Fighting Fate (Granton University #1)(41)

“You need a haircut,” she said, her lips twitching with the desire to smile.

Grumbling something incompressible under his breath, he pulled into the Hashmans’ driveway and slapped at his hair before he got out of the car.

Kayla didn’t wait by the door to greet them; she dashed outside and met them at the truck. It was strange and yet familiar for Paige to hug her. They’d been apart for so long, everything felt different. She still smelled like Kayla’s minty fragrance and felt like Kayla. Except she didn’t.

Kayla clung to her tightly. “You will not believe how much I missed you.”

Then she pulled back to hug Paige’s father. Watching them together, Paige tried to remember the last time she’d hugged him herself. Certainly not since her mother’s death, maybe not even since Trace’s.

She wondered why he could still be affectionate with Kayla and yet his warmth for his own daughter was nonexistent. Maybe he wished she had died instead of Trace. Or instead of her mother.

Tearing her thoughts from such a troubling decline, Paige focused on Kayla’s parents as they stepped outside.

The Hashmans were wonderful, pleasant hosts and made sure to include everyone in every part of the dinner. But Paige still felt disconnected, a spectator more than a participant. She wanted to return to Granton.

After dessert, Kayla hooked her arm through Paige’s and led her back to her room. It looked the same as always, sending a wistful pang of nostalgia through her. She remembered the first time she’d been here. With Trace.

He’d let her tag along with him so Kayla’s parents wouldn’t make a fuss about him being in Kayla’s bedroom without parental supervision. And while Kayla had let fourteen-year-old Paige paw through her jewelry, she and Trace had made out all evening on her bed.

Kayla had been devastated when he’d died. Though she and Paige hadn’t exactly been close before the accident, they’d become inseparable afterward. Kayla had been there when it had happened and had told Paige he’d died instantly without feeling any pain whatsoever.

And she’d been able to share Paige’s grief like no one else. Paige sometimes felt Kayla had taken Trace’s death the hardest.

Sitting at Kayla’s old dressing table, Paige studied her own reflection in the mirror and wondered if she should ever tell her friend about Logan Xander’s presence at Granton.

“I love this vanity,” she murmured instead, running her fingers over the gray marble top.

Behind Paige, Kayla scooped up a handful of Paige’s hair and began to play with it. “I can’t believe I’m actually going to say this, but…you look great. I think Granton agrees with you.”

Closing her eyes against the soothing effect Kayla’s fingers had on her scalp, Paige tilted her head back and sighed. “It does. I went there looking for a way to reconnect with Trace, but I ended up reconnecting with myself.” She opened her eyes and met Kayla’s gaze in the mirror. “I think I was able to let go of him.” She smiled. “It was past time.”

Kayla dropped Paige’s hair and propped her hip against the vanity so she could face Paige directly. “I think I was able to let go too.” Worrying her bottom lip between her teeth, she rushed out her next words. “I met someone.”

Paige’s mouth dropped open. After the way she’d mourned Trace, Paige had worried Kayla would never move on again. Maybe her leaving had helped Kayla too.

Popping to her feet, she took a relieved breath and hugged her friend. “That’s wonderful.”

Kayla squeezed her tight and didn’t let go. “You’re not mad?”

Paige frowned. “Why would I be mad? It’s been three years, Kayla. Way past time for you to date again.”

“But—”

“Look at me.” Paige pulled back enough to catch Kayla’s shoulders and stare her in the eye. “Trace would want you to be happy.”

Kayla looked sick to her stomach. She shook her head and opened her mouth, no doubt to argue, so Paige quickly spoke over her. “And I want you to be happy.”

Paige had debated with herself numerous times over the years whether to tell Kayla about the engagement ring she’d found when cleaning out Trace’s room after his funeral. He really had loved Kayla; he’d wanted to marry her.

In the end, Paige had decided against mentioning it; it’d only hurt Kayla more to know. Looking at her friend now, she was doubly glad she’d made the decision she had.

“Now spill all the details,” she demanded, grinning. “What’s this guy’s name? What does he do? When can I meet him?”

Watching Kayla blush and gush about her new love interest was almost surreal. Since they’d become real friends, Paige couldn’t remember a conversation about something positive or the future. This felt…normal. Good.

Her attending Granton really had been the best thing. For everyone.





Paige returned to Granton first thing Sunday morning after Thanksgiving. Her father made no move to stop her or coax her to stay a couple hours longer. She wondered if he was relieved to see her go.

When she returned to her dorm, she felt better. At ease. She had no idea when this one room had become more of a home to her than her own, but she was glad to be back.

It was lonely, though. She knew Tess and Bailey wouldn’t show up until after dinner, and Einstein wasn’t in his usual haunts. She was actually relieved when Gus called her later that morning.