Eleanor & Grey(69)

“Thank you for staying,” he said.

“Of course. I hope you’ll be okay.”

He nodded once. “I’ll see you on Monday.”

“Does that mean I still have a job?” I asked, somewhat joking based on my new wingwoman position.

“If you’re still willing to work for me, that is.”

I smiled. “I’ll see you on Monday, Greyson.”

“Ellie…” He brushed his finger against his chin and shrugged a bit. “You can call me Grey.”





40





Greyson





“Oh, my gosh, is that a pony?!” a voice that sounded shockingly like Lorelai’s hollered as I sat in my office Saturday afternoon, though I was certain I was mishearing things because the girls were still at their grandparents’ house until Sunday.

“OH MY GOSH IT’S A PONY!”

I sat up straight in my chair. That was definitely Lorelai’s voice.

I walked out of my office and headed straight toward the noise that seemed to be coming from my back yard. The closer I got, the louder the racket was becoming. It wasn’t just Lorelai’s voice that was heard—it was everyone’s.

And by everyone, I meant everyone.

The yard was completely decked out. Pink and gold helium balloons were tied to trees. Two barbecue grills were fired up and I saw Landon and Jack were there flipping burgers.

Friends I hadn’t seen in months were in the backyard with their children, playing games, laughing, and having a great time.

“What in the world…” I opened the door, and everyone probably saw the shock on my face as they noticed me.

“Daddy! Daddy! Look! A ponyyyyy!” Lorelai shouted as she rode on its.

There was an actual pony in my backyard.

My mind was spinning faster than ever. When I looked to my left, I saw Eleanor, who was smiling ear to ear. She came skipping over to me with a birthday hat in her hand and she placed it on top of my head. “Great party, Grey,” she told me. “It’s the best kid’s party I’ve ever been to.”

My heart caught in my chest as I took a deep breath. “You did this? For Lorelai?”

She shook her head. “Not just for her. I did it for you. We did it for you,” she said, gesturing to every person I’d ever cared for.

They were all there. Even though I had ignored them for months. Even though their calls always went to voicemail. Even though I’d pushed them away. They had still shown up for me.

They didn’t have a clue how much that meant.

Eleanor didn’t have a clue what she’d done.

“Thank you,” I choked out.

“You’re welcome,” she replied. “Now go! Go say hi to everyone! It is a party, after all, so go party.” She blew her birthday kazoo in my face and kept that big smile on her face.

I started to walk away but stopped in my tracks. I turned back toward her, and without any thought, I wrapped my arms around her. I wrapped her so tight against me that I was almost certain I’d squeeze her to death, but I couldn’t let go. Luckily, she didn’t ask me to. When I pulled back, I felt a bit embarrassed. Ambushing her with a hug was completely out of character for me, but it had felt right. I’d needed the embrace. It had felt like the only way I could truly show her my gratitude.

She didn’t even look taken aback by my approach. She just kept smiling that gentle smile and she nodded her head toward my friends. “Go have fun, Grey,” she told me.

Fun.

I wasn’t sure I still knew what that was, but I’d try my best to do as she said. I walked over to Landon and patted his shoulder.

He looked at me and gave me a big cheesy grin. “Dude! Great party. You’ll have to point out who the single women are,” he joked.

“What are you even doing here?” I asked, a bit stunned to see my best friend back in Illinois.

He shrugged. “I was just in the neighborhood.”

“You left me a voicemail yesterday from L.A. You weren’t just in the neighborhood, Landon. You were across the country.”

He smiled a genuine smile and patted me on my shoulder. “For you, Greyson, I’m always in the neighborhood.”

That meant more than he’d ever know. I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Listen, I know I’ve been a bit off for a while…”

“If you apologize to me one more time, I’m going to kick you in the balls, Greyson,” Landon warned.

I tossed my hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright.”

“So, Eleanor really grew up, huh? Like, holy hell, she’s fucking beautiful.”

She’d been beautiful since day one. Most people overlooked it, though.

He scratched at the beard he was growing out for his upcoming role in an action movie. “So…is she single?”

I rolled my eyes. “Don’t start, Landon. You aren’t going to sleep with my nanny. Besides, you already slept with her cousin Shay all those years ago.”

“Shay…Shay…” He went deep into his mind trying to connect the dots of a woman he’d slept with named Shay. When it clicked, he slapped me. “Holy shit, Shay Gable. My first love!”

I laughed. “If that’s what you’re calling love, we should be worried. Come on, let me get you a drink.”