| Chapter Twelve |
| "Uh huh. Yes. You're right; that does sound nice. Uh huh." Grace doodled a picture on the top of her notebook. The woman from Sunny Day Travel Agency was determined to sign Lynn and Paul up for the Welcome to the 80s Valentine's Day Cruise, "Yes, I understand. I'm just not sure if my employer was looking for a themed cruise. Oh. Really, a costume ball? Yes, I guess they might like to dress up as Madonna and Sean Penn, but maybe not for Valentin-uh huh." The woman continued listing every luxury of this "once in a lifetime cruise" for a few more minutes. Finally, Grace found an opening and was able to say goodbye. She'd just hung up the phone when the front door opened. Considering how popular Lynn and her family were, it could have been just about anyone, but Grace knew it was him. Not sure if he was going to come into the kitchen, Grace straightened her shoulders and pretended to read over her notes. Her heart was pounding so hard she was sure she'd pass out any moment. The kitchen door swung open a few moments later. Grace's breath hitched; her eyes nearly crossed. This was the most nervous she'd ever been in her entire life. All because he wanted to talk to her. "Grace?" He said it in the form of a question, almost as if he wasn't sure he'd used the right name. She looked up, trying to act calm. "Is my mom upstairs?" "Uh huh," she said. "Okay. Thanks." He turned on his heels, ready to leave. Grace was stunned. There was no way in hell she was going to let him leave. Not after the minor heart attack she'd just suffered because of him. "Umm?Justin?" He turned back to look at her, "Yeah?" You can do this, she told herself in a weak attempt at a pep talk. "Umm?you said?earlier that is?you asked me?umm?if I would be around. I assumed you wanted to?umm?speak to me." Well that was eloquent. For a moment, he seemed surprised. "Oh yeah. I should really talk to my mom first. I'll be back down in a few minutes. Is that okay with you?" Relieved, Grace quickly agreed. "Great," he replied and left the room. As soon as he disappeared through the door, Grace let out a huge breath. She didn't know it was possible to be so nervous. So many questions ran through her mind. She had no idea why he wanted to see her. As much as she hoped it was to confess his love, she sincerely doubted it. However, to pass the time, she imaged just what it would be like it he did want to profess his undying love. She'd just gotten to the part where he got down on one knee and begged her to be his when Justin came back into the kitchen. Wiping the silly grin off her face, Grace was thankfully calmer than before. "Done so soon?" Ugh, that sounded stupid; not to mention, she was being nosy. "Yeah. We just had some business stuff to discuss. Sorry for making you wait." "Don't worry about it. I didn't mind." They fell into an awkward silence. Grace, deciding she couldn't take it anymore, motioned to the seat across the table, "Have a seat." It wasn't until after she said it that she realized how weird it was that she was offering him a seat in his house. He didn't seem to notice and silently sat down across from her. This wasn't the first time she'd been this close to him, but unlike the night of his party, they were looking eye to eye. He really was quite beautiful. It wasn't a mystery why so many girls had a crush on him, herself included. "I wanted to thank you." "For what?" "A lot of stuff actually," he said with a slight chuckle, "I wanted to thank you for all the time you spent planning my party." Bashful, she lowered her head and mumbled, "Just doing my job." He went on as though she hadn't said anything. "Mom's told me repeatedly how she couldn't have done any of it without you." "Lynn's too nice," Grace mumbled. "Also, thank you for the present. I gave it to Stephen this morning and am happy to report that he thinks I'm the greatest brother in the whole world. His words exactly." Grace didn't know what to say in response. As happy as she was that Stephen liked the teddy bear, she was still embarrassed. Clearing his throat, Justin ran a hand over his head. "What I really wanted to thank you for was listening to me complain. I know it's not exactly fun listening to a spoiled celebrity whine about his big, expensive party. Trust me, I've had to do it on occasion, and I know how much you probably wanted to hit me over the head and scream 'get over it'. What I'm trying to say is thank you for not doing that." What was she supposed to say to that? No problem? It was my pleasure? He was watching her expectantly, so she said the first thing she could think of, "I was happy to listen." He smiled, "With most people, I'd think they were lying, but I think you really mean it." "I do." "I know." He thumped his hands on the table, playing a beat Grace faintly recognized. Quickly, he stood up, "Well, I should probably get going. I have some stuff to do, and you probably have to get back to work. It was nice talking you." "Yeah, you too." She was disappointed that their talk hadn't lasted longer, but beggars can't be choosers. She thought about adding 'thank you for thanking me' but she supposed it wasn't good to sound like a complete idiot. "Talk to you later." He almost sounded sincere. Did that make them almost friends? |