“Hello, Grace.”
“Afternoon, Mr. Graves.” Her eyes twinkle as she smiles up at me. “I was wondering when you’d stop by.”
“I had some meetings this morning.” I reach out to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. She flushes, turning away and dropping her eyes.
“Sorry,” she whispers. “I just don’t want anyone to suspect anything. Especially not before the work trip…”
A thrill goes through me at the mention of the company bonding trip in a couple of weeks. The entire company is flying out to Neon Valley, and it will be the perfect opportunity to deepen Grace and Archer’s relationship. I’ve already made plans for us to fly in first class on a separate plane from the rest of the company so I can spend as much time alone with Grace as possible.
“There’s nothing to apologize for,” I say, sliding my hands into my pockets and giving her a small smile. “I can keep my hands to myself until we’re out of the office. So… lunch?”
She shakes her head, her eyes twinkling. “Actually, I brought my lunch today… Don’t give me that look! I need to finish going over these spreadsheets by the end of the day, and I’m already super behind schedule.” As if to prove her point, she pulls out a soggy-looking sandwich, and I can’t help but grimace.
I reach out, snatching the sandwich from her hands and tossing it in the trash before she has time to protest.
“Hey! I was going to eat that!”
“No oneshould eat that, Grace. I’m taking you out for lunch. You can have an extension on the spreadsheets. A whole week if you need.”
“But—”
“We can get chips and guac.”
“You should have said that first!” She laughs, turning to shut her computer off.
“Let’s go!”
After lunch, we take our sweet time walking back to the office. We stroll down the sidewalk hand in hand, enjoying each other's presence, the heated buzz of desire pulling us together.
I’m so caught up in the feel of her hand in mine that I don't realize she’s stopped walking—not until her palm slips out of mine. At the loss, I whip around, and my throat tightens at the sight of her pale face. She looks like she’s seen a ghost.
“Grace? What’s wrong?”
She doesn’t answer, just turns her head toward the darkened alley on her right. I’m about to ask what she’s looking for when a high-pitched wail breaks the silence, echoing off the cracked brick walls and out through the mouth of the alley.
“I think it’s an animal.” She doesn’t take her eyes off the shadows. “I think… I think it’s hurt.”
She takes a step into the dark and freezes, her entire body shivering. At that moment, I know exactly what she’s thinking. Grace is reliving the first night we met. The circumstances are so similar—the trapped animal, the dangerous alley—and she’s shaken by it.
I reach out, placing my hand on her shoulder. “I’m here, Grace. We’ll look together.”
She turns to me with a grateful smile, taking my arm as I lead her deeper into the alley. We make it to the end, and I take out my phone, shining the light around to locate the animal.
“Oh my God. There’s no fucking way.”
I turn toward Grace, but she’s not paying attention to me in the slightest. She’s too busy staring at the raccoon caught in a wire snare. Its leg is bloodied, bent at an odd angle, and I have no doubt the animal has been struggling for a long time before we came along.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“The raccoon… I… I’m pretty sure I’ve saved it before…”
I raise a brow, looking back at the masked creature. It looks just like any other of the trash pandas I’ve seen roaming the city—but if Grace says she recognizes it, I believe her.
“How do you know?” I ask.
“The color… he has a little white diamond on his eyebrow. I’ve never seen a raccoon with it before. It has to be the same one I saw… that night.” The last part is barely a whisper—not meant for my ears—so I pretend I didn’t hear.
“Would you like me to help it?” I ask.
