow. How do you feel?” I put the calculator aside.
“Amazing. Fantastic. Invincible. Why didn’t I do that sooner? And the timing couldn’t be better.”
“Why’s that?”
She huffed. “Because I’ll be in South Padre next week! I will be arriving single and one hundred percent a-vail-able.”
Oh crap. With everything going on, I forgot Taylor would be here soon. “Yes, perfect timing.” I closed my eyes. What kind of friend forgets her best friend’s travel plans?
“So what are we going to do first? Shopping? Beach? Oh, I know. You can take me to that bar you always talk about…Paul’s.”
“Pete’s. It’s Pete’s.”
“Right. It doesn’t matter to me. I can’t wait to see you and be at the beach. It’s already getting cool here. The leaves are changing and everyone’s drinking pumpkin spice lattes.”
I felt the pang like a cramp in my heart. I loved fall. It was one of my favorite times in Chapel Hill. So far, South Padre felt like perpetual summer.
“Eden, you there?”
“Yep. Yep, I’m here.” I was trying to shake the vision of cashmere sweaters, scarves, and falling leaves.
“I’m headed to class, but had to tell you about Jesse.”
“I’m glad you did. Call me if you need me. You know, breakup remorse.” The way Taylor sounded that didn’t seem possible.
“Oh, I’m good. I’m going to start packing tonight for Padre. Call you later, girl.”
“Bye.” I tossed my phone on the desk. Taylor would be here in less than a week. I had a lot to figure out between now and then.
I closed the office door for the evening just as Mason whipped into the parking lot, kicking up gravel with his fancy convertible. He stopped in front of the office.
“Need a ride?”
“No, thanks. I can walk fifty feet.” I slung the laptop bag over my shoulder. I needed to respond to a few more emails tonight.
“I don’t mind.” He flashed a killer smile.
“I can handle walking home.” I turned for the sidewalk in front of the Palm’s neon blinking sign. We really needed to get rid of that thing. It suddenly seemed tacky and low-rent flashing on Mason’s slick convertible.
“The offer always stands, sweetheart.” He revved the engine lightly and rolled toward the back of the parking lot to my former room.
I tried not to think about the fact that I put Mason in a place that held such dear memories for me, but I needed him to be close to the ocean. I needed him to fall in love with this place. I wasn’t about to let him stay in room twenty-four. Grey probably would have exploded on the spot. It was bad enough having Mason traipse in and out of the motel every day. It was a constant reminder to Grey that there was a legal battle on the horizon. I already regretted my offer. Every day he slipped a new list under the office door. Each one was longer than the last.
It didn’t appear that Mason was interested in any type of family bonding. He was strictly here for the business aspect of the Palm. I walked along the road, not wanting to cross paths with the uncle again.
I was surprised to see Grey’s truck in the driveway.
I jogged up the stairs. “Honey, I’m home,” I called through the kitchen. It was funny and cliché, but I liked saying it.
I placed my bag at the kitchen table and walked to the bedroom. I could hear the shower running. Two weeks ago, I would have stripped down to my birthday suit, pulled back the shower curtain, and wrapped myself around Grey’s hard, wet body, but it wasn’t two weeks ago. I wasn’t sure how he would take it. Every little thing seemed to annoy or frustrate him. I couldn’t tell anymore where the boundaries were that kept me from entering that sphere that set him off.