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“Yeah, sure, let me help with that.” He slid the boxes from the top of the pile into his arms, revealing my glistening eyes. “Jos, are you okay?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine,” I said, shaking off my anxiety.
“Don’t worry about Adam. He’ll get over it.”
“Will the rest of your family?”
His gaze bored into mine. “They don’t have a choice.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Gray, about Christmas…maybe I shouldn’t come.”
“I can’t possibly survive my parents without you there.” His tired eyes begged me. “Please don’t back out on me now.”
My shoulders dropped. “Melanie won’t be making a surprise appearance, will she?”
“My parents assured me the Warrens will be staying on the West Coast these holidays. You have nothing to worry about.”
“Alright.” I sighed, but something in my gut made me think there was.
* * *
While the others went to The Edge to continue drinking, I hurried home to get ready for my date with Grayson. He was picking me up at 7pm, leaving me half an hour to look my best. Without a clue as to what was planned, I decided on my leather pants, ankle boots and a flowy silk blouse with a soft blazer on top. Not only would my choice in pants drive Grayson crazy, but they would also keep me warm. Win, win!
The doorbell rang and I buzzed him in, leaving the front door ajar so I could feed Luci.
“Jesus,” Grayson moaned from behind as I bent over to fill Luci’s water bowl.
I grinned knowingly and turned to find Grayson in the middle of the lounge room rubbing his hand over his mouth, staring at my legs. “You can’t wear those.”
My brow arched as I placed one hand on my hip. “Why not? You didn’t tell me what we were doing.”
“You’re not going to be doing anything, other than me, if you wear those.”
I laughed and placed the empty glass on the kitchen counter. “Down, boy. We’ll see how this date goes first.”
He shook his head as I approached him with a small smile playing on my lips.
“Josie…” he rumbled.
Rolling my eyes, I ran my hands over his tense shoulders. “I’ll wear a long coat.”
Grayson exhaled. “Good.”
As I kissed his lips, something rustled at his side. I peered down at the brown paper bag tucked under his arm. “What’s this?”
“Well its customary to bring flowers on a first date, but knowing you’re not into that, I brought you these instead.”
Eying him curiously, I opened the bag and peered inside. My eyes widened as my mouth began to salivate. “Rosie’s donuts?”
“I figure they’re made of flour, so…it’s a decent substitute, right?”
I pulled his lips down to mine to show just how much I appreciated them. “How about we skip this whole date thing and go eat these in bed naked?”
He nipped my neck with a low growl. “Nope, we’re going out.”
“Fine.” As much as I was looking forward to our long-awaited date, I was nervous. Until today, no one knew about us and I’d been happy in our bubble. Although the likelihood of running into anyone from work was low, I still worried how everyone would take the news once it finally came out.
A private car took us to Lumière. Possibly the fanciest restaurant I’d ever seen. I was instantly intimidated, but Grayson took it all in his stride like he ate there every night.
