Page 72 of Matchmaking the Rival

I'd be up for an interrogation later. Fine, I'd let them take a shot at me. I was fucking exhausted, as the last two days had been a marathon of meetings and reviewing documentation, trying to troubleshoot all the problems.

I acted on instinct, grabbing Meredith’s hand. I needed contact with her. I'd missed her. Did I even tell her that? I had no clue.

My grandparents joined us at that second, followed by Jake and Natalie. I hadn't even heard them come in.

"Meredith," Jake exclaimed. "Good to see you again." He shook her hand before introducing her to Natalie. "This is my fiancée, Natalie."

"It's nice to meet you, Natalie," Meredith said.

Natalie glanced at Meredith's outfit. "I love your scarf. Where did you get it?"

Meredith smiled. "I have this favorite cute little shop that always buys the most amazing collections. I'll give you the address."

"Oh, thank you, Meredith. Straight to the point. I like that."

Meredith smiled as they exchanged more info about the store.

"That's my girl," I said, noticing Grandmother looking pleased with herself.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing at the cake she was carrying to the table.

"It's coffee cake. I was in the mood for it. I know it's a bit early for a Christmas treat, but someone in this room is definitely already feeling Christmas in her heart." Grandmother winked at Meredith.

Meredith nodded. "Oh yes."

I was surprised at the warmth in her tone. She looked genuinely happy to be here.

Grandmother cut cake for everyone. "Don't overeat, okay? This is just a little treat to have with coffee."

"Grandmother, did you prepare a feast again?" I asked sharply, knowing there was more to what she was saying.

"My grandchildren are coming to dinner. Of course I'm preparing a feast. What kind of a grandmother would I be otherwise?"

"One who's ninety years old,"I wanted to say, but I knew better. My brothers and I worried that our grandparents overdid it, and we were trying to encourage them to rest and relax and enjoy life. It was goingspectacularly.

Jake cleared his throat. "Grandmother, I got a call from the cleaning company I hired. You told them that you no longer need their services. Why is that?"

She sighed. "Your grandfather is feeling much better now. Between the two of us, we're doing just fine. It’s good exercise for me to do a few chores."

Jake and I exchanged a glance, but Colton just shook his head. Spencer looked at Gabe and mouthed, "Later." As usual, when we needed to convince Grandmother of something, it took a group effort to put our minds together and come up with arguments she couldn't refute. We wanted to take care of them. Why was it so hard for them to let us? They'd looked out for us our entire childhood and adulthood; it was only fair for the roles to reverse now. But that was a conversation to be had another day.

We all ate cake without even sitting down. Grandmother brought out a carafe of coffee too. I glanced at my watch, noting it was five thirty. She always asked us over early for dinner, so that usually meant we still had most of Saturday evening to ourselves.

I had some great plans this evening, and they all involved Meredith.

After we finished the cake, my grandmother brought out fifty or so courses, it seemed like.

"You truly meant a feast," Meredith said as she gazed at everything on the table.

"The only good part about this is that they then have food for about a week, so she doesn't have to cook again," I told her.

Meredith leaned into me, saying in a soft voice for only me to hear, "I like that you worry about them and want to make sure they get help as needed."

"Not easy with Grandmother, but I am persistent," I whispered, the room having quieted as everyone was eating.

Grandmother's cooking was always perfection; every course was delicious, and the presentation, as she called it, was enticing. Usually she prepared everyone's favorites, but after a while, we got tired of the same menu, so she was changing it up a bit more now.

"Grandfather, how are you feeling?" I asked.

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