Page 20 of Running
“Well, we know something about losing,” I say as a half-hearted jest, thinking of our two mediocre seasons at the Waves.
“That changes this year, J.” He throws his fist my way, and I bump it.
“For sure.”
Landon sits back and changes the subject. “I really appreciate that you spent time with Rawley while I was gone. He had a blast.”
“No problem, man. Bailey was giving him a lot of tips as well. They really connected.”
“That’s great, I’ll thank him too.” He leans back in his chair. “There’s no one I trust more with my family than you, though, J. And that means a-fucking-lot, especially if I keep traveling to spend time with Rori.”
“I’m happy to do it.”
He smiles and takes a sip of water. Then he cranes his head around the hall, presumably to see if Grace is approaching. Seeing it still empty, he turns back to me.
“That other thing I asked as a favor when Grace moved here…” He keeps his voice low. “You don’t mind staying on that too? If I’m not around as much because of Rori, I don’t want any of the guys to get any stupid ideas.”
Considering I’d so far managed not to entertain any stupid ideas about Grace and me, I guess I can agree to continue keeping other guys away as well.
“Sure. I’ll make sure Grace stays safe from any douchebags.” A promise I’m quite willing to keep.
He looks satisfied. We start chatting about what’s been going on with the team while he was away. After about three minutes, I hear footsteps.
“Here I am.” Grace comes out from around the corner of the hallway. She looks decidedly different from when I’d arrived—not fancy, per say, but she has some makeup on and her damp hair clasped with a pretty pink clip.
“We started munching on veggies but waited for you to officially begin eating,” Landon notes.
“Sorry, I rushed as fast as I could.” She settles into the third seat with a place setting.
“Nothing to apologize about.” I put my fork down and let her catch up to us as she fills her plate. “I’m the one who slowed you down on your run.”
Landon chuckles. “Yeah, Grace would smoke you in a real distance race. Any of us, honestly. She apparently blew past Rawley when he challenged her Sunday. Again.”
“Hush.” Grace may be staying modest, but I do see the slight blush on her face from the praise. She peeks up at me. “Johnson didn’t do too bad.”
“I need to keep my happy feet ready at any time to run away from dudes like your brother, so I can find speed when I need to.”
They both smile at that.
I consider how to approach the auction position, and decide to rip off the band-aid. “So, listen, Grace. I had an idea, and…I think it might work. Our Waves foundation gala is next month, and one of the big highlights is an auction. They need someone to run it, and with your class project, it could be a good fit.”
“What class project?” Oh shit, Landon didn’t know? “Is this what you were talking about when you first got here?”
“Yeah. I’ve been struggling to figure out what to do.” She’s looking at Landon, not me, so I can’t tell exactly what she thinks about my suggestion.
“The gala’s a blast, and you’d be perfect to organize the auction.” Landon’s facing her direction. “It’d meet the requirements of the project you’re stressing about?”
“Potentially. I’d need to learn more.”
“Okay, let’s make that happen.” Landon’s suddenly in full big brother “fixer” mode. “After dinner, I can set up a meeting with…” he turns back to me, “who does she need to talk to?”
“Lara.”
“Got it. I’ll set up a call with Lara so you can figure it out.”
Grace nods. “Great.” I see her face relax, like she’s accepting that this might be a feasible solution.
“Perfect.” Landon picks up his fork. “Now let’s eat.”
