Not only did the feeling fit immediately, the rightness of it wrapped her in warmth and joy.
And those damn maybes and what-ifs filled her mind again.
When Faith flipped the switch and all the bulbs in the last row of lights glowed, she knew she was done. Her first year setting up without her Dad. Without anyone.
Now she knew she could do it on her own.
Instead of that knowledge relaxing her or bolstering her, it depressed her. She was tired of doing everything on her own. Her mind drifted toward the puzzle of continuing to see Grant when he returned to DC. She spun the pieces in her mind, tried to make them fit. When they didn’t, she took out those pieces and tried others. Still no good.
Her phone chimed, and she smiled, anticipating a text from him. But when she pulled her cell from her pocket, she found a new email. From Natalie.
“Ugh.” Dread and guilt twined as she tapped it open, wondering what snarky comment Natalie had delivered now.
But no words filled the email. Just photos. Image after image after image of Grant with different women. Faith’s gut tightened automatically, as if fending off a punch.
They all looked like paparazzi or event photos. None were provocative, but they all clearly displayed Grant as an attentive, affectionate half of a couple.
With her stomach aching, Faith shored up a framework for her thoughts. She knew Grant was a player. A player was exactly the kind of man she’d been trying out when she’d gone into this fling. He’d never made promises. Never led her to believe anything in his life would change once he left Holly for DC or any other city. He owed her nothing.
But, no, that didn’t magically erase the pain.
She blew out a slow breath and focused on the single line of text below each image.
Miriam Birovski, CFO, Birovski Vodka.
Daphne Johnson, corporate attorney, Oracle.
Tiffany Shapiro, model.
Bridgette Ferreira, model, broadcaster.
Faith continued scrolling, scanning over a dozen photographs, names, and titles while the uncomfortable tightness beneath her ribs became a stabbing pain.
At the bottom, Natalie’s parting message hammered every one of Faith’s insecurities home: You’ll never belong.
She forced her eyes closed and turned off her screen. None of that mattered, because this wasn’t permanent. This wasn’t real. This was a fling.
“There you are.” Grant’s voice startled her, and she pivoted toward him. He was smiling, but not in that light, happy way she’d come to love. “I thought you were going to call me to help you set up the tables.”
He wore his parka and jeans. His knit hat was covered with snow.
“You were already spending all that extra time looking at my books,” she said, starting his direction.
When he was beneath the arena’s cover, he pulled off his hat and ran a hand through his hair while he looked around at Faith’s set-up. “Man, this looks fantastic.”
She smiled and went to him. He was still hers for a few more days. So she slid her hands underneath his jacket and over the soft cotton of his tee and all the warm muscle beneath. And she hugged him tight. “You’re fantastic.” She smiled up at him. “Thank you for finishing the video for me. And getting it up online. And...just...being so all around amazing.”
“Hold off on that assessment.” He wrapped her in his arms, framed her face with one hand and kissed her. And even the kiss was different. A steady press of his lips that lingered, as if he didn’t want to let go. It tugged at her already aching heartstrings.
When he pulled back and looked into her eyes, she knew this wasn’t going to be something she wanted to hear. She laid her hand against his chest. “What’s wrong?”
He wrapped one big, warm hand around hers. “I just got a call from my agent.”
Faith tensed against another blow.
“God, I’m so sorry to do this to you, Faith.” He exhaled heavily. “He booked me for an event tomorrow, and I can’t get out of it. These appearances are in my contract, and I can’t bum it off on anyone else because the guys who can go are already going. The others are married with kids and spending the night with their families.”
She nodded, but she stood on the edge of a cliff with a very long fall waiting. “Where’s the event?”