Small Town Girls Don't Marry Their Best Friends: Contemporary Christian Romance (Beaches of Trumanville Book 3)

by Carol Moncado

  Grateful, Tessa listened carefully as Harrison explained most of the dishes. Somehow, she doubted Lani really needed her husband to go through them all, but at least she wouldn’t end up with alfredo.

  Gray was right.

  She hated it.

  A rose - or orange or pink, depending on where you were - sauce was fine. She liked the mixture of marinara and alfredo, but not simply alfredo.

  By the time the waiter came back to take their order, they were ready.

  “Would you two excuse us for a few minutes while we wait for our food?” Harrison asked as he pushed his chair back from the table. “I think I’d like to dance with my wife.”

  “Go ahead,” Tessa said before even looking at Gray. The prince seemed like a nice guy, but if she didn’t relax, she’d need a massage by the time the evening ended.

  She watched them walk to the dance floor near the stage where live music played. Mia, Gray’s middle older sister, played her saxophone with a band sometimes.

  “What about you?” Gray asked.

  “What about me?” Tessa took a sip of her water.

  He shifted in his chair, playing awkwardly with the button on his shirt sleeve. “Would you like to dance?”

  She hadn’t expected that.

  They didn’t dance.

  They hung out. Played video games sometimes. Went to high school ball games to cheer on neighbors and friends’ younger siblings. Even went to band competitions together to watch the Trumanville Tiger Pride Band perform.

  But they didn’t dance.

  “Um, sure.” Had she said that? That wasn’t a thing she expected herself to say.

  “We don’t have to.” Gray sounded far more defensive than she would have expected him to.

  Tessa shook her head. “No. It’ll be fun.” Right?

  Before she could stand up, Gray was helping with her chair, but he didn’t hold her hand as they walked to the dance floor. Instead, he let her lead the way through the other tables.

  Once there, she turned to him, resting one hand on his shoulder as he took the other in his hand.

  Could there possibly be more space between them? There had to be more daylight than at a fifth-grade made-for-tv-special dance.

  “If we’re going to do this,” she told him, “you need to relax.”

  His shoulders sagged. “I don’t know why it’s weird and awkward.”

  “Because my grandmother and your sister both think this is a date. But we don’t date. Not each other.”

  They didn’t dance either, but here they were.

  “Maybe.”

  Tessa forced a smile onto her face. “It’s just us, Gray. We’re here because you’re taking me to a nice dinner to make up for missing your sister’s wedding. That’s it. We’re not a couple. We’re not testing things out to see if we could be a couple.” Were they? “Just Gray and Tess. Best friends. So relax. Don’t worry I’m going to get some wrong idea just because we have a dance together at Savarino’s.”

  “It’s not that.” He blew out a breath and seemed to relax a little bit.

  “Then what is it?”

  “First, I’m usually an awkward dancer. At least if it’s one of my first dates with a girl. Ask Jazz sometime.”

  Like Tessa would to ask Jasmine Roberts what it was like to date Gray.

  “Second.” He took another deep breath and blew it out slowly. “What if it was?”

  “What if it was what?” Tessa found herself genuinely confused.

  “What if it was a date?”

  What had possessed him to ask such a thing? Yes, Gray had thought about it, but to actually say it? What had he been thinking?

  “We don’t date,” Tessa told him, but for once he couldn’t read the look on her face.

  “No. But what if we did?” He sucked in a deep breath and held it for a minute so he didn’t hyperventilate.

  “You want us to date? Like be a couple?” The look in her eyes was carefully guarded.

  “Maybe?” Could he backtrack? Pretend it was a joke?

  “What does that look like, Gray? We already spend most of our time together.” From guarded to skeptical was good, right?

  “Same as it’s always been but with kissing?” His nose scrunched up as he said it. Romantic.

  “Have you ever actually wanted to kiss me before?” Tessa asked.

  “The thought’s crossed my mind,” he admitted. “How could it not from time to time?” This had to be the most romantic way to ask a girl out ever. The snark needed to stay in his own head, or this would get even worse.

  Tessa took a deep breath of her own. “I think we probably need to talk about this some place besides the dance floor when our food is being delivered to our table. Your sister and the prince are going back already.”

  Gray nodded as she stepped away from him but kept hold of her hand as they returned to the table. He held her chair for her then took his seat across from Harrison.

  “Shall I say grace?” Harrison asked.

  Everyone nodded then bowed their heads while he said a quick prayer of thanks.

  For the first time in years, Gray felt awkward around Tessa. Normally, they talked easily about anything and everything, but at dinner, Gray remained mostly quiet while Harrison asked Tessa about herself. The two of them dominated the conversation with Lani jumping in from time to time.

  The food was delicious, but Gray found himself unable to enjoy it the way he would have liked since he was spending this kind of money on a meal.

  He had some savings, and it wasn’t like he was going to end up washing dishes or begging his brother-in-law to help him cover it, but if he was spending more money on one entree than he normally spend on a meal for both of them, he’d like to be able to savor it.

  Gray and Harrison both stood as Tessa excused herself to go to the restroom. When they were seated again, Lani leaned over to him.

  “What’s the deal, Gray? You and Tessa fighting? Everything seemed fine earlier.”

  He sighed and shook his head. “I asked her to dance then suggested we try dating. That’s all.”

  Lani’s jaw actually dropped. “Finally? You two are finally going to try dating?”

  His eyes narrowed. “What do you mean finally?”

  “I mean we’ve all thought you two would make a fantastic couple. Madi, Mia, and I all thought you never made a move because Sean was dating Heidi. They’re still engaged, so that must not be it.” Lani shrugged. “So what’s changed?”

  “I don’t know. Nothing really. Just thought it was time to ask if it was something we might be interested in trying.” He hadn’t thought about it much, not until he’d been tying his tie and tried to remember the last time he’d worn one when going out with a girl.

  Before they could talk about it any further, Tessa returned. Gray held her chair for her again. She and Harrison once again dominated the conversation until the meal was over.

  Lani and Harrison went to dance again leaving Gray alone with Tessa.

  It had never been this hard to come up with something to talk about.

  “Gray, what made you ask me that?” Tessa didn’t look at him but drew random designs on the tablecloth.

  “It was just a thought. We don’t have to try dating. I haven’t been secretly in love with you for years, hoping that you’d someday see me as more than a friend. The idea occurred to me earlier, and I decided I’d mention it to you. That’s all.” He wanted to reach out, to cover her hand with his, but that seemed like too much of a boyfriend thing to do.

  “I know. I would know if you’d been in love with me.”

  “Then can’t we stay best friends?”

  “Of course.”

  “So why are we awkward?” He dreaded the possible answer.

  “Because it happened half an hour ago. We’ll be fine.” Tessa leaned toward him until she bumped his shoulder with hers.

  “I’m glad. The last thing I want to do is ruin what we already have. Eventually, I’ll find a girl an
d you’ll find a guy who’s okay with us being best friends.”

  She nodded but didn’t say anything.

  Gray had a feeling he knew what was going through her head. What if they never found people who could accept their close relationship? What if they grew apart?

  What if Tessa went to see Heidi in Paris and met some French guy and stayed half a world away?

  Gray knew his brother was afraid of that happening to his relationship with Heidi - not another guy, but the city itself, though Sean hadn’t said anything to Gray about it in so many words.

  Tessa reached over and rested her hand on his forearm. “We’ll be fine, Gray. We always have been. We always will be. But all we’ll ever be is friends.” She smiled at him. The same smile she always gave him. “And I love you. You know that. But I have never been in love with you, and I never will be.” She squeezed his arm then let go.

  Well, that settled that. He hadn’t been deeply invested in a future with Tessa, but to hear her dismiss even the possibility affected him far more than he would have expected.

  There wasn’t a future for them as anything more than friends. Gray was okay with that.

  He was.

  Except that maybe he wasn’t.

  3

  The last four days had been weird for Tessa. Every time she thought about texting Gray, she wondered about the whole date thing. Was he being truthful when he said he wasn’t in love with her?

  He’d texted her. She’d texted back.

  But they were all perfunctory. None of the funny memes they usually shared. None of the random jokes or funny quips from her great-grandfather.

  And now there would be no more of those.

  She let the hot tears fall as she thought about her Pop Pop. He’d lived nearly a hundred years, most of them in the house where she now sat.

  And she needed to call Gray. Gray had loved Pop Pop, too. He was the one who mowed the area around the farmhouse, who fixed things when they needed fixing, like the sink dripping in the kitchen. She hadn’t mentioned that to him since it started the day before.

  Taking a deep breath, she held the button down and told it to call Gray.

  “Hey, Tess. What’s up?”

  The tears overwhelmed her again. “It’s Pop Pop.” She barely managed to get the words out.

  “Oh, Tess.” She could hear the pain in Gray’s voice. “I’m so sorry. What can I do? Are you at the farm?”

  “Yeah. Grandma Vi called me a few minutes ago. He had a stroke this morning. I meant to go up there today, but I didn’t make it. I wouldn’t have been up there early enough anyway, though.”

  “You saw him yesterday,” Gray said gently, as she heard the beeping sound in his car. He was on his way. “You told him you loved him more than all the hay stalks on the farm. He laughed and said he loved you more than his mama’s apple pie.”

  She sniffled. “Yeah.”

  “Actually, he said ‘One day soon, I’m gonna go see Gram and my Jesus. Then someday, I’ll see you again. Love you more than my mama’s apple pie, peanut.’”

  “Yeah. That’s what he said.” That’s what he’d always said.

  “He meant every word. He missed Gram. He longed to see Jesus. He loved his mama’s apple pie, and you were the only one who came close to making it like she did.”

  “I know.”

  “You took good care of him, Tessa. He loved you more than just about anyone since Gram.”

  “He loved all of us.”

  Pop Pop had loved them all, but Gray wasn’t wrong. Tessa had held a special spot in his heart. She’d spent more time with him than anyone in recent years. Tessa came by almost every day to spend a few hours with him, clean the house, and make sure there was enough easy food for him to eat. A nursing student named Holly stayed with him overnight when Tessa went home.

  For the next twenty minutes, Gray kept her talking about Pop Pop and Gram, reminding her of stories she’d forgotten. She even laughed.

  Then Tessa heard his tires crunching down the gravel drive. She hung up without saying goodbye - same as they always did.

  A minute later, Gray was in the house, with his arms around her as she broke down in sobs.

  He didn’t say anything, likely knowing there was nothing he could say, but just held her, rubbing a hand up and down her back.

  When the sobs slowed, they walked to the couch. Tessa snuggled into his side, like she had a thousand times before, but an undercurrent existed that had never been there before.

  “What can I do?” His cheek rested on her head.

  “This is plenty. Grandma Vi and Aunt Phyllis are taking care of everything.”

  They sat there for a long time. Tessa didn’t even know how long it was until her phone buzzed, and she finally moved away from Gray, but the sunlight had definitely shifted.

  She swiped to answer. “Hey, Mom.”

  The call didn’t last long, but the spell over her and Gray had been broken. The rest of the evening was almost like normal, though the pall of sadness hung over everything.

  Together, they heated up one of the meals left in the freezer, all the while praying it wouldn’t burn.

  “At least you can put together meals,” Gray said as he squatted in front of the oven. “Maybe this is the time we don’t burn it or undercook it.”

  They never managed anything in between. She could bake like a dream but couldn’t manage to cook a casserole properly, a quality Pop Pop insisted she’d inherited from his mother.

  “I think it’s almost done.” Gray kept staring through the window. “I’m just glad that old stove isn’t here.”

  Tessa managed a laugh. “At least Pop Pop renovated the whole house. The kitchen was so out of place until he finally got around to doing the rest of the house.” It was amazing though. Granite countertops. Gorgeous cabinets. Slate floors.

  Pop Pop had asked her opinion every step of the way. This kitchen was Tessa’s dream kitchen. The idea of someone else living here punched her in the gut, and she sat down hard on one of the bar stools.

  “What is it?” Gray stood and turned, walking over to lean on the bar.

  “Someone else will live here soon.” She rested her forearms against the top of the bar. “I can’t stand the idea of someone else living here, but I can’t afford to buy it.”

  “Is it going to be sold?”

  She nodded. “That’s the last I heard. It was supposed to be sold and the profits split among all of us. He might have changed it. His lawyer was in to see him a few days ago, but Pop Pop never said why.”

  “Maybe it won’t be sold.” Gray leaned his hip against the counter and crossed his arms. “Maybe he left it to Grandma Vi. She’d let you live here.”

  Tessa shrugged. “It would be better than my place, that’s for sure. If he left it to anyone, it’s probably Holly. She’s lived here with him for the last two years.”

  “He loved Holly, and she took good care of him, and I’d bet he left her something, but I can’t imagine he left her the house.”

  “Probably not,” Tessa admitted. “But someone else will be here. Not me. This is probably one of the last times I’ll try to make dinner in this kitchen.”

  Gray groaned and turned, opening the oven door and using a glove thing to pull the casserole out of the oven. “It’s a little dry.” He grimaced. “We’ve made worse, though.”

  Tessa gave him a small smile. “At least it’s edible, and the smoke alarm didn’t go off.”

  Gray winked at her. “Not this time anyway.”

  She laughed and loved him all the more for making her.

  So why had he ruined what they had together by asking if she’d date him?

  Reading a will was something Gray had never been part of before, but now he sat in a conference room at a local law office with some of Tessa’s family. He felt uncomfortable being there. Even though Gray had loved Pop Pop, he wasn’t family.

  The day before, Gray stood with the family at the graveside service, though it felt wr
ong on several levels. Tessa had leaned on him as the preacher said a few words.

  For the last few days, though covered in grief, things had been more like normal between Gray and Tessa than during the four days between dinner and the news coming in. For that, he was grateful.

  Gray sat beside Tessa in a chair next to the wall. Heidi sat on her other side. His older brother and Heidi’s fiancé, Sean, had come in a moment earlier. Gray had asked Sean if he knew why they were asked to be there, but his brother hadn’t known either.

  Pop Pop’s lawyer flipped through the paperwork before looking up at the family. “Thank you all for coming to the reading of the will. You all know I loved Mr. Braverman. I will miss him deeply. Most of his instructions are pretty simple. Some of the liquid assets as well as certain other assets that are to be sold will be split among the family as follows: thirty percent split evenly among the three children, fifty percent split evenly among the ten grandchildren, and twenty percent split evenly among the ten great-grandchildren listed.”

  “But there are twelve great-grandchildren,” Grandma Vi reminded him.

  The lawyer nodded. “Ms. Tessa Braverman and Ms. Heidi Braverman are excluded from this portion of the will.”

  Murmurs filled the room. Gray could feel Tessa deflate next to him. The pain that sliced through him had to be magnified by a thousand for her and Heidi.

  The lawyer continued to read, mentioning several items that were given to individuals, including most of the furniture at the house. The bedroom sets had been purchased in the last couple of years and were high quality and would be appreciated by the recipients.

  Then he closed the folder and rested his hands on top of it, having listed nothing for either sister. “The rest of the conditions of the will are to be read in private with Ms. Heidi Braverman and Ms. Tessa Braverman along with Sean and Gray Beach.”

  The rest of the family shared hugs as the lawyer ushered the four of them to his office.

  Gray wasn’t sure if this was good or bad. It could go either way.