Page 16 of The Growly Outcast’s Promise

“Yes. And he’s very sweet.”

“You in love with him?” he asks.

“No, Grey, I’m not in love with him. I needed to be married; I thought he was a good option.” I shrug and look out the window at the scenery passing by. The further away we get from Houston, the more green the landscape becomes. Hilly, too. God, I’ve missed non-city life.

“I’d forgotten how beautiful it is over in this part of Texas,” I say.

“Feel like home?” he asks.

“Always.”

“Well, your grandmother made sure you and Lizzie had a home and an education.”

“Not so much on the gentleness or love though.” I chuckle. “But we had each other. We both hated leaving here though.”

“Think Lizzie and her kids will move this way since you’re here now?”

Is he thinking that even when our temporary marriage is over, that I’m here to stay? I mean I would love that. With the one exception of running into him. Seeing him regularly would only break my heart.

“I’m not sure. She’s a nurse, you know. Right now she works as a school nurse, and she hates it. Wants to be back in a doctor’s office. But the practices in Houston are so big and non-personal, and she doesn’t like that either.”

“Lizzie’s always known exactly what she likes and doesn’t like. I guess some things never change.”

chapter

eight

Greyson

By the time we get her stuff unloaded into my cabin and get Papaya settled, I’m ready to bend my wife over any surface and sink inside of her. Instead, I grab on to the top of the doorframe and lean into my bedroom. She’s currently moving some of her clothes into the half of the dresser that I already wasn’t using.

What self-respecting man needs an entire chest of drawers to put his basics in?

“I hope you weren’t counting on having a lot of space to yourself,” I say from the doorway.

She glances over her shoulder and her mouth drops open. “Are you legitimately doing the book boyfriend door lean right now?”

“Am I doing what?” I ask.

“Right, you’re not on social media, are you?”

“I created an account a while back to give Cain some shit about his whole Shirtless Lumbersnack or whatever the fuck his handle is. But honestly, I lost interest.”

She opens her mouth, then closes it, frowns, then shakes her head. “Yeah, we’re going to have to circle back to that.” She shoves the drawer closed with a foot and then walks towards me.

“Tell me again what you think I’m doing here.” I tap the doorframe above my head.

“You mentioned you’re in a book club and pantaloons? Does your book club only read historical romances?”

“Technically we read whatever the ladies are reading.” I roll my eyes. “Fuck if I know. Landry started it when Brook joined the book club because she read a book, and it reminded her of him.” I shudder. “I skipped that one. In any case, the answer is, yes, the guys and I are all hooked on damn romance novels. But I guess I missed the lesson on book boyfriends.”

She raises her hands and puts them on my torso. “The way you’re standing right now, with your arms up like that and the leaning in you keep doing. That is the iconic doorframe book boyfriend lean. It’s super sexy.”

“You think I’m sexy?”

She rolls her eyes. “Don’t fish for compliments.”

I shove myself off the door and crowd into her, walking her backwards until the backs of her knees hit the bed.