Page 115 of Broken Dreams
She smiles softly. “Whatever your relationship with Grady is, is yours and his. Complicated or not, I’m sorry I forced you into doing something you might not have been ready for. Or maybe it’s that I’m not ready for it.”
My throat gets tight at that thought. All this time I was kind of worried about me, but Judy is probably struggling in her own way. I come over to the couch, sitting and taking her hand in mine. “I never wanted to hurt you.”
Her eyes widen. “Addy, no. I didn’t think that. It wasn’t really until I was on the plane coming here that it hit me. It’s been three years since he died and some days it feels like yesterday.”
“I know what you mean.”
“I guess what I’m saying is that maybe I can meet your new boyfriend when you get back from Rose Canyon. If that’s all right with you.” She pats my hand.
“It is.”
“Good.” She rises. “Now, I better get in that playroom and soak up every minute I have with Elodie. I want to enjoy every second I have with my granddaughter.”
twenty-six
ADDISON
“It’ll be fine. This is going to be fine, all will go off without bloodshed,” I whisper to myself as Grady and I walk up to Emmett and Blakely Maxwell’s house.
While he’s met Blakely and Brielle, Emmett, Spencer, and Holden are different. They were Isaac’s best friends. They are my best friends. Blakely is in by marriage and as Isaac’s baby sister, Brielle was always around.
These guys—they’remyguys.
The ones who will want to instill the fear of God in Grady, which is funny because I don’t think he’s afraid of anything.
Grady chuckles and pulls me to a stop. “Relax, dove. I’m perfectly capable of handling them. It will be fine.”
He is so sure of this. He has no idea how protective they are...it’s ridiculous. I’ve tried to warn him, he claims it’ll be no big deal.
I beg to differ.
“You keep saying that, but I’m not buying it.”
“Then, we’ll just have to prove you wrong.” He turns, pulling me to his chest. “What has you so scared?”
“Uhh, they’re insane.”
“And?”
“They won’t like this. They don’t even understand a world where I’m with another man. I know it sounds stupid, but I’ve known them since I was eight. Eight. And I was Isaac’s girl from like then on.”
“They also know he’s gone and that you weren’t coming to this wedding alone.”
He has a point, but that doesn’t really matter to the dummies inside.
“It was theoretical then.”
“And now it’s reality. Look, we did this arrangement for this exact thing. Nothing they say to me is going to actually be an issue. We both know that. They can be dicks to me, so the next guy who comes along doesn’t have to endure it as bad.”
“Right. You’re right.” He is doing this to prepare them for when I meet my forever guy. You know, once I get back to Sugarloaf and back in the dating pool.
“I know I am. Come on, let’s go in.”
I’ve never seen anyone excited for their execution, but here we are.
As I lift my hand to knock on the door, it flies open and there are Emmett, Spencer, and Holden, all standing with their chests puffed out and arms crossed.
Dear God, it’s literally as I imagined it.
