Page 22 of The Love Fix (The Sunrise Cove #8)

Lexi knew she should be beyond irritated at Ashley for manipulating her to come to Heath’s, but... she was actually having

a good time. She’d never had a grandparent’s presence in her life. As a kid, she’d met some of her friends’ extended family,

and she’d envied them. But as time had gone on and she’d grown up, she hadn’t given much thought to what she’d missed.

Heath’s grandpa was wonderful. And obviously a meddling troublemaker. But even though he clearly loved giving Heath a hard time, there was an undeniable loving

undertone to it that she could feel all the way to the corners of her own cold heart.

She’d gone a whole bunch of years being mostly on her own, and she’d gotten pretty good at it. Okay, maybe not good, but hey,

she was breathing, and that counted for something. But somehow, sitting here, she... wanted more for herself. Unnerving

thought.

They’d finished eating but hadn’t left the table when Gus looked around the kitchen. “I know an upgrade would be good, but

I really love this old place. Maybe we could paint, if we use the same color.”

Heath nodded. “We could do that. And maybe a new dining set.”

“That would just be throwing money away, as I like this one.”

Heath sighed.

Gus smiled at Lexi. “We were pretty poor when this guy was little. Didn’t have two pennies to rub together.” His smile faded.

“I got injured in a car wreck and couldn’t help out my daughter much—Heath’s mama. She’d married an asshole—pardon my French.

He couldn’t keep a job. The boys wore hand-me-downs and never had enough food. The memories keep me from wanting to spend

money frivolously.”

The look on Heath’s face, regret, guilt, grief... slayed her. When they were kids, all Lexi had seen when she looked at

him was the cocky, annoying, competitive boy who’d gotten beneath her skin embarrassingly easily. She’d had no idea he’d been

hungry for more than just challenging her at everything. Hungry, and abused. It made her heart ache.

As for Heath, he looked like he was pretty sure there wasn’t enough vodka left for this conversation. “Oh, good, we’re going

to keep talking about me,” he muttered.

“Hey, I’m trying to give the girl a leg up. Seeing as I’m willing to bet you’ve been hiding in plain sight.” He winked at

Lexi from the same blue gray eyes Heath had. “Thought you might appreciate a peek inside that hard head of his.”

“I absolutely do,” she said in a light tone, knowing how much Heath would hate a show of sympathy. “Since he’s locked up so

tight he squeaks when he walks.”

His grandpa laughed so hard he spilled his drink.

Heath just looked at her, brows up.

“When we were little, we didn’t get along much,” she told his grandpa while still smiling at Heath. “He was a know-it-all, and all I wanted was to beat him at something.”

Some of the shadows left Heath’s gaze, replaced by a small smile at the memories she’d invoked.

“Hard to beat him at anything,” his grandpa said. “He’s sharp and quick and sneaky—motivated, of course, by never wanting

to be poor again. Well, that and the fact that when Cole got so sick and we had shit insurance, he had to take on a second

job while in college to cover the medical bills. Let me suggest flat-out cheating when you want to beat him at something.

That’s what I do.”

“Good to know.”

Heath lowered his head to the table to knock it against the wood a few times.

Lexi laughed with Gus. “I take it he doesn’t know you cheat.”

“Oh, I always know.” Heath lifted his head. “I once had to bail him out of jail after he got caught cheating at a casino.”

“False charges,” his grandpa said with a shrug.

“They had you on video, and you got a lifetime ban.”

“Bah humbug. And you and Lexi nearly got yourselves tossed in jail not all that long ago. Pot, meet Kettle.”

Heath looked at Lexi for the first time since his grandpa had revealed some of his secrets, a guarded expression on his face

that she hated to see. “What?”

“You’re looking at me different,” he said.

“How?”

“Like you feel sorry for me or, worse, like I’m perfect.”

She choked on her tea, which nearly came out her nose.

With a chuckle, his grandpa handed her a napkin.

“Don’t you worry, darlin’, he’s not even close to perfect.

” He started ticking the reasons why off on his fingers.

“He’s bullheaded to a fault, he can’t admit when he’s wrong, thinks he doesn’t need anyone or anything, and don’t even get me started on what a know-it-all he is. ”

“Thanks, Grandpa,” Heath said dryly. “But don’t worry. Lexi’s fully aware of my faults.”

His grandpa slid her a look. “Good. Because women tend to throw themselves at him. Don’t be one of them. Make him work for

it.”

“Don’t you worry,” Lexi said. “I have no intention of throwing myself at him.” Because she already had, in that tent, the

memory of which made all her good parts tingle, something they absolutely should not be doing.

Gus’s phone alarm went off, and he glanced at the screen, then at Heath. “Really? You set an alarm for me to take my meds?”

“Yes, so you can’t pretend to forget.”

“For your information, I was just about to take them.” Gus rose from the table. Stopped. Scratched his head. “Where are the

meds again?”

“On your bathroom counter.”

“I knew that.”

In the ensuing silence of his absence, Lexi searched for something to say. She didn’t often think about her childhood, because

it made her feel sorry for herself. But Heath had had it far worse than she, only instead of burying the memories deep, he’d

processed them and moved on, growing up to make something of his life. It touched a part of her she didn’t know could be touched,

but also... Heath had been there for his family.

Unlike her, who’d not been there for hers. Not once.

“Sorry Ashley manipulated you into stopping by yet?”

She laughed softly. “No, but I bet you are.” Getting to her feet, she collected some of the dishes, moving to the sink.

“I’m not.”

Their gazes held for a beat as Heath got the rest of the dishes. Setting them in the sink, he gently nudged her aside. “Guests

don’t do dishes.”

“But, as it turns out, I’m not a guest, because you didn’t invite me here. I’ll load.” She opened the dishwasher and looked

at him. “Unless you’re anal about how it’s done?”

“Anal?”

She laughed. “It’s a yes or no.”

He stared at her, then snorted and shook his head. “I think you enjoy driving me insane.”

“Very, very much.”

He chuckled and once more tried to nudge her aside, but she refused, instead taking the dish from his hands and setting it

inside the dishwasher.

When she caught him staring at her, she sighed. “See, you are anal.”

He laughed. “No. I just didn’t know there was a wrong way to load it.”

“According to Ashley, there most definitely is.”

He shook his head. “I love your sister, but sometimes she’s an old lady in a twenty-three-year-old body.”

Lexi laughed, and they worked in companionable silence for a moment. “Can I ask you a personal question?” she finally drummed

up the courage to ask.

“Sure.”

“What was wrong with your brother?”

He didn’t take his gaze off the dish he was rinsing. “Leukemia. Years ago. He was fourteen.”

She stared at him in shock, but he was rinsing another dish with incredible attention to detail. “He got better though, right?”

“After a bone marrow transplant.”

She did some math. Heath would’ve been a freshman in college. “You gave him your bone marrow.”

“No.” He allowed her to take the dish and load it into the dishwasher. “I wasn’t a match.”

“But you would have, if you could.”

“He’s family,” he said, lifting shoulders capable of holding such weight. “It’s what family does.”

She slowly shook her head. “Not all families are like yours.”

“I know.” He paused. “I saw how you looked at me when my grandpa wouldn’t stop flapping his lips. I’m not defined by having

a shit dad, probably because I had a great mom and grandparents, and Cole. Those were the relationships that molded me, that made me who I am.” He turned to face her. “I’m sorry you didn’t have any of that.”

She shrugged. “I had my mom until I was ten. And my dad... He wasn’t a bad guy. Not really. He just... had other important

things to concentrate on.”

His gaze said he disagreed with that. She busied herself fussing with the silverware, setting the pieces carefully into the

dishwasher to give her hands something to do. “Plus, I watched lots of TV. Movies. I understand that plenty of families stick

together above all else. It just hasn’t been that way for me.”

“Do you want that life, the family life you never really had?”

“I’m not sure I’m up to the risk of going all in on something without a guarantee, and who gets a guarantee? No one.”

“Maybe it’d be worth the risk.”

She didn’t know if she’d ever be brave enough for what she saw in his eyes, no matter how much she thought she might come to want it. “I think... I should go.” Before he could stop her, she poked her head into the living room to wave at his grandpa. “Good night.”

“Come back anytime. You’re more fun than this one...” He jerked his head at Heath.

Heath pinched the bridge of his nose like he might be getting a headache, and his grandpa grinned.

Lexi smothered her laugh and moved to the back door.

Heath stepped outside with her, a frown on his face.

“Maybe you really do need a nip of vodka.”

“Smart-ass,” he murmured, but it sounded affectionate. “What I actually need is to keep my wits about me when you’re around.”

She stopped and looked at him.

“It’s not an insult.” His smile was wry. “It’s a statement about my inability to think clearly when you’re around.”

She blinked, absorbing the meaning behind the words. Decided she liked it way too much. “And that’s a bad thing?”

“The worst.”

She grinned. “Right back at you.” She stepped off the porch. “Night.”

“I’m walking you home.”

Bad idea. Very, very bad idea, because she was feeling weak enough to pull him into her childhood bedroom and do things to