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“Yeah. For a couple of days.” When he heard his own words, they made sense. Why not? If she could get away with him, what would keep her from saying yes?
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and looked up at the ceiling, probably considering his proposal. “I’ll have to check with Luke to make sure he can take the kids—”
“They can come with us if you want. I have a beachfront property. They’d like it.” And a tennis court, too but he kept that to himself. Blood throbbed in his temples. Get a hold of yourself, man. The anticipation of a shelter dog asking to be picked bolted through his veins. No woman had ever made him so anxious for a reply.
She leaned in, but a pang of skepticism darkened her eyes to a matte dark brown. “It may be better if they stay. They really like you, and are getting so attached to you already,” she said, concern lacing her voice.
“Of course,” he said, nodding, then fished his phone out of his pocket and pretended to look at something. His heart squeezed, even if he told himself he had no right to be upset. He’d been honest from the start, and she was being a good mother and thinking about her children first. “Let me know when you can.”
* * *
“Mr. Myler?” asked the voice of an old lady behind him.
Cole stopped in his tracks on the hallway to his office and turned around. Sue, Nikki’s grandmother, stood with the help of a cane that had several sparkly embellishments along the dark purple stick. “Yes, Mrs. Brady?” He’d met her a couple of times before, one in passing and one when Nikki had introduced them.
“I’d like to have a word with you.”
“Of course. Please, come with me.” He ushered her inside his office, then closed the door behind him.
She sat and kept her cane close, and he chose the seat across from her.
“Would you like anything to drink? Water? Coffee? Juice?”
“I’d love something stronger please,” she said in a voice that accepted no protest.
He shrugged, then headed to the wet bar and picked a scotch, pouring its contents in two tumblers. “Sure.” He hoped she wasn’t on a special diet like a lot of residents, but a silly part of him wanted this to be a good interaction. Wanted her to like him, like he was taking Nikki to the prom and her parents decided to grill him before letting them out the door.
He handed her the tumbler, and she smiled at him with mischief before lifting it to her lips. Returning to his seat, he had his own sip of scotch—maybe this conversation required it. He’d never met a girlfriend’s parent before, a clear indication of how he sucked at relationships.
“My granddaughter told me she’s been seeing you after work.”
“She has?” He took another gulp of scotch. The smoky liquid burned down his throat, leaving a woodsy aftertaste. She’d told him she preferred her grandma not know about their affair, and he agreed. Had she changed her mind? He sat his tumbler on the glass desk and ran his fingers through his hair.
“Well, not really.” Sue waved him off. “But I may be old, but not blind or unaware. I’ve seen how she looks at you, and she blushed when a few residents mentioned how good looking you are.”
He drummed his fingers on the tumbler, unsure about what to think. “Have you asked her?”
“No. I wanted to talk to you first. I know there’s been a lot of rumors going around about what will happen to this place and if some residents will be relocated, and somehow you’re part of these changes.”
Frustration clogged his throat, and it became dry even though he just had a drink. For his move to work, he couldn’t include more people or flame the rumors and lose the upper hand. “I can’t discuss work projects with you, unfortunately.”
“How about life projects? What is your plan including my granddaughter?”
“I’m very fond of her, and we’re enjoying each other’s company. She’s a great woman,” he said, injecting energy in his voice. He scratched his chin, wondering if he should add the problem wasn’t Nikki, it was him. She probably already knows. That’s why she’s here.
“Yeah. She is, which is why I’m making sure you don’t plan to dine and dash if you catch my drift.”
Dine and dash? He stifled a chuckle. When his gaze met hers, he found a set of very serious eyes giving him a once-over. Sue found no amusement in whatever was going on between him and Nikki. His stomach curled and immediately uncurled. He couldn’t, wouldn’t lie to this nice old lady about the status of their relationship, so elusive answers had to work. If you give Nikki what she needs, you won’t need to lie. “I understand.”
“No, you don’t.” She gulped down more scotch then sat the glass on the table, the contents inside almost sloshing past the rim. “Nikki’s parents did a number on her. I never thought my own son would be such a worthless parent, but here we are. They used her as pawn during the divorce, then went to live their best lives and left her behind.”
His pulse skittered.
“I did my best to raise her, but she always had that void. I’m all she’s got, and I want to make sure you’re not going to break her heart.”
“I appreciate your input, but I assure you I don’t plan on hurting her. She and I have always been very honest about what our relationship entails. If you want to know more, you’ll need to talk to Nikki. Feels strange speaking about her when she’s not here,” he said in a voice to which his employees wouldn’t object. Damn. He didn’t want to scare the woman, but as much as she wanted to protect Nikki, he also had to preserve her privacy.
Good going, dude. You’re rationalizing the fact her grandmother has a point.
