One Enchanted Summer

Chapter 15

CHAPTER

FIFTEEN

Grayson

I wouldn’t say I’m afraid of commitment, but I haven’t found anyone that I’m eager to commit to. Yet, I’m at a coffee shop, at an unholy hour on my day off, because I want to offer Quinn something when she wakes up. Last night was amazing. Incredible. It’s never been like that before. I know how cliche and stupid that sounds, but it doesn’t make it any less true. The more I get to know her, the more I like her.

I walk back to my house and try to slip in quietly but stop abruptly when I see Quinn in the kitchen. She freezes and holds up her hand in a wave. I chuckle at how sweetly awkward it is. She pulls the hem of her shirt down – actually it’s my shirt – and it looks way better on her, to try and cover more of her legs. I can tell she doesn’t know what to expect. So, I set the coffee on the counter and kiss her. Her whole body relaxes into me. Her small sigh makes me want to drag her back into the bedroom for a repeat performance.

“Do you want to be my girlfriend?” I whisper. It sounds so stupid and abrupt and desperate. I’ve never been desperate in my life, and yet I can’t stop myself from practically begging her to be my girlfriend. It feels like I’m in third grade again. I’ve never cared about titles before.

Quinn smiles and lets out a soft chuckle. “I must’ve really blown your mind last night.”

Images instantly splash across my mind as I remember just how amazing last night was. She smiles as if she can read my mind and gently touches her lips against mine.

“Okay, boyfriend, now what?”

I pick her up, throw her over my shoulder, and she giggles brightly all the way to my bedroom.

The past week has been euphoric. Quinn stayed at my house almost every night, and I’ve never slept so well. We spent every possible second together. I like her more than I could have ever imagined. Yesterday, she surprised me with lunch that she made for me. Not only did she make the most delicious chicken and rice, but she also made enough for my coworkers to eat. I’m in awe every day of just how thoughtful and considerate she is.

Today is audition day to fill Mandy’s position. I get to sit in and help make the final decision on who we want, which means it’s going to be a long day. The first two men are mediocre. They are fine but nothing they do really stands out. The third audition is a woman and she’s good. She smoothly lands a few stunts and is confident in her acting. I like her the most so far. When the fourth person walks in, it takes me a minute to recognize her. Her name is Abby. She has shorter hair now than the last time I saw her. It’s shoulder length and darker now, almost black. She smiles and says her name before she starts showing us what she can do. She’s good. She’s gotten better. At the end, we clap and she bows before giving me a smile I know is meant just for me. The rest of the auditions blend together. It comes down to four people: two guys, the first girl and Abby.

“What do you think, Grayson?” Nick asks me.

“You’re the boss. You should decide,” I quickly reply. I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to make a biased decision.

“I liked the first girl a lot,” he muses, looking down at his notes. “The other one was good too and I like the last guy.” He’s quiet while he thinks.

“Maybe we take the night to think about it?” I suggest.

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

Quinn is waiting for me when I get home. She’s sitting on the porch reading a book and I’m blown away how beautiful she looks sitting there. She has an effortless beauty to her. I notice she doesn’t wear a ton of makeup, just a little mascara, and she’s just naturally pretty. I smile as she stands up to greet me. I feel so lucky. I could get used to this.

“Hey you,” she says, planting a kiss on my cheek.

“Hey,” I reply, kissing her back on the lips. I feel her smile against my lips.

“How was your day?” I ask.

“Well, Tatum spilled a drink on someone. It was an accident, of course, but I felt so bad for her. The customer was nice, but Tatum was embarrassed. I was nervous the rest of the day while doing my tables.”

“Oh man, I’m glad the customer was nice, at least,” I reply.

“Yeah. It definitely could’ve been worse. How was your day?” she asks.

I hesitate. I didn’t think the conversation would come up so quickly. I don’t want to lie to her, and I don’t want her to think I’m trying to hide anything. I knew I’d have to talk to her, but now I’m feeling a little nervous.

“It was good. We did auditions today,” I start.

“Oh yeah! How was it?” she asks excitedly.

“Good. Yeah, some good options. But one of them was actually someone I know. Well, knew I guess. Her and I have crossed paths a few times because we’re both in the stunt performing world,” I say.

Quinn pauses and looks at me. I can see the questions on her face, but she waits for me to continue.

“We didn’t date or anything,” I add quickly and see her relax a little. “But we did hook up once,” I admit.

Quinn’s eyebrows raise. “Oh,” is all she says.

“There’s nothing between us. I haven’t even talked to her since.”

If possible, her eyebrows raise even higher, and I realize how bad that sounded.

“I mean, she hasn’t tried to talk to me either. It wasn’t like I slept with her and then disappeared. I wouldn’t do that. We both knew what it was,” I try not to make my explanation sound like a jumbled excuse.

“Which was?”

“What?”

“You said you both knew what it was.”

“A fling? I guess. A one night stand really, but I don’t want you to misjudge me.”

“Okay,” she says simply.

I hesitate and study her face for a minute. She sits on the couch, and motions for me to join her. She curls against me as I wrap my arms around her. I can’t believe how well she handled that whole conversation. Maybe it wasn’t a big deal after all.