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Arguing with her would get me nowhere. Gran was stubborn AF. And not totally wrong. But damned if I’d admit it. I had places to be.

“Gotta go, Gran. Lock up for me?” I grabbed my wallet and dropped a kiss on her wrinkled cheek.

She smirked, eyes dancing. “Where are you running off to, lover boy?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I parried, striding toward my truck.

“Child, give me five minutes, and I’ll know everything about her, down to her shoe size.”

“She’s a ten,” I called back over my shoulder, grinning to myself as I drove into town.

Gran might be a pain in the ass, but I wouldn’t trade her for anything. She either hadn’t made it to the upstairs bathroomsince I implemented step one in my revenge, or she’d been smart enough not to admit it.

I slipped into my apartment at the Anchor and snipped a few daffodils from the grounds before walking down to Anya’s studio before four. Maybe it was silly, but the bright flowers made me think of her, always sunny and cheerful. I wanted to make her happy. Or at least help her forget what had made her sad last night for a moment.

Watching her cry and being unable to do more than hold her had nearly gutted me. She still hadn’t trusted me with the whole story, but she was close. Dinner might give her the time and space she needed to come out with all of it. Unless she wanted a one-man security detail shadowing her every day, I needed answers.

Anya looked up from the front desk. Her blonde hair was swept up away from her face. Her white teeth clenched around a pencil, as if worrying the fine wood comforted her as she stared down at her tablet. The glimpse of her studious side made me instantly hard. Inconvenient but unavoidable.

Her serious expression morphed into a welcome that made the small ball of anxiety I carried with me when we were apart ease. She was fine. Nothing to worry about. I smiled, extending my bouquet.

“For you.”

She clutched them close. “You’re so sweet. Thank you, Drew.” She slid one bloom from the bouquet, extending it to me. “You’re always keeping me warm and bringing me gifts. But you deserve some sunshine in your life too.”

My fingers grazed hers as I accepted the flower. “Sunny Girl, you already bring the light to my life. Flowers are just me trying to keep up. Ready to pack up for the day?”

“Sure.” She wrinkled her nose. “Quarterly tax filings will wait to plague me another day.”

“You do your own?” I shook my head. “That was one of the first things I outsourced. Numbers and I are not friends. I’m grateful Mom took it on when she retired.”

A shadow flickered in her eyes. “It’s important to have an accountant you trust.”

“Mmhm,” I agreed, entwining her fingers.

She locked up, and we walked up the hill, one arm full of flowers, and the other hand held tightly in mine, swinging between us.

She unlocked her back door, and I trailed her into the kitchen. Anya pulled a vase from beneath the sink and arranged our flowers, placing them on the kitchen table. I filled two glasses with water and joined her on the couch, getting as close as I could without sitting in her lap. She snuggled into my shoulder with a tiny smile, like she knew I was craving her.

“Can you come to dinner tomorrow night?” Anya asked.

“Sure. I plan to be your shadow until you tell me you’re tired of me.”

She laughed like I was joking.

“What do you feel like for dinner tonight?” I asked.

“Not cooking.”

“Done. Is it a sexy grilled cheese kinda night, or would you prefer to go out?”

She arched a delicate brow. “Sexygrilled cheese? Do you use fancy cheddar or something? What makes it a ‘sexy’ grilled cheese?”

“It’s sexy ‘cause I made it.”

She giggled. “What, like cooking is the sexiest thing a man can do for a woman?”

“No,” I said officiously. “I have many sexy qualities.”