THIRTY-TWO GRAYSON

T HIRTY -T WO

G RAYSON

Ever since he'd had his heart transplant and returned to work, all Grayson had to do was tell his boss he was stressed and needed a week or so off, and he'd get the time off, no questions asked. It was a ploy, one Reid hated but also encouraged because she knew what would happen if Grayson became too run-down. He really had to coast through life, stress-free. Flying to Boston to spend time with Gemma and Lynnea, under the guise of being there for them, was about as stress-free as he could get. They were like natural endorphins for him.

Grayson booked a hotel as close to Nadia's place as possible. Ideally, staying downtown would've been fun for him, but he wasn't there to be a tourist. He was there to do something Rafe would've done himself, and that was take his daughter to the annual father-daughter dance. The idea of getting dressed up, slipping a corsage on Lynnea's tiny wrist, and setting her feet on his while he twirled them around the room filled him with such pride that he had a perpetual knot in his throat. To make things even better, Reid had been very accepting of him going, but he had an ultimatum from her—tell Nadia the truth, or she would. His gut told him that if Reid was the one to spill the secret, things would be over for him. He couldn't do anything to jeopardize the trust he had with either woman. He also didn't want to hurt the girls.

He showered, then dressed in a black suit with matching blue tie to coordinate with Lynnea's dress. With one last look in the mirror, he picked up the corsage and headed out to his rental. He would drive Reuben and Gemma as well, and the plan was for the men to take their dates out to dinner. The girls had chosen their favorite fast-food place, because apparently no one could go to the dance without a tummy full of nuggies.

Grayson pulled up to the curb, shut his car off, and got out. He took the stairs two at a time and could hear giggling on the other side of the door before he even knocked. His knuckles rapped twice against the wood, and the door opened.

He smiled at Nadia.

"Hello, Mrs. Karlsson. I'm Grayson Caballero. I'm here to escort Miss Lynnea Karlsson to the dance this evening."

Nadia beamed, and more giggles erupted from behind the door. "I do believe she's expecting you. Won't you come in."

None of this was rehearsed, which pleased Grayson. He was happy Nadia was playing along. He stepped in, held the corsage box in front of him, and waited for Nadia to close the door. Lynnea stepped out from behind her mother in a navy blue dress, with sparkles and layers of tulle. Thanks to Reid, he knew what it was. Her blonde hair had been curled and pinned to the top of her head, with ringlets framing her face. From the pictures he'd seen of Rafe, Lynnea was his twin.

"Lynnea, you look beautiful," he told her as he dropped down to one knee and opened the box, which contained two white roses wrapped in navy ribbon. "This is for you," he said as he slipped it onto her wrist. "Reid picked it out for you."

"She did?" Lynnea looked at her flowers and then held her arm up for her mom to inspect. "Look, Mommy. Weid did this."

"They're so pretty. Just like you."

"Reuben got one for Gemma, right?" Grayson asked as he stood. Nadia nodded. He stepped forward and gave her a one-armed hug. "It's good to see you."

"You too. Thank you for doing this."

"You don't have to thank me," he told her. "I want to do this." He left out the part where he needed to do this to make his heart feel whole.

Reuben came up from the basement and greeted Grayson. He was dressed in a gray suit with a gray tie. Grayson was about to ask where Gemma was when she started down the stairs dressed in a pale-pink dress with her auburn hair loosely braided. She looked identical to Nadia, and for a moment all Grayson could do was stare and remember the girl he'd dated in high school.

"Hi, Grayson," Gemma said, pulling him from his thoughts.

"Hi, Gemma. You look very pretty tonight."

"Grayson called me ‘beautiful,'" Lynnea said as she stuck her tongue out at her sister. Nadia's eyes widened.

She grabbed Lynnea's shoulder and turned her toward her. "Stop that, or you're not going," she told her. "You promised to be good, and this isn't how a young lady is supposed to act. Apologize to your sister."

"Sorry, Gemma."

Nadia shook her head. "Sorry about that," she said to Grayson and Reuben. "She's ..." Nadia inhaled. "As Rafe would say, ‘possessed by a demon.'"

"I am," Lynnea said, nodding enthusiastically at Grayson.

"It's because she watches stupid movies," Gemma said as she rolled her eyes.

"Okay, well, how about we keep the demons locked up for the night so we can enjoy ourselves," Reuben said. He picked up the box on the side table, opened it, and took the corsage out. Gemma held her arm out as if she'd done this a million times. Grayson noted that next year, he'd make sure the corsages matched. He saw Nadia turn Lynnea away before she could say something about how hers had two flowers and Gemma's only had one. Parenting was hard, and he didn't envy Nadia one bit for having to do it alone. For his part, he'd try to ease the burden as much as he could or was allowed.

Grayson insisted that Nadia take pictures of them, as well as of her and the girls. She refused at first, saying she wasn't dressed for photos, but Grayson and Reuben wouldn't take no for an answer.

"I think you should print one or two of these," Reuben told his sister. "Frame them and give one to Mom and Dad. They'd like it."

Nadia looked at her phone. "I think I'll print one now and take it over to Rafe's niche. I'd like him to have it, to show him we're doing okay."

Reuben kissed his sister on the cheek and told the girls to give their mom a hug, and then he and Grayson ushered the girls outside to the car, grabbing their booster seats from the porch.

After Grayson had put Lynnea's booster seat in, he held his hand out for her to grip while she got into the back seat. He helped her fix her dress before she sat down and then reached over to make sure she was buckled in before he shut her door. Reuben did the same for Gemma.

Grayson drove them to McDonald's. Not ideal for him, but he wanted to make sure the girls had the night they wanted. He ordered a salad. It wasn't as tasty as it would've been from a different place, but he smiled, laughed, and ate every bite. Thankful no one questioned his odd order. All Reuben said was "I'm not a fan of this stuff either."

Once the girls' tummies were full of nuggets, the four of them headed to the gym at the elementary school. It had been set up like prom, complete with balloon arches, streamers, and a DJ in the corner. A photographer was taking photos with a custom backdrop. Grayson and Lynnea posed for their photo, and then, at his suggestion, the girls took one with Reuben and then by themselves. If anything, Nadia could use the picture for their holiday card or something. Or he could take it and mess around with it, adding Rafe to the background. Digital arts were his specialty, but he wasn't sure how Nadia would feel about it.

Lynnea and Grayson hit the dance floor. He twirled her around once, causing a fit of giggles, and then she spun around and around as fast as she could, to show him how the tulle of her dress fluffed out when she went in circles. She stopped and almost toppled over from being dizzy. Grayson caught her and told her to put her feet on his. He held her hands and waited, feeling very little pressure. She was light as a feather and wouldn't hurt him. With her settled, he began swaying to the music.

When the song changed, she stepped off and started busting a move on the dance floor. Grayson tried to keep up with his own moves—anything to keep her smiling.

"This is so fun," she yelled over the music. "Can you come next time?" she asked him minutes into the dance.

"Of course."

After a couple of times around the room, Grayson danced with Gemma. She copied her sister and put her feet on his, and he moved them around the dance floor. As the night wore on, Lynnea became tired. For their last dance, Grayson picked her up and held her while they danced. All night long, his heart beat in double time. This was where he was meant to be.

"Thank you," she said groggily.

"You're welcome, Lynnea."

On the way home, they stopped for ice cream; even though Lynnea was barely awake, she was adamant that she could eat an ice cream cone. By the time he'd pulled up to the curb, Lynnea had fallen asleep. Nadia greeted them at the door and led the way to her bedroom.

He laid Lynnea down and kissed her forehead. "Thank you for an amazing night," he said to her before leaving the room. Grayson waited for Nadia at the bottom of the stairs. When she came down, her eyes were watery.

"Thank you for doing this."

"It was my pleasure," he told her. "I had the best time." He kissed her on the cheek, said goodbye to Reuben and Gemma, and headed to his car. He made it as far as the corner before he began crying. The night had been emotional for the girls, and for him, but they didn't know that. All they knew was that their mommy had an old friend who was willing to do stuff with them. How would they feel once they found out the friend had their father's heart beating in his chest?

Would they still accept him?

Would Nadia forgive him for the deceit?

Grayson didn't want to find out. Reid's ultimatum would have to wait. He'd tell Nadia soon. He just needed more time.

The next morning, Grayson was there bright and early. He didn't bother to go to the front door, in case they were sleeping. Out back, he began opening the boxes and reading the instructions on how to put the swing set together. Reuben came out of the house, in sweats and no shirt, hair standing on end.

"You're early, man."

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep."

"Give me a minute or sixty," Reuben said, laughing.

"Take your time."

Nadia or Reuben had already removed the grass where the swing set would go. Once it was built, they'd haul in some straw and sawdust to pad the ground in case the girls fell. And Grayson expected Lynnea to fall a lot. He had yet to see it, but according to Nadia, she was a daredevil, and he pictured her doing some crazy shit off this swing set.

By the time Reuben came back, Grayson had everything laid out. He'd be able to build this in one day and mentally questioned why Reuben was there if he wasn't actually helping with the girls. This should've gone up last year for them, to give them something to do.

Another hour later, Rafe's best friend, Kiran, came over to help or take over for Reuben. Grayson wasn't exactly sure. Not that he cared. He was on a mission to build the girls their play set. Tomorrow, once the cement footings had set for twenty-four hours, they'd be able to swing, slide, climb, and play princesses if that was what they wanted to do.

At lunch, they took a break. Nadia had made sandwiches for everyone. As soon as Grayson sat down, Lynnea crawled into his lap and rested against his chest. He didn't mind, but he did wonder if she somehow knew the heart of the man she loved unconditionally still beat for her.

"Nadia says you guys dated in high school," Kiran said to Grayson.

"Yeah, for about two years?" Grayson looked at Nadia for confirmation.

"No lingering feelings, huh?" Kiran looked at Nadia, who shook her head.

Grayson chuckled. "Nah, there aren't any residual feelings there."

"Grayson's getting married next spring," Nadia said.

"To Weid," Lynnea popped her head up to say. No one had the heart to try and correct Lynnea on the pronunciation of Reid's name. "She's very pretty."

Grayson smiled at Lynnea. "She is, isn't she?"

Lynnea nodded. "Mommy said so too."

Grayson glanced at Nadia, who blushed. "Should we call her?"

Lynnea sat up and nodded quickly. Grayson got his phone out and pressed Reid's contact image and waited for her face to appear on the screen. As soon as she did, his heart raced, and his smile went from ear to ear. He was ridiculously in love with her.

"Hi," he said, almost breathlessly. "Someone wanted to call you." Grayson angled the phone slightly to show Lynnea. She leaned into Grayson and waved.

"Hi, Weid."

"Hi, Lynnea. Did you have the best time last night?"

She nodded. "I twirled a lot."

"Your dress was so pretty. Grayson sent me a photo."

He whispered in Lynnea's ear about her flowers. Lynnea popped up. "Fank you for the flowers."

"You're welcome. I'm glad you liked them."

"So pretty. Like you."

Reid blushed, which Grayson loved. He turned the phone back onto himself. "We just wanted to say hi."

"Hi," she said. "How's the play set coming?"

"Good. I have some help, so it'll be done today. The girls should be able to play on it tomorrow."

"Well, make sure you test it out beforehand."

"I will. I'll call you later tonight. I love you."

"Love you too. Tell everyone I said hi." Reid blew him a kiss. He wanted to be in two places at once but couldn't figure out how unless he brought Reid with him. He was just thankful she'd believed him when he'd told her there wasn't anything going on between him and Nadia. It wasn't her he needed to see. It was the girls. They were the only reason he was there, putting himself through all this.

After he hung up, he watched Kiran and Nadia, with their heads bent together. Kiran was definitely interested in Nadia, and she seemed receptive to the attention he gave her. Grief was a funny emotion. If Grayson went by what Reuben had told him, he'd suspect Nadia wouldn't date until the girls were out of the house. By the looks of things across the table, those two had something going on, and if it wasn't happening now, it was going to happen soon.

Grayson and Kiran tightened the last screw just as the sun went down. Instead of staying for dinner, he told the girls he'd see them tomorrow morning, bright and early. Kiran had asked Grayson if he could help fix some things around the house, mainly cosmetic stuff that Rafe had intended to fix last year. Without hesitation, Grayson agreed. He'd taken off a full week of work to spend with the girls, and he'd do anything Nadia needed him to do. He'd be that person for her until she found someone else, and even if she didn't, Grayson would be the person the girls could count on.

When he climbed into bed, he called Reid. Her face lit up his screen, making him miss her more than anything. "I love you," he said as soon as she said hi.

"I love you too. Are you okay?"

He nodded and wiped at an errant tear. "Lynnea has been very clingy these past couple of days. I don't mind because her presence makes me feel good."

"And Gemma?"

"She had a friend over earlier, so she was busy. She also keeps her feelings bottled up. Gemma's a lot like Nadia that way."

"Did you tell Nadia yet?"

Grayson paused and cleared his throat. "Not yet. I will."

"They need to know."

He closed his eyes. "I know. Can we not talk about that, though? I miss you, Reid. Can you come up here?"

"I'm not sure."

"Because you don't want to or because of time off?"

"Both," she said. "This is still very weird to me, Grayson. I'm trying. I truly am."

"I know, and I love you for that. I just want you here, next to me. You'd like Nadia."

"I might have to fight her," she said, laughing.

Grayson shook his head. "I'm pretty sure she's interested in Rafe's best friend."

Reid's mouth dropped open. "What?"

"Yeah. I'm not sure, though. Just an observation."

"How does ..." She didn't finish her question.

"Thankfully my heart isn't tied to her. Just the girls. It's just them."

"Odd, don't you think?"

"I don't know. The girls are physically part of Rafe. It makes sense, when you think of it that way. I told you, when I saw Nadia, I didn't feel anything, but those girls. Game changer."

Grayson hated it when the conversation stilled. He trailed his finger down his screen, pretending it was her face. "Please think about coming."

"I will. Are you taking your meds?"

He nodded. "Haven't missed a day."

"Good. Get some sleep, Grayson. I love you."

"Love you," he said as they hung up.

Grayson scrolled through the photos on his phone, stopping on one of him and the girls. He stared at it, allowing his tears to fall.

They were the only people who mattered in all this.

Grayson would tell Nadia everything. He prayed she'd understand and see what really mattered—the girls—because there wasn't any doubt in Grayson's mind that Rafe's daughters had bonded with him.

And if Nadia told Grayson he could no longer see the girls ... well, he couldn't think about that now.