I pulled to the curb in front of Grae’s house and stared at it. All the pots with their arrays of brightly colored blooms. She was in every detail. The rocks she’d painted with her nephews that were scattered across the garden beds. The little fairies and gnomes sprinkled around. The rockers where I knew she sat and watched the sun go down.
Those details would be the death of me. But still, I climbed out of my SUV and let them swallow me whole. I took the steps one at a time, trying to rein in the urge to get to Grae.
Reaching the front porch, I took a deep breath and rang the bell.
“Coming!”
There was a musical lilt to Grae’s voice that had my gut tightening and that pull flaring to life again.
The door opened, and I froze. Grae had a beauty that shone every single day, in every state, no matter what she wore or how tired she was. But I wasn’t used to seeing her like this.
She wore a pale pink silk dress with straps so thin and delicate they almost disappeared against her skin. The fabric hugged every curve, dipping low in the front and showing just a hint of cleavage that had my mouth going dry. My gaze tracked down her smooth, toned legs to the strappy shoes she wore that I couldn’t help but picture hooked around my hips as I took her.
“Gigi…”
She bit her lip. “Is it okay? It’s been a minute since I had to dress up for something.”
“You’re gorgeous.”
This image would be burned into my brain for eternity. Her white-blond hair was curled in waves that framed her face, and she’d done something to her eyes that made them seem impossibly larger. So large I wanted to get lost in them and never come up for air.
Pink hit her cheeks. “Thanks. You don’t look so bad yourself.”
Her eyes tracked over my navy suit and down to my shoes.
I chuckled. “I guess we clean up okay.” I glanced behind her. “You set the alarm?”
Grae turned, punching in a code and then stepping outside. She shut and locked the door, slipping her key into a tiny clutch. “Good to go.”
I offered her my arm, not wanting her to traverse the steps in those shoes.
Her eyes flared. “Turning into a gentleman, are you?”
The corner of my mouth kicked up. “Never.”
She laughed, and the sound wrapped around me, warming places that had felt cold for so long.
We made our way down the steps, and I helped Grae into the SUV. Rounding the vehicle, I climbed in and started the engine.
Grae toyed with the clasp of her clutch. “So, it’s your parents and Gabe?”
“And Lena, his fiancée.”
Grae’s lips pursed at that.
“Not a fan?”
“I’ve only met her twice, but she doesn’t really seem like someone I’d want to spend a lot of time with.”
I chuckled. “You and me both.”
Grae was quiet for a moment, staring intently at her bag.
“What’s wrong?”
She worried the side of her thumbnail in a telltale sign of nerves. “I meant to tell you. I had a little run-in with Gabe at The Brew the other day.”
I stiffened. “What happened?”
