Page 32 of Stuck with the Grump

Though Camille had caused another media storm, it wasn’t enough. Leigh was still opening her phone and seeing people pick apart her appearance and our relationship. My chest ached as I looked back at the dining room. We had only been together a short amount of time, but I didn’t want to lose her.

For tonight, I needed to keep her mind away from social media. She was only going to get hurt if she kept reading what they were saying about her.

As I stared at the dining room door, an idea came to mind. With a grin, I went to my room and grabbed the mattress before shoving it down the hall to the living room. After pulling the coffee table into the dining room and pushing the couches to the side, I set the mattress in front of the fireplace.

Another trip to the bedroom and I came out with my arms piled high with pillows and blankets. I got to work spreading them out on the bed, emptying the other bedrooms of blankets and pillows to build a comfortable nest in front of the fire.

When I stood back and looked at my handiwork, I was pleased. The fire crackled and popped, casting an orange glow over the room. I had lit candles and placed them along the shelves, making the room look cozy and romantic. Hopefully Leigh would be impressed.

The wind howled outside, another pop and click before the remaining power we had gone out. Leigh swore in the dining room before opening the door and stepping into the living room. When she took a look around, her mouth dropped open and her eyes grew wide.

“What is all of this?” Leigh asked, looking from the candles to the bed in the middle of the room. “Did you do this?”

I grinned. “I don’t see anyone else here. Do you like it?”

“Like it?” Leigh said, a smile crossing her face as she walked over to me. “I love it.”

My arms went around her as she rose to her toes, wrapping her arms around my neck. Her mouth was soft against mine, moving in a kiss that felt as if we had spent our lives practicing it. There was a familiarity to the kiss, one that had been missing in every other kiss in my life.

“This is amazing,” Leigh said, looking at the bed again. “You are quite the romantic when you put your mind to it.”

I chuckled and nuzzled my face in her neck, pressing kisses along her jawline. “Only for the right woman.”

“A lot of those women in your life?”

“Only you.” I stepped back and looked at her, seeing the uncertainty in her eyes. It was like a punch to the gut. I was the one that put that uncertainty there. “I’m serious, Leigh. You are the only one that brings out this side of me.”

Leigh smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m going to get a bottle of wine.”

She fled the room before I could say anything else. I stared after her, wondering what else I could do to prove it to her. When it came to a steady relationship, I was a fish out of water. Most of the women who entered my life were gone within a month at most. They never lasted long once they showed their hand. Week one, they were fine. Week two, they would start planning an expensive party or vacation. By week three, they would be talking about buying a new house or condo to move into together. On the fourth week, they were hinting about an engagement ring, and I was ending the relationship.

With Leigh, everything was different, and it scared the hell out of me. I wanted there to be talks of moving in together and a wedding. If I closed my eyes, I could see her swimming in the pool, tossing our children into the deep end. When those thoughts crept into my mind, I wanted to run and hide. I wanted to do what came naturally, end the relationship before the attachment was too strong.

“Found a bottle,” Leigh said, walking into the room with a bottle of red in one hand and two glasses in the other. She set the glasses on the hearth and poured before setting the bottle to the side.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” I asked as I sat down on the bed and took my glass.

She sat beside me and shrugged. “It’s hard, you know? I’ve never been placed in the spotlight and picked to pieces before. It seems like being seen with you has brought out the worst of the internet trolls.”

“I’m sorry,” I said again before taking a sip of my wine. “I wish that I hadn’t been such an idiot.”

“I know,” Leigh said with a sad smile. “I’ll be fine. I just need some time to process everything and then try to never think about it again.”

“Well, tonight is about relaxing and getting to know each other better.”

Leigh sat down on the bed beside me, staring at the fire as she sipped her wine. In that moment, I would give anything to be inside her mind, hearing what she was thinking about this. I wanted to pick apart those thoughts, analyze them, and disprove every bad thing she was thinking about herself.

“Did you make a decision about letting me help with the gallery?” I asked, setting the glass on a side table and leaning back against the pillows.

Leigh sighed, running a hand through her hair. “I thought about it. I can’t afford the space without you, but I don’t want you to buy it either. It feels as if it isn’t my own if it’s your money.”

That stung but I could understand where she was coming from. I had wanted to make it completely on my own as well. Hell, I had made it on my own. Tyson and Jared had kept the bills paid while I flipped website after website to fund our business.

“Well, what do you propose instead?”

She rolled her eyes and sipped her wine before looking at me. “And why do you assume that I have another solution in mind?”

“Because I know Tyson. He would turn down my proposal and have another already in place. So, what’s the plan?”

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