Page 24 of Holding Grace

“Sure, we might as well.” Grace grinned as she swung her bag up on her shoulder. “I hear it’s pretty good.”

I waited for Grace to lock her door, then followed her down the stairs. “Just keep in mind that their best chef isn’t on tonight, so don’t be disappointed if it’s not as amazing as it could be.”

Grace laughed, her eyes sparkling as I held the door for her to climb up into the truck. I could get addicted to that sound.

“I’m telling Jamey you said that.”

It was my turn to laugh. “Go for it. He knows it’s true.”

It wasn’t. I was good, but Jamey’s skills in the kitchen put mine to shame.

We dropped the delivery truck at the rental place, picked up my SUV, then headed to the pub. When we got there, I pulled into my usual spot around back in the small employee lot, then walked around to hold Grace’s door for her.

She chewed on the corner of her lip as she eyed the staff entrance. “You’re sure nobody will mind if I use this door?”

“I’m sure.”

I couldn’t resist this time. I held my hand out to her, and my heart thumped hard when she reached out and took it. I threaded my fingers through hers like it was the most natural thing in the world, loving the feel of her hand in mind as we crossed the small lot.

I opened the door, followed her through still holding her hand, then led her down the hallway to the office. I saw her glance to the left where the kitchen was, and wondered what memories of her time here were going through her mind.

We reached the open door of the office and I saw Jamey sitting at the desk, looking at something on the computer monitor. I pulled Grace in front of me gently and felt her still as she saw Jamey and Jamey saw her. They looked at each other in silence for a few seconds, then Jamey pushed back from the desk and came toward us.

Grace squeezed my hand, then let it go as Jamey stopped in front of her.

“Is it okay if I hug you?” Jamey asked Grace quietly. She nodded, and he pulled her close gently, wrapping his arms around her shoulders while hers went around his waist. He held her for a few seconds, leaning his head against hers, then said, “Welcome home, Grace. Don’t you ever fucking scare us like that again, okay? I’m too old for that kind of stress.”

Grace stepped back with a small smile. “I won’t. Michael already made me promise.”

“Good man.” Jamey finally acknowledged my presence with a chin lift. “Hey, Michael.”

“Jamey,” I returned with a smirk.

Hey, I got it. Grace was the focus of my attention when she walked into a room, too. Jamey didn’t feel the same way about her that I did – he reserved all that for his girlfriend, Meg – but he’d been worried sick about Grace, too, far more I thought than he’d let on at the time. I couldn’t blame him for being relieved and happy to see her and know she was back where she belonged – safe and sound, in Lark, with us.

“You two going to stay awhile, maybe get something to eat?” Jamey looked from Grace to me and back.

“We talked about it...” Grace looked at me for confirmation and I nodded.

“Good. Give me a few minutes to finish fixing this damn inventory and I’ll join you. We can talk and catch up, okay?”

“Sounds good,” Grace agreed as I nodded again, and Jamey walked back around the desk.

“See you in few,” I said, stepping out into the hallway, then paused as Grace stopped and turned back to Jamey.

“Jamey.” She waited until his eyes met hers. “I’m sorry for the way I left.”

“You’re forgiven.”

Grace slipped past me into the hallway. Jamey and I shared a look, then I turned and followed her down the hallway and out into the main dining room.

As soon as we cleared the door into the dining room Grace stopped, looking around her.

“It looks different.” She took in the big sliding barn doors that lined the far wall. “Those are new. Even the back hallway isn’t quite the same.” She trailed off, her eyes questioning as she looked at me.

“You’re right, there are a lot of changes.” I led the way to an open table, waiting until we were seated to continue. “The not-so-great reason is that there was a fire.” Grace’s eyes widened in dismay, and I cut to the chase. “It was a messed-up situation and Kendrick’s girlfriend, Jo, got caught up in it, but she’s fine now. The great reason for the changes is that we added a live music venue and event space next door. It connects through those doors. Cal, Kendrick’s twin, mostly handles that space.”

“Wow.” Grace shook her head as she looked at the barn doors again. “On one hand it feels like I’ve been gone no time at all and on the other it feels like a lifetime ago. So much has changed.”

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