I’m a sobbing mess as I tear the floral wrapping paper away to reveal the exact pink typewriter I wanted as a kid, the same one on my socks Grayson saw all those months ago.
He remembered.
Evie lets out a concerned yowl, and I slice the tip of the scissors across the tape, opening the flaps.
A gasp is ripped from me. Not only is the most gorgeous typewriter of my dreams inside, but handwritten letters all addressed to me are scattered inside as well.
With shaking fingers, I move the letters aside and pull out the typewriter. A piece of paper is already notched inside, with the wordsone for every day I’ve missed youtyped on it. I look back inside at the abundance of letters, counting each one. One hundred and eighty two letters.Six months’ worth. I pick up the one closest to me and rip it open.
Maisie,
Roses are red, lupines are blue, the best thingthat ever happened to Montana was you. If I had a penny for every second I thought about you, I would be a millionaire. You are constantly on my mind, beating in my heart, etched into my soul. I consider myself the luckiest man to have even had you for a single blip in time. I see you in the sun, the monarchs that flutter about, the flames in every bonfire. You are everywhere, consuming me. I know your parents are so proud of you, and so am I.
Always,
-Your Gray
I don’t fall asleep until I’ve read every letter and my pillow is no longer dry. No nightmares torment me for the first time in six months.
Research notes: epic love stories take time.
grayson
. . .
FORTY-SEVEN
My knuckles raspagainst the mahogany, and I wait. Is this a bad idea? Most definitely, but nothing's holding me back anymore. I don’t deserve a single word from her, but I want them all the same. I want everything, and I think she might too.
A couple minutes go by. I look at my watch, realizing it’s only half past eight in the morning. Is she even awake yet? My brain wanders to other things she could be doing. Now, I feel like an idiot for even coming. What the fuck was I thinking? For all I know, she could be happy and in love, and I’ve come barging in like a wrecking ball once again.
I drop the Lupines at her door, accepting my fate, but one word knocks the breath out of me.
“Gray?” Maisie whispers, her eyes both wide and sleep-ridden. They look red and swollen too. She’s in a pink silk nightgown sitting mid-thigh, detailed with lace.
Fuck, I’ve missed her so goddamn much. Just one look at her has me speechless. This angel fallen from heaven has me thoroughly under her spell. She’s even more stunning now, if that’s even possible. How I’ve gone this long without her is beyond me.
She cracks the door, peeking down the hall. “What are you doing here?”
Her foot knocks the flowers over, drawing her attention. Her eyes widen and then flutter up to mine.
I clear my throat as I pick up the flowers and hand them to her. “I brought you…these.”I brought you these? Really, Grayson? That’s all you could come up with?
Her eyes turn glassy. “You flew all the way to New York to…bring me flowers?” Her brows pinch.
“Yes,well, no. Fuck, I’m already messing this up.” I chance gripping her chin between my fingers, searching her eyes. “Was it true?”
“What?” she breathes, blinking up at me with those decimating eyes.
I stroke my thumb over her cheek. “I read it.” I slip her book from my jacket. “Every last word,” I punctuate, drawing her closer and smashing the flowers between us. “Is it true?”
“How are you even here? Are you real?” she mutters.
“As real as the words I read on your page, I’m hoping. I booked the first flight out after reading it. I had to see you, to know if it’s really true.”
She shakes her head against my palm in disbelief. “It was only published yesterday, Grayson,” she laughs.
“It could have been published an hour ago, and I would still be here, fighting for us,” I declare. What I don’t add is,wondering if I gave up the best thing of my life. I stalked her socials every day, watching her follow her dreams she started on the ranch with me. She looked high on life in all her photos. Each smile solidified pushing her away was the right decision.
