Page 90 of Crossing the Line

“You were going to give up the money and obligation and marry me?” Leslie tightly whispers.

“Yes,” Hugo says, shaking his head fervently. I can see by the look on his face that he would do anything for Leslie Grove, then and now.

Every person at the table is still. The silence isn’t awkward either. It’s needed. I know I shouldn’t be the first to say something, and neither should Paisley.

“I guess the bright side is,” Leslie says with a smile, “if we’d thrown caution to the wind and followed our hearts, then the two of you wouldn’t be here, and clearly, you’re in love.”

The tension-filled silence could be sliced with a carving knife. We are all aware that for a Grove and a Lord, being in love isn’t easy.

* * *

We havebreakfast before it can get any colder. Paisley’s appetite seems to be back, and I’m glad she’s eating well. She and I are eating in silence as my grandfather tells us about his relationship with Charles Gregory Grove. He says Charles, or Charlie, came to him, hoping he would invest in TRANSPOT. Charlie had heard that my grandfather funded ambitious projects like his.

“Charlie and I became good friends,” Hugo says, with his eyes on Paisley as if he really wants her to know that.

She nods, chewing.

Then my grandfather scrapes his fingers down the side of his face, a sign that he’s experiencing discomfort. “Business and relationships got the best of us. I can’t say I regret how I handled the past because, as Leslie said, if I’d done it differently, then I wouldn’t have you, Hercules, and Leslie wouldn’t have you, Paisley.” My grandfather puts an elbow on the table and leans on it, angling himself toward me. “You’re in the same position I found myself in many years ago, aren’t you?”

My throat is tight, and my head is taking a nosedive. “Yeah,” I sigh.

“Well, you have my blessing to marry who you love and only who you love. The money isn’t worth the misery.”

“I know. But I have a solution.”

Hugo folds his arms. “You do?”

I swallow hard. This is it. I wasn’t going to make this the moment, but no other time feels better for it than the present.

“The marriage will be finalized on Friday if I’m not already married before then.” I turn slowly to Paisley. Her fork of scrambled stalls in front of her sexy lips, and very slowly, her eyes expand as she understands what I’m alluding to.