Page 89 of You First
“I think I need to go to bed,” he said, not wanting to worry her with the details. Her dessert spoon paused mid-air, and she eyed him sharply.
“You’d tell me if there was anything new, right?”
He met her gaze and told her the truth. He owed her that. “I’d tell you if there was anything new. I’m just worn out.”
Meredith nodded, visibly relaxing. “It’s been a long day.” Then she patted him on the knee. “Why don’t you head down, and I’ll get this cleaned up.”
She stood and he grabbed her hand. “Not so fast… Can you stay?” He hated the way he sounded. So weak. So dependent. He just knew that if she stayed, he wouldn’t regret the passing hours quite as much, and he’d multiply his bank of memories that seemed — with each fleeting moment — to be his greatest treasure.
But he saw at once she wouldn’t stay, and he was grateful that her eyes held disappointment and not pity. “I can’t. Oscar went to bed crying for me, and Jamie made the most of that, but I’ll be back tomorrow after class.”
Gray frowned. “What do you mean he made the most of that?”
“Maternal guilt,” she said. “It’s my Achilles heel, and Jamie knows it.”
An animal urge to throw the punk aside and claim the fool’s family as his own had all of Gray’s muscles bunching. He hadn’t allowed himself to think too much about Meredith’s living situation before yesterday…
But now? His jaw clenched.
“So, tomorrow, after class…” Gray heard the growl in his words, and he took a breath to rein the animal in. “…go home first, pick up your son, and bring him here.”
She stared at him unblinking for several seconds before the corners of her mouth curled up in a grin. “Gray, what was that?”
Her question took him off his guard and put him smack dab in his place. He opened his mouth to speak and then closed it again. What right did he have to tell her what to do with her child?
Her grin grew.
“I-I’m sorry,” he stammered, feeling like an idiot. “That was…”
“That was what?” she prompted, looking more and more amused.
“That was your typical raw, male territorial response at its worst,” he said, feeling his face heat. “And you don’t need me to fight your battles.”
She leaned forward and gave him a peck on the cheek. “You’re right…” She pulled back nodding. “…but it’s nice to know you’re on my side.”
“Completely,’’ he vowed without hesitation.
She started packing up the takeout boxes. “And if you mean it, I will bring Oscar tomorrow.”
“I mean it.”
“Good. Now, please go down. You look like you’re about to collapse. I’ll come check on you before I leave.”
“I’ll help you with this,” he said, reaching for the bag, but she swatted his hand away.
“This is my job. You have to let me do my job,” she insisted.
Gray got to his feet. “And with that, she sent me to bed like a child,” he quipped.
She giggled, just the sound he was hoping for. Anything to make him feel less ineffectual. He walked to the door, clutching his head.
“Gray?”
He turned back, dropping his hand so she wouldn’t see.
“You’re a good four inches taller than Jamie. You’d cast a shadow over him. I have no doubt that, under normal conditions, you could totally kick his ass,” she said, wearing the sexiest smirk. “And if he knew how I felt about you, he might actually make you. But let’s save that for after your head is fixed.”
Gray bit down on his smile. “So, for the record, as far as you’re concerned, my masculinity is completely intact.”
