Page 46 of Stuck with the Grump

“Told you that I’m right about a lot of things.” She leaned her head against the window, looking at the leaves changing color. “I’m going to miss it here.”

“Me too.”

When we got back to the lake house, I wasted no time in going to my room and grabbing another key ring I had brought with me. I slid off the key to my house in the Hamptons, turning it over in my palm and considering if I would really give it to her or not.

After going back and forth with myself for far too long, I tucked the key into my pocket and walked into the living room. Leigh was packing her notebooks back into a bag, a smile on her face.

“I don’t know what I would have done without your help. Thank you, Clarke, for everything.”

“Don’t thank me like you’re leaving right this second. We still have one more night together and I plan on making the most of it.”

Leigh raised an eyebrow, a slight smile spreading across her face as I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her close. She put her hands on my biceps, looking up at me.

“You plan on making the most of it, do you?”

“Yes, but there’s something I want to give you first.” I dug around in my pocket, my fingers tracing the shape of the key.

“Clarke,” she said, her tone a warning to not make this harder than it needed to be.

“Leigh,” I said, my tone mimicking hers. “This is a gift but it wasn’t bought for you, alright?"

She rolled her eyes though a hint of a smile curved her mouth. “Alright.”

“Close your eyes and hold out your hand.”

When she did as I asked, I pulled the key from my pocket and placed it in her waiting hand. Leigh’s eyes opened, nearly dropping the key when she saw what it was. Her eyes were wide as she shook her head.

“What is this, Clarke?”

“A key to my house in the Hamptons. Before you start getting worried, I need you not to panic. I’m not asking you to move in with me. I barely use that house and I know you said you like getting away from the city. Consider this a place you can use as an escape whenever you want.”

Leigh shook her head and tried to hand the key back but I stepped away. Her arms crossed over her chest as she glared at me.

“This is too much.”

“Consider it a thank you.”

“For what?”

“For not killing me over the last several days.”

She laughed, rolling her eyes to the ceiling before looking back at me. “You know, I’d say it’s pretty stupid to give a woman you barely know a key to your house.”

“I know you.”

Her cheeks turned a soft shade of pink as she put the key in her pocket. “What if you have a girlfriend over but I’m already there? A future girlfriend is going to like some other woman in your home."

"Let me worry about that,” I said, not bothering to tell her that there wouldn’t be a future girlfriend. If I couldn’t have her in my life, I wasn’t sure that I wanted anybody for a while.

When I got back home, I planned on spending however long it would take in court to prove that Jared was guilty. I wasn’t going to let him off the hook with a simple slap on the wrist. I would be spending day and night with lawyers.

Whatever was happening between Leigh and me right now was for the best. It had to be.

“Clarke, this is still a massive gift.”

“It’s not a gift. It’s a place that I don’t use a lot that I think you would like.”

“It’s too much.”

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