Page 48 of Heartbreak Hill

Melanie, Reid’s best friend, had told her that if Grayson didn’t want to be with her, a minor thing like having his heart replaced wasn’t going to change his mind. Of course, there wasn’t anything minor about a heart transplant, and Melanie knew this. It was her way of proving to her friend that her errant thoughts were just that: wayward. Ever since Grayson had come home from the hospital and Melanie had seen them together, she could see for herself how in love he was with Reid, and Mel made a point of telling her friend that every chance she could.

Reid closed her phone and tried to work, but the words blurred on her computer screen. Three months ago, Grayson had told her he was all in, that she was the one he wanted to be with. While Reid accepted this, she’d made him wait until she was ready to jump back into bed with him again. She had to protect herself, and while she was madly inlove with him, giving herself to him that way again was something she took very seriously.

Grayson took this as a challenge and showered her with gifts such as flowers as well as random visits to the office (which he was eager to return to), candlelight dinners that he’d prepared, and picnics on the weekends. They’d gone to the beach for Labor Day with their friends and were dressing up for Pearce’s Halloween party in a few days as Ariel and Prince Eric, which was Reid’s idea because she already had red hair like Ariel. Not to mention, she considered Grayson her prince. He had wanted them to go as Forrest Gump and Jenny. Mostly because he liked exaggerating the name in his Forrest accent.

She picked up her phone. Her fingers hovered over the buttons, ready and willing to type a message to Grayson. She’d only responded to his text with an “okay” and a winky face, hoping he’d elaborate. He hadn’t, and that left her reeling with curiosity.

Reid had never thought of Grayson as the romantic type. The one time they’d hooked up before his transplant, they’d been at a party, and while they weren’t drunk, they were tipsy, and she’d flirted, and he’d reciprocated. Unfortunately for her, that one night hadn’t led to many more, like she had hoped, even after she’d told him she was madly in love with him.

He’d said he didn’t love her back.

She now knew why.

Hearing those words from him had hurt. She had tried to distance herself from him, chalk the night up to one giant mistake, but he’d refused to fade into the night. Grayson was there, acting like nothing had happened, like he hadn’t broken her heart into a million little pieces, each one more jagged than the next. It was like he’d taken those shards and continued to stab her, until she stopped feeling and just enjoyed being in his presence. The only saving grace was that he didn’t date. He wasn’t bringing other women around or telling her about someone he’d met at the bar. Grayson and Reid spent as much time together as a couple would, without the benefits of being a couple.

And now her life with Grayson was different. With his new lease on life, he embraced what she’d known all along: they were meant for each other. They could finish each other’s sentences and sensed when the other was ready to leave a friend’s house, and he never pressured her to take the next step in their relationship. Reid wanted to. She longed to be with him again.

The Human Resources office at the Wold Collective was set up similarly to the other offices, and it had an open concept with cubicles. The problem this layout created was that staff were unable to have private conversations with employees, and they always had to book a conference room. The setup also gave no one any privacy. So, if you were having a bad day or an emotional moment and needed some time for yourself, you didn’t have a place to take a break. That was a drawback for Reid. While she loved working for Wold, ever since Grayson had made it known they were a couple, she’d been bombarded with nosy Nellies prying into her personal life. Of course, dating a coworker probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do.

Reid heard her name and peeked around the end of her cubicle. Her office space was in the back, toward the wall, with one office in front of her and then the open desk area where applicants waited for their interviews. The receptionist, who’d started earlier in the week and whose name Reid couldn’t remember, stood at the counter with a massive bouquet of red roses.

“Reid?” she called out. “You have another delivery.”

Her coworkers stood up to watch the receptionist bring the bouquet toward her cubicle. She couldn’t tell if they were jealous or if, as she suspected, some of them had their own crushes on Grayson. The bouquet of roses was undoubtedly the largest she’d ever received, and over the past few months or so, Grayson had either brought flowers to her or had had them delivered. In fact, she still had a vase on her desk from last week’s delivery.

“You know, none of us need to ask about your relationship if he keeps this up,” Lily, one of her coworkers, said with a laugh. She wasn’twrong. Grayson wasn’t being shy about his affection for her. Deep down, Reid appreciated every gesture, basked in them, really, and even marked them on her calendar.

She leaned forward and sniffed one of the fragrant blooms. “Heavenly.”

“Who’s the lucky guy?” the new receptionist asked.

“His name’s Grayson. You’ll meet him soon. He works here and has been out on leave.”

“Can’t wait,” she said cheerily as she gave a finger wave and left.

Reid grasped the weighty glass vase and positioned it on her desk. The arrangement took up most of her free working space, and she spent the next ten minutes cleaning off the top of her filing cabinet to make room for the roses.

“Thank you for putting them up there,” Lily said. “Now we can all enjoy them.”

“Are you being facetious, Lily?”

“Absolutely not. I want my husband to spend a week in here and see how Grayson’s treating you—then maybe my lump will get a clue. I think the last time he gave me flowers ...” She trailed off. “Yep, it’s been so long I don’t even remember.” Lily had fifteen years on Reid. She was a mom of three and had been married since she was eighteen. Reid liked her a lot and often went to her for motherly advice. She knew everything about Reid and how she felt about Grayson: the fear she had while he was in a coma, and the way he made her feel now.

“I’m sorry, Lily. In all fairness, until Grayson, no one has ever bought me flowers, other than my dad.” Reid wasn’t counting the customary corsage her prom dates brought her. Mostly everyone knew the moms were the ones to order those, not the boys.

“Whoa, is it Valentine’s Day or something?” Rosalyn said as she came into the office. She walked right to Reid’s station and sighed. “Damn. That man is wining and dining you big time.” Her fingers shot out, as if they were fireworks.

“He has a lot of making up to do, if you ask me,” Lily yelled from her cubicle. “That man should kiss the ground you walk on, Reid. And other things.”

Grayson had done a stand-up job of showing her how much he loved her over the past handful of months.

She decided to share with her coworkers. “He has something special planned tonight. He won’t give me any hints, though, so I’m a bit nervous.”

“Maybe he’s going to ask you to move in with him.” Lily came over to Reid’s cubicle and leaned on the half-wall divider. Reid studied her for a moment. She was average height and kept her hair long with natural curls that Reid envied. She’d pay good money to have texture, body, and some life to her hair that didn’t require her to add product and curl it every day. Devorah had deep-blue eyes and wore very little makeup, saying that with three kids she barely had any time for herself in the morning. Not that she needed it; her skin was flawless.

“Doubtful,” Reid said. “I think if anything he’d move into mine. I have better furniture,” she added, laughing.

“Then that’s what he’s doing,” Rosalyn said as she stood up and leaned her elbows on her half wall. “He’s going to ask you if he can move in with you.” Rosalyn was on the taller side, almost matching Grayson’s dominating height. With her long blonde hair and ocean-blue eyes, men flocked to her. She’d been unlucky in love too many times to count. She was the ultimate “fall in love with everyone” type and planned all her future weddings within days of meeting the next great love of her life. At one time, she’d had a major crush on Grayson and had asked Reid if they were a couple. Reid had given her permission to pursue Grayson and was secretly happy when he’d rebuffed her.

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