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Bliss surfaced, gasping, from her sleep … or had she been asleep? The memory of Gault had been so strong, more like a reliving or a vision.
She’d never gone to live with Gault full-time; her mother would never allow it. The one time Serenity had checked herself into a hospital, she’d taken Bliss to her own parents’ house and lied to everyone about what was going on.
How would Bliss’ childhood have been different if her mom had allowed Gault to have more of a role in her life? Would she have stayed a child a little bit longer? Would she have let loose more, gotten into trouble, been more of a kid and less of a perfect daughter?
Gault…she thought longingly of her father, that wild man who stood for freedom and openness, who despised intolerance; that fierce man who fought against homophobia and racism. That generous man who took care of countless musicians who’d been ripped off by their record companies. He’d never hesitated to say what he felt, to claim what he wanted, to fight for what he believed in.
He was a powerful force, Steven Gault, but not even he could make any headway against the obsessive, needy will of her mother.
Now Gault was gone, and she’d never be able to make that one last connection with him. Maybe the most important one of all. The one about coping with mental health issues.
She gingerly sat up, feeling a little lightheaded. It was still dark outside. Maybe she could tiptoe into the kitchen and eat some leftover chili and cuddle with Moses. Granger was probably fast asleep by now, in that dead-to-the-world way of his.
Was he glad they’d stopped where they had? Happy he wasn’t getting involved with a flighty head-case like her?
Wasshe?
No. To be completely honest with herself, she still wanted Granger. And if she got another chance, she’d show him.
Fifteen
Granger didn’t see Bliss again until the wedding. He debated whether he should even go. Surely she’d be safe surrounded by family and friends, and someone ought to stay with Moses. He could spend the day driving to Braddock trying to find a real home for the puppy, since he and Bliss would both be leaving right after the wedding.
But Thomas called him up asking for help ferrying wedding guests from the firehouse parking lot—which had the most space—to the Blue Drake. A snowstorm was forecast—another foot of snow might fall at any moment—and Thomas wanted to make sure everyone was safely under cover before that happened.
He could hardly turn down a request for help. It wasn’t in his nature. And that wasn’t the only request. Alvin and Kendra needed help at the Blue Drake, getting the banquet tables set up. At one point, he found himself filling in on gumbo-stirring duty. After that, he carried a giant stack of plates to the banquet tables, and helped fix a faulty speaker wire.
He only caught glimpses of Bliss, who was rushing around tending to the wedding party’s hair and makeup. At one point, they all gathered at the end of the Blue Drake’s private pier for pre-wedding photographs. She looked ethereal in her floaty bridesmaid dress, the color of tender green birch leaves. With her minimal makeup, she was clearly making an effort not to outshine the bride, and it mostly worked—Carly was so radiant that no one could eclipse her today.
But for Granger, it was almost as if no one else existed. He could barely drag his gaze away from her. He wasn’t sure of all the reasons she was avoiding him, but he guessed she was probably embarrassed by her impulsive come-on.
She had no need to be, in his opinion. He was all for it; why not? They only had a couple days left together anyway. When would they ever have another chance to explore this attraction? Chemistry didn’t lie. And it wasn’t going away, at least not on his end.
“There’s something I need to talk to you about,” Alvin said in a low voice as Granger headed back into the kitchen. “Come find me after the ceremony’s over.”
Granger lifted his eyebrows. “Something to do with my mother?”
“Later. No distractions. Carly and Thomas have waited too long for this day.”
“Yes, sir.”
Alvin liked that. Granger had grown up around enough black people to know to respect his elders. His mother had never said that his father was black, but he’d always wondered. His hair wasn’t especially curly, but genetics were strange. He’d read about biracial twins of which one looked white, the other black.
Recently he’d been tempted to get his DNA tested. The results wouldn’t tell him who his father was, but at least he’d know his racial and ethnic background.
Maybe it shouldn’t matter. He was a grown man with his own life. Would anything be different if he knew who his father was? Probably not. He should work on accepting the fact that he was always going to have an empty space in his personal history.
As for him, he’d never do that to a child. When—if—he had a kid, he’d make sure there were no gaping holes in their identity. They would know who they were and where they came from. He’d give them roots so strong they’d never feel like a helpless tumbleweed.
Like Danny Cooper there. And all the Cooper brothers. Every time he looked at the groom’s side of the Blue Drake stage, lined up like soldiers behind Thomas Cooper, he experienced a pang of…well, envy. Might as well admit it. They had that unspoken bond of blood and bone, of familiarity and history.
Then his gaze strayed to Carly’s side of the stage and lingered on Bliss. She looked beautiful, of course, with her hair in a loose updo with long tendrils of hair kissing her face. But he could tell she’d had a rough night. Her eyes were just a little bit puffy. Probably no one else would notice, but he did.
Was she that upset about their hot time on the couch?
She caught him looking at her, and instead of blushing, she held his gaze. Direct and bold. Wanting. Promising.
His cock stirred. Inappropriate at a wedding?Who gives a fuck.
