I couldn’t hold the smile back as I continued to look out the window. Grayson and I had hung out together before, but there was always so much sexual tension around us, we usually ended up sneaking away to his truck or my car or back to one of our apartments to release the build-up. This whole friend zone thing was kind of fun.
We ended up hitting up a bowling alley, then a laser tag place and finally an indoor paintball place where Grayson got way too into the whole thing. I was positive I was going to be bruised from head to toe tomorrow.
Climbing up into his truck, I let out a moan. “Holy fuck, Gray. Was the paintball your payback for the ice skating?”
With an evil smile, he shut the door and headed around the front of his truck. Jumping in, he started up the truck and headed out toward the San Juan Mountains.
“Doesn’t your mom live out this way?” I asked as I glanced back over to him.
“Yep.”
My heart started beating harder in my chest. I had yet to meet his mother. Grayson had met my parents, but as far as they knew he was just Noah’s cousin who happened to live in the same town as me.
“Um . . . are we . . . ah . . . are you going . . . to um . . . well . . .” Jesus H. Christ, I can’t even talk.
“Spit it out, Meg.”
“Are we going to your mother’s house?” My words were laced with fear. Meeting Grayson’s mom would be taking a major step. Why was he bringing me to meet her? Today we were in the friend zone for Pete’s sake!
With a smile that melted my panties, Grayson looked at me and then back to the road. “With the storm coming in tonight, I want to make sure she has everything. I’m not sure I’ll be able to make it up tomorrow. You don’t mind, do you?”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness was only making a quick run to check on her. This was no big deal. He wouldn’t think twice bringing me. I’m his best friend after all.
With a smile I found I had to force, I said, “No, of course I don’t mind.” Sadness filled my chest as I realized I might have actually wanted Grayson to bring me home to meet his mother . . . and not as his friend.
Snow was beginning to fall harder as we drove down a street filled with simple homes. They weren’t very big, yet you could tell it was a nice neighborhood. Each house looked like it sat on at least half an acre of land.
“I made pretty good money in my stripping days. I bought my mom this house a few years back.”
My stomach clenched at the idea of seeing Grayson dancing. There were plenty of times I wanted to ask him to give me a private show. I was certain he did very well in his last career. Not only was he beyond handsome, he knew how to dance. My mind drifted back to the first time I had ever seen Grayson.
I couldn’t pull my eyes off the guy Lauren had talked into jumping up on the bar and dancing. The way he moved was almost sinful. Grace yelled out for him to take his pants off as I quickly joined in on the fun.
Oh yes . . . I wouldn’t mind a little private show of my own.
“It’s a cute neighborhood,” I said as I forced all images of Grayson stripping far from my mind.
Grayson swung his truck down a driveway that winded back just a bit from the road. “My mother loves nature, so I bought the lot at the very end of the road. It’s two acres of land.”
As he pulled down the drive, I took in the site of the cabin sitting in front of me as I smiled. “It’s a cabin!”
The truck came to a stop as I looked over at Grayson. He was smiling a wide smile. “Yeah, she always used to talk about owning a cabin in the mountains. This is the best I could do for now.”
My heart melted at the idea of Grayson doing all he could to make his mother’s dream come true. “I’m sure she loves it.”
Giving me a quick wink, Grayson jumped out of his truck and ran around to get my door. The snow was coming down even harder now as he grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the front door as we both ran.
The door opened right as we got on the porch. Grayson’s mom stood in front of me and she was beyond beautiful. She couldn’t have been but in her early forties. Her light brown hair was pulled into pig-tails and she had a smudge of green paint on her cheek. Her blue eyes lit up the moment she saw Grayson.
“Baby! I told you not to drive up here!”
My chest tightened as I watched the two of them exchange hugs. You could see how much Grayson loved his mother, and that did crazy things to my guarded heart.
“Why, who is this gorgeous girl standing on my porch?”
Grayson laughed as he reached his hand out for mine and pulled me closer to him. My heart was beating so loudly in my chest, I was sure it would eventually beat right on out.
“Mom, this is Meagan. She’s a good friend of mine, my best friend as a matter of fact.”
My smile faltered one quick second. I wasn’t prepared for that to hurt as much as it did. Praying like hell neither Grayson nor his mother caught my reaction, I held my hand out and said, “Ms. Bennett, it’s a pleasure meeting you.”
Her eyes sparkled as she quickly looked me over. “Oh, call me Ashley, Meagan. My mother-in-law was Ms. Bennett.”
With a polite chuckle, I nodded. “Ashley it is.”