He loved that she reached for his hand when they got in his truck and headed for the highway.
“How was dinner?”
She looked over at him. “Delicious. You missed out on my lasagna. I’m no gourmet but I’ve got that one down.”
“I’m an idiot.”
“Worse than you think. You missed out on Tilly’s apple-peach crisp.”
“Any chance you saved me some?” He gave her a quick glance and squeezed her hand.
“Maybe.”
“What did they think of your place? They haven’t been there since theTrading Spacesthing. They like the couch?”
She chuckled. “Morty thought it was weird. Tilly liked it. They were really impressed with everything. What happened yesterday?”
He liked that she didn’t let him off the hook. As he drove, he told her about the two deals he’d lost out on, then filled her in on his golf game, which yielded nothing but a headache. Those men only wanted to put their money into things that would benefit them. They didn’t think another community center was worth their time. They reminded him of his father.
“I’m sorry. That’s a lot of lousy things in one day,” she said.
“Yeah. I wasn’t lying about my mood. I wasn’t in a good one even after the gym. I thought I could sweat it out but all that did was give me time to think about how hard I’ve worked to separate myself from my father without getting anywhere.”
He switched lanes, grateful that the traffic wasn’t horrendous.
“Why do you say that?” Grace picked her coffee up from the drink holder to sip.
“Wes got back to me after my game. The two companies that turned down my bids did so because my father undercut me.”
She gasped. “What? Do you think he knew? Of course he knew. Does he have any other properties in California? Why would he do that?”
There was something about the way her tone changed, hard and protective, that did something all the working out in the world couldn’t achieve: it made him feel understood. Like he might be standing on the edge of a cliff but he wasn’t alone there.
“All good questions. I do think he knew exactly what he was doing, and he has investments everywhere but these were very targeted. He wants to show me he’s still in charge.”
“God. What is wrong with people? Parents are supposed to support you, push you to be better by showing you the way. They’re supposed to protect you and love you, not try to screw up your life to show you who’s boss.”
Taking the exit for Anaheim, he glanced over briefly. “We still talking about my dad?”
Her hand twitched under his. “Doesn’t matter. It just doesn’t seem right.”
“It does matter. You matter to me, Grace.”
“Are we going to Disneyland?”
He wasn’t sure what to think of her sidestepping his declaration.Hardly a declaration, man. Coffee matters. Surfing, getting a good deal, and hanging out with friends matter. She’s more than that.
“No. But we can another day, if you’d like.”
“Never been. I’d love to.”
He smiled, thinking that he’d like to experience a whole world of firsts with her.
“Then we’ll make a plan. Now, back to the conversation. Were we talking about just my dad?”
She sighed, setting her cup down. “My mom phoned Morty’s trying to find me. Sent a couple more letters. She asked for money when I first moved and she’s texted a bunch. I haven’t opened the latest letters. I’m tired. I want to move forward. I don’t want to go back.”
Taking a detour, he turned on Katella Avenue. “I get that.” He felt the same about his father.
