Page 25

CHAPTER 25

Grayson

“Great. Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s head back to the fire,” I said, my voice softening, and I could hear the relief in it.

Henry gazed up at me with a mixture of understanding, and hope.

“I— I think I need some air,” he said quietly. “I’m just, uh... I think I’m going to head back to the tent.”

My heart broke, but a part of me understood. So much had happened between us, and it was apparent that up until moments ago, Henry hadn’t understood I truly wanted him. And maybe I hadn’t understood what that meant either, or the depth of it.

Maybe Henry wasn’t the only one who needed space to process everything.

“Okay. Be careful,” I said, my voice shaking. All I wanted was to stop him from walking away.

Because unbeknownst to Henry, he held my heart in his hands, and I was trusting he would not shatter it completely.

Henry nodded. “Of course,” he said as he slid his phone out, queuing up his flashlight. And I watched him wander off, watched him leave, with my heart in my throat.

Once he was out of my sight, I headed back to the courtyard. It appeared that Henry wasn’t the only one who had decided to turn in.

The only ones left at the campfire were my sister, Aaron, and Riley. Riley and Aaron were of, course, engaged in a deep conversation about something I had no clue about, and my sister was sipping her hot chocolate in front of the fire.

I took my seat beside her for the first time since we’d arrived back from our ride.

“So, that’s what’s had you all out of sorts lately,” she nonchalantly drawled, not even looking at me.

I wanted to deny her allegation, but we both knew there was no denying it. Anyone with eyeballs would have been able to see the flames between Henry and I, especially after his dramatic exit.

Whether or not they would draw attention to it was still unclear, but for Henry’s sake, I hoped they wouldn’t. I got the feeling that Henry didn’t like attention.

“It’s complicated,” I said, folding my hands in my lap.

Giselle scoffed, shooting me an are you serious glance.

“What?” I asked.

“What is this? An episode of The Young & The Restless ? Relationships aren’t complicated.”

I sighed, opening my mouth to protest, but my sister stopped me.

“That’s just a crock of shit explanation for when things aren’t going the way you want them to,” she said.

I stared into the fire, watching the ochre flames dance and change shape swiftly.

“Did you ever just... meet someone and the timing was off? Like... way off?” I asked quietly.

My sister slurped her hot chocolate annoyingly, making me wait for her answer. “Not everything is perfect from the get-go, Gray. Some things...” She looked off in the distance, her gaze settling on her fiancé, who was laughing with his best man, and I didn’t miss the glaze of love in her eyes. “Good things take time.”

Her words settled on me, making me think about this whole situation. I’d known of Henry for years, but it wasn’t until the other night, that I really truly saw him. That night, I’d been an idiot and gotten carried away, and Henry had shown me his true colors. He was caring, and sweet, and easy to talk to, and I enjoyed being around him.

And he wasn’t bad on the eyes at all.

But the reality was that we’d only really started to discover one another, let alone our undeniable attraction, and it had barely been two weeks.

Falling in love with a man in that short of an amount of time was impossible, wasn’t it?

Was what I felt for Henry love ?

It was, but I wasn’t ready to admit that yet. If I was being honest, I fell for Henry the moment I looked at him in my car.

And then I fell for him again when he’d gotten a simple sandwich and soup, and again when he stood on my porch, gazing at me like I was some hero in a romance movie.

And there were so many moments after that too, and I got the feeling those moments would never disappear. If we went through with this—whatever this was—I was certain there would be so many more moments to fall in love with Henry.

If he would let me.

“Yeah, well, good things also need their beauty rest,” I said as I took her empty cup from her hands. Giselle looked at me with annoyance, but I shook my head. “It’s getting late, and if I read the itinerary correctly, we have a wine festival tomorrow.” I said, flashing her a grin.

“Gray...”

“We’re going to need all the rest we can get if we’re going to be drinking all day long,” I teased.

My sister looked as if she wanted to press me further on matters that had nothing to do with wine, but she relented, admitting defeat for once.

Maybe she really does need a good night’s sleep.

“Mhmm. Well, in that case, perhaps you should head to bed too. Some of us need more of a recharge than others,” she nipped.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I bit back.

Giselle rose, smiling from ear to ear. “Well, I am the younger model...” she teased.

I shook my head. “The best wines, my dear, are the ones that have aged gracefully,” I said with a grin of my own.

Giselle laughed. “Sure, whatever makes you sleep better at night,” she said as I rose. Giselle wrapped her arms around me, and I could not help but do the same. “Goodnight, Gray,” she said softly, as she headed toward Aaron, who was putting out the fire.