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“You scared the hell out of me,” I hissed at him, pressing my finger to my lips. “What if I had screamed and woken up Collins?”
Graham cocked a dark eyebrow at me. “Online dating? Really?”
I heaved a sigh and locked my phone. “No, not really. I did it for my mom.”
“That’s the stupidest excuse I’ve ever heard,” he observed. “Just own it.”
“I don’t have to explain myself to you, and this conversation is over,” I retorted, standing up. Any feelings of goodwill or concern I had toward Graham tonight all evaporated. “You’re welcome. Good night.”
“Wait. Stay.” He reached out and snagged my elbow in his big, surprisingly warm hand. “It’s been a long damn day.”
“You’re telling me,” I retorted sarcastically. “About twice the length I anticipated.”
“Was it that bad?” Graham frowned, not releasing my arm. “Did Collins give you trouble?”
I relented. “Of course not. She was great. A little confused but delighted that I stayed for dinner. And she missed her dad.”
“Goddammit.” He only realized he was squeezing my arm when I inhaled sharply. “Fuck me, sorry, Heather. Today was ridiculous. Have a drink with me.”
It wasn’t a request, and yet somehow, I didn’t feel like turning him down. It looked like he needed one, and I wouldn’t mind one, either.
“Just one,” I said. “Does this happen a lot—work emergencies?”
“I have to be there when something like this happens,” he said with a shrug. “Comes with the territory.”
I followed him downstairs, accepted a heavy cut crystal tumbler of amber liquid, and sat in a leather chair opposite him.
“What was the emergency this time?” I asked.
He scowled and shook his head. “Not worth getting into. Talk to me about something else—anything else. I don’t want to think about it anymore.”
I hummed. “Okay. How do you feel about glitter?”
“Collins’ art project had glitter in it, didn’t it?” Graham downed his whiskey in a single gulp before refilling it. “I thought I told the housekeeper to get rid of all of it.”
“Don’t blame the housekeeper,” I said. “Collins told me to close my eyes while she got what she called her ‘secret ingredient’ to finish the project.”
“Please tell me you peeked and figured out where she’s hiding her stash.”
“I would never,” I sniffed, taking a tiny sip of the whiskey. It warmed me all the way down to my stomach, and I immediately took another. It felt like it was loosening all of my muscles—places in my body that I hadn’t even realized was holding tension. “This is really good. I’m not much of a liquor person, but maybe I just need to give it a chance.”
“I’ll get you a case.”
I spluttered on the next sip. “A—what? Acase? No, no. I’m enjoyingadrink with you. One. I don’t need a case of the stuff.”
Graham shrugged and topped off my glass. “Suit yourself. Seems like you don’t like to enjoy yourself.”
“Where did you get that idea?” I didn’t call him out on giving me more whiskey, even if I’d emphasized that I was only staying for a bit. It had perhaps been too long since I sat down and relaxed like this. Things had happened so quickly since I dumped Charlie, especially with my mom. I’d kept moving because it was easier than slowing down and letting everything catch up to me. Now, though, it felt so nice to sit back and rest.
Even if it was with the man that I couldn’t allow myself to get any closer to.
“The fact that you would subject yourself to online dating is a dead giveaway,” he remarked, watching me with glittering eyes over the rim of his glass.
Oh. He was trying to get a rise out of me. “Nope,” I said, popping the “p” as obnoxiously as I could manage. “If we don’t get to talk about your work emergency, then we aren’t discussing my online dating profile.”
“So, you’re finally going to admit you did it for you and not your mom?”
I pointedly ignored him and took a long drink of whiskey. It burned—a feeling I welcomed.
