Chrissy looked up from the floor and lifted her arm to wipe her face. Grady saw that she was holding paperwork.
“What did the asshole do now?” he asked as he took two steps inside the room.
She closed her eyes and tilted her head back. When she straightened again, she sniffed as she rolled her shoulders, squaring them like she was preparing for a fight.
“It’s the house. The bank is foreclosing on the house. We have sixty days to vacate.”
“What the fuck?” Grady walked the rest of the way inside the room and Chrissy handed him the paperwork.
He scanned the information. His brother had stopped making the mortgage payment and was years behind on the property taxes.
“I knew that he closed our joint accounts, but I didn’t think he’d stop making the payments on the house. I didn’t think he’d do that to the kids. This is their home.”
“I’m going to get a place and you guys can stay with me.” Grady was staying in a rental now but he planned on buying his own house once he got settled. He’d just have to find a place big enough for all of them. He’d sleep on the couch if he had to. He wished he could afford this place, but there was no way he could come up with what was owed on it.
“No.” Chrissy stood up from the floor as she shook her head back and forth and wiped her cheeks. “You don’t have to do—”
“You’re my sister and the kids—”
“Sister-in-law and ex at that.”
“Look, you deserve sainthood for putting up with my brother all those years. I can’t give you that, but I can definitely offer you sisterhood. You are my sister.”
Tears started forming in her eyes again and her lips pursed. “Thanks, Grady.”
He pulled her into a hug and when he let her go she took a deep breath and walked over to the closet and pulled out three suits, several button down shirts and about a dozen ties. His brother might be a total prick but he did have great taste in fashion, and he didn’t spare any expense on the finer things in life for himself.
“Here.” She shoved the items at him. “Take these.”
“I just need to borrow a suit.”
“Take whatever you want, I’m taking anything you don’t want to the homeless shelter or I’m burning it.”
He grabbed what he needed for the night and turned back to find Chrissy sitting on the edge of the bed staring at the floor. “Listen, I’m serious. You guys can stay with me.”
Grady wasn’t sure how he would make that happen, but he’d figure out a way.
“No, it’s fine. I have my aunt’s house.”
Grady didn’t know much about Chrissy’s family, only that her great aunt had raised her. He didn’t know anything about her parents and had never met any other family. Her aunt passed away a few years ago and left her house to Chrissy. There was some talk about his mom staying there, but at the time it needed too much work.
“Did you get the renovations done?”
“Nope, but I will now.”
“I’ll help. Anything you need.”
“Thanks, Grady. For everything.” Chrissy took a deep breath. “Now go and be the best fake date there ever was. Liv deserves it.”
Fake date. That was the thing…he didn’t feel like this was fake.