Page 19 of Losing Sleep
“I’ve talked your ear off enough. I’ll let you get back to your yoga.” Dot turned to me, laying her hand on my arm. “Just think about what I said. Not all romances have epic starts. You can’t plan for everything, Audrey. Sometimes, when you let yourself get a little lost on your way, magic happens.”
With that parting comment, Dot stood, looping her arm through Hank’s and following him into the house. I barely registered the screen door closing behind them as I turned to stare across the fields, thinking on Dot’s words.
There was safety in planning. It kept me from getting hurt again, safe from the Lyles of the world and their cheating ways. But in keeping myself safe, was I also shutting myself off from the Hanks of the world, good men with kind hearts who offered something even better than the life I’d planned? Was it possible Grey could even be one of those men?
I was scared to open my heart and find out. And yet, maybe I really would find magic if I tried. The question was, how did I start the process?
Chapter Nine
I cut my yogaflow short, my mind wandering instead of focusing on the present as I continued mulling over Dot’s story and observations. Instead, I rolled up my mat, promising myself I’d get in a good session once we reached the cabin.
I entered the kitchen to find Grey standing at the counter in a grey flannel shirt rolled up to his elbows, the same pink and yellow floral apron from the night before wrapped around his waist, and specks of flour dotting his beard. He was grinning at Dot, whisking batter in a bowl, and I had to fight the sudden urge to walk over to him and see if the flannel hugging his arms was as soft as it looked. There was something about watching a strong, manly man helping an elderly woman in the kitchen that had my heart skipping a beat.
“How was yoga?” Grey continued to work as he caught sight of me and pulled me into the conversation.
“Good,” I stammered, rushing to tack on something to keep the conversation going, not wanting to draw attention to how I had been ogling him only moments before.
“I’m so glad!” Dot called from her place by the stove where she was stirring a pan of hashbrowns. Based on the amount of food already covering the table, she had to be expecting more guests. There was no way Grey and I could put a dent in the food in front of us, even if it smelled divine.
Dot and Grey continued to work, turning his bowl of batter into pancakes. I offered to help, but Dot waved me away, promising they had everything under control. I headed upstairs and showered while they worked. I returned my hair to its messy bun, not wanting to bother with washing, blow drying, and curling it when we were going to spend several more hours in the car. I did, however, take more time with my makeup, wanting to hide any traces of the long day of travel yesterday. I pulled out my favorite eyeshadow palette, a gift from my mom that she swore complimented my skin tone, and took extra care highlighting my green eyes. Once I was fully put together, I headed back downstairs, my stomach growling as I smelled all the wonderful food waiting for me.
“Take a seat and we’ll dig in.” Dot waved me over to the table, following behind with the pan of hashbrowns. The rest of the food already waited on the table. “Hank had to run a couple errands, but he said to tell you he’d pick you up later to drive you to the tire shop.”
“This looks delicious,” Grey observed as he settled into the same seat as last night, the chair creaking slightly.
I nodded and sat down next to him, fighting the urge to lean into his warmth at the small table. “You didn’t have to go to all this trouble.”
Dot waved away my concerns, settling the pan she was carrying onto a hot pad and taking the seat across from me. “It’sno trouble at all. It’s nice to have someone to cook for besides Hank.”
We filled our plates and dug in, savoring the food as Dot rambled on about her kids and grandkids.
“Now, if I can just convince Tory to visit. Ever since she started dating that Travis, she hasn’t had time to come up.”
“You mean Trent?” I asked as I took a bite of pancake drenched in syrup. I hadn’t made pancakes at home in far too long, and Dot’s cooking had me committing to making them more often. A decision that had nothing to do with my discussion about hobbies from the day before, or at least that’s what I told myself. I didn’t want to examine too closely my sudden desire to revisit some pastimes I’d let fade into the background.
“Travis, Trent, Tyler…it’s hard to keep track of all their names. The only one that stays consistent is Brad, and Tory promises me they’re just friends. Which is silly. If you find a guy who looks that nice and wants to spend time with you, I say snap him up! Don’t leave him in the friendzone.” Dot waved her fork at me as she spoke, and I bit back a snort, having had the same conversation with Tory on multiple occasions. Also, Dot was more up on current slang than I gave her credit for if she was familiar with the “friendzone.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I said solemnly, refusing to say anything that would anger the woman responsible for the delicious breakfast in front of me.
“And you”—Dot turned her fork on Grey—“show some backbone. Don’t let a girl force you into the friendzone if you want something more. Show her how you feel.”
Grey took a giant bite of eggs and simply nodded. Smart man.
“I don’t want to hear any of this ‘I don’t want to ruin the relationship’ nonsense either. In the end, most of thoserelationships fade anyway. But your relationship with your spouse, that’s something special that should last.”
I used my food as an excuse to keep from answering. What Dot said made sense, but relationships in my life had a tendency not to last, regardless of if they were romantic or more platonic. Lyle was the perfect example, though he wasn’t the first and likely wouldn’t be the last man to skip out of my life. My dad was top of the list. I couldn’t even remember the last time we had talked, and even that was likely to have been stilted and forced, all about his amazing career success and new family.
My mom was the only one who stuck around, and that relationship was constantly evolving and changing, especially now that she’d remarried and was raising the twins.
Grey and I said little the rest of the meal, Dot’s words echoing in my mind with each bite until, finally, I couldn’t eat any more. I excused myself to finish packing, the what-ifs of a relationship with Grey chasing me every step of the way.
If I didn’t get out of here soon, Dot would have me accepting a first date with Grey without him even asking.
Chapter Ten
An hour later, Greyand I hit the road. We’d helped Dot clean up breakfast, with Hank showing up partway through to eat leftovers and chat with us while we worked. When the tire shop called, Hank gave us a ride to the store. As we gave Dot hugs, she insisted on sending us with a giant tub of cookies, claiming she and Hank couldn’t possibly eat them.
Hank groaned at the gesture, complaining he hadn’t gotten to eat nearly enough of them. But Dot promised to make more when she saw me hesitate to accept the container.
