Until Then (Cape Harbor #2) - Heidi McLaughlin Page 0,129
you.” Grady set her down gently and stepped away.
“All I did was help out a friend.”
“The fact that you even consider me a friend means everything to me. If it weren’t for you, I’d be in jail right now.”
Rennie briefly touched Grady on his arm. “I’m so happy you’re healthy and clean.”
The next to hug Rennie was Johanna, who held on to Rennie as if her life depended on it. “If you ever need anything, please let me know.”
I need your son to love me back, Rennie thought to herself.
“Dinner, tomorrow night at our house. I won’t take no for an answer.”
“I’ll be there, Mrs. Chamberlain.”
Johanna waved her hand. “None of this Mrs. crap. Call me Jo or Johanna. As far as I’m concerned, you’re family.”
Next, George stepped forward. He was much more subdued than his son and wife had been. He shook Rennie’s hand and thanked her before he went to rummage through the coolers. The rumor was George stopped drinking the day Grady went into rehab because he wanted to support his son and finally realized he hadn’t done a very good job of it.
Graham stood off to the side, watching Rennie interact with his family. When they made eye contact, she smiled and then diverted her eyes to the sand. She felt him approach but didn’t look up.
He placed his hand on her hip and stepped close to her. “Can we go for a walk?” Rennie nodded and finally lifted her gaze toward Graham. His green eyes sparkled, and his crooked smile was back. Graham led her away from their friends and toward a large rock formation, which formed different alcoves and inlets of water.
Graham found a place with privacy and motioned for her to sit on a rock while he stood next to her. He leaned against the rock with his hip and reached out to touch some strands of hair that had fallen from Rennie’s ponytail.
“I got your letter in the mail. I have to say, getting fun mail when it’s not my birthday or a holiday is quite the treat.”
Rennie smiled and let out a tiny laugh. “I can’t remember the last time I wrote a letter. Everything is text or email these days.”
“How’s the shack?”
She laughed harder this time. “Still the same shithole it was when we were in college, but very nostalgic. I’m glad I went. I needed the time away to clear my head.”
“Is it clear?” he asked, and she nodded. “That’s good . . . good.” Graham hesitated before continuing. “I want you to know I read your words a few times, actually. I wish like hell we could go back to the night we spent in the back of my truck under the stars. I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I just knew that every time I was around you, I had this ache, and you were the cure. I never wanted our first time to be in the back of the truck, but it was, and I’ve never forgotten that night. I should’ve told you then that I was in love with you. I knew from the moment I met you I wanted you to be my wife. I was embarrassed, though, because guys don’t talk like that, so I kept my mouth shut.
“When you said you planned to study law in California, I looked for schools near you. I thought we’d live down there, and us becoming a couple would be a natural progression. I could see it all playing out in my head. We’d become roommates, and before long, you’d be in my bed every night. We’d fight, make love, and finally grow up enough to tell each other how we felt.”
“What changed, Graham?”
He looked away and fiddled with the rock Rennie sat on. “The week before I met Monica, you and I were at this party. We were dancing, making out like we usually did. You took me into the bathroom, which wasn’t out of the ordinary for us. What was, though, was what you said. It caught me off guard and really made me take a step back. Do you remember that night?”
Rennie shook her head.
“You said, ‘Make it quick.’ That’s when I realized we were nothing more than fuck buddies.”
“Oh, God.” Rennie covered her mouth. “I’m so stupid.”
“We were young, in college, and having fun.”
Rennie shook her head and looked off into the distance. Her smart mouth had finally done her in, and now she knew why Graham chose