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Chapter Twenty-Five

GRAHAM

“Well, she’s still standing.” Steph gives me a big hug when she enters the office. It’s hard to believe this is my last week at Sprouting Joy. While I often love the places I work, this one holds a special place in my heart. At least half of that is Tyler. I’m going to be sad to leave. “Hopefully, you left the rest of the place in good shape, as well.”

“I’m sure you’ll find that everything’s up to your standards.” At least I hope so. “If not, you know where to find me.”

“That I do.” Steph hugs me again. “I can’t believe I get to keep you in Cardinal Falls. The mighty Graham Stevens is finally settling down. I never thought I’d see the day.”

“Me, either, but I finally hit a place in my life where I want a little more stability.”

“And does that have anything to do with a certain volunteer?”

My jaw drops. She can’t know. We’ve been so careful. Or at least medium careful. Plus, Steph has been at home buried in dirty diapers. When would she have time for office gossip?

“You think I don’t have spies everywhere? I might have been out of the office, but I haven’t been completely out of touch.”

“We didn’t think anyone here knew.” It’s the truth. It’s not like we’ve been kissing in the hallways.

Steph snorts. “Sweetie, everyone knows. At least five people texted me about it. A few of them weren’t one hundred percent sure, but they thought something was up. One of them saw you kissing in the parking lot.”

“Well, I guess they saved me the trouble of telling you.” So much for the speech I practiced last night. Tyler’s going to freak out when he hears this.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I open my mouth as she holds up her hand. “And don’t you even think about saying it’s because I had a baby and you didn’t want to bother me.”

I clear my throat. “To be honest, we were worried about how it would look. Tyler volunteers here, which made me his sort-of boss while you were out. Plus, with his team being on the website, that technically also made me his client.” Someone in human resources would have a field day with it. We might not technically be doing anything wrong, but I suspect that doesn’t mean it can’t be used against us.

“That all makes sense, but I love you, Graham. I’m so happy you found someone. And Tyler’s as good as they come. The two of you should be together.” She sits down in one of the chairs on the visitor’s side of the desk. It’s weird seeing her there. Now that she’s back, she should reclaim her desk chair. “Plus, there aren’t any rules about staff and volunteers on our end. Maybe there should be, but we’ve never had an issue. It’s a small place, and if people can find love while doing good work, I’m not going to stop them.”

“Does that mean we have your blessing?”

“Of course.” She leans back, crossing her legs. “But I’m going to give the two of you shit about this for years to come.”

“I expect nothing less.”

“Now, catch me up on the less interesting things. How’s Sprouting Joy?”

Steph and I spend the next hour reviewing every spreadsheet, donor contribution, and request that’s come through in the three months since I’ve been here. It’s tedious work, but I’m thankful for the time to do it. That’s not always the case, and an in-person hand-off like this is better than a written report.

I pack up my laptop, ready to move to a conference room for the afternoon to let Steph make a start on what must be thousands of emails waiting for her. “When you get settled, we’ll have you and Tyler over for dinner one night.”

Settled. I’m not sure that word has ever described my life before. It’s accurate, though. A nice home, a boyfriend whom I love and adore, and a new job waiting for me in a city where I have friends. It’s hard to ask for more than that.

I do have one more thing to work on before everything is set. I’m saving that one for Saturday morning.

* * *

TYLER

“What’s all this?” I wander into the kitchen, still a little groggy. Graham usually stays in bed with me on weekend mornings. Waking up alone in bed, his spot cold and empty, feels worrisome. I half expected to find a note on the kitchen counter saying he’d left me.

It took a reminder that this is, in fact, his home to calm me down. Not that I’d put it past every guy, but Graham seems much too kind to leave a breakup note on his own kitchen counter before fucking off and hoping I’d be gone before he got back.

“Why don’t you come sit?” Graham’s on the couch, the electric fireplace running.

Something’s wrong. I can feel it. The whole scene feels—sideways. I don’t know any other way to describe it. I do my best to nod and look normal, but I’m sweating. As I move toward the couch, Graham gets up and walks toward me, abandoning the pile of blankets he has stacked up on the sofa.

“Everything’s fine, sweetheart. I wanted to do something special for you this morning.” He kisses the top of my head as he walks by. His words do little to reassure me, but I suck in a breath and plaster a big smile on my face.

My usual seat on the couch is covered with blankets, so I pull them up before burying myself under them. Given the roaring fire and mild weather, they aren’t necessary. Who lights a fire first thing in the morning? The fireplace is mainly a decorative feature. It’s more than warm enough, thanks to the thermostat.

It’s fine. I’m fine . I try to remind myself that the statement will be true, no matter what happens.

“Tyler?” Graham asks, pulling me from my thoughts. “Can you take one of these?” He has a cup of coffee in each hand. I grab the one in my favorite mug, the one with a unicorn pole dancing on it.

With one hand free, he pulls up the blankets enough to slide in next to me.

“Cheers.” He holds his mug up, and I clink mine against his, eyeing him suspiciously.

“Oh my god,” I moan after my first sip. “Why is this so good?”

“It’s pour-over. I made it the right way, too. Took forever, so I’m glad you like it.”

“Like you made when we were camping?” He clicks his tongue against his teeth. We’ve largely come to an agreement that we don’t mention that weekend. Well, most of it. The part where he told me he loves me and said we’re going to find a way to make things work still plays on repeat in my head. If I watch the highlight reel enough, I might start to believe it.

“Exactly like that. Except, there aren’t any children or bees here to injure you, and the weather today is calling for nothing more than a few clouds.”

I hum my agreement while taking a few more sips of coffee. This is pretty much heaven.

“I figured this might be our last opportunity to drink coffee in front of a fire like this for a while.”

My body tenses despite my best efforts. “Oh, so you found a job?”

“I did.” I force myself to relax as he pulls me closer.

“So, when are you moving?” I let the mug rest against the arm of the couch. It no longer tastes very good. I’m prepared for this. It’s been the topic of many conversations. Even if he takes something far away, it’ll be temporary. Given all his contacts and experience, it’s only a matter of time until a position opens. Until then, it’s all about patience. I work in front of a computer all day, so a few more hours on a video call at night are nothing.

“That kind of depends. I technically have this place until the end of the month.” So, three more weeks. Tears well up in the corner of my eye. Those fuckers better not fall. This is not the time or place. I can do that later.

“I was, however, hoping my boyfriend would let me move in a little sooner.”

I blink a few times. Nope, not computing.

“I was waiting to mention it to you until it was a sure thing. I didn’t want to get either of our hopes up until I actually had something to tell you.”

“For fucks sake. Just say it.” Whatever it is, I know we can handle it. Together.

“I signed all the official paperwork yesterday to accept an offer with Nathan’s company.”

“For how long?” I’m still holding my breath. All of this sounds too good to be true.

“That’s the best part. It’s a permanent position.”

I throw my arms around him, spilling some of my coffee in the process. Who cares? Graham is staying.

We stay like that for a minute, me holding him close, afraid to let go and have this whole thing disappear.

“So, what do you say? I know I sprung all this on you, but what do you think about me moving in?”

“I hate it.” I can’t manage to hold back the smile on my face. Graham is staying. And he wants to live together. I didn’t let myself think about this option, too afraid that the fantasy would be ripped away from me.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to assume that it would be okay with you. I can find something else.”

Fuck. I really need to get better at this. “I don’t mean we shouldn’t live together,” I clarify. “I think we should find somewhere new. Something that’s for us, rather than you moving into my place. I don’t love that apartment. I want us to have something that’s for the two of us. A place we can decorate and call home together.”

“I love that idea.” He leans in and kisses me. “Maybe we can find somewhere with a fireplace so we can recreate this moment.”

“As long as you don’t make me go camping again anytime soon.” I’ll go, but I need a few months to allow the last experience to slip out of my memory.

“I seem to remember you begging me to take you camping and then refusing to leave the tent until we almost drowned.”

“I don’t remember any of that,” I say as I set my head against his shoulder.

Drinking coffee indoors in front of a fire is not quite the same as being at a campsite, but the benefits of being alone and away from bugs and critters cannot be overstated. Plus, no demon children.

I stare into the fire for a while, enjoying the coffee and closeness. I was wrong before. The blankets are completely necessary. Neither of us is cold, but the weight they add to our little cuddle fest is perfect.

When we’ve both finished our coffee and set the cups on the small table, I turn toward Graham.

“Are you sure you aren’t going to get bored? Living in one place, dating one guy, doing the same thing day in and day out?” I leave some of the questions unsaid.

“Tyler, you’re the least boring person I’ve ever met. Whether we’re sitting on the couch or battling a storm in a tent, I think everything with you is a bit of an adventure.”

“And if that changes?” I bite my lip.

“Look at me?” He lifts my chin so that I look directly into his eyes. I hate this trick. It feels like he’s somehow looking deep into my soul. That must be cheating. “I think we could both use a little less excitement in our lives sometimes. But, even if we get boring, I would rather be boring with you than exciting with anyone else.”

As relief flows through me, I whisper, “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”