Hold On To Me

by Towers, Terry

  Riley: Are you going to give me a hint on what we’re going to be doing?

  Grayson: Nope. You wouldn’t believe what one of the workers complained to me about this afternoon.

  I grinned. After dating him for a few months now I was beginning to learn that Grayson was one of the sweetest, most caring men I’d ever met, but stupidity set him off every time. And his temper could be explosive. We’d had a few minor disagreements over the past couple of months, but he’d never exploded at me, instead he would just grow quiet and would change or avoid the subject. It seemed like he reserved the hard-assed Grayson for the worksite—and non-functioning electronics.

  Surprisingly enough I hadn’t heard much from Brooklyn, she wasn’t even commenting on his posts as often anymore…. Maybe she’d moved on to greener pastures? One thing I did know was that I wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

  Riley: What happened?

  Grayson: Some kid wanted me to go to management because he felt there wasn’t enough butter on his sandwich.

  Laughing outright, I shook my head, just imagining the expression on Grayson’s face when he was asked that. As much as I shouldn’t, I couldn’t help myself but poke the bear a little bit.

  Riley: Was the complaint valid? Was there a lack of butter on the sandwich as claimed?

  Grayson: Fuck no! The butter was fine. The mustard on the other hand….

  Another bout of laughter erupted from me. I was laughing so hard that tears began to roll down my cheeks. “Oh my god,” I groaned.

  Riley: I really miss you.

  Grayson: It’s mutual.

  Riley: It’s been a stressful week trying to get this last novel finished. I’ve got some serious writer’s block going on and the last novel tanked.

  Grayson: It’ll all work out for you. You’re resilient. This new novel will be kick-ass I guarantee it.

  Riley: LOL and how do you know that? You won’t even read my novels since that first one.

  Can’t say that I was overly upset he didn’t read them. I shouldn’t be, but I was very modest and shy when it came to my work.

  Grayson: Because I know you. You can do anything you set your mind to.

  Smiling, I looked down at the glowing screen as I reclined on the sofa with my bare feet propped up on the coffee table. There was a warming in my heart each time I received a text from him or heard his voice. There were so many times I wanted to tell him how I really felt and say those three scary little words. But I was a coward. And he hadn’t said it either, though I knew he was as scared and damaged as I was, so it was just a matter of who was going to break first.

  Riley: Well thank you. I’m glad you have faith in me, that makes one of us.

  Grayson: I’m about to fall to sleep. I’ll call you when I’m about to board the plane.

  I was reluctant to quit talking to him so early, but I’d be seeing him soon and I had an illuminated computer screen in front of me with a story that needed to wrap up with a happily ever after. If I didn’t get work done soon I’d be heading to bed without a single word typed today.

  Riley: Good night.

  Grayson: Night, baby.

  15

  Riley

  “A craft beer festival? Grayson, really?” I began laughing as he scored a parking spot not too far from the festival entrance. The festival was being held on the outskirts of the city at the old rail station, which I had to admit seemed to work for this event. It was a nice, rustic area.

  “What’s wrong with a craft beer festival?” He pretended to look hurt, but I knew he wasn’t. I’d learned more than I ever think I needed to know about craft beer since meeting him. But I had to admit I loved seeing the kid at Christmastime look he’d get on his face when he learned there was a new brew out.

  “I figured you’d had more of a romantic evening planned.”

  He motioned to the backdrop of the festival. The sun had just about disappeared over the horizon, leaving a smearing of oranges and reds in the near night sky. “Is that skyline not beautiful?”

  “Okay,” I conceded, “I’ll give you that much, it’s pretty beautiful here.”

  “Besides, there’s more than just beer here.”

  I looked over at him and waited for him to expand but he didn’t.

  “Well, what’s here besides beer?” I prompted, my curiously piqued.

  “Not going to say.” He shifted the truck into park and cut the engine. “You’ll just have to get out of the vehicle and find out.”

  “Okay. Fine.” Opening the door, I hopped out and onto the side of the dirt road, grateful I’d worn a pair of sensible low-heeled boots since there would be a fair amount of standing and walking around.

  Meeting Grayson at the front of the truck, I let him take my hand and lead me to the front entrance where they were verifying ID, taking our admittance fees and issuing us arm bands, which told the vendors we were of age and had paid to attend. Even though we’d paid admittance we also had to pay for beer tickets, each ticket was worth one beer. Unlike the food festival, I had no interest in the feature items of the festival, but instead I was curious about the mystery surprise he claimed I’d love.

  He guided me to the first booth and we lined up. Less than five minutes later he was leaving with his first beer of the night. “Come on. Over this way. It’s starting in a few minutes so we should hurry.”

  Working our way through the crowd, we turned a corner and I saw a large stage and on the stage a group of four people were setting up. I knew immediately what their act was and a rush of excitement and anticipation raced through me.

  “Fire performers!” I absolutely loved fire performers. Anything circus related really.

  Looking down at me, he gave me a wink. “Yes, ma’am. See? Something for both of us here today.”

  Wrapping my arms around his waist I gave him a hug, I waited for him to lower his lips to mine. The kiss was brief but left me warm and tingly inside. “How fun.”

  “There’s also supposed to be a band, a comic, and I believe a magician.”

  “All of my favorite things!”

  “All in one place.” He took a long drink from his beer. “And I get to enjoy some of my favorite things.”

  “This is perfect Grayson, really. How did I manage to get so lucky, and off a dating app at that?” It was on the tip of my tongue, those three little words. It should be so easy, but then I was so terrified. A boom of music interrupted the moment as the show began.

  I will fully admit it was one of the best nights I’d ever had. We had so much fun. Though as the night wore on the amount of beer that Grayson was consuming increased to the point where I had to step in and cut him off. I’d never seen him drunk before, but tonight ended up being the night. Like a kid in a candy store with unlimited access, it was all good for a while, but there was a point where the indulgences needed to stop. Me fearing I’d have to try to carry, drag, haul him to the truck was where we hit that limit.

  “All right then handsome. Time to get you home,” I said, taking the nearly empty glass from him and tossing it into the garbage can closest to us.

  “But… Bu—” He looked at me with confusion in his glassy stare.

  “But nothing. We’re done and heading home.”

  A lopsided grin spread across his lips. “Oh I can get all aboard that.” As he spoke he pointed to the de-commissioned caboose that they left for show.

  “Ohmygod,” I groaned, rolling my eyes at him. Grabbing his hand I led him from the grounds as quickly as possible, which wasn’t overly quick considering how unsteady he was on his feet at the current moment.

  I released a sigh of relief when we reached the passenger side of the truck. Reaching into the front pocket of his jeans I pulled out the truck keys and unlocked it. Opening the door for him I waited for him to crawl inside before slamming the door shut.

  Going around the front of the truck, I opened the driver’s side door and hopped in, closing the door behind me.

  “Hey b
aby.” Looking at him, I cocked a brow. I couldn’t even begin to guess what he was about to say to me. “When we get home I’m going to rock your world.”

  Laughing, I rolled my eyes and jammed the key into the ignition, giving it a twist and starting the vehicle. “When we get home you’re going to end up passing out on me. Who are you kidding, Romeo?”

  I didn’t get a reply, but as I drove the forty-five minutes home, I did hear a number of drunken snores. Turning on the radio, I kept the volume low enough to keep from waking him. As his house came into view, I let out a sigh of relief. I was starting to feel the effects of the busy day and the late hour.

  It took me a solid fifteen minutes to wake him and get him into the house, but it seemed the experience of getting out from the truck and into the house had sobered him somewhat.

  “We’re home?” he asked as we stepped through the threshold.

  “Can’t get nothing past you, can I?” Keeping a close eye on him, I closed and locked the front door and then hung my purse on the coat rack and took off my boots.

  He chuckled, his eyes twinkling with amusement. There was a fair amount of clarity in his eyes now which was a relief. “Thanks for getting me back home. I think I overdid it.”

  Pressing my thumb and forefinger almost together I replied, “Just a little bit.”

  “Was I a major pain in the ass?” Wrapping his arms around my waist he pulled me in for a hug.

  I cracked a smile. “Nothing worse than normal. Let’s get you to bed.”

  Grayson seemed a lot more stable as he made his way to the bedroom with me in tow. It’s not that I didn’t trust him to make it on his own, but…. Yeah, scratch that, I was still concerned about his stability. I was tired and the last thing I wanted to do was rush him to the hospital because he’d stumbled over something and broken his nose or God knows what else.

  Entering the bedroom, he kicked off his shoes and began to undress as he worked his way to the bed. “Did you have a good time tonight?”

  “I did. It was a good night, thank you for coming up with the idea.”

  He turned to face me, a devious smile on his face. The only article of clothing that he had left on was his red boxer briefs. “Can I tell you a secret?”

  Giving him the side-eye, I braced myself for whatever was on his mind in this still tipsy state. “Please do.”

  “The main reason I wanted to go was the beer.” Chuckling, he hooked his thumbs into the waistband of the boxers and in one swift motion they fell down his legs to puddle on the floor at his feet.

  Laughing, I shook my head. “You don’t say. Well thank you for the honesty.”

  As Grayson slid under the blankets, I began to undress, no longer bashful over being naked in front of him with the lights on. He’d seen my body plenty of times at this point in our relationship. Once naked, I turned off the light and crawled into bed beside him, snuggling up to his side.

  Grayson pulled me into him, his lips brushing my temple. There was a strong smell of beer on his breath, which wasn’t my favorite scent, but I’d let it pass this one time. He’d been having a rough time at work lately. Nothing seemed to be going right, and they had a number of new workers that didn’t seem to be able to do their job adequately if Grayson’s assessment was correct.

  “Riley,” Grayson murmured against my temple.

  Releasing a sigh, I replied. “Yes, Grayson.”

  “I love you, baby.”

  My entire world stopped for a fraction of a second and I almost didn’t believe what I’d heard. But I’d heard correctly; he’d said it with more clarity than anything he’d said in the past couple of hours.

  I was about to return the sentiment when the snoring sounded.

  Groaning, I slumped against him. So much for that romantic moment. “I love you too,” I whispered as I closed my eyes and fell to sleep nearly as quickly as he had.

  ~*~ TT ~*~

  Grayson was still asleep when the grumbling in my stomach roused me. While there had been places to eat, we hadn’t had more than a corn dog each while at the beer festival so I was now famished.

  Looking at the clock on the wall I was surprised to see it was past noon. Normally, Grayson was up and at ’em well before I was awake. But he was still sleeping soundly next to me.

  He’d always made it perfectly clear I was to help myself to whatever was at his place whenever I was there, but I just never felt comfortable. On this one occasion I was going to make an exception. Besides when he woke up wouldn’t it be great if he woke to a full breakfast prepared and waiting for him?

  Sliding as carefully as I could from the bed without disturbing him, I planned on getting fully dressed and then changed my mind. Going to his dresser, I grabbed a pair of his flannel boxer shorts and a t-shirt, which I pulled over my naked body. That was good for now until I could get a shower and properly dressed.

  Entering the kitchen, I quickly grabbed the bacon, eggs, ham, cheese, pancake mix and milk. Placing the ingredients onto the countertop I began to mix the eggs with chopped-up ham and shredded cheese for a kick-ass scramble.

  I wasn’t the tidiest of cooks, and by the time I had everything on the stove and cooking the kitchen counters and my borrowed clothing looked as though a small tornado had torn through. “Well shit,” I muttered, but couldn’t help but grin. It could be cleaned afterward. It was what it tasted like in the end that really mattered.

  “Dad? That you?”

  I froze in the middle of flipping a pancake that I’d added fresh blueberries to. Turning, I smiled a greeting when his daughter Chyna entered the kitchen. I’d met Chyna a few times, and me and the kids had been with her and her father to his parents’ ranch, but I’d never had the opportunity to sit down and chat with her girl to girl. She was only a year younger than the twins so I was familiar with her age group.

  She was a beautiful girl, with long, straight golden hair that hung all the way down to the small of her back and the same piercing gray eyes that her father had.

  “Good morning.”

  She shrugged. “More like afternoon, but thanks. Where’s Dad?”

  “He’s still sleeping. I thought I’d get breakfast going. Are you hungry?”

  Entering the kitchen fully, she looked at the pans I had going and licked her lips. “I could eat if there’s enough.”

  “There’s plenty and if not, I can always make more. Not a big problem.”

  Smiling, she nodded. “Then I’d love to have some. Blueberry pancakes are my favorite.”

  “When did you get here?” I asked. As far as her father knew, Chyna was supposed to be staying at a friend’s place for a sleepover this weekend and wasn’t supposed to show up at his place until Monday.

  She made a face. “I got in a fight with my friend; she’s been a royal bitch lately so I figured I’d come here instead. I didn’t hear you guys come home last night, must have been late.”

  “I’m not sure of the time, but it was late.” Taking the eggs and bacon off the burners I plated them and set them at the center of the six-person kitchen table.

  “Yeah, Dad needed some time out to have fun. He’s been super stressed.”

  “I heard, yeah.” I said, nodding.

  “I just don’t get that woman. Why she won’t leave him alone is beyond me. Her telling him she was suicidal I bet was just a ploy to keep him from cutting her off completely. She knows he’s a good person and she’s just riding that.”

  Whoa…. What woman? I wanted to ask but if I did then she’d know I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. Also, how did she know some random girl was suicidal?

  Just taking a wild guess, I said, “Well, I think Brooklyn seriously needs professional help. Your father isn’t a doctor.” I hated myself for using his daughter for information, but this was news to me and it meant he’d been keeping stuff from me—that wasn’t kosher in my book.

  Chyna spread her hands out wildly at her sides. “Right! I’ve never liked her. She’s a bitch and a slu
t. I found out about the whole suicide thing because he kept his phone open on a message and it popped up when I walked by. Total cry for attention.”

  Not sure how to respond, I just nodded.

  “She knows about you and how much he cares about you and everything and just doesn’t care. Even Dad ignoring her doesn’t help. She showed up a couple weeks ago out of the blue and he sent her off, not letting her in. It’s restraining-order cray cray.”

  I was so wrapped up in the conversation I was having with Chyna and with finishing the food that I didn’t hear Grayson enter the kitchen until he spoke. “Good morning ladies.”

  As I spun to face the source of the voice, I wasn’t sure if I was angry that he’d been keeping his contact with “cray cray” Brooklyn from me or if I was embarrassed for being caught using his daughter to get information, even if I wasn’t the one to bring up the conversation in the first place. I opted for feeling both.

  16

  Riley

  Breakfast had been slightly tense, neither one of us wanting to get into the subject of Brooklyn in front of Chyna.

  Shaking my head, I passed Grayson’s phone back to him. Sitting on the edge of his bed, I’d just got finished going through the private messages he’d been receiving from Brooklyn though both social media and his direct phone number. They were crazy and he rarely replied. When he did it was short and to the point, emphasizing that the contact was inappropriate and unwelcomed. There were also several mentions that she should seek professional help and being that she was a therapist that she should know that.

  It didn’t make sense to me. She was a good-looking woman and had an amazing career; why she would chase a man who had no interest in her was beyond me. I had no doubt she could get tons of guys—at least until they found out she was a bat-shit crazy stalker.