His hand came up to stop me. “It’s fine. I had to come to New York as well, remember.”
“No way, I owe you for the room and gas… and food.”
“Don’t worry about it. And you have to go. The cops are waving me to keep it moving.”
I glanced up and noticed the uniformed officer, which seemed weird. Police doing traffic duty at a hospital. He handed me my bag.
“Thanks,” I said. “I will pay you back.”
I got out of the car, hesitating for a second. I wanted to ask him for his number and not so we could go out possibly. Okay, that was a total lie. Grant had grown on me. Then there were his eyes holding mine, like he felt the spark too.
“You should go, Highness, or…”
Damn him and his smirk. What the heck did the or mean? I found myself grinning even after he’d used the hateful nickname.
“I should go.” Though he nodded, he licked his lips and I had a desperate urge to kiss him. A sharp whistle blew, killing that fantasy out of my head. I pushed at my hair and said, “Until next time.”
Before he could say anything else, I closed the door on him and any possible future. I had no idea if he was flirting with me or not. My track record with men wasn’t good. Yet, I couldn’t keep the stupid smile off my face as I went into the hospital.
It wasn’t until I found my grandmother’s room in the ICU that whatever giddiness I’d found from moments before died as my heart lay in the bed with tubes sticking out of her.FourteenGrantThe stunning brunette got away and it was probably for the best. Though we’d found common ground, she belonged to a wealthy man and I couldn’t compete. I wouldn’t make the same mistake my father made.
We’d made decent time even with the snow. The roads had been treated and it hadn’t been a terrible ride.
Now I had the afternoon to kill. I wasn’t due to arrive at the airport for my first flight with Skyland until the morning. I didn’t bother trying to find a hotel in the city. I could afford it, but it wasn’t worth it.
I took the exit to go back to Jersey. Though in my head I’d used the excuse of frugalness, I had a different reason for driving back.
In about twenty minutes, I arrived in Saddle River, New Jersey. The place where my mom lived. Although Chestnut Ridge Road was open to the public, the house that lined it was hidden behind gates.
For years I’d dreamed of this moment and I wouldn’t let a brick wall, or an iron fence keep me from it. I parked on the side of the road, uncaring how it looked. I was eying the gate when it opened.
A sleek navy Maserati pulled out with a sunglass wearing man behind the wheel. Though I couldn’t see his eyes, I was pretty sure it was the same man that had stolen my mother away from my father and me. Curiosity and a little cyber stalking and I had a clear picture of the perfect family that didn’t include me.
I got out of my truck, and as the man turned at the next intersection, I barely slipped past the gate to gain entrance.
My heart beat like a drum against my chest as I marched up the driveaway and halfway around the circular part up some stairs to the double front doors. I avoided peeking through the side windows and rang the bell. It sounded rich with its triple tones and I tried not to be bitter.
“Where’s Marley?” a voice asked, hidden behind the solid wood door before it swung open. If I hadn’t spied pictures of my mother on social media, I would have still recognized her. Time had been kind, or rather she had the best plastic surgeon money could offer. She looked more like an older sister than a mom.
“Yes,” she said.
That one word hit me like a punch in the gut. She didn’t recognize me.
“Mother.”
She gasped and quickly covered her mouth with her delicate hand. Then she stepped out onto the porch, closing the door behind her.
“Grant.” She said my name like a prayer or a curse. I couldn’t tell the difference. “What are you doing here?”
I would ask myself that very question a thousand times over after it was all done. But I’d made the choice. I’d been in New York plenty of times but never had a vehicle to make this trip. It had been another reason I’d decided to drive to New York with Jolene.
“Why do you think?” I asked instead.
“To ruin my life.”
I looked up toward the sky to stop myself from saying something I hadn’t planned on.
When I met her gaze again, I said, “Whose life was really ruined here?” before glancing around at the opulent estate with its manicured lawn, perfectly sculpted shrubs, and three floors of windows to make a point.