Return to Us

by Corinne Michaels

  After her headache episode, I told Stella I wanted to start this off slow. She’s working five half days this week. We’ll ease her in and it gives us both the assurance she’ll be able to handle it. As much as she says she’ll tell me if something is wrong, I remember all too well her stubborn side.

  This is a safeguard. Plus, Stella owes me a few weekends of covering the inn.

  “I’m glad you’re excited. Hopefully you sleep well tonight.”

  Jessica turns her head, but I catch the slight blush on her cheeks.

  Delia grabs Jack’s coffee cup and finishes it. “Speaking of sleep, I could use a week to catch up with how tired I am. But I think we’re heading to your beach house this weekend, so that will help.”

  “Who is?”

  “Stella invited us a few weeks ago,” Jess says quickly. “I guess she was going with Winnie, but she ended up having to work this weekend, so she said we should go. Is that okay?”

  I blink a few times, trying to shove down the lump in my throat. “Yeah. No. I didn’t know.”

  The beach house.

  “This place is beautiful, Gray.” Jessica smiled as she walked around the room.

  “It’s private.”

  Her eyes met mine as she traced a finger over her collarbone. “It is, which I guess is what we both want, right?”

  I just wanted her. God, I wanted her so fucking much. I didn’t know how I got lucky enough to convince her to love me, but she did, and I wouldn’t ever let her go. Tonight, I wanted to make her happy, give her everything, and show her how I felt.

  “Jess, we don’t have to,” I said, praying she didn’t change her mind. “We can just spend the weekend on the beach.”

  She moved toward me, her gown swaying with each step. “We don’t have to do anything, but I really want to.”

  Tonight was the perfect night. We danced, laughed, and I had the most beautiful prom date in the world. Every guy there was staring at her, hating and envying me. I didn’t blame them, Jessica was perfect and she was mine.

  I wanted to marry her. I wanted to spend every day of my life with her because she was everything I’d ever hoped for. I had known it the first time I saw her.

  Tonight, I planned to make love to her and show her just how good we were together.

  I pulled her close so her delicate hands rested on my chest. “Do you feel that?”

  “Your heart is beating so fast.”

  “Because I’m just as nervous.”

  Her dark lashes rested on her cheeks as she chewed on her lip. “What do you have to be nervous about?”

  Everything. It was both of our first time. I didn’t want to hurt her or scare her.

  “Making this good for you,” I confessed.

  She released a shaky breath. “Everything with you is good. It’s you, Grayson. It’s you who makes things perfect. I love you, and I want to be with you always.”

  It didn’t matter that I was turning eighteen tomorrow and she was only sixteen. I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that this was the girl I was meant to be with forever. My parents met when they were fifteen, and they were still together. I knew it could happen, and it happened with her. It would always be her. I was leaving for college in a few months, and she would be at home, but we would make it through.

  I leaned in, kissing her softly. “I love you. I love you so much, Jess.”

  Her hands moved up my chest, pushing the jacket off my shoulders so it fell to the floor. “Show me.”

  Jack kicks my foot under the table. “You all right there?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” I say quickly. “I just . . .” I look at Jess, who is staring at me, a faint blush on her cheeks.

  “The beach house,” she says.

  “The beach house.”

  Delia or Jack clear their throats. “I take it something happened at the beach house?” Jack’s voice breaks the moment.

  “Oh, yeah, it’s where Jess gave Grayson her V-card.” Delia so helpfully informs him.

  “Delia!”

  “What? You did. Please, the whole school knew it. You guys came back from the beach with no tan and a lot of smiling.”

  Jess ducks her head. “I hate this town.”

  “You hate that we all knew, that’s all.” Delia grins.

  “Anyway, enough about the beach house . . .”

  Jack leans back, tossing his arm behind Delia. “We should all go.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, we haven’t gone in a long time, and I’m sure Melia would love a trip to the beach. It’ll be fun. You forced Stella to work so you could have time off. There’s no reason not to head down together.”

  Delia glances at Jack and then nods. “Yes, it’ll be like old times. The four of us, hanging out and enjoying the sun. Plus, Jess is off this weekend so this is really her only chance to do something fun.”

  A gnawing feeling moves through my chest. “I don’t know . . .”

  “Why not? Stella has work covered, you have no plans, and the weather is going to be nice.”

  I glare at Jack, wanting to choke him. “It won’t be at all awkward, right?”

  “Hell no it won’t. There are four bedrooms and plenty of space.”

  That’s it, he’s dead. I’m not sure how I’m going to take him out, but it will happen. “There will be five of us.”

  “You and Jess can share a room.”

  Jessica spits out her coffee, sending it flying right into Jack’s face. I get a small amount of joy from that.

  “I’m sorry,” she says, trying not to smile as she hands him a napkin. “I can’t believe I did that.”

  “He deserved it.”

  Delia can barely contain her laughter. “Jess and I will bunk together, it’ll be fine. We are all adults, and Jack is right, we used to do it all the time. Come on, Gray, it’ll be fun.”

  Jess looks back to me. “I’m fine if you are,” she assures me softly.

  There’s no getting out of this without looking like an asshole. “Yeah, you’re right. It’ll be great.”

  Or a complete fucking nightmare.

  Chapter 8

  Jessica

  “You ready for this?” Winnie asks as we pull up to the Park Inn for my first day.

  “I am.”

  “You took your meds?”

  I nod. “Yes, Mom.”

  “Please, you mothered me my entire life, it’s nice to be in the other seat for a change.”

  I had no choice but to mother her because ours was working. “Did Mom say anything about this?”

  Winnie shrugs. “Who cares what she says?”

  Resting my head back, I groan. I knew she would have issues with it. The Parkersons have always been nice to her, but it’s been hard. My mother was once friends with Eveline Parkerson. They were on the PTA together and both helped with charity events, but then my father left, changing our entire financial situation. We were no longer doing . . . well . . . we were poor. Buying new things was no longer something they discussed, and my mom didn’t have time for lunches or charity. She had to work, feed her kids, and Eveline didn’t associate with “our kind.”

  “Considering I live with her—I do.”

  “You could always come stay with me.”

  Yeah, that’s not happening. “The money I’m giving Mom will help her. She wouldn’t take it if I wasn’t living there.”

  “Okay, I could use your money too,” Winnie jokes.

  “You’re doing just fine.”

  Winnie got a full ride to the University of North Carolina. She came out of college with a job and has worked her ass off for everything she has. I’m incredibly proud of the work she does as a director at the youth club because she’s helping these kids in a real way by making sure they have the resources to rise up.

  “I’m proud of you, Jess. I just want to say that before you go in there.”

  “Proud of what?”

  “You’re getting out of the house again. You’re working and going to therapy. T
hose are all good things because, when you first got here, you sort of closed yourself off. I’m proud of you for taking the steps to live again.”

  I grab her hand, squeezing gently. “It’s scary.”

  “I’m sure it is, but you’re doing it.”

  “Thanks for driving me.”

  She smiles. “Thanks for driving me a million times when we were kids. If it weren’t for you, Jess, I wouldn’t have been able to get where I am.”

  My sister was an all-state softball player. She was amazingly talented, and it’s what got her the scholarship, along with her straight A’s.

  “All right. I guess I should go in.”

  I exit the car, my legs feeling a little jellylike, but I stand tall. I spoke with Dr. Warvel last night, and we went over some steps to take if I feel a headache coming on. I have my medication and a plan—it’s all that I can control.

  When I push through the doors, Stella is there, talking to someone. She spots me and rushes over. “Jessica! You look amazing. Love your outfit.”

  I smooth down my pencil skirt and smile. “Thank you. I’m excited to be here and get started.”

  “Let me show you around the desk area and introduce you to everyone.”

  The staff is friendly. There is one person who is always at the front desk, answering the phones and checking people in. Stella explains how they have another person who floats and is able to fill in if there are any issues. My job will be to make sure the front desk is handling things, deal with any surprises, as well as making sure guests’ requests are filled, and running reports that Stella or Grayson needs regarding occupancy.

  “Do you have any questions?”

  “I think I’m set, but if I have issues, who do I report to?”

  “Grayson.”

  That’s what I was worried about.

  “Okay.”

  Stella leans against the desk. “You can always come to me if you prefer. We split the duties here and both can handle anything, but he’s much better with the staff and day-to-day running of the place. I do a lot more of the recreation side.”

  “Meaning?”

  She sighs. “I make sure there’s entertainment and keep the guests happy. So, it’s sort of like he handles the before part of the trip, the stocking of the inventory, staff, and maintenance stuff, and I work on the once they’re here.”

  “I can see how that works,” I say with a grin. Stella is social, fun, and loves parties. She’d be an amazing event planner. Grayson is organized and likes order and discipline.

  “It’s lucky for me that Grayson is who wanted to stay around here and not Oliver.”

  Speaking of her twin brother . . . “How is Oliver? Is he liking wherever he is now?”

  “Yes. No. I mean, he wanted to go to the new property after he and his girlfriend broke up. He was in Sugarloaf, Pennsylvania for a while.”

  I bite my lip, wondering if I should share this. Oliver is Stella’s twin, and they’re very close. It could go either way, but I decide it’s better to put it out there. “I actually know someone in Sugarloaf who knew Oliver.”

  “You do?”

  I nod. “He was with a girl named Devney, right?”

  “Yeah! How did you know that?”

  “I’m friends with someone who lives there, and Oliver dated their now sister-in-law.”

  Stella grips my arms. “You know an Arrowood?”

  “I do.”

  “Oh my God! That’s right! Oh! My! God! You know Jacob!” Each of her words gets a little louder as her excitement mounts.

  “Shh,” I say as a few guests turn to look at us. “Jacob and I were in that plane crash together.”

  “And Oliver dated Devney, who I fucking loved.”

  “I haven’t met her, but the entire family is super sweet and has helped me a ton.”

  Jacob has good people in his life. Not only is he an amazing friend but also his family did a lot to get me set up here too. Brenna, his girlfriend, referred me to Dr. Warvel. Sydney, his sister-in-law, was able to get a lawyer to help pro-bono with the legal side of trying to get a settlement for medical coverage, which the airline is fighting me on. And the others sent cards or gifts to thank me. I just did my job, but they seem to think it was more.

  “Yeah, I met her when they first started dating and I visited a few times. The Arrowoods weren’t there yet, I guess. I was crushed when they broke up, but”—her voice drops to a whisper—“I love my brother and all, but if I had to choose between him and Sean . . . there’s no choice.”

  “I don’t know that any woman would turn him away.”

  “Right?” Stella sighs dramatically. “I only loved baseball because of him.”

  “You like sports?”

  Her face crinkles. “No. I just like him in sports. There’s something about butts in a baseball uniform.” She pushes off the ledge. “Anyway, your office is back here, I’ll show you and get you set up. I know this is a lot to take in, so I’d like for you to take this week to adjust and acclimate with the staff and the inn. Then we’ll work on numbers and stuff once we increase your hours next week.”

  “Okay.”

  “How is your head?” A deep voice breaks into the conversation, causing both our heads to jerk to the side.

  “Grayson? What the hell are you doing here?” Stella asks.

  “I work here.”

  “It’s your day off,” she says with her head cocked to the side.

  His eyes narrow slightly. “Tomorrow is.”

  “No, I’m like, one hundred percent sure it’s today since you’ve been off every Sunday and Monday since we started working together.”

  “I didn’t realize it was Monday,” he says, giving his sister a pointed look.

  She crosses her arms and raises one brow. “Really? How funny.”

  Grayson’s attention turns to me. “How is your head?”

  “It’s fine.”

  “No headaches?”

  It’s my turn to be irritated. “I’m great, but thank you for being concerned, boss.”

  I can see that calling him that bothers him. “I’m just making sure.”

  Stella takes a step toward him. “Why are you here?”

  “I needed to check on the cottage, so I dropped Melia off at Mom’s for a few hours. I figured I’d check to see how everything else was going.”

  “Right. Well, that was very nice of you—unnecessary, but nice.”

  Grayson’s eyes meet mine, and my pulse accelerates. Why? Why do I feel this way when he looks at me? We’re nothing anymore, and I am not staying. The minute that I can travel, drive, move around, I’m out of here. I don’t want my stupid heart getting tied up with his again. It’s not good for either of us.

  Stella’s hand taps my forearm. “Come on, we can go see a few of the rooms, each is a different theme now. A lot has changed since we were kids.”

  I push down the feelings regarding Grayson and think about work. I’m here for a job, one that has given me a sense of purpose and I want to keep.

  We move past him, and his fingers graze mine. The moment, which is so small and seemingly insignificant, somehow isn’t. It’s as though my heart knows that this man is what I need and there is no going back. My throat is dry, and I feel unbalanced. It was just a split second, but felt like a lifetime passed between us.

  As we exit the room, I turn back to him, and as he flexes his hand, I wonder, what the hell am I going to do about this?

  Dr. Warvel is extra observant today. Not that she normally isn’t, but there’s something unnerving about the way she’s watching me. It’s as if she can see things that I don’t want her to see, and I don’t like it.

  “And how is it working with Grayson since it’s been about three days now?”

  “It’s fine. I said that it wasn’t a big deal when I took the job.”

  Her head bobs. “I know that, but it’s a completely different thing when it actually happens.”

  “I only saw him that first day.”
>
  “He isn’t working?”

  Oh, he’s working. He has just gotten really good at avoiding where I am. “We don’t cross paths very often.”

  She writes something down, and I want to reach over the coffee table and grab her notebook. “What are you writing?”

  “Just notes and things I want to remember. It’s nothing bad.”

  “I feel like Grayson is a big deal to you for some reason.”

  Dr. Warvel places the notepad down before sitting up a bit taller. “I think he’s a big deal for you, Jessica. There’s a reason that I bring him up, and the longer we dance around the subject, the less we’ll accomplish in these sessions.”

  My breath leaves my chest in a rush. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Let’s go back to the crash.”

  “I would rather not.”

  “I know, but I think it’s important. Especially before you leave for the trip this weekend, which is another thing we should discuss.”

  “I’m going with Delia.”

  She raises her brow. “And who else?”

  “Gray and Jack will be there, but there’s nothing to it. It’s just friends, and his kid will be there.”

  “The crash, Jessica. What did you write down about your thoughts around Grayson?”

  Grayson Parkerson is my one regret in life. I loved him so much, and I let him go. Now I’m going to die, and he’ll never know.

  I regret reading that fucking notebook to her more than anything.

  “Yes, in that moment, I had regrets around him, but . . . it’s not like that now.”

  “Why? What has changed?”

  I huff. “There’s . . . the . . . I know what . . . couch . . .” Fucking hell. It’s been two days since my last stutter like this, but here I am, bumbling again.

  Instead of her normal method of trying to calm me, she just waits, and I count, breathe, and close my eyes. I am okay. I can do this. I just need to relax and not get worked up. After a few minutes of deep breathing, I open my eyes.

  “That was very good,” she praises.

  “Nothing has changed.”

  Her lips are soft, and there’s a bit of sympathy in her eyes. “No, nothing has changed other than the fact that you’re here and can face it. When we’re forced to deal with a life-altering event, things sometimes become crystal clear or they turn muddy. How are you prepared to deal with your nightmares on the trip?”