Page 27 of Her Pretty Words

Before he can bring his guard of steel back up, something that looks like disappointment flickers across his features. His smile isn’t touching his eyes when he carries our plates to the sink.

“I’ll see you later,” he says without looking up from soaping a sponge.

I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment then nod. I walk myself out, and as soon as I’m inside my grandparent’s house, my emotions catch up to me, regardless of how fast I ran.

I don’t want to marry a man who pushes my dreams to the side like they’re something worthless. A person whose heinous words attempt to belittle me. Nobody deserves to be treated the way I’ve allowed him to.

A picture on the wall snags my attention. My grandpa looks at his wife like she’s the most special sight he’s ever beheld. The small, individual memories I have of them this way could becompiled into several movies. Their love was endless, and it was real. The moment lives on forever in the photo.

If my grandma was here, she would see right through the façade Walter and I put on. One look and she’d tell me to call it off. I can almost hear her voice.“Forget about the deposit and what everyone thinks. The memories you make are all that matter in the end. Don’t waste your life on someone who doesn’t deserve to share it with you.”

I can’t help but feel like a coward, knowing that if my heroine were in my predicament, she would love herself enough to go out and get the happiness she deserves.

I slide down the wall, and my knees touch my chest as sobs break free. With shaky hands I reach for my phone that somehow ended up on the floor beside me. Before I lose the nerve, I send a text to Walter.

Chapter 10

Grayson

Iput on my wireless headphones and do my daily stretches the next morning. Dawn is my favorite time of day, it’s when the world feels entirely my own. There aren’t any people outside yet, and sometimes I glimpse dolphins along the horizon as they feed.

I touch my toes, the music blaring in my ears wakes me up. I slowly stand, startled to find Macy in front of me.

I quickly tug off my headphones, putting them around my neck.

She stands on one foot, holding the other behind her to stretch her thigh muscles.

“Well, this is a pleasant surprise,” I say.

“I can run alone.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” I copy the stretch she does and then move into another motion. She does the same.

“How did you sleep?” I ask.

“Great,” she mumbles and then yawns.

“I take it we’re not a morning person, are we?”

“The only reason I didn’t turn off my alarm and go back to sleep is because I promised myself I’d take a nap later.”

My shoulders shake with soft laughter. I roll out my ankles to get them warmed up. We stretch in silence for five or so minutes before starting our jog.

Running has always cleared my mind, but with her next to me, she’s at the forefront of it. I can tell she’s worn out by the second block, but she doesn’t stop. She runs a little farther than yesterday before she slows to a brisk walk. I jog backward so I can face her.

Her cheeks are pink and glistening. This woman is easily the most beautiful sight I’ve ever set my eyes on.

“Show off,” she says with a huff.

“You’re doing great,” I say easily.

Her glare heats my skin in sync with the grin starting in my eyes and moving down my face. “God, don’t look at me like that.”

Her head tilts and I know if she wasn’t so out of breath, she would ask me why.

“When you look like you want to kill me, it makes me want to kiss you.”

She halts, stares at me expressionless for eight heartbeats—yes, I counted—then bursts out into laughter. There’s not a song that comes close to the wonderful sound. So. Fucking. Pretty.

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