Small Town Love

“Sir, I have that paperwork you wanted faxed over from legal.” Vince Griffin looked up from his mountain of paperwork and nodded at his faithful secretary. Patricia had been hired on when Vince had started his small company twelve years ago and she was one of the few employees who had remained with him through the rough times to see the company grow into the multi-million dollar success it was today.

Vince was proud of his development company. He had started it at the age of twenty using money he had saved all by himself and over the years he had never once gone to his rich family for financial help. He had built up and earned every single thing he saw around him. Though he never could have done any of that without Patricia.

“Thanks, just lay them on my desk.” he replied with a sigh as he leaned back in his chair. Patricia’s black heels clicked across the polished tiles and she tossed the manilla folder on top of the mountain of files already there to be looked over.

“You look like you could use a vacation.” she stated as she slid her pen behind her ear. Vince shook his head as she sat on the corner of his desk.

“I wouldn’t know what that is.”

“It’s this handy little thing where a person takes time away from work and simply relaxes. Drinks some drinks on a beach somewhere, gets laid, you know the important things in life.” Patricia replied with a smile and a shrug. Vince ran his hand through his thick black hair and shook his head.

“You are something else.” he stated and she smiled. His secretary was close to fifty years old. She had the face of a much younger woman thanks to the invention of botox and her brown hair showed no gray because she helped keep the salon in business. She was nearly six feet tall and her figure made Popeye’s love interest, Olive Oyl, look obese. She had professionally tanned skin, a flawless complexion, brown eyes, the kind of perfect smile only money can buy and she was the one and only person who always called him on his crap. He could never pull anything over on her.

“Vince, you are thirty-two years old and you have never once taken a vacation or partied or been a normal man! All you do is work, work, work. I know that you don’t like it when our personal lives come into a conversation but I simply think that’s because you don’t have one and you’re terribly jealous when you hear about my cougar escapades. Hell, you wouldn’t even take Amy from legal out on a date and I’ve never seen a woman work so hard to stuff her breasts into a push up bra just to get a man’s attention.” Patricia said matter of factly as she picked up his clear glass paperweight and rolled it between her hands.

“If you worked in any other office and spoke that way to your boss you’d be fired.” he informed her with a glare. “And Amy from legal is twenty years old.” Vince added dryly as he picked up a file and began to look through it.

“Last time I checked twenty was legal.” Patricia teased with a wink. Vince rolled his eyes.

“You need to be getting back to work.” he ordered. “I don’t pay you to sit around and criticize my life.” She smiled as she sat the paperweight back down on his desk.

“You would actually have to have a life in order for me to criticize it.” she reminded him and then she laughed at his scowl.

“Okay, okay, I’m leaving. Remember you have that meeting with Pascal at four.” Vince looked at the clock and saw it was already three.

“Thanks for the reminder.” he stated and Patricia waved her hand as she hopped from his desk and her heels clicked out of the room.

Vince sighed as he looked through the file in his hands. Though he’d been told he was good looking with his strong jaw, straight nose, firm lips, green eyes, thick black hair and the athletic build he’d managed to maintain since his days as a high school quarterback, he didn’t have the time nor the urge for dating. Truth be told he hadn’t had a serious girlfriend since high school and hadn’t been on a date in a good ten years. While most men were out sowing wild oats, Vince had been busy building a company and now that he was rich and successful he figured that’s all women would want from him and he had no interest in any woman like that. Work was what he had and this company was what he loved.

His phone rang and he picked it up.

“What is it, Patricia?” he asked.

“I’m sorry for interrupting your busy life but your mother is on the other line. Would you like me to patch her through?” she asked with a smile in her voice.

“No.” Vince stated and she laughed lightly.

“Okay then I’ll put her through.” Vince rolled his eyes and the next sound he heard was his mothers cultured, proper voice on the other end of the line. Apparently Beverly Griffin had picked up an English accent somewhere in her recent travels though he knew for a fact she’d been born and raised in Jersey. Which of course was something he’d been trained not to mention. God forbid her band of well bred, high class, socialite friends find out.

“Vincent, how nice to finally hear your voice, darling. It’s been ages.”

“You just called me yesterday, mother.” Vincent replied as he pinched his nose between his fingers in an attempt to end the throbbing that always seemed to come when he spoke to his mother.

“Yes I know and you rushed off the telephone claiming you had an important meeting.” Vince sighed as he opened his desk drawer and fished out the bottle of pain reliever he kept inside.

“I did have a meeting. And I have another one shortly.”

“Of course you do, anything to rush off the phone with your mother.”

“Was there a point behind this telephone call other than telling me all my shortcomings as a son?” he asked before popping the over the counter medicine into his mouth and taking a sip of bottled water.

“Yes actually there was.” Beverly replied with a sniff. “Your father and I wanted to invite you to come out to dinner with us this Friday evening at ‘Maruices’.”

“Mother, if this is another attempt to set me up with one of your high class friends I’m not interested.”

“Of course is isn’t! And what exactly is wrong with a high class woman?” she demanded.

“Not a thing and when I want to know the latest Paris fashions or the proper way to get a French manicure then I will ask one but I would really rather not have dinner with one and watch her nibble on a leaf of lettuce and giggle like an idiot.”

“Jessica is a top fashion model so of course she talked about Paris fashions and manicures! And Denise is a fitness guru to some of the top celebrities so she is constantly watching her figure. You could probably learn a thing or two about eating better and taking care of yourself from a woman like that.”

“I have to go, mother.” Vince stated, deciding he had heard enough. “What time is dinner?”

“Seven.”

“I’ll be there and if this is a matchmaking attempt then I will be forced to shove one of those fancy butter knives of Maurice’s through my ear in hopes of hitting my brain.”

“You’ll have to find a rather long knife, dear.”

“Bye, mother.” Vince put the phone back on its base with a click and rubbed his tired face with his hands. His mother had been getting desperate with her match making attempts lately. She kept going on about how she wanted to be a grandmother. Vince had no interest in marriage and children. His business came first and he wouldn’t be an absentee father and husband so unless he met a woman who worked a miracle and made him want to put her first then he wasn’t going to be getting married anytime soon. Beverly Griffin should have had more than one child if she wanted grandchildren.

Vince shook his head and went back to his files. He became lost in the papers he was reading and signing and didn’t realize how much time was passing until Patricia poked her head into his office.

“Sir, your meeting is going to be starting in ten minutes whether you are there or not, though I daresay it will be more productive if you are part of it.” she stated with a smile. Vince grumbled under his breath and jumped to his feet. He smoothed out his suit jacket, made sure his tie was straight and then headed for the door. Patricia handed him the file he would need and straightened his tie because apparently he was inept.

“Go get ’em tiger.” she said with a wink and Vince grinned as he strode away.

888

“How’d it go?” Patricia asked with twirl of her pen as Vince walked past her desk an hour later.

“Apparently I have the opportunity to buy a boat load of land down in south eastern Kentucky.” Vince replied as he walked into his office. He heard Patricia’s high heels following behind him on the tile.

“My United States geography is a bit rusty but isn’t that in the Appalachian mountains?” she asked as she curled her nose.

“Yes it is.” Vince replied as he flopped down in his chair. “But the land shows promise. Pascal did a little research himself and I’m going to do more but it appears that there are a lot of landmarks, parks and natural beauty in that place.”

“I can see those gears turning in your head.” Patricia said with a smile and Vince nodded.

“Hotels, condos, honeymoon retreats… the possibilities are endless. I’m gonna do some more research online and then next week I’ll send someone down there to take a look at the actual land and the properties that are behind at the bank… We might be able to buy up the whole town from the way Pascal talks.”

“You could go yourself. Take that vacation we’ve been talking about. I hear those mountain women really know how to treat a man.” Vince rolled his eyes.

“Go on home for the night, Patricia. I’ll see you first thing in the morning.”

“Alright then. Goodnight, boss.” Patricia replied and then she left his office, closing the door behind her.

Vince opened up his laptop and typed Grant County Kentucky into the search engine. As he looked at the pictures of the mountain covered land, waterfalls, rock cliff lookouts and hidden mountain lakes he found himself growing excited. He could make his mark with this land. No more buying the land and reselling it for him. He could buy this land and fix it up himself.

This could be an incredible upscale vacation spot. Hiking, fishing, hunting, camping or simply sightseeing. He could build fancy hotels, rustic looking yet modern cabins….. He hadn’t been lying when he’d said the possibilities were endless. Vince Griffin would become a name known in every business circle.

And from the way Pascal had spoken, the people here were poor and barely scraping by. They would probably be grateful for the money he would be more than happy to pay for their land.

Things were looking good for Vince and his little company. Now he just had to worry about surviving dinner with his mother, father and whatever leggy blond he was sure would be there in all of her barely dressed glory.

Chapter Two

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Grace groaned and threw her hand out, fumbling around in the dark for the off button on her alarm clock. It took several long blaringly loud seconds for her to find said button and once silence and peace had been restored to her tiny bedroom she flopped onto her back and covered her face with her arm.

Five in the morning came way too early, especially when you had been up until two with a grandmother who seemed convinced her husband, who had worked nightshift in the coal mines and had been dead for fifteen long years, was going to be coming home in the night. Ester Collins was a eighty-three year old woman and her dementia was steadily getting worse.

Some days she was fine and she was the grandma that Grace could always remember her being and then some days she seemed lost in the past or she would suddenly be a small child again and get herself into trouble. Grace had been told by more than one person that she needed to put her grandmother into a nursing home but the thought of doing that always brought tears to her eyes.

Her grandmother had raised her from the age of five when her mother had changed her mind about parenthood one day and taken off. Ester had been mother and grandmother to Grace. She had taught her how to ride a bike, how to bake cookies and how to knit (though Grace was pretty well hopeless at the latter). Ester had helped her through her heartbreaks as a child and had always been there with a warm smile and a kind word when Grace had needed it. And now that her grandmother needed her, Grace was going to be there.

Grace blew out a long breath and forced herself to rise from the bed. She ran her hand through her unruly auburn hair and shuffled across the worn carpet of her bedroom and out onto the cool hardwood of the hallway. She didn’t turn any lights on for fear of disturbing her sleeping grandmother and daughter as she made her way to the kitchen and clicked on the coffee pot she had prepared the night before.

As the scent of her brewing caffeine boost filled the air, Grace went back to her room and turned on the morning news while she took her morning run on her treadmill. Then she showered, dressed in her jeans and t-shirt and had her first sips of coffee warming her blood by six.

She walked down the hall to her daughters room and knocked gently on the door before stepping inside. She stared down at her peaceful sleeping angel and thanked God yet again for her. She smoothed her blond hair from her brow and kissed her slumbering head.

“Mama?” Cadence whispered groggily and Grace smiled.

“It’s time to wake up, baby girl. We have to get you ready for school.”

“But I’m still sleepy.” Cadence mumbled as she rolled away and buried her nine year old face in the pillow. Grace laughed lightly and climbed into the bed, kissing her daughters hair and wrapping her arm tight around her.

“That’s because somebody stayed up late watching that princess movie on TV. I told you that you would be tired in the morning and you said you wouldn’t be.” Cadence turned her head and smiled brightly, though her eyes still weren’t open more than a crack.

“I’m not sleepy.” Grace laughed and tickled her ribs causing her to squeal and squirm in an attempt to get away from her.

“Well come on then, gremlin, we have to get you ready for school.”

“Mommy, can I have moo moo milk with my breakfast?” Cadence asked as Grace helped her from the bed.

“Of course you can.” Grace took Cadence to the bathroom and helped her shower and dry her hair. While most nine year olds could do these things themselves, Cadence was different. She had been born with what the doctors called mild mental retardation. Grace hated those words and instead simply chose to say her daughter was special. At the age of nine, Cadence had the mental capabilities of a five or six year old. The doctors were hopeful that she would improve with time, perhaps even get to a sixth grade level but Grace wasn’t too concerned about that.

Cadence was her miracle. Grace had only been nineteen when her daughter had been born and when Cadence was only three months old Grace’s boyfriend, Tyler, had decided he didn’t want to be a father and he had walked away without a single backward glance. Grace had not seen nor heard from him since. Of course she knew where he was since it was impossible to completely vanish in a place as small as south eastern Kentucky but she hadn’t attempted to contact him even once and he hadn’t attempted to contact her or his daughter either.

Grace had also refused to ask the man for a dime. Call it foolish pride but as far as she was concerned Tyler Hoffman’s money wasn’t good enough for her daughter. So Grace worked two jobs to support both her daughter and her grandmother. While Ester’s social security check helped a little it was barely enough to cover all of Ester’s doctor bills and medications.

Grace never complained though. She was just thankful to still have her grandmother and even more grateful to have her beautiful daughter.

While Cadence ate her pancakes and drank her chocolate milk, Grace went and got her grandmother up and out of the bed.

“I’m a grown woman, Grace, stop treating me like a child.” Ester scolded as she shuffled in her pink robe and slippers to the kitchen. Grace smiled, today was obviously one of her grandmother’s good days and she could leave her without worrying too much.

After ensuring that her grandmother had taken her medicine, and setting her up in the living room with her television, remote control, coffee and crossword puzzle, Grace and Cadence left the house. Grace made sure that Cadence got to her classroom safely and then headed into town. She parked her car in the city parking and walked down main street toward ‘The Grease Rag’ garage which was where she worked Monday through Friday.

She donned her blue jumpsuit, pulled her hair up in a scrunchy and after waving at her boss through his office window she got to work.

888

Grace left work at three and headed back to her car. She was starving after having worked through lunch to get an extra thirty minutes of pay. She was covered in grease and sweat, late august in the mountains was just plain hot. She hurried to the school, avoiding contact with anyone else along the way. She loved her small town community but around here there was no such thing as a short conversation and she didn’t have time for the long winded talk with anyone and that’s the only kind folks around here wanted to have.

They didn’t seem to understand that Grace had no time to stop. She had never had that kind of luxury… At least not since Cadence had been born. Grace drove to the school and picked up her daughter, swung by the store to pick up the things for dinner and to make cookies for the bake sale that was apparently happening at Cadence’s school tomorrow and then she drove them home with Cadence singing the newest song her music teacher was teaching to her the entire way.

Grace used her key to let herself in and then her jaw dropped as her purse and grocery bags clattered to the floor and Cadence went running into the kitchen laughing.

Grace looked around at the ropes strung throughout the room and the soaking wet shirts, pants, socks and underwear hanging from them and dripping on the cream colored linoleum tiles.

“Grandma!” she called out as she wove her way through the maze of dripping shirts and socks.

“I’m in here, dear.” her grandmother replied from the bathroom. Grace made her way into the bathroom to find her grandmother with the tub full of soapy water, washing clothes on the old washboard that Grace had had hanging in the laundry room.

“Grandma, what are you doing?” Grace whispered with a mixture of shock and horror as she thought of the mess she was going to have to clean up.

“I’m washing laundry of course.” Ester replied as she moved a strand of white hair from her face with the back of her age spotted hand.

“I can see that.” Grace admitted. “Why aren’t you using the washing machine?”

“Because it’s broke.” Ester said angrily. “I couldn’t get that damn contraption to work at all. Or that damn drier. Fire hazard is all that thing is.” Grace sighed and while she was exhausted and knew it would take her a good hour to clean this mess and the mess in the kitchen just so she could cook dinner, she couldn’t help but laugh.

She’d been told before that her sense of humor was a defense mechanism that she had developed to help her deal with the stress in her life and she figured that was probably right.

“Grandma, they’re not broken. You have to pull that knob out, remember? Did you pull the knob out?” Ester tried to push herself to her feet and Grace reached out and held onto her arm, pulling her up.

“Pull the knob out? What kind of idiot decided that would be a good idea?” she demanded angrily. Grace knew her temper was born of embarrassment and she reached in the cupboard and pulled out a towel.

“Dry yourself off, grandma.” she said handing the towel to the older woman. She grabbed an empty basket off the back of the toilet and went to the kitchen. She couldn’t help but laugh as she watched Cadence running back and forth through the wet clothes, laughing happily with every breath as she became soaking wet.

“You wanna help mommy get all these clothes in the basket so I can cook dinner?” Grace asked and Cadence nodded. It took them nearly an hour to get all the clothes from the kitchen and bathroom into the laundry room and get the floors dried. Grace sent Cadence to her room to put on some dry clothes as she went about cooking chicken tacos for dinner.

After dinner, Grace practiced numbers and spelling with Cadence for another hour before getting her in her pajamas and tucking her into bed with a story and a kiss.

Once that was done Grace helped her grandmother into her nightdress and into the bed. She made sure her grandmother’s remotes and water glass were all close enough she could reach them and then she kissed the old woman’s wrinkled cheek, smoothed her white hair and walked from the room.

She didn’t dare sit down on the tempting looking couch, knowing that if she did she would collapse there and never get up again until morning. Instead she went about baking the cookies for Cadence’s bake sale before washing the dishes from dinner and cleaning the kitchen. Then it was time to tidy up the living room and get a load of her grandmother’s freshly washed clothes into the dryer.

Finally she made her way to the bathroom. She laughed lightly when she realized she still had grease smudges on her face and in her hair. She turned on the hot water in the shower and slipped out of her clothes. As she stepped beneath the pounding water she felt every tired muscle in her body relax and she nearly melted into a puddle beneath the hot stream.

She finished her shower, put on her flannel pants and oversized t-shirt and checked on her sleeping grandmother and daughter before going to her own bed. This had simply been another day in her life and a fairly easy day at that. With both her grandmothers and her daughters illnesses you never knew how a day would go. It was nearly midnight when she was finally able to slide beneath her covers and she was fast asleep before her head had even hit her pillow.

Chapter Three

Vince sighed as he paid his cab driver and climbed from the car. He smoothed his black suit pants on his lean legs and tugged at the jacket of his tux. He hated getting this dressed up just to go sit in a stuffy restaurant with portions that always left him starving and had him going through the local drive thru before he finally made it home.

He was also ten minutes late which meant his father would give him a scolding about how important punctuality was. He shook his head at his own uneasiness. He was a thirty-two year old, independent man who had built his own company from the ground up, but eating dinner with his parents still made him a nervous wreck. It made him feel like he was sixteen again and going for his first job interview at his father’s law firm because, according to his father, even the bosses son couldn’t have a guaranteed position.

He made his way into the five star Italian restaurant and was recognized instantly by the man at the door.

“Hello, Mr. Griffin, your parents are waiting for you. Shall I escort you to their table?” Vince shook his head.

“That won’t be necessary, Theodore, I believe I can find them.” he replied. He made his way into the dining room and looked around at the tables of fancily dressed diners. This was all so dull and routine to Vince, that his response to the happy smiles and waves of those he recognized was robotic. The automatic smile of a well trained man with good blood lines.

He scanned the dining room and his eyes fell on his mother and father. They were impossible to miss even among all these bodies. Vincent Howell Griffin the third, was a noticeable figure in any crowd. He was six and a half feet, just like his only son, and still had the broad shoulders and flat stomach at sixty that he had had as a much younger man. His thick black hair was highlighted with silver. He had icy blue eyes that few people could look into for very long. Vincent was a very successful lawyer and it was those blue eyes, that stare that seemed to be looking into your soul, that had helped further his success. Few jurors could deny him what he wanted and few could take the witness stand without falling apart beneath his questioning.

And of course there was his mother. Beverly Griffin was the picture of a successful man’s wife. She was tall, slender, perfectly manicured and tanned with a flashing smile and the elegant grace of royalty. Her blond hair was perfectly styled in a fancy coif on the back of her head and her green eyes (completely unlined thanks to botox and face lifts) were the complete opposite of her husbands and full of good humor. She was wearing a perfectly tailored red skirt suit and had fat white pearls around her neck.

Vince was nearly to the table before the waiter that was speaking to his father moved and he caught sight of the blond that was also sitting at their table. She was clearly tall and slender with store bought breasts on display in her tight black dress. Her tanned skin was glowing in the low light and her light blond hair was hanging in ringlet curls down her back. She was beautiful but she was fake and just like all the others his mother had picked for him. She would make the perfect trophy wife since no doubt she had been raised to be one, but Vince wasn’t interested in any wife, especially one that would look good on his arm and have nothing else to offer.

He groaned and thought about turning around and hightailing it out of the restaurant but just as he was readying his leg to turn his mothers false accent was pulling him toward the table.

“Vince, darling, there you are! We were starting to think you got lost.” Beverly exclaimed. Vince plastered that fake smile to his face and walked to the table. Beverly stood and hugged her son and he kissed her cheek before pulling out her chair and allowing her to sit back down. He scooted her chair back to the table and then he took the only remaining seat right next to the blond who was currently smiling at him and looking very much like a parrot, preening and showing off it’s rather impressive plumage. His mother had certainly found a good looking one this time.

“Son, I would think that as the owner of such a successful company you would be able to arrive at dinner on time. I sure hope you run you’re company with more punctuality or else it will be short lived.” his father stated sternly.

“Yes, sir.” Vince replied tightly. Beverly quickly intervened before her husband could say anything else.

“Vince, this is Penny. She and I met while working on a fundraiser together. Penny, this is my son Vince.”

“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” Vince said with a polite tip of his head and Penny giggled. Vince winced, he hated giggling. He always had. Either laugh or don’t laugh but that half laugh, high pitched giggling gave him a near instant headache.

“Nice to meet you too, Vince.” she replied as she batted her abnormally long lashes. Vince nodded and then took a long drink of his water. He was grateful when his mother, always the perfect hostess, took lead in the conversation. Soon Beverly and Penny were lost in their own conversation and Vince found himself being stared at by his father.

“Is there something on your mind?” Vince asked him and Vincent nodded. He leaned toward Vince and they turned so that their backs were to the chattering ladies.

“Your mother really likes this one and she would make a fine wife for you. She comes from a prominent family with good blood lines….”

“You make her sound like a racehorse.” Vince interrupted and Vincent nodded.

“A thoroughbred.” he stated and Vince’s head began aching a little more. “You haven’t spoken two words to the woman all night and you need to. You are getting older and it is time you settled down and produced an heir to carry on the family name.” Before Vince could say anything the band began playing their first song of the night and he felt someone tap him on the shoulder.

He turned to see Penny smiling at him. He had to admit she had pretty brown eyes, they were doe like and sparkling.

“I love this song.” she stated and Vince suspected she was lying because it was classical music and she looked more like a stripper than a scholar. She simply wanted him to ask her to dance. He looked over at his mother’s hopeful face and his fathers stern one and sighed. It wouldn’t hurt to humor them for the night and besides, Patricia was always telling him he needed to get out more and enjoy female company.

“By all means then, let’s dance.” he replied as he stood up and helped her from her chair. He could practically hear his mothers cheeks cracking as she smiled broadly. Vince led Penny to the dance floor and as any well bred gentleman would he began to twirl her around with style, putting those dance lessons his mother had insisted he take as a child to good use.

Vince wondered what was wrong with him as he twirled robotically around the floor. Here he was thirty-two years old, fairly good looking, rich and successful. His biggest dream he’d ever had had come true with his company. He was in one of the fanciest restaurants in the whole of New York and had a woman in his arms that most men could only dream of dancing with and yet he felt dead. He wasn’t happy, he wasn’t sad, he was simply numb.

“…..And that’s when I realized that blue really was not my color, instead I look good in yellows and…Are you paying attention to me?” Vince realized that Penny had been talking and looked down at her annoyed face. She really was beautiful. She had the body of a Victoria Secret model and the face of a Barbie doll and still Vince felt nothing.

It was as if his body was just a shell and the only time he felt anything at all was when he was working and saw a good deal come across his desk. What was wrong with him? Was he broken or something? The only thing he felt right now was the pounding in his temples and the urge to get the hell out of here.

“I’m afraid I have to go, Penny, you have yourself a nice life.” he stated as he pulled away. Penny huffed and clenched her fists at her sides while she stared at him as if he was crazy.

“Are you kidding me right now?” she demanded.

“No, ma’am.” Vince replied politely. He pressed his fingers to his temples and quickly walked away.

“Where is he going?” he heard his mother whisper and he heard his father’s deep voice reply though he couldn’t make out what he said. Vince didn’t care either. He just wanted to leave. He walked out of the restaurant and quickly hailed a cab. As he pulled away he saw his mother out on the sidewalk and on cue his cell phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket, took one look at ‘mother’ across the screen and turned it off.

He reached in his other pocket and pulled out the bottle of over the counter pain reliever he always kept inside. He swallowed four of them dry and leaned back against the seat, praying his head would ease off soon. These headaches were only getting worse.

He went home to his empty penthouse suite and locked the door behind him. His answering machine was blinking but since he knew they were probably all from his mother, he didn’t waste any time listening to the messages.

He slid off his tux jacket and tossed it to the floor as he made his way toward the bedroom. He removed the rest of his clothes in a rush, rolling them into a ball and tossing them in the corner. He went into the bathroom and turned on the hot water in the shower.

He let the hot water beat away some of the tension in his body and then he dressed and made his way to the empty king sized bed. He watched a few minutes of the news but even those horrible stories that should have cut him in two didn’t make him feel a thing. He took out a deck of cards and played a few hands of solitaire though he quit after losing several hands in a row. The silence in his apartment was deafening so he turned on the floor fan to drown it out. He curled up in his huge bed and wondered with curiosity what that gnawing ache in his gut was.

888

Vince managed to avoid his mothers phone calls all weekend but Monday morning as he was going over some paperwork his office phone rang.

“Hello?” he asked.

“It’s your mother, sir, she wants to speak with you and she sounds pretty insistent.” Patricia said matter of factly.

“No.” Vince replied sternly as he felt that throbbing tempo picking back up in his head.

“Fine, but she said if you won’t talk to her over the phone then she’ll just come down and see you in person. Honestly I think you need to just man up, grow a set of balls and speak to your mother….”

“I didn’t ask for your opinion, Patricia.” he snapped. “Put her through.” Vince pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers before his mothers angry voice came over the line.

“What in the world got into you?! Your father and I raised you better than to just walk away from a meal that way!”

“I apologize for any embarrassment I caused you but I warned you that if you tried to use dinner as a matchmaking attempt I wouldn’t be there.” Vince replied simply.

“It wasn’t matchmaking! Penny is my friend and she was there to eat dinner with me.” Beverly blustered and Vince shook his head.

“Whatever you say.” he replied with a sigh, knowing that arguing with Beverly Griffin was much like bashing your head against a brick wall. It didn’t solve a thing and simply guaranteed you a very bad headache. “Is there any other reason that you called today, I’m rather busy.”

“Of course you are. You are always too busy for your mother.” Beverly pouted.

“I’m not too busy for you, mother, I’m too busy for a wife and that seems to be all you want for me.”

“Vince, your father and I worry about you being all alone. You need to settle down with a wife that can take care of you and provide you with children to carry on the Griffin name.”

“That last part was father talking.” Vince stated.

“Not entirely. I wouldn’t mind having some grandchildren!”

“Mother, I have no urge for a wife or children. Perhaps you should get a dog. I hear a lot of people use them to combat loneliness.” Beverly grumbled and Vince heard a laugh from his office door. He looked up to see Patricia leaning against the door jamb and covering her mouth with her hand.

“This Friday is your fathers birthday and we are throwing him a party at the house. Of course we will expect you to be there.” Beverly stated in a very no nonsense way.

“I really don’t…” Vince started but Beverly interrupted him.

“See you Friday.” There was a click and the line went dead. Vince sighed as he set the phone on the receiver, closed his eyes, leaned back in his chair and rubbed at his temples.

“Shall I make a phone call to the local pet shop and see about your fathers gift for this Friday?” Patricia asked and Vince could hear the smile in her voice. “I think a cute little Pomeranian… Or perhaps a Shih Tzu.” Vince shook his head and looked over at her.

“I need you to get me directions and rent me a car.” he stated.

“Directions to where?” Patricia asked with curiosity.

“Grant County, Kentucky. I think I’m going to listen to your advice and take that vacation.”

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

A little after noon on Thursday, Grace stepped into Meg's Diner. In all honesty she should have worked through her lunch break since she'd have to leave early tomorrow for a meeting with Cadence's teacher but her growling stomach had refused to be ignored.  

Grace hadn't even bothered to wash the grease from her face or take off her jumpsuit before coming to lunch and she could feel all eyes on her as she stepped into the restaurant and took a seat in her favorite booth beside the big window.  

"Grace! It's nice to see you in here for lunch. I haven't seen you all week!" the diner's namesake exclaimed as she bounced over to the table. Meg was a short, chubby, bubbly blond. She was always smiling and happy and full of energy. She and Grace had graduated high school together. Grace had been a 4.0 student focused on her studies while Meg had scraped by with C's but had been loved by all, even teachers, because of her exuberant personality.  

Grace had been voted most likely to succeed and Meg had been voted most scatterbrained. Grace found those titles to be a bit ironic now, seeing as how Grace had gotten pregnant just after graduation and hadn't accomplished or succeeded at anything since high school and Meg had opened this diner six years ago and kept it going strong ever since. Which was no small feet in a small town like Clifton located directly in the middle of White County, Kentucky.  

Most folks from Clifton had long since moved away now that all the coal mines were shutting down. There were bigger towns with more opportunities a couple of hours in every direction that drew most away, however those that remained in Clifton were fiercely loyal to their hometown.  

Clifton had been around since long before the civil war and battles had been fought right on the very ground where some buildings now stood. When the coal mines had been booming, the town had been prosperous and humming with life.  

Now there was only one active mine remaining in the area. There was also a sawmill, a clinic, the garage, diner, a steakhouse, Pete's grocery, Mavis's pharmacy, a community center, two churches, the grade school, high school,  a library, an inn and a bank. Hallie Hawkins ran a dry cleaning and tailor shop and her son had opened up a laundry mat right next door. There was a brand new video game store where the veterinary clinic had once been and a secondhand clothing store where the furniture store had once sat.  

Clifton was a beautiful town with brick buildings, neon signs and storefronts with wide windows. It was in desperate need of a facelift but the residents here loved their tiny town just the same.  

"I'm sorry I haven't been in lately, Meg," Grace admitted. "I've been trying to put in extra time at the garage."

Meg frowned as she put her hand on her waist and cocked her hip to the side. "You can't be skipping meals! That's not good for you at all, especially as hard as you work."  

"I know," Grace muttered, studying her dirty fingernails. Back in high school, she'd been obsessed with keeping her nails groomed, long and painted. Nowadays she was lucky if she got time to run a comb through her hair and brush her teeth.  

"Grace, don't get offended, but if you need some extra money I can give you a raise on what you make here on the weekends," Meg offered gently as she sat down across from Grace.  

Grace looked over at her best friend and felt tears fill her eyes. She quickly blinked them away and covered Meg's hands with her own on the tabletop. "I'm fine, Meg. I promise." She saw the doubt on her friends face and sighed. "I'm just thankful that you let me bring Cadence and grandma with me when I'm working. That alone takes a big load off my shoulders."  

"No problem, Grace. I love having Cadence here and she loves helping me take orders. And the townsfolk enjoy seeing Ester out and about."  

"She loves seeing them too." Grace frowned. "When she remembers them that is."  

Meg managed a sad little smile. "Is she getting worse?"  

Grace rubbed her tired face with her hand and nodded. "She has her good days and her bad days." Grace laughed. "Earlier this week I came home to wet laundry strung from ropes all over my house because she'd forgotten how to use the washer and dryer."  

"That's our Ester!" Meg exclaimed with amusement and then her brown eyes become more serious. "I know you're against the idea of putting her in a home but maybe you could hire someone to come sit with her during the week when you're gone to work... just to be on the safe side."  

"I've actually been thinking of that," Grace admitted. "I might put an ad in the paper next week." Grace didn't add that the reason she hadn't already put an ad in the paper was because she had no idea how she'd pay someone to play nursemaid to her grandmother.  

"Well I'm sure you're hungry and have to be getting back to work so what'll you have?" Meg asked as she hopped back up out of the booth. "The usual?"  

"Always," Grace replied, forcing a smile.  

"Sure thing, sweetheart." Meg tossed her ponytail over her shoulder and bounced away.  

Grace sighed and leaned back in the booth. Every bit of Meg bounced and shone with energy and enthusiasm. When was the last time Grace had been that energetic and happy?  

Probably never.  

She laid her head back on the cushioned seat and watched people going up and down main street through the big window.  

---

Vince frowned as he slowly made his way down the main street of the only town in White Country. He had known this place wouldn't be a booming metropolis but it was even worse than he had first imagined. The sidewalks were cracked and crumbling. The buildings were old, dirty and near death from what he could tell. They were all made of brick though some were the original red and some had been painted over. The paint on those buildings was cracked and peeling.  

He doubted that any of the neon signs worked and all of the windows, while they were big and spacious, were dirty and dingy with age. Clifton had an almost Mayberry type feel and Vince kept waiting to see Andy Griffith walking down the road with either Barney or Opie at his side.   

Vince's stomach growled and he glanced at the clock on the dash. It was nearly twelve-thirty and as good a time as any for some lunch. He saw a placed called Mel's diner and decided that's where he'd eat--since it seemed to be the only restaurant on main street. Vince drove his rented car around to a lot labeled 'city parking'. He parked his car in the crowded space, grabbed his briefcase and stepped out into the bright August sun.  

 "Am I supposed to stop here?" he asked as he approached a small white building with a screened window.  

The young man inside appeared to be around nineteen or twenty and he chuckled when he heard Vince's voice. "You ain't from around here, are ya?"  

Vince shook his head. "No, I'm not. I'm on vacation and just wandering around, I guess you could say." Vince knew better than to tell the people of this town why he was here. There was a chance they could turn angry and run him off before he'd had a chance to fully examine the surrounding wilderness and real estate.  

"Man, you wandered a bit too far if you landed here," the boy warned. "There ain't nothing around here for miles."  

"That would depend on what you're looking for, wouldn't it?" Vince countered politely.  

The young man simply laughed again as he handed Vince a ticket stub with the time stamped on it. "Yeah I guess it does," he replied. "Just give this stub back to me when you come back to your car. Parking is twenty-five cents an hour so if you're gonna be in town any length of time, I'd suggest getting a room at the inn downtown and using their parking."  

Vince tipped his head. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."  

He headed down the crumbling sidewalk and tugged at his shirt collar. He'd opted out of wearing a tie since he hated them anyway and he'd skipped putting on his suit jacket since the air in the mountains was far too hot for that just now. He made his way down a small alley and stepped out onto main street. Judging by the amount of camouflage and denim he saw, he was very overdressed in his polished shoes, trousers and white button down.  

Vince had a lot of work to do but first he needed to fill his stomach and so he set off toward Meg's Diner to do just that.  

---

"What in the world do we have here?" Meg asked as she sat Grace's chicken salad down on the table.  

Grace had been dozing off but she jerked awake at the sound of Meg's voice and followed her gaze out the window to see a man walking down the sidewalk and coming toward the diner.  

It wasn't often that you saw anyone in Clifton dressed the way he was. Tailored pants, tailored shirts and shiny shoes weren't in the dress code. In Clifton even the judges and lawyers wore blue jeans. This man practically oozed money and probably had quite a bit of it judging by the monogrammed, leather briefcase he had in his hand.  

"Talk about a tall drink of water..." Meg gasped with a click of her tongue.  

Grace had to admit that he did cut a fine figure as he strode their way but fancy men just weren't her thing. Grace didn't have time to fantasize about men often but when she did, they were wearing t-shirts, jeans and worn out work boots. But this man was tall, well over six feet, his stomach was lean and his shoulders were broad. He had thick black hair, a strong jaw and firm set lips.. They were set so firm in fact that Grace wondered if he could smile. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglass that cost enough money to keep Cadence in new clothes for a year.  

"He's alright, I guess," Grace replied with a shrug before taking a bite of her lunch.  

"I wonder what he's doing in Clifton?" Meg mused. "He looks more suited for the big city."  

"Maybe he got lost," Grace offered. "Or he might be a lawyer or one of those officials that come in now and then to visit the sawmill."  

Meg nodded. "I heard the sawmill had a lawsuit coming their way from that man who got injured. I bet he's been at the courthouse dealing with that."  

Grace groaned. "The courthouse! That reminds me. My license goes dead today and I have to go have it redone. I'd forgotten all about it." She stood and tossed the money for her uneaten lunch on the table.  

"He's coming this way, Grace!" Meg giggled like a school girl and bounced up and down as if she'd never heard Grace speak.  

Grace shook her head. "He's probably hungry, that's why folks come to diners." Grace smiled. "You're a married woman, Meg, remember that."  

Meg snorted. "That doesn't mean I can't look."  

Grace's smile widened. "Or drool."  

Meg glared and swatted at her before grabbing her arm. "You should stay and meet him, Grace. Even if Grant catches you driving on a dead license, the man would never give you a ticket. He's been in love with you since third grade!" Meg insisted.  

Grace sighed. There were only four lawmen in this town. Two were over the hill officers who did little else other than sit around drinking coffee, one was Sheriff Short, a fifty-something year old man with salt and pepper hair and stern features. Grace was terrified of the man and had been since he had caught her and some friend mudding in Old Man Tippler's corn field and called her grandfather.  

And then there was Grant Caudill. He was the same age as Grace and had indeed been in love with her since third grade--the only problem was that he had always been too shy to say anything and Grace had never seen him as more than a friend. She had to admit though that it did come in handy to have an admirer on the force when you got caught speeding or your tags expired.  

Grace sighed. "No, I need to go get this taken care of because I won't have time again until Monday."  

"Fine, more tall, dark and handsome stranger for me," Meg teased and Grace stuck her tongue out at her best friend before heading for the door. The stranger happened to reach the door at the same time and he quickly opened it for her.  

"Thank you," Grace called as she slipped past him.  

"You're welcome," he replied with a definite accent.  

Grace's cheeks flamed red when she felt his eyes on her as she quickly walked down the street toward the courthouse. Apparently the mystery stranger had a thing for women in grease stained coveralls. Grace laughed and decided he'd probably been staring because he'd never seen a woman dressed like her where he'd come from.  

Grace entered the drivers license renewal room and quickly pulled her hair out of the bun she kept it in and ran her fingers through it. She sat down in the seat, looked at the dot on the camera and smiled.  

Any thoughts that the stranger had found her attractive were quickly extinguished when she had that still warm, freshly made license laid in her hand and saw the grease smudge across her cheek. Grace sighed as she put it in her wallet, dropped it down into her purse and shouldered her bag.  

"You really should clean yourself up now and then," Bernice, the old woman who took the pictures sniffed. "No man wants to date a woman with dirtier finger nails than him."  

 "I'll keep that in mind," Grace replied with a tight smile. She quickly left the room and sighed. "I'll keep it tucked right up there somewhere between my two jobs, my grandmothers doctor appointments and Cadences...

everything .“

Grace laughed without taking the time to realize she was only doing so to keep from crying.

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

Vince sat in his room at the inn that evening and looked over the mountains of paperwork around him. Of course the government buildings were out of his reach for now but if he bought up the business and residential properties, the government buildings would eventually shut down, go up for bid and be his for the taking as well.  

Vince had a list of homes behind in their property taxes and all it would take was a simple visit to the courthouse, a couple of checks and those properties would fall into his hands. Of course he would also give fair property value prices to the homeowners because while he was a good businessman, he wasn't an evil one.  

Because of hard times in the area lately, most of the businesses were behind on payments as well and Vince had a meeting with the bank on Monday to discuss taking over payments and ownerships.  

To Vince this was all business. He saw numbers, figures, bottom lines and profit margins. He was going to take a drive tomorrow to check out the surrounding land and wilderness.  Bad Hollow Falls, Black Bear Park, Cyprus Mountain hiking trails and Blue Fork lake which offered boating, swimming and fishing opportunities. Those were just a few of the natural beauties Vince planned on taking advantage of.  

The future of Clifton was already forming in his head. Once he owned the businesses he would bring in bigger stores, higher end boutiques and restaurants that wealthy vacationers would appreciate having access to. He would hire a crew to bulldoze and dynamite the surrounding areas so he could build five star resorts with pools and spas. Clifton would be unrecognizable. It currently wasn't the rich vacation spot that Vince envisioned but very soon it would be.  

Leaning back with a sigh, Vince realized he was happy he had chosen to come take care of this himself. He was more relaxed than he'd been in a long time and he supposed he should thank Patricia for urging him to take the trip. He had needed time away from the office, away from the city and away from his parents and their constant parade of marriageable women.  

Vince didn't understand their disapproving intolerance of his single life. Sure they wanted him to settle down and have heirs, (which made him sound as if he were some sort of eighteenth century prince), but at least he wasn't out screwing any woman who would spread her legs. As a matter of fact, Vince hadn't had sex in six years--or was it seven? He shrugged as he slipped his messy files back into his briefcase.  

It didn't matter to him how long it had been. Work had filled any voice that lack of women created and he never felt as if he were missing out. It wasn't as if the opportunity hadn't presented itself because women were 

always showing interest thanks to his money. Vince just hadn’t had any urge to seize any of those opportunities. Speaking of opportunities.. His mind drifted back to that auburn haired beauty he’d seen at the diner today.

Vince had never seen a female mechanic before and that blue jumpsuit had hugged her cute little ass perfectly as her ponytail had swung and shone in the sunshine. He wished he could have gotten a better look at her face but she had pushed past him and walked on as if barely noticing he was there at all.  

It was probably just as well. Vince could only imagine the response his mother and father would have to realize he was interested in poor southern mechanic. His mother's perfectly groomed head would probably explode.  

Vince picked up the remote and began flipping through television channels, searching for something to combat boredom. Clifton Kentucky was a town that closed down pretty early. By six o'clock all the businesses were closed and it was nine o'clock now so town was officially dead.  

Finally, Vince, settled on a show featuring two mechanic's fixing up a truck in a well-stocked garage. He chuckled when he realized his mind was fixated on mechanics. Though he could guarantee that his mystery woman would look better bent over the hood of that truck than those men did--possibly even without that blue jump suit on and nothing other than grease smudges on her pale skin....

Vince shook his head. It wasn't like him to have those kinds of thoughts!

His phone interrupted him before he could take those thoughts any further and he sighed as he checked the caller I.D. and answered. "Hello Patricia."  

"From that surly tone of yours, I'm guessing that you haven't gotten laid like I told you do," his secretary replied dryly.  

Vince rolled his eyes. "There are more important things in life," he stated. "I'll be emailing some pictures and documents in the morning and I'll expect you to get the documents to legal."  

"Yes sir," Patricia clipped sarcastically.  

"How are things at the office?" Vince asked, choosing to spare her the scolding for her tone.  

"Just fine. You truly aren't needed here to make things run smooth, you only think you are."  

"Good. Then why don't I just put you in charge and retire early?" Vince questioned with a sigh.  

"Works for me," she replied happily. "Can I have that big cushy office of yours?"  

"Knowing you, you are already sitting at my desk with your skirt hiked up and your high-heeled feet propped up on my files."  

"Ha! Shows what you know, sir. I'm actually wearing slacks today."

"You had better not mess up my filing system," Vince warned.  

Patricia laughed loudly. "You have no system. You are the most unorganized successful businessman I have ever met."  

"Get out of my office and leave my things alone," Vince grumbled.  

"Okay, okay. Don't get your panties in a twist, boss," Patricia agreed with amusement. "I wanted to let you know that I took care of your father's present for tomorrow."  

"What did you get him?" Vince asked with dread.  

"A very beautiful set of cuff links. They are wrapped up and will be delivered with a card sometime tomorrow afternoon."

"Thanks for the help, Patricia. I'm going to get some sleep now. I have a lot planned for tomorrow."  

"Sleep good, sir. Dream of big, country women."  

Vince groaned and hung up the phone. He'd dream of country women all right. Tiny little auburn haired women in greasy jumpsuits. Hell he didn't even know the woman's name nor had he gotten a good look at her face and yet he couldn't get her off his mind.  

He could always take his car to the garage in town for an oil change tomorrow...Vince Griffin had never been a man to chase after a woman but then again he'd never been the type of man to take a vacation either and he was doing that. He might as well do what he could to finally make Patricia proud of him and work on getting laid.  

Deciding that that's exactly what he would do, Vince clicked off the television and got into bed, knowing he'd be lucky to get any sleep at all.  

---

Vince walked into 'The Grease Rag' garage at ten o'clock the next morning. He had first made a trip to the second hand store in town to get himself some clothes that would help him to fit in a bit better. After all, he hated suits and loafers so why should he wear them on vacation? His mother would shit a brick if she saw him in jeans, boots and a t-shirt looking like a commoner and for some reason that made the immature child he hadn't known lived inside his mature thirty-two year old self, very happy.

Vince glanced around the three car garage. The light was dim and everything was clearly well used. This wasn't a spick and span and polished garage like those you saw on television. Country music was playing from a small stereo on a back shelf and a Chevrolet truck was against the far wall.  

 Vince didn't see anyone in the garage and he hoped the mystery woman didn't have today off. Vince had never been the type to fantasize over women but dreams of that woman had had him sweating all night. He had never been impulsive a single time in his entire life and he blamed this current mood he was in on Patricia's bad influence over the last twelve years. She had finally broken him.  

He knocked on the wall beside him and a muffled feminine voice came from beneath the Chevrolet truck. "I'll be right with you." Vince felt nerves jump in his stomach at the sound of her sweet, accented voice.  

With a whoosh of wheels on concrete, the mystery woman slid out from under the truck. She got to her feet and wiped her hands off on a red rag that she pulled from her pocket. She tossed a lock of auburn hair from her face as she turned around and her gaze fell upon him.  

Vince felt as if he'd been kicked in the chest and his heart skipped several long beats in his chest as he stared into her big gray eyes. She wasn't the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and yet something inside Vince felt as if it was being pulled toward her. Lust was a damn strong emotion apparently. He had never allowed himself to feel it much until now.  

He gazed at her face. Her skin was soft, smooth and natural. She was much more pale than women he was used to seeing, though there was a healthy glow to her cheeks. She had a tiny nose littered with freckles, heart shaped lips and her gray eyes were large and sparkling beneath her sprinkling of bangs. The jumpsuit she was wearing hid much of her figure but he could tell that she had a tiny chest, slim waist and curved hips.  

"Can I help you?" she asked as she slid the rag back into her pocket.  

"I'm Vince," he replied, feeling suddenly awkward. That awkwardness was a new feeling for him seeing as how he ran his own business and had been trained since birth to meet new people. However, he never had introduced himself to someone with the sole intent of having sex with them.  

"Grace," she replied as she raised her brow and held out her hand. Vince took her hand and felt something inside himself respond to the contact of her warm skin. "Sorry, I probably got you greasy," she apologized as she pulled her hand away quickly.  

Vince shrugged as he wiped his hand on his pants. "I'm not worried about that."  

Grace studied him carefully a moment before crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the truck behind her. "We met yesterday, didn't we? Well kind of.. You held the door open for me when I left the diner."  

"Yes that's right," Vince replied.  

"So what can I do for you?" Grace inquired.  

"I was hoping you could take a look at my car. Check the oil and things," Vince offered lamely and then he shook his head. "Actually that's not true."  

"It's not?" Grace questioned, the corners of her lips twitching.  

Vince took a deep breath, put on his big boy pants and stepped forward. He saw her stiffen, but her gray eyes didn't look frightened. Instead they looked very much aware as her pupils dilated and her nostrils flared.  

"I want to get to know you better," he admitted as he breathed in the scent of Gardenia's and grease clinging to her skin. She looked up at him from beneath her lashes and Vince felt his heart thundering against his ribs as his blood heated. Damn, but he had never had this kind of reaction toward any woman! It was all heat and lust and what he really wanted to do was push her up against the truck, pull down that jumpsuit and.....  

Vince shook his head to clear those thoughts. Maybe spending the last twelve years focusing on nothing but work had been a mistake--but it was one he planned on correcting.  

"Sir, I think..."

"Have dinner with me," Vince interrupted, moving close enough to her that he could see the flecks of blue in her gray eyes. The air seemed to spark and crackle between them.  

"Dinner?" she whispered breathlessly.  

"Yes. Dinner. Tonight at the diner."  

She turned away from him and Vince let his gaze wander to the curve of her ass. He wondered what she was thinking. He hoped he hadn't pushed her too far but at least he had asked her to dinner instead of simply asking her to his room at the inn.  

Finally she turned back around with determination in her gray eyes. "Why?"

"Why what?"  

"Why do you want to have dinner with me?"

"Should I be honest or romanticize things?" Vince inquired, deciding to treat this as he would any business deal since that is when he felt most comfortable.  

Her eyes narrowed a fraction of an inch and the ghost of a smile curved her lips. "I've always preferred honestly."  

"I'm on vacation from New York. It's my first vacation in over twelve years and I've been told I need to learn how to relax and have fun. I find you to be very attractive and I'd like to have a bit of fun together before I go home."

Grace moved closer to him. Her head barely reached the middle of his chest and she tilted it up so that her warm breath teased the sensitive skin of Vince's neck. He felt his pants get tighter as his body responded.  

"In that case, why don't you just come to my house tonight for dinner?" Grace purred.  

Vince	would have smiled if his lips remembered how. This had been easier than he'd thought it would be. He ignored that voice in the back of his head that told him this was wrong and was disappointed that Grace was the kind of woman who would agree to have 

fun with a complete stranger.

"How do I get there?" he asked, swallowing hard as his shirt seemed to tighten around his neck.  

"Follow the main road east out of town, turn down Green road and I'm the last house all the way at the end," she whispered. "Be there about six?"  

 "Yes, ma'am," Vince replied around his dry tongue and then just as quickly as Grace had moved toward him, she moved away and was back under the truck.  

Vince stood there in confusion for several long moments before walking out of the garage. That had been so easy and he was working hard to ignore the voice in his head that said it was too easy.  

---

"Did you just send him where I think you did?" LeRoy Jones, owner of 'The Grease Rag' asked with a chuckle as he stepped out of the office.  

"Yes, I did," Grace replied from beneath the truck.  

"Why would you do that to that poor man?"  

"Old Man Foster will show him what he gets for being such a cocky asshole," Grace snapped as she turned the socket, loosening the bolts on the oil pan.  

"Grace, maybe the man really is interested in getting to know you," LeRoy offered.  

"Yeah right!" Grace laughed. "And maybe Old Man Foster finally gave up drinking."  

LeRoy shook his head. "You may very well get that man shot."  

"Well that would serve him right for coming in here thinking he could just pick a woman and have a little fun. He obviously thinks that just because he's tall, dark and handsome, women will fall at his feet. He thinks he can come in here smelling like Stetson cologne in a good fitting pair of jeans and get what he wants. Well I have news for that city slicker bastard, things just don't work that way around here....." Grace stopped suddenly when she realized she'd been well into a rant.  

Why were her hands shaking so bad? And why was she suddenly so hot? Damn that man!

"You know it wouldn't hurt a thing for you to get yourself a man, Grace. A person needs a partner in life to help them out."  

"Not me, LeRoy. I'm plenty capable of handling things without the help of some man who would only end up changing his mind anyhow. Besides, I don't have time for a relationship. I have way too much on my plate already."  

Grace heard LeRoy sigh and go back into his office. Grace let her tools fall and took a deep breath beneath the truck.  

A man. A relationship. A partner. Someone to confide in and help her carry her load. Sure it sounded nice on paper but what kind of man would saddle himself down with a woman who had a sick grandmother that needed to be taken care of and a daughter who would need parental supervision all her life?  

The answer to that question was simple. There wasn't one.  

Grace smiled when she thought of what that poor city man would be walking into tonight and then her smile turned into a laugh. It really did serve him right.

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're saying," Grace stated that afternoon as she sat in the Principal's office of Cadence's school and crossed her legs.  

"It's not complicated, 

Miss Collins,“ Mr. Franks stated with disdain. He was an older man and a man who believed in the sanctity of marriage and therefore looked down on Grace for being an unwed mother. Grace could remind him that it was his nephew who had gotten her pregnant and then run for the hills but she didn’t think that would make things any better.

"I beg to differ, 

Mr. Franks,“ Grace countered sharply, causing Cadence’s teacher, Mrs. Avery, to push her glasses up on her nose. “Cadence has never been a behavior problem before so if she is becoming one now, then there has to be a reason for it.”

Mr. Franks shook his head. "We understand that Cadence has special needs but we simply cannot allow any student to hit other students or act out in class. It is your responsibility as her parent to find out what is causing this stress in her life and address it."

Grace stood and clenched her fists at her sides. "I do not need you to tell me what my responsibilities are, Mr. Franks. As a single mother I am very much aware of all my responsibilities!" she hissed angrily. "I have been her mother for nine years and so I am very much aware of my daughters emotions and moods. If there is something stressful in her life I can promise it is not happening at home which must mean it is happening at your school, which makes it your responsibility if I'm not mistaken!"  

"I promise that nothing is happening in my class to Cadence. I love that girl," Mrs. Avery promised quietly.  

Grace nodded at her. "I know you do, Mrs. Avery, and Cadence loves you as well. Perhaps something is happening in the hall or the cafeteria but I can assure you it's not happening at home. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to the pharmacy before school lets out."  

Without another word of goodbye, Grace stormed from the office and quickly left the school. She stood in the sunlight outside, taking several deep breaths and attempting to calm herself.  

Apparently Cadence had been hitting other students in class and throwing temper tantrums that even Mrs. Avery had been unable to calm. Grace was truly at a loss as to what was causing her daughter to misbehave at school and she hadn't had any problems out of Cadence at home.  

She decided that after she picked Cadence up from school this afternoon, she would take her out for ice cream and try to get her to tell her what was going on. It certainly wasn't easy to get a child with the mind of a five year old to open up to you, especially if they thought they were going to get in trouble.  

Grace made her way into Mavis' Pharmacy and up to the counter. "Well hello, Grace! How are you doing today?" Mavis asked brightly and Grace smiled at the short, heavyset lady.  

"I'm doing just fine, Mavis. How are you?"

Mavis reached under the counter and grabbed a white bag full of medicine for both Cadence and Ester. "I'm doing just fine myself," Mavis replied and then she leaned forward. "Have you seen that handsome new stranger in town?" she whispered.  

"I've seen the stranger in town but I'm not sure he's what I'd call handsome," Grace lied.  

"Sexy then? Is that what you young girls call good looking men these days?"  

Grace couldn't help but laugh. "I'm not exactly a young girl, Mavis, but I think the young girls are saying hot these days."

Mavis nodded and Grace could tell the woman was storing that knowledge away for another day. She prided herself on staying current with the young people in town. "Yes, well Martin is very curious as to why that stranger is suddenly in our town. He seems to think he comes from money and yet this stranger is claiming to be on vacation. How many people do you know who are fighting to come to Clifton on vacation?" Mavis demanded.  

"Sheriff Martin could just ask him what he's doing here," Grace replied, knowing that Mavis had a thing for the sheriff who was a few years younger than she was.  

"I'm sure he will," Mavis agreed. "Martin isn't the type to let grass grow beneath him."  

"And to answer your question, I don't know anyone who is wanting to come to Clifton for vacation but they should. We have a lot of beautiful things to offer," Grace added.  

"I agree. What we need is some money to spruce this town up."  

"I don't see us getting that anytime soon," Grace replied sadly. "Not with all the coal mines shutting down and the sawmill struggling. Pretty soon the whole town will disappear."  

The two women shared a moment of silence before Mavis spoke, "Well they won't run me off. There's been a good three generations of my family born and raised here before me and I won't leave."  

"I'd like to say I have the same sense of loyalty but I'd have to go where I could find a job," Grace admitted.  

Mavis smiled and patted her hand. "Let's not worry about those things until they happen," she said comfortingly. Grace nodded, handed Mavis the money for the medicine and bid her goodbye.  

---

"Mommy!" Cadence exclaimed as she ran from the school and threw her arms around Grace's waist. Grace buried her face in her blond hair and breathed in her scent. Nothing in the world felt any better than a hug from a child, especially a child so innocent and loving as Cadence.  

"How was your day, gremlin?" Grace asked as she pulled away and took Cadence's lunchbox in one hand and held Cadence's hand with the other.  

 "I don't want to talk about it," Cadence replied quickly. "Let's go," she added, glancing to the left. Grace followed her gaze and saw a group of boys, around eleven or twelve, snickering behind their hands as they walked past them.  

Grace felt anger fill her. Were these boys the reason that Cadence was suddenly acting out? Was someone teasing her little girl? While Grace knew that kids would be kids, it was still hard to take when someone said means things about Cadence because her daughter was unable to defend herself.  

Cadence lacked the intellectual ability to fight back with words and so she fought back by hitting, biting and throwing tantrums.

Grace was sure she knew what was happening to her daughter but she didn't say a word about it as she helped Cadence into the car. "Would you like to go to the diner and get some ice cream?" Grace asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.   

"But won't that ruin our supper?" Cadence asked, picking at a hole in her jeans. Grace made a mental note to plan a trip to Lexington to buy her daughter some new additions to her wardrobe. That was something that Grace hadn't done before school started because she hadn't had the money but judging by the threadbare quality of those jeans, it was going to have to be done anyhow.

"It'll be okay this one time," Grace replied with a wink. Cadence giggled as she turned up the radio. Her favorite song came on and Cadence filled the car with her singing until they reached the diner. Grace's heart grew lighter as she listened to her daughter being so carefree.  

Over vanilla cones with sprinkles, Grace was able to get Cadence to open up a little and she learned that there was indeed a group of boys teasing Cadence every day in the hallways, cafeteria and gym. Grace made another mental note, this one reminding her to call Mr. Franks on Monday and make sure he and Mrs. Avery were aware of the situation.  

"Can we take ice cream to grandma?" Cadence asked as they rose from their booth.  

"It would melt before we got home," Grace warned. "But I'll tell you what. When we get home we'll make some cookies for you and grandma to eat together."  

"Chocolate chip?!" Cadence exclaimed happily.  

"Chocolate chip sounds good to me," Grace agreed. She smiled with warmth and happiness as she watched Cadence bouncing happily toward the car.  

"Grace?" A voice called out from behind her.  

Grace groaned but plastered a friendly smile to her face as she turned to see Grant Caudill jogging up the sidewalk toward her in his black uniform. "Good afternoon, officer Caudill," Grace replied as she wiped the sweat from her brow with her shirt sleeve.  

Grant ran his hand through his thinning brown hair and his blue eyes were warm as he smiled at her. "Don't call me that," he snorted with a wave of his hand. "I'm always Grant to you unless the Sheriff is around. He's  a stickler for the rules."  

"And he doesn't like me," Grace added with a laugh as Cadence began to skip in circles around the adults.  

Grant winked. "Well you did cause quite a bit of trouble as a teenager."  

"As I recall, I had a lot of help," Grace reminded him as she thought back to all the times that she, Grant and their misfit group of friends had terrorized Old Man Tippler's fields.  

"Yes," Grant agreed. "But I was never caught."  

"Mama, can we go home now and make cookies?" Cadence asked as she tugged on Grace's hand.  

Grant turned his gaze to Cadence. "What kind of cookies?"  

Cadence moved behind Grace's legs as if to hide. For reasons that Grace had never understood, Cadence had never liked Grant. "Chocolate chip," Grace filled Grant in when it became clear Cadence wasn't going to speak to him.  

"I make a pretty good chocolate chip cookie," Grant informed them. "Can I join you? Maybe show you how it's done?"  

"Mommy doesn't need your help," Cadence stated firmly.  

Grace crouched down and pulled her daughter around her so she could look in her eyes. "Cadence, you don't speak to grown ups that way," she scolded. "You need to apologize to Officer Caudill right now."  

"Sowwy," Cadence whispered, her eyes locked on the sideway.  

"That's okay." Grant shifted his feet and rubbed his neck. "I'll help you out some other time."  

Grace stood and offered him an apologetic smile. "She's been having some trouble with bullies at school," Grace admitted. "It's causing her to act out some."

"I'm at the school a couple days a week just to keep an eye on things. If you want, I can keep a special eye on her while I'm there," Grant offered.  

Grace smiled with relief. "Would you do that?"  

Grant nodded before reaching out and smoothing a strand of hair from her face. "Of course I would," he replied.  She saw him searching her eyes for something that Grace knew he wouldn't find there. She didn't have the time nor the energy to waste on the opposite sex and especially not on a man like Grant who she considered to be a friend.  

"Thank you." Grace pulled away from him. "We really do have to be going. I'll see you around, Grant." Grace turned quickly so she wouldn't have to see his disappointment as she loaded Cadence into the car.  

---

Vince was searching the supermarkets very limited selection of wine for the bottle he'd take to dinner at Grace's when his cell phone rang. 	He pulled the phone from his pocket and sighed when he saw 

mother on the screen.

"Hello mother," he said with a sigh and then his head instantly began to pound when Beverly Griffin's shrill angry voice came over the other end of the line.  

"Please ease my temper  and tell me that this horrid, ridiculous gift that we received for your father with your name attached to it, is nothing but some wretched mistake!"  

Vince pinched the bridge of his nose. What could possibly be wrong with a pair of cufflinks? Unless....

"Father doesn't like his gift?" Vince asked cautiously.  

Beverly snorted. "The horrible wretched thing has already urinated twice on my Persian rug and put gnaw marks all over your fathers best pair of loafers!"

Vince made a mental note to strangle Patricia as he picked a bottle of wine and headed for the checkout. "What exactly did I get for father?" he inquired, grabbing a bouquet of white and yellow daisies and tossing them on the belt as well.  

"How typical of you, Vince! You don't even know, do you? You probably asked that horrid secretary of yours to pick your father's birthday gift for you because you couldn't be bothered! I'll have you know that we raised you better than that and she got him a dog! A dog! A teacup Chihuahua is what the note says. The horrid, ugly thing is so tiny it fits in the palm of his hand!"  

Vince paid for his purchases, giving a forced smile to the cashier who was staring at his phone with wide eyes as she heard every word his mother screamed. Hell as loud as Beverly was yelling, Vince was certain that all of Clifton could probably hear her.  

With a pounding head, Vince walked out into the heat of the evening and slid his sunglasses off his head and over his eyes. "Just think of it as a surrogate grandchild," Vince offered before pulling the phone away from his ear as his mother began bellowing a ran that Vince was certain he'd be able to hear even without the phone.  

 "I have to go, mother," he stated when she paused to take a breath.  

"Where are you? Are you in the office? If you are then you need to get over here and see your father. It's his birthday."  

"Give him my well wishes," Vince offered. "I'm out of town on business and won't be able to make it."  

"Where are you?" Beverly demanded yet again.  

Vince glanced up and down the quiet street. He saw several children playing and an old man was sitting outside the courthouse wearing overalls and playing the banjo. "It's either Mayberry or Deliverance. I'm not real sure yet."  

"Well you should be here with your father," Beverly sniffed. "He may not have many birthdays left."  

Vince chuckled. "The man is in better shape than I am and will outlive us all. I'll call and check in in a day or two, mother. Goodbye." Vince hung up the phone before she could say another word and he pinched his nose again to combat the pain in his head.  

He had been told by several doctors that it was stress that caused his headaches and he needed to learn to relax but how was he supposed to do that when had a mother like Beverly Griffin?

By having a night with Grace, that's how. Vince was actually quite nervous. He had never had much confidence with women and didn't have much experience with them either. He couldn't believe he'd gone into the garage and said what he'd said. Hell, he'd deserved to be smacked and instead she had accepted his offer.  

Something inside of him still didn't feel right about her quick acceptance. She had seemed to pure, so real, so natural and good that to realize she was just like all the other women he'd had shoved at him just didn't' sit right. But Vince was determined to do as Patricia had told him and just enjoy himself. Hell, maybe it would help with the headaches.  

As Vince walked back to the inn he dialed the office. "Griffin Real Estate, how may I help you?"  

"A teacup Chihuahua? Really?" he demanded with exasperation.  

"It's really quite cute, sir," Patricia replied behind a stifled laugh.  

"Just so you know I have a headache now after a rather loud phone call from my irate mother. I think you should call and apologize to them. Get someone to go pick that dog back up and have my father sent the cufflinks that you told me you got for him."  

"The dog was a pound rescue so I can't simply return him," Patricia replied stubbornly. "And your father has a million cufflinks, what on earth would he do with another pair? Just look on the bright side, maybe your mother will fall in love with the dog and begin setting him up on dates with marriageable women, forgetting all about her only son."  

"Wouldn't that be nice?" Vince sighed wistfully.  

"Have you gotten laid yet, sir?"  

"No and you shouldn't be talking that way in the office," Vince scolded.  

"When the boss is away we are much more relaxed around here."  

"Don't tell the boss that," Vince grumbled, jabbing his finger into his throbbing temple. "I do have a date tonight so that should make you happy."  

A loud bang sounded on the other end before Patricia spoke. "Sorry sir, I think I lost consciousness for a moment. Did you say a date? With who?"  

"A mechanic."  

"Are you gay, sir?" Patricia inquired thoughtfully. "That would certainly explain why you turned down Amy from legal..."  

"No!" Vince snapped. "She's a female mechanic."  

"They make those?"  

Vince chuckled. "Apparently."  

"Well let's go ahead and tell your mother that your dating a poor mechanic from the mountains and she'll forget all about being mad over the puppy."  

"I'm not dating her," Vince countered. "I have a date with her."  

"Ahh, the joys of meaningless sex with virtual strangers. I've been telling you for years to loosen up! I just wish you'd chosen to start here where I could see my newborn butterfly spread his wings."  

"Goodbye Patricia."  

"Goodbye boss."

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Vince pulled up in front of the last house on Green road and wondered if maybe he'd misheard Grace's directions. Surely she couldn't live in a place like this. This 

house was barely more than a rundown shack and there was what appeared to be green army netting covering the walls as well as the jeep in the driveway. The windows were boarded up and the door was painted camouflage and covered in leaves.

"What the hell?" Vince whispered as he put his car in park and simply stared. He felt as if he'd just been dropped onto some kind of military base! He realized, with more than a little shock, that the thing covered with a tan tarp beside the house appeared to be a tank and there was also an old army truck and jeep near the woods.  

Vince was suddenly quite sure he'd been had and surprisingly that filled him relief. He was happy to know that Grace wasn't the kind of woman he had worried she was. He certainly wasn't the kind of man he'd pretended to be earlier today and had already decided before coming out here that he wasn't going to try to have sex with Grace. One night stands just weren't something he was interested in.  

While Vince was nearly certain that Grace didn't live here, there was still that small chance that she did and Vince didn't want to take a chance of standing her up.  He tucked the wine under his arm, grabbed the flowers and got out of the car.  

A chill ran down Vince's spine as he walked toward the house. He would swear that someone was watching him. He stepped up to the door and knocked several times before moving back and waiting for it to open. When it did open, Vince let out a cry of shock and jumped backward when a short, wiry man in desert camo with an automatic rifle in his hands came leaping from the house.  

"Who the hell are you?!" the man demanded with a crazy glint in his black eyes. A giant scar marred one side of his face and he poked Vince in the chest with his big black gun. Vince felt panic fill him. Never in his entire life had he had a gun drawn on him.  

He jumped backward again and tripped over a rock. The wine bottle and flowers went flying. Vince was faintly aware of the sound of crashing glass before he hit his head on something hard and everything went black.  

---

"Wake up now," a gruff voice broke through Vince's foggy thoughts just before cold water was poured over his head.  

Vince's eyes flew open as he sputtered and gasped for breath. He attempted to wipe his face only to realize that he was sitting in a wooden chair and his hands were tied behind him and his feet were tied to the chair legs. Vince glanced across the room and saw the soldier standing with an empty bucket and watching him closely.  

"What are you doing here?" the soldier demanded.  

Vince glanced around the room. The walls were covered in pictures of soldiers, battlefields and maps. Weapons seemed to take up every corner. Vince swallowed hard and turned his attention back to the crazy soldier. "I was supposed to be going to a woman's house for dinner. She gave me directions here." Vince hoped that honesty would get him out of this alive.. He had no idea what was going on but at least the crazy man no longer had that gun in his hands.  

"A woman? There ain't never been no woman that's lived here. I built this place myself."  

"It's charming," Vince muttered dryly. He was beginning to grow irritated. This man was either completely insane or just plain stupid. Either way Vince didn't appreciate being tied to a chair and having rancid smelling water poured over his head. "Obviously the woman lied to me about where she lived."  

"Who is this woman?" the soldier asked.

Vince bit back his irritated retort about it not being the man's business and sighed. "Grace. I don't know her last name."

The soldier stared at him sharply for a moment before his black eyes lit up and he began to laugh so loudly that he was slapping his knees and bending low. He let out a loud hoot and wiped at his face. "You big city man! You probably thought you could ride right in here and take advantage of any mountain girl you wanted, didn't you? Well she sure showed you different. That's Grace. She's a tough cookie."  

"Yes, I suppose," Vince mumbled with shame. "Can you untie me now?"

"No," the man sobered instantly. "My name's Sergeant Theodore Foster but most folks call me Old Man Foster. I need to know what business you have here in our town."  

"I'm just on vacation," Vince replied, rolling his shoulders to attempt to clear some of the tension from them.  

Old Man Foster shook his head. "Horseshit."  

"Fine. There are some properties here that I'm looking into buying for vacation purposes. Can you untie me now?"  

"I guess so," Old Man Foster replied after another moment of studying him closely. Vince swallowed hard at the sight of the long knife that Old Man Foster came toward him with but soon he found himself unbound from his chair and rubbing at his chaffed skin.  

"Sorry about all of that," Old Man Foster stated. "You can't be too careful with all the enemies out there wanting to bring us down."  

"Enemies?" Vince inquired as the old man grabbed a beer from a small refrigerator and popped it open.  

"Charlie son. The Charlie are everywhere."  

Vince nodded at the war veteran whose mind had clearly seen better days and took a step toward the door. "Right."  

---

"Grandma, don't steal Cadence's crayons," Grace scolded gently as she swept passed the booth where both Cadence and Ester were sitting Saturday morning.  

"She took mine first," Ester grumbled as she scribbled in one of the coloring books that Grace had brought to keep them both busy.  

"If you can't share the crayons then I will take them all away," Grace warned, refilling empty coffee cups as she made her rounds.  

"We can share, mommy. I promise," Cadence assured her, throwing a pointed look at her grandmother.  

Grace blew out a tired breath but smiled as she made her way back toward the kitchen. She was exhausted. Her grandmother had kept her up late last night, fighting over whether or not it was time to go to bed or make breakfast. Once Grace had finally convinced her to go sleep, Cadence had awaken with a nightmare that had kept her up for most of the remaining nighttime hours. It had been three o'clock before Grace had fallen, exhausted into her own broken down mattress and she'd been right back up at five to start her day.  

"Honey, you are dead on your feet and those bags under your eyes have carry-ons," Meg stated as she came into the kitchen and stuck an order on the stove for the cook.  

"Gee thanks, Meg. You look beautiful this morning as well," Grace muttered dryly.  

"You know you're beautiful," Meg assured her. "But you do look tired. Why don't you take the rest of the day off?" Meg suggested, patting her on the back.  

Grace shook her head. "I would just have to clean that mess of a place I call a house and chase after both of them at home. Either way I'm going to be exhausted. I might as well be getting paid."  

"I'm gonna head out and get those supplies you needed," Meg's husband Ben stated as he swooped into the kitchen and pulled Meg into his arms.  

"Okay, honey, be careful," Meg replied as she stood on her toes to give him a kiss. "And make sure you get some extra potatoes if they have some. Most of the ones in the shipment were no good."  

"You got it, boss," he replied with a wink. Then he turned to Grace. "You might want to get back out there. Cadence is throwing crayons and Ester is stuffing them in her shirt."  

Grace sighed, adjusted her apron and stepped back into the diner. "Cadence Elizabeth Collins, you get up out of that seat right now and pick up those crayons," she scolded sternly as she came to a stop beside their table. Cadence bit her lip guiltily and slid from the booth to do as her mother commanded. "And grandmother you get those crayons out of your shirt."  

"I don't know who you are but you have no business telling me what to do," Ester snapped, squaring her shoulders and raising her thin gray brow defiantly. "I'm saving these crayons because that little monster over there keeps attempting to steal them all. I'd like to see her get them now."  

Several diners chuckled but Grace found this situation anything but funny. Her grandmother, who she loved, respected and worshipped, had just said she didn't know who Grace was. While the doctor had warned her that these days were coming, it didn't help to lessen the pain of the blow.  

Never had her grandmother not recognized her. She had forgotten everyone else from time to time but never Grace. Grace knew that the form of dementia Ester had was fickle. Grace could leave the room, come back and her grandmother would greet her by name, but the doctor had told her that things would be getting steadily worse. Grace wasn't sure how she would handle the worse since she could barely handle the now but she knew she had to. As always she would have to square her shoulders and find a way to carry on and keep things moving.  

"I picked them all up, mommy," Cadence said as she came to stand before Grace with a fistful of colorful crayons.

"Thank you, gremlin," Grace replied, taking the crayons and dropping them back into the box.  

"What do you think you're doing?" Ester snapped. "I want to color!"  

Grace took a deep breath and counted to three but before she could speak, Ben appeared. "I'm getting read to go to Hagner and get supplies. I could use two incredibly beautiful ladies to come along and help me so do any of you know here I could find a couple at?" he asked with a smile.  

Cadence jumped forward. "I'm a beautiful lady!" she stated as she batted her lashes. Grace smiled. Cadence had always loved Ben and Grace knew he was an all around great man.  

"I'm prettier than her," Ester argued, shoving herself from the booth and causing the crayons that had been stuffed inside her shirt, to clatter to the floor. More laughter filled the diner but this time Grace was laughing along.  

"Would you two ladies like to come with me?" Ben asked.  

"Ben..." Grace countered worriedly.  

Ben just smiled and put his arm around her shoulders. "My beautiful wife insists," he assured her. "And so do I since I always do what my beautiful wife insists."  

"Are you sure?" Grace whispered. "They can be a handful."  

"Of course I'm sure." He gave her a squeeze and then clapped his hands together. "Well let's get going then ladies. The road is waiting!"  

Grace felt nervous as she watched her daughter and grandmother walk out of the diner with Ben. She wasn't used to sending them off with anyone and she wasn't at all sure how she felt or what to do with herself.  

"Relax, Grace. They'll be fine with Grace," Meg vowed, walking over to her.  

"Yeah, but will he be okay with them? Grace countered.  

Meg laughed. "Of course. You have friends, Grace, so let us help you. Now I'm insisting that you take a few hours to yourself. Go home, relax, take a nap, read a book. Anything for yourself."  

"But I can't take a day off!" Grace exclaimed. "I need the money."  

"And this job now offers paid vacations and you are going to take one. Grace, you haven't taken a single day off work or spent any time on yourself since Cadence was born! You're working too hard." Meg added at the sight of Grace's argumentative look.  

Grace had to admit that the urge to simply go home and kick her feet up was strong--stronger even then her work ethic it would seem. She pulled off her apron and handed it to Meg. "Are you sure?"  

"I'm sure," Meg beamed with happiness. "You have the rest of the day off."  

"Good. I was hoping to speak to her."  

Grace stiffened instantly when she recognized that smooth, slick city voice behind her. Memories of the garage yesterday morning came flooding back to her. Memories of the way he had made her blood pump a little hotter, hear heart beat a little faster and her head feel a little flustered. Then she remembered how she had sent him off to spend the evening with Old Man Foster and she suddenly felt a little nervous.  

Grace turned slowly, rolling her eyes at the love-sick expression on her best friend's face. Grace found herself gazing at the way his dark blue t-shirt stretched across his broad chest. She lifted her gaze to that sculpted face she remembered all too well. Strong jaw, firm lips, long nose, (a bit crooked as if it had been broken once), sharp, dark green eyes and a creased brow leading up to that thick head of black hair. It was the kind of hair that appeared made for a woman to run her hands through.  

Grace shook her head. She had never been the type of woman to think such thoughts... well she may have once been but that had been before Tyler, before Cadence, before Ester had gotten sick. The new Grace didn't have time to worry to about such foolish things as running her fingers through a man's hair--no matter how luxurious that hair may be.

"Good morning, Grace," Vince said quietly.  

Grace did a quick scan of his body to check for any bullet holes after his visit to Old Man Foster's. She forced a smile when she realized he seemed unscathed. "Good morning, Vince. You seem to have a knack for interrupting me while I'm at work." Grace winced at her own tone. What was it about this man that put her so on edge.  

"Yes, but from what I heard, you are no longer working so I'm not really interrupting anything," Vince countered, and while he didn't smile, Grace was certain she saw amusement in his green eyes. "Also, I believe I owe you a sincere apology for the way I talked to you the last time we spoke and I would like very much to take a walk with you."

Grace was speechless. To say she was shocked would have been an understatement. Since when did men do things like apologize and sound sincere when they did so? And surely the man must know that she had lied to him and he had no doubt met Old Man Foster. He should be furious with her and maybe he was behind that calm façade.  

"Of course, she'd be more than happy to go for a walk with you," Meg quickly answered for her.  

Grace turned and gaped at her. "I would?" she hissed in a hushed whisper.  

Meg nodded and grabbed her arm gently. "Yes you would. Why wouldn't you? He is sexy as hell, tall, legs for days, good shoulders, amazing hair and he's obviously kind. Did you hear that apology? You deserve to take an hour and spend a little time with the man. You would be a fool if you turn him down."  

"You're a horrible friend. He's a complete stranger!" Grace countered as she crossed her arms over her chest defensively.  

 "Ben used to be a complete stranger to me too," Meg reminded her.  

Grace rolled her eyes. "Yeah, when you were ten."  

"Since when have you been so jaded and bitter?" Meg scolded. "Not all men are Tyler's. You've shut yourself off from dating and blamed it on not having time but I think you're just afraid. There are good men out there, sweetheart, but you'll never find one if you don't open yourself up."  

Grace was caught off guard because Meg was right. Grace was afraid. She did use not having time to turn down every single date offer she received. Not that mister tall, dark and handsome was offering her a date because he wasn't. He was offering to take her for a walk and talk to her.  

"What if he's a serial killer?" Grace offered up, desperately searching for any reason to turn down Vince's offer.  

Meg glanced at Vince over her shoulder. "Are you a serial killer?" she asked as Grace covered her face with her hand.  

Vince's eyes widened a bit as he shook his head slowly. "I haven't been one lately, ma'am." Grace fought back the urge to laugh. So it would seem that Mr. tall, dark and handsome had a dry sense of humor beneath that cool façade.  

"See he's not a serial killer," Meg stated haughtily as she turned back to Grace. "Any other ridiculous excuses you'd like to toss up?"  

Grace stuck her tongue out at her best friend but knew that she'd been beaten. She had no good excuse to offer and clearly Meg wasn't going to take no for an answer. She let out a tired sigh and turned to Vince. "Just let me get my purse," she mumbled.  

Vince nodded. "I'll wait outside."  

Grace and Meg watched him walk outside and slide his sunglasses up over his eyes. "I don't know, Meg. It's been a long time since I've spent time alone with a man," Grace admitted, feeling butterflies swarming in her stomach.

"You're just going for a walk around town, Grace. Heck, you'll be within shouting distance of the diner the whole time. Now go and have fun." Meg winked. "And don't do anything I wouldn't do."  

Grace rolled her eyes. "You shouldn't tell me that. I still remember high school."

Meg blushed and swatted Grace's arm. "Go get your purse and get out of here. I have coffee cups to refill."

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Vince waited out on the cracked sidewalk for Grace. He was doing his best to wait patiently, however, patience had never been his strong suit. He had strode into the diner this morning after seeing her through the window, fully prepared to give Grace a piece of his mind for tricking him the day before and sending him to a crazy ass with a gun. Then he'd taken one good look at her beautiful but tired face and his anger had cooled instantly.  

There had been something about the sight of that woman in that moment that had awake a never before felt, long dormant urge within Vince to shelter and protect. Everything in him was drawn to the tired looking woman with big gray eyes and a hot little body and Vince had always been a man who trusted his instincts. He had built his entire business and life on doing just that. Vince's gut was telling him that he needed to get to know, Grace, and so that's what he intended to do.  

He heard the door to the diner open behind him and Vince turned quickly. His breath caught when he saw Grace step outside into the sunlight. Something told him this was more than mere lust and that scared the controlled and in charge man within him. What if this was one sided and Grace did not feel the same pull toward him? What then?

"Well, you've done the impossible, Vince. With the help of my traitorous friend in there, you've convinced me to take an hour or so and simply relax," Grace stated before flashing him a smile.  

Vince felt his own lips curve ever so slightly and he tipped his head. "Thank you for giving me the chance to apologize. I was very rude and presumptuous yesterday. I want you to know that I'm really not like that."  

Grace let out a bark of laughter and shook her head as she started down the sidewalk and Vince fell in step beside her. "You're not in the big city anymore and around here we don't use words like 

presumptuous .“ she stated. “And your apology is accepted. In truth, I was a little flattered. I was mostly pissed off but there was a touch of flattered thrown in. I don’t get many sexual offers when I’m wearing my coveralls and covered in grease and dirt.”

"Yes, well, I'd never seen a woman in coveralls, grease and dirt before," he countered and this earned him yet another smile. Vince enjoyed her smile. It lit up her face and took away some of the tiredness and fatigue from around her gray eyes.  

She seemed to smile quite often and for the most part they were genuine smiles, not the forced, false smiles that he'd seen too often in society. And they were also natural smiles. Not the Botox injected, dentist designed smiles that had been on the faces of the women his mother had paraded around in front of him.  

"I guess I should apologize too," Grace admitted. "I shouldn't have sent you to Old Man Foster's house." She looked him up and down. "But then again you don't seem to be sporting any new holes so I guess it went okay."  

"He is an 

interesting character,“ Vince acknowledged. “And he has a wide assortment of things that go boom.”

Grace laughed and Vince felt an odd sense of pride fill him. Making her laugh made him feel good. Since when had something so simple made Vince feel anything at all?

"He was in Vietnam," Grace informed him. "And I don't think he ever really left. But everyone loves him...well everyone except anyone who happens to stumble upon his house unexpectedly."  

Vince stared down at their feet moving in unison on the sidewalk as Grace talked about Old Man Foster. She was wearing sneakers that were well past their expiration date in his opinion, with holes nearly worn through them. She was also wearing a pair of jeans that hugged her body and a form fitting blue t-shirt as well. Vince realized that the coveralls she'd been wearing yesterday had hidden the fact that she was actually very much on the skinny side.   

So Grace was tired, skinny and worked two jobs. What was her story? Vince had never been one to stick his nose into other people's business but he found himself wanting to know everything there was to know about this woman.  

Vince realized that Grace had stopped speaking and seemed to be waiting on him to say something. He cleared his throat. "He actually had some interesting things to show me once we got past the initial greeting with a gun and interrogation while tied to a chair."  

Grace groaned. "He tied you to a chair?"  

"Yes," Vince replied with a chuckle. "He had to make sure I wasn't a 

Charlie. “

"That's our Old Man Foster." Grace winked. "He is our towns defense against any and all things 

Charlie. “

At the sight of that wink, Vince was done. He felt all of his defenses drop instantly. There was something about this woman, about being beside her, talking with her, that just felt right. He wondered what Patricia would say about that. He already knew what his mother and father would say. They would be appalled and disgusted that he was spending time with someone that they would not deem his equal.  

But why shouldn't he spend time with her?! Vince may have been born with a silver spoon in his mouth but as an adult he had not taken a dime of his parent's money. He hadn't even touched the trust fund they'd set up for him to access at the age of twenty-one. He'd built his own company by scrimping and saving and working every day beside who his mother would consider 'ordinary' people.  

Vince had not inherited his parent's snobbish views on the world. As far as Vince was concerned, people were people. The bank account did not make the man, or the woman.  

"So, tell me, is the diner the only place to eat around town?" Vince asked as they continued to walk side by side.  

"No, there's a steakhouse just a few minutes outside of town," Grace replied.  

"Really?" Vince was surprised and wondered why it hadn't been on the paperwork he'd gotten.  

"Yes. It's fairly new and they're only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. It's hurt Meg's business a little when it comes to the weekends but they do have really good food."  

"You've eaten there?" Vince asked.   

Grace put her finger to her lips. "Shh, don't Meg."  

Vince crossed his heart. "Your secret is safe with me."  

Grace's face lit up as she smiled up at him and Vince knew he was lost. He had always put one hundred percent of himself into everything he wanted and right now he wanted Grace. Yes, he wanted her in bed but there was more. So much more and the promise of more after that. But was it right to be feeling so much so quickly? Was Vince capable of more? For so long he had felt numb inside but walking alongside this woman, Vince felt anything but.  

He was aware of everything around him. He was aware of the ripples that passed through him when their arms would brush. He was aware of the way her smile made him feel alive and her laughter made him feel lighter somehow. He could once again feel the warmth of the sun and the gentleness of the breeze.  

Grace, the waitress mechanic, had performed a miracle. She had brought Vince Griffin back to life and she had done so with just a simple smile.  

---

They walked and made small talk about the town with an ease that was surprising. Grace could not remember the last time she had  spent time with a man, simply laughing and being herself. She noticed that Vince didn't smile much, he only sort of half grinned. And he didn't' laugh, instead he only chuckled quietly.  

Grace didn't think he laughed or smiled often at all and that made her sad. No matter what Grace went through in life, she had always made sure to go through it with a smile. What could have possibly happened in this man's life to make him so serious?

They came to the small park at the far end of town which was Grace's favorite spot. She loved the tall oaks, the tire swings, the jungle gyms and slides. The  stream that crossed through the center of the park and the rust colored iron bridge that spanned it. Children were playing on the toys and Vince led Grace to a quieter spot. A bench beneath a dogwood tree just beside the stream.  

He motioned for her to sit and then took a seat beside her. Grace felt their legs touch and instantly jerked hers away. Touching him was like playing with fire and Grace knew she would end up burned. He was big city, he was only visiting and even if he did, by some miracle, find himself falling for her, he would change his mind the second he realized she came with a senile grandmother and a mentally challenged daughter. What man wouldn't?

"So what do you do for a living, Vince?" Grace asked, deciding to turn the conversation away from the town and onto him.  

"Real estate," Vince replied quickly as he watched a little girl with pig tails go down a slide with an ear to ear grin on her face.  

"That's kind of vague.. Do you sell houses?"  

Vince nodded. "Sometimes."

"Do you have any family? A wife waiting at home, perhaps?" Grace teased.  

Vince pulled off his sunglasses and Grace found herself being sucked into those deep, green eyes. "Is this twenty questions?"  

Grace smiled. "I guess it is."  

"Okay then. I'll answer your questions if you'll answer mine."  

Grace nodded. "Fair enough."  

Vince chuckled again. A deep, husky sound that caused Grace's heart to flutter. "I have a mother and father. Several aunts and uncles and a bunch of cousins, though I only see all of them every few years. And no," he added, "There is no wife, fiancée or girlfriend waiting on me to come back home. That would have made my pass at you in the garage yesterday even more inappropriate."  

"No brothers or sisters?" Grace asked, feeling a sort of kinship with the man. In a place where most people had huge families, Grace was alone as well. She had several cousins but they had all moved away and started their own lives somewhere else and she never spoke to them. They'd send Christmas cards every December but that was as far as the communication went.  

"No brothers or sisters," Vince replied. "Now it's my turn to ask a question and since you asked two, so will I."  

Grace shifted in the bench and prayed he wouldn't ask her about children. But then again why would he? She hadn't mentioned Cadence. She had been enjoying the man's company far too much to scare him off just yet. "I'm guessing this isn't your first interrogation?" Grace teased.  

A smile curved Vince's lips, creasing his firm cheeks and causing Grace's heart  to pick up tempo in her chest and feel very much as if it were doing the jig of her Irish ancestors.  

"My father is a lawyer," Vince admitted.  

"That certainly explains a lot."  

Vince's face sobered. "And now I get to ask three." Grace cursed under breath but nodded. Fair was fair. "Why do you work two jobs?" he asked.  

Grace was surprised by the question and opened her mouth to speak, only to shut it again and think about her answer. How did she answer that question without letting the man know she was a woman that men ran away from because of the baggage that came with her?

"Because I have a lot of financial responsibilities and I have to," she finally responded.  

A line appeared between Vince's eyes and Grace could tell he was thinking hard, though whether it was about her answer or what to ask her next, Grace had no way of knowing. He tilted his head. "If a man takes you out to eat are you one of those women who will get a head of lettuce and then pick at it all night?"  

Grace was completely taken aback by the question and she blinked several times as she stared at his serious face. "Um.. It's been a long time since anyone has taken me out to dinner," she admitted. "But I usually like something to go with my lettuce," she added with a smile.  

He nodded and seemed pleased. "How did you become a mechanic?" he asked, once again switching topics and leaving Grace's brain scrambling to keep up.  

"Are you sure 

you’re not a lawyer?“ she demanded.

He winked in a devilishly charming way. "Actually I do have a law degree."  

Grace smiled. Vince really seemed quite charming and nice under that cool, serious exterior. "I became a mechanic because it was something I was always good at. I had a boyfriend that loved working on cars so I began doing it to spend more time with him. Working on cars stuck. He didn't."  

"I'm glad that he didn't," Vince admitted. "And I'm glad that mechanic work did. You look nice in a pair of coveralls."  

Grace nearly laughed when she saw the way Vince flushed and quickly looked away after saying that. Was this the same confident man who had come into the shop just yesterday and offered her sex as if it were a business proposition?  

"I'm glad he didn't stick too." Grace sighed. It was true. She was glad that Tyler hadn't stuck. He wouldn't have been a good husband to her or a good father to Cadence. He had proven that all too well. "And now it's my turn to ask a question," Grace added with a smile.  

Vince simply nodded and appeared thoughtful. Grace tapped her chin a moment and then frowned. "Why are you really in Clifton?"  

Vince appeared caught off guard by her question and she had a feeling that that was something new for him. He looked down at his hands folded across his knees. "I'm on vacation."  

"I think you're lying," Grace whispered sadly as she gazed out at the park. "No one comes to Clifton Kentucky on vacation."  

"Well they should," Vince countered, once again sounding like his confident self. "There is a lot of beauty here."  

"This park is my favorite place," Grace admitted. She left out that she loved to bring Cadence here. She felt bad for lying to Vince but it didn't really matter. It wasn't like the man was going to be sticking around. "And then there are the buildings. The courthouse itself is over one hundred and fifty years old."  

"I'll bet if there were some nice resorts and hotels here people would come. Word would get around about the beauty and the modern amenities  and people would begin flocking here."  

"I would hate that!" Grace stated sternly. "We don't need fancy resorts and giant hotels to ruin our skylines here. I'll be the first to admit that the town itself needs some work. The neon needs fixing, the sidewalks could stand to be redone and the buildings need paint but messing with what's natural and real here would only destroy Clifton. This town is a landmark and if people are too blind to see the beauty in its simplicity then that's their loss."  

Vince's gaze went out around them and Grace saw the doubtful expression on his face. "How is this place a landmark?" he questioned.  

Grace waved her hand, gesturing toward the main street. "How many old towns like this are still left?" she demanded. "Most of the buildings are still original and were built 

before the Civil War! The people here can trace their family back generation after generation right here in this town. There is history here, Vince, and while some have left, those that are still here have a diehard loyalty to this place and that history. And the people? They are part of its charm.“

Grace smiled thoughtfully before continuing. "Take Old Man Foster for example. He tells amazing stories about the war and military that captivate every audience he gets in front of. And then there's Uncle Pete. Now I don't know for sure whose uncle he is but he's the old man who's always sitting at the courthouse playing the banjo. If you ever get a chance to talk to him then you need to take it. You can't believe a word the man says but he's entertaining as can be. And we have Meg. Trust me when I tell you that she's the best cook for ten counties. No, we don't need the big city here in Clifton, Vince. This place is just fine the way it is."  

As Vince sat there listening to Grace talk about the town that she clearly loved, he realized that his plans may not go as smoothly as he'd first hoped. If there was such diehard loyalty here then it wouldn't matter how much money he offered to people who weren't behind on taxes--they wouldn't sell their properties to him.  

"I'm admit that this town does have a certain kind of charm," Vince mused as he recalled the way everyone smiled and waved at everyone else. They took the time to stop and talk to one another. No one was rushing around lost in their own little worlds and deadlines.  

Grace's voice was sad when she spoke. "I love it here. I'll be heartbroken if things keep going the way they are and everyone leaves... I don't know where I'll go."  

Vince felt a tug in his heart and wondered if there was a way he could let Grace keep the town she loved and still form a tourist attraction that would turn him a profit. All sorts of ideas began circulating in his mind. He needed to get out and see the natural beauty of the surrounding land first hand so he could get a better picture and know just what he had to work with.  

"Grace, I'm going to go hiking to the falls and take a ride around the lake. Would you like to come with me?" Vince offered.  

He saw her gray eyes light up and knew she was about to say yes before she frowned and shook her head sadly. "No, I can't," Vince could hear true regret in her voice. "I have things to do today."  

"Dinner then?" Vince offered hopefully. He wanted to spend more time with this woman who was making him feel and see things differently.  

"I don't think so," Grace replied, standing up and putting distance between them.  

Vince was confused. She suddenly seemed so sad and withdrawn when mere moments before she'd been animated and full of life while talking about her town. Vince stood up and stepped in front of Grace.  

"Okay, no dinner," he tipped his head in acceptance but wasn't about to give up that easily. He was a man who went after what he wanted. "How about lunch tomorrow?"  

"I have to work," she countered quickly.  

"That's fine." Vince shrugged. "We can eat at the diner."  

Grace sighed and he saw that her hands were trembling as she wrung then nervously. "Vince, I need...."

Grace was interrupted by the ringing of Vince's phone. He glanced down at the caller I.D. and growled with annoyance. "I have to take this, Grace. I truly enjoyed spending time with you today and I'll be at the diner at lunch tomorrow. You can either sit and eat with me or you can pretend I don't exist. I'll leave that up to you."  

---

Grace collapsed back against the bench as she watched Vince walk away. Tomorrow. Tomorrow he would realize that Grace was a package deal and then he'd be gone just like any other man in his right mind.  

Grace couldn't explain why that made her so sad... She'd only known the man existed for thirty-six hours and yet she had already memorized every single line on his face. Her hands itched to run through his hair and her lips itched to find out what his tasted like....  

Grace shook her head. Meg was a terrible influence. She simply needed to focus on her daughter and her grandmother and forget about Mr. Big City.

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

"I must say, boss, that you sound rather chipper today," Patricia informed him as Vince lay stretched out on his bed at the inn with his cell phone to his ear.  

Vince rolled his eyes. "I can promise you that I have never once, in my entire life, sounded chipper."  

"Until now," Patricia agreed. "Did you finally get laid then?"  

"You are such a lady," Vince intoned dryly. "With a mouth like that on you, it's a miracle you aren't married yet."  

"Bite your tongue, boss!" Patricia scolded. "I'm not the marrying type."  

Vince stood and walked to the window. He pulled the curtains back to let the Sunday morning sunlight come into his bedroom. The mist was still hanging thick over the surrounding mountains and the view he had of them was pretty spectacular.  

He moved his gaze down to main street to see the townsfolk all dressed in their Sunday best heading toward the two churches. He wondered why a town as small as Clifton had two churches but decided it didn't matter. Things would be changing soon.  

But, then again, Grace had said that Clifton needed to remain the way it was and that was why Vince had barely slept the night before because he was too focused on attempting to formulate a plan that would make him money but give Grace what she wanted.  

"Patricia, I'm calling because I need you to do something for me," Vince admitted.  

"I figured that was the reason for your call, sir. I didn't think you were calling to check on my sick aunt that has the wolfhound."  

"How is she?" Vince asked, feeling guilty when he realized he hadn't even known Patricia had an aunt.  

"She's fine. She gets fleas from time to time and she has this terrible habit of rubbing her ass against the wall...."  

Vince pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers and shook his head. "I meant your aunt. I could not care less how the dog is."  

"You know I've heard that serial killers hate dogs too," Patricia warned.  

"No, serial killers sadistically torture and kill innocent creatures. I could give you a demonstration when I return to the office."  

"We'll have to find a sacrifice, sir," Patricia lamented. "I haven't been innocent in a long long time."  

"Are you ready to focus on work now or must we sit and talk about a sick dog and the fact that you have far too much fun?" Vince demanded.  

"There's no such thing as too much fun," Patricia countered. "And, yes, I'm ready to work now," she added at the sound of his grumble.  

"Okay. I need you to take all the figures I've sent you and check out the profit margins for a rustic getaway instead of a fancy resort. Cabins, guided tours, hiking trails.. A large bed and breakfast just outside of town for those that don't like roughing it. Also, perhaps a campground equipped for both tents and R.V.'s...."  

"Camping? Rustic? Tents? Sir, are you feeling okay?"  

"Of course I'm okay," Vince replied.  

"I don't think you are, Mr. Profit. That's what we call you when you're not around the office, by the way. You'll do anything possible to make the most money you can make. Now suddenly you want a rustic getaway? I don't see Beyonce and Jay-Z making plans to sleep under the stars with the mosquitoes and the strange mountain natives."

"Mountain natives aren't strange," Vince argued. Then an image of Old Man Foster and his gun came to mind. "They're... unique."  

"Whatever you say, sir," Patricia replied. Vince could hear her tapping her long nails. "I still can't believe this.. You'll not make nearly as much money with a rustic getaway. I have to say it's not a smart business move. Now I'm behind you one hundred percent with whatever you decide, you know that..."  

Vince sighed and fished his over the counter pain reliever from his drawer. "No, you're right...It's just an idea I had while talking to someone. She put the idea in my head."  

"She?" Patricia's interest seemed suddenly piqued.  

Vince glanced toward the smallest church of the two that people were piling into. It was a brick building with white stone steps and a tall steeple. His eyes were instantly drawn to a flash of auburn hair and he felt a surge of emotion when he recognized Grace.  

She was walking up the steps in a yellow dress with cap sleeves and a skirt that dancing around her knees when she moved. He had an unexplainable need to be near her and shrugged as he glanced toward his suit jacket on the door. He had the proper clothes for church.. Why not join the townspeople?  

"I have to go, Patricia. Just forget I called," Vince stated.  

"But wait!" Patricia exclaimed. "Who is 

she ?“

Vince hung up his phone and headed toward the bathroom. He had a service to get ready for.  

---

"Grandma, go ahead and sit right here," Grace motioned toward the back pew. She always like to sit in the back of the church just in case Ester or Cadence had to use the bathroom or decided they weren't going to sit through an entire service.  

"Grace, it's so good to see you here!" Mavis exclaimed as she walked over with her sister in tow. Mavis's sister Blanche was a stoop-backed woman with her white hair pulled into a severe bun and a beak-like nose which she liked to look down at everyone.  

"How are you doing, Ester?" Blanche sneered at the woman who had been her arch nemesis all her life.  

Ester raised her brow as she stared at the woman for a moment and then gave a sidelong glance to her granddaughter. "Do I know that woman?"  

Grace sighed. "Yes, grandma. You do."

Ester appeared very confused for a moment and then shrugged. "Good riddance to bad rubbish, I suppose." Without another word, Ester relaxed against the pew and turned her attention to a family trying to usher all five of their children into the church.  

Grace bit back a laugh as Blanche huffed loudly and stormed away. "That woman's had a stick up her rear ever since your grandpa chose Ester over her," Mavis grumbled with annoyance as she glared after her sister.  

"You should probably talk nicer about your sister in a church," Grace reminded her.  

Mavis shrugged. "God hears what I say whether I'm in here or out there," she replied, motioning with her head toward the door. "So I don't see how it matters. I wanted to talk to you, Grace. Well, actually, Blanche did but now she'll expect me to."

Mavis squeezed into the booth beside her and Grace filled with dread. She already knew what the woman was going to ask. She listened to the din of everywhere filing into the church and waited for Mavis's next words.  

"Grace, you know the fall festival is coming soon. We have three weeks to be exact and it's important that we make more money than ever this year. Ester's baked good have always been such a huge hit and some of our best sellers."

Grace nodded. Her grandmother's baked goods had always made thousands of dollars during the week long festival that included food booths, crafts, a carnival and talent shows. Ester, however, hadn't been in any shape to make those goods the last two years.  

"Just come out and ask for what you want, Mavis," Grace urged. "The service is about to start."  

Mavis nodded and sat up a little straighter. "You have all your grandmother's recipes and you're just as good a baker as she is, or was, rather. We were hoping that you would be in charge of baking them and running a booth this year."  

Grace wanted to say no. Lord knew she needed to say no. She was already working two jobs, taking care of her house, her grandmother and her daughter. She had no time for herself and no idea where she'd find the time to make brownies, cookies, cakes, fudges, pies and everything else the townspeople would expect to see.  

"Sure, I'll do it," Grace replied.  

"Great!" Mavis exclaimed, beaming. "And you'll still be helping to coordinate the talent show, won't you? Auditions start tomorrow evening at the community center."  

Grace bit back a curse, threw up a prayer of forgiveness for thinking said curse in God's house, and then forced a smile. "Of course."  

"That's great!" Mavis clapped. "Now I better be getting back to my.... Uh-oh," Mavis paused as she looked toward the door. "Looks like Mr. Hot City is going to be joining us for church this morning."  

Grace's heart dropped as Mavis stood. Sure Grace had been planning on letting Vince know about Ester and Cadence today but not this morning. Not in church. Not in front of half the town and all the biggest gossips!  

"Good morning, Grace." Vince's deep and oddly comforting voice greeted from behind her.  

She turned in her seat and barely kept her jaw from dropping as she looked at him. Vince seemed to be pulled straight off the pages of G.Q. magazine. He was overly dressed for church, seeing as how most of the men here were wearing jeans, but Grace had to admit that he made the suit look good.  

"Good morning, Vince," she replied, her voice shaking.  

"Well look at that, the service is about to start." Mavis winked at Grace. "I'll just be making my way back to my seat so there's room here for someone to sit down if they'd like to."  

Vince chuckled. "Can I sit here?" he asked as Mavis walked away.  

Grace nodded. "Of course."  

Cadence chose that moment to giggle and tug on Grace's dress. "He talks funny, mommy."  

Grace bit back a groan and glanced at Vince with dread. She saw the surprise and waited for the accusations. But instead, Vince surprised her when he sat down and gave Cadence one of his best half grins. "Anything to make you laugh, pretty lady." He added a wink and that just made Cadence giggle even more loudly.  

Grace knew introductions had to be made. "Vince, this is my daughter Cadence and my grandmother Ester. You two, this is my...

friend… Vince.“

Cadence waved but Ester barely spared either of them a glance before looking back toward the preacher who had stepped up to the pulpit.  Grace was thankful for the distraction because it mean that Vince might just choose to at least remain in his seat until church was over instead of bolting out and away from her right in front of everyone.  

---

Vince tried hard to focus on the preacher, the first he'd ever seen wearing a rhinestone shirt. He wanted to talk to Grace. He wanted to learn more about her daughter, maybe discover why Grace hadn't mentioned her yesterday, but that would have to wait until after the service.  

It didn't take long for Vince to realize that this preacher must be a relative of the football coach he'd had in high school. That booming, commanding and thundering voice couldn't run in two separate families.  

Finally the preacher quieted and requested that the ladies doing Sunday school take the children downstairs. Grace stood to allow Cadence to get around her and Vince followed suit. He tilted his head as he studied the girl. She didn't look much like her mother. They had the same tiny nose with a sprinkling of freckles but that was where the similarities ended.  

With a twist of his gut, Vince wondered who the father was and whether or not the man was still around. Jealousy was a new emotion for him and one he didn't much care for.  

"Grandma, you need to stay here with me and listen to Brother Mark's sermon." Grace's voice pulled Vince from his thoughts and he turned to her and Ester.  

"I can do what I want!" Ester argued, sticking out her bottom lip stubbornly.  

Vince saw Grace toss him a nervous glance before putting her hand gently on her grandmother's shoulder. "Grandma, please, Sunday school is for the children. Why don't we sit back down so Brother Mark can get started?"  

"I want to go downstairs and color!" Ester screamed, stomping her foot as she turned red in the face and brought the attention of the entire church to them.  

"Grandma..." Grace's voice as gentle and Vince marveled at her patience.  

"Stop treating me like I'm a child, Anna! I'm not a child!"  

Vince saw Grace's face pale instantly and it truly looked as if she were in pain. It made him wonder who Anna was. "It's okay, Grace," Mavis said gently as she walked over. "She can come downstairs with us and help pass out the crayons." Mavis took Ester's hand and helped her from the pew.  

Grace just stood there silent and still as she stared into space. Vince put a soothing hand on her shoulder. "Grace?" he whispered.  

Grace seemed to snap from her daze and she quickly pushed past him. "I need some air," she stated before all but running out the church doors and allowing them to slam closed behind her.  

Vince waited for someone to go after her. He thought for sure one of these townspeople who had known Grace all her life would rush off to check on the woman but they didn't. Everyone merely turned back around in their seats and began whispering amongst each other.  

Vince felt a moment of temper but shoved it aside. If they wouldn't go after her then he would. He found her outside, standing in the middle of the flower bed with her head pressed against the cool, shaded brick of the church.  

"Grace, are you okay?" It was a stupid thing to ask since it was obvious she wasn't but Vince didn't know what else to say. He had never been the type to want to comfort someone else and this was new to him.  

"Yes, I'm fine," Grace replied, far too quickly for it to be the truth.  

"Do you want to talk about it?"  

"Talk about what?" Grace demanded, without pulling her head away from the wall or looking at him. "Talk about the fact that my daughter's body is nearly ten but she has the mind of a five year old? Or about the fact that my grandmother is forgetting herself, and me, more everyday and becoming a child again? Maybe you'd like to talk about how I'm taking care of both of them by myself while doing all the cooking, cleaning and bill paying. We could have a chat about all the medicine and the round the clock care. Or just chew the fat about how every single person in this town wants something from me and I just can't do it anymore! I'm too tired."  

---

Grace was shocked.  

Had she really just said all that? Grace prayed she hadn't really just said all that. But she knew she had and to Vince no less! If he hadn't been running away before then he certainly would now! There was nothing like laying all her baggage out in the open during a fatigue induced rant just for a shock and awe effect. Grace couldn't even bring herself to look in his direction. She just wanted the flowerbed to open up and swallow her whole.  

Grace nearly screamed when she felt Vince's big hand close gently around her shoulder and spin her around. He put his finger, which was more calloused and rough than she had imagined it would be, under her chin and tilted her head up so that she was looking into his deep green eyes. Her breath caught in her chest when she saw the concern that was shining out of them.  

Suddenly the tears that Grace never allowed herself to cry, welled up in her eyes and she was powerless to stop them. She'd been alone for too long. She'd been the strong one for too long. Grace had always seen tears as a weakness but they were too powerful for her to stop as they rolled in rivers down her cheeks.  

Vince leaned in and Grace nearly jumped from her skin when she felt his firm lips against her tear dampened skin. "I'm here now, Grace," he whispered. "You don't have to do it alone anymore."  

He wrapped his arms tight around her and pulled her into a strong embrace. It was the warm, supportive, protective hug of a real man and, until this very moment, Grace hadn't realized just how badly she'd needed it.  

"Walk with me?" she asked as she pulled from his embrace and dried her face with her hands.  

Vince nodded, took her by the hand and led her to the sidewalk. He released his hold on her hand and held out his arm so Grace could wind hers through it. "Why didn't you tell me?" he asked gently.  

Grace didn't answer at first. Instead she looked down at their shoes as they walked. Her worn sandals and his polished loafers. They were so different and yet perfectly in step as they moved together down the sidewalk. "Honestly?" she finally whispered.  

Vince nodded. "I've always preferred honesty."  

Grace sighed. "I really liked you and I was afraid you'd run away from me... I didn't want to watch another person run away from me."  

"I've never run away from anything," Vince assured her. "And I won't run away from you."  

"This is crazy," Grace stated.  

Vince nodded. "Positively insane."  

"I barely know you!"  

"I'm a complete stranger."  

"And yet I feel like I've known you forever," Grace finished.  

Vince pulled her a bit closer. "My entire life," he agreed.  

There was a certainty in his voice that gave Grace the courage to believe that maybe, just maybe, this truly was happening. Could there be two people meant to be? A connection that sparked instantly and was real? Could Vince be the man who was going to change everything?

"When are you leaving town?" Grace asked, forcing herself to remember that Vince was temporary.  

Vince sighed as dread settled into his gut. Leave? He didn't want to leave. But he had a company. He had commitments. He was due back in the office on Tuesday. "I'm in no hurry," he found himself replying. "Are we playing the twenty questions game again?"  A smile curved Grace's lips and Vince's heart lightened. Finally, her tears were gone.  

"You seem to be better at that game than I am, but yes, we can play it," Grace teased.  

"I'm not better," Vince countered. "I've just had more experience. My father is a well known defense attorney back in New York and my mother is a high-class society wife. I've gotten used to twenty questions."  

"Wow, that's quite a family," Grace mumbled.  

"That's one way of putting it," Vince replied. "You have a lovely family, Grace. Your daughter is beautiful."  

Pride lit up Grace's features. "Thank you. She looks just like my grandmother did when she was young. She has the same blond hair and blue eyes." Grace stared off into the distance. "She has a mild form of mental retardation." She shivered. "God, I hate those words."  

"You said she's ten?" Vince asked gently.

Grace nodded. "She will be in two months. The doctors say that eventually she might have the mind of a twelve year old but I don't really care one way or the other. She is my daughter and I love her with all my heart."  

Vince could hear the defensiveness in her tone. "Of course you do," he agreed. "You must be a great mother and a strong woman."  

"No, I just do what I have to do," Grace replied.  

"Not many women could handle two jobs, a challenged daughter, a grandmother with dementia and everything else all by herself," Vince countered, wanting her to see just how amazing she was.  

Grace just shrugged and stared down the road. "I had Cadence when I was nineteen. Her father, and I use that term loosely, was my high school sweetheart. He cut and ran when Cadence was only a few months old."

"And your grandmother?" Vince questioned, eager to learn all he could about Grace.  

"Her and my grandpa raised me from the age of five when my mom changed her mind about parenthood. My grandpa died quite a few years ago and grandma has been getting worse. I've been told to put her in a home but...."

"You love her and you want to pay her back for everything that she did for you," Vince finished.  

Grace stopped walking and stared up at him with shock. How could this be happening? No one had ever understood Grace the way Vince was seeming to.. It simply didn't make sense!

"Where did you come from?" she whispered as she gazed up at him.  

He gave her that half grin that caused her heart to start doing the rumba and smoothed a strand of hair from her face. "New York," he replied.  

Grace wanted to kiss him and she could tell by the way his green eyes darkened that he wanted to kiss her too. Time seemed to stand still and the air seemed to spark around them as he leaned down and she rose up on her toes.  

"Grace!"  

They flew apart suddenly at the sound of feet pounding on the sidewalk. Grace turned to see Grant jogging toward them in black sweatpants and a t-shirt. His thinning hair was messy and damp with sweat. He eyed them both warily.  

"Hello Grant," Grace said breathlessly as she took another step away from Vince. Her heart was racing and her head was spinning but she still saw the way Grant's blue eyes narrowed and lost their good nature.  

"What's going on? I was going for my run when Mavis stopped me outside the church and told me you'd run out. Everyone is worried about you."  

Vince bit back his sharp retort. No one in that church had made an attempt to help Grace. They didn't care whether or not she was okay, they simply wanted the gossip.  

"I just need a moment to myself," Grace replied as she smoothed out her yellow dress and slid her hair behind her ears. Vince couldn't help but notice the way the sun glinted off the red highlights.  

"But you're not by yourself," Grant sneered. "You're with this city guy." Grace was shocked. She had never in her life heard Grant be rude to anyone!  

"Actually my name isn't city guy," Vince cut in politely. "It's Vince Griffin." He held out his hand and for a moment it seemed Grant was truly going to refuse to shake it. It was clear that Grant was jealous of what he'd seen between Grace and Vince but she had always been clear to the man that she saw him as nothing but a friend.  

"Deputy Grant Caudill," Grant grumbled, shaking Vince's hand grudgingly.  

Grace could tell that Grant was squeezing Vince's hand with force but if it was hurting Vince, you couldn't tell by looking at him. A smooth, polite smile formed on his face and Grace didn't like it. It seemed robotic and practiced and it didn't reach his green eyes the way the half grins he gave to her did.  

"Nice to meet you, deputy," Vince replied with a polite tip of his head.  

Grant released his hold on Vince's hand and turned toward Grace, angling his body to leave Vince out of the conversation. "I'll walk you back to church."  

"That won't be necessary, deputy," Vince spoke up before Grace could. "I was going to go finish listening to the sermon myself. We'll let you get back to your jog."  

Grant glared at Vince before shaking his head and leaving them once again alone. Grace looked up at Vince and frowned. "Where did you learn to do that?"  

"Do what?"  

"Fake a smile that way? Whenever I fake a smile, it comes out as more of a grimace."  

"Who says it was fake?" Vince countered.  

Grace rolled her eyes. "I do. I think we've already covered the fact that we are both completely crazy and far too familiar with each other for the short time we've known one another."  

"Yes, we have," Vince agreed, flashing her that half grin and causing her to tremble as he ran his fingertips down her bare arm.  

Grace had been too long without the touch of a man and Vince was nearly causing her to burst into flames right out here on main street! She wondered if he felt as near to losing control as she did.

"I have been well trained," Vince finally replied to her question.  

"Well trained?" Grace raised her brow. "Are you a golden retriever?"  

Vince was beyond shocked when he found himself laughing. How long had it been since he'd truly laughed? So long he couldn't remember.  

Grace smiled. "You have a nice laugh. You should do it more often."  

Vince took her hand in his and began to lead her back toward the church. He looked down at her and nodded. "I believe I will."

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

"Boss, is there a reason you haven't been answering your calls all week? I haven't received a single phone call, text or email."

"I'm sorry, Patricia. I've had different priorities this week," Vince replied as he ran a comb through his thick black hair. It was Saturday and Vince had plans for Grace.  

Meg had closed the diner for the weekend because she and Ben had made arrangements to go out of town and so Vince was going to make sure that Grace relaxed and had fun.  

Over the last week, Vince had realized that Grace was extremely overworked and she wasn't just tired--she suffered from sheer exhaustion. She not only worked two jobs while taking care of her daughter and grandmother but she also did everything else that she could for everyone. From organizing talent show to working with the PTA, Grace took absolutely no time for herself.  

"Different priorities? Your job is your only priority. It's all you have ever cared about," Patricia argued.  

Vince's hand stopped suddenly during his brushing and he stared at his reflection in the mirror. Patricia was right. For his entire life his only priority had been himself, his business, his job. Vince had never made any attempt to truly care about anyone or anything else.  

"Sir, are you still there?" Patricia questioned.  

Vince cleared his throat. "Yeah, I'm here."  

"When are you coming home, sir? The office is falling into complete and utter disrepair without you here."  

"I haven't made any plans to come home just yet," Vince admitted.  

Patricia slammed something on the other end. "That's it! Something very serious is going on with you and I deserve to know what it is. Me telling you that the office was falling apart should have had you rushing back here on the quickest plane!"  

"My priorities are changing," came Vince's simple reply.  

"Does this have anything to do with a certain mountain mechanic?" Victoria asked with a smile in her voice.  

"It has everything to do with her."  

"What about the resort you had planned?"  

"It's on hold," Vince replied and then he frowned. "Actually, it's cancelled."

"Cancelled, sir?" Patricia questioned with amusement.  

"Yes," Vince said with certainty.  

Grace did not ask anyone for anything. The only thing she wanted in the world was for her town to be fixed up but remain otherwise unchanged. Vince was willing to do anything to give that woman exactly what she wanted, even if it meant taking money from his own pocket to get it done. Nothing was too much for Grace.  

"I want you to look into the camping and lodging that we talked about before," Vince informed her.  

Patricia sighed. "Yes sir. Can I ask you a personal question?"

"You've never asked permission to do so before."  

"Are you in love?" Patricia demanded. "I know that I told you to get laid but I certainly never expected you to fall in love."  

"Love?" Vince asked, glancing at himself in the mirror. Was he in love? "I told you that you could ask but how often do I answer?"  

"Never sir," Patricia grumped.  

"Exactly. Now look into those things and then email them to me. I won't have my phone today."  

Patricia laughed. "Are you avoiding your mother and father, sir?"  

"Why yes, yes I am," he replied. "And I haven't had a single headache all week."  

"You're such a grown up."  

"Goodbye Patricia."  

"Goodbye boss."  

---

"Vince!" Cadence cried happily as Vince climbed from his car and she came running from Grace's small yellow house. She jumped into Vince's arms and he hugged her tight as his throat swelled. All week, Vince had spent every spare moment that he could with Grace and her family and he had fallen head over heels for Cadence. Having children had never been something that Vince had thought much about but Cadence had certainly begun to change that.  

Almost as much as Grace had changed his mind about women. Honestly Vince had always seem women as a type of parasite. They were creatures that latched onto men with fat wallets and wanted rich things and fancy surroundings. Yet Grace was different. She did things on her own and refused to ask for help. While that was a trait that Vince admired in her, it also infuriated him because it caused her to work herself into the ground.

"What are you doing this morning?" Vince asked the girl as he sat her down on her feet.  

"Nothing," she replied with an exaggerated sigh. "Mommy is busy."

"Busy?" Vince asked. "Doing what?"  

Cadence wrinkled her nose. "Cleaning."  

"Good morning, Ester!" Vince called out when he saw the elderly woman watching him from the porch.

"George, I told you no. You are beginning to look desperate," she stated with exasperation.  

Vince simply chuckled and shook his head. For some reason Ester had been calling him George all week and seemed to believe he was a jilted lover from her past who was once again desperately attempting to rekindle the flames.  

At first Vince had been unsure about how to respond but Grace's laughter at instantly put him at ease. Grace had a lighthearted way of looking at the world and Vince found it rubbing off on him. No matter what was going on around her, Grace tended to deal with it with laughter. She was truly an inspiration.  

"But Ester, you're just too beautiful to stay away from," Vince lamented as he covered his heart with his hand. Cadence giggled loudly.  

Ester sighed. "I know."  

Vince found himself laughing again. Laughing was something he'd been doing nearly nonstop this week. "You know my granddaughter is single and she's a real looker. She likes you," Ester winked.  

"Grandma, that's enough!" Grace scolded as she stepped out of the house with a flush covering her cheeks.  

Vince took one look at her and fell all over again. And by falling he meant tumbling headlong off a cliff and into a bottomless pit. She was wearing gray lounge pants and a pink tank top. She was in her bare feet and her toenails were painted red. Her face was make-up free, as usual, and her auburn hair was pulled back in a sloppy ponytail. Her cheeks were flushed and her beaming smile brightened up the morning.  

"Can I let you in on a secret, Ester?" Vince asked as he stepped closer to the porch and smiled up at Grace. "I really like her too." Grace's smile widened and her blush deepened. He more than liked that woman but knew she wasn't the type to simply take his word for it. She had been abandoned and let down too many times to have any faith in words alone. Vince didn't blame her. He had been raised around fakeness and had learned not to trust only words as well. There was pure joy on Grace's face and that told Vince all he needed to know.  

"Thank goodness!" Ester exclaimed. "I was worried my husband would have to put his foot down with you."  

"That won't be necessary, Ester. I'll just settle on Grace since I arrived to late to get you," Vince replied with a wink that had Cadence giggling, Grace laughing and Ester blushing furiously.  

"What are you doing today?" Grace asked once the laughter had quieted.  

Vince shrugged. "Where else would I be? I'm on vacation, remember?"  

"What about your job?" Grace demanded quietly as she stared down at her feet. "Don't you need to be getting home?"

Vince wondered what was going on in her head. It was clear that she was trying to distance herself and that surprised him. Over the course of the last week Vince had spent every moment he could with Grace and her family. He could remember how surprised she'd been when she had come home Monday, wore out from work, and found her house clean and dinner already cooking. Vince had thought for sure she was going to cry before she'd excused herself to the bathroom to clean up.  

Vince knew he was probably moving far too fast but watching Grace run herself into the ground was not an option for him. And he could see a difference in her today. She didn't look nearly as tired as she had a week ago and the circles around her eyes had faded.  

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" he teased. 

Teasing? Since when did Vince tease? If Patricia could see him now she’d probably think he’d been kidnapped and replaced with a vincebot. Vince didn’t care what anyone thought. For the first time in his thirty-two years of life, he was happy and he intended to keep being happy even if it meant that no one from his past would recognize him.

"Cadence, go inside with your grandma. Mommy needs to talk to Vince," Grace stated firmly as she pointed toward the door.  

Vince didn't like the way that sounded and he could tell that both Cadence and Ester knew Grace meant business when they both rushed into the house without argument. "What's wrong?" Vince asked cautiously.  

Grace simply rolled her eyes and moved past him toward the woods and the mountainside her house sat beside. "You have to stop this," she warned as she crossed her arms over her chest and focused her gaze just above his shoulder.  

Vince knew she was avoiding looking at him on purpose and so he moved himself into her line of vision and gave her no choice. "What do I need to stop?"  

"Being so damn perfect!" Grace exclaimed.  

Vince frowned at her sudden snap of temper. "I'm not perfect, Grace," Vince assured her. He was uncertain about what was wrong with her and not at all used to opening up or having conversations about emotions and feelings. He was even more unaccustomed to beating around the bush. He was more the type to take a problem by the horns, tackle it to the ground and fix it.  

"Yes you are!" Grace insisted. "You showed up in town like some knight in shining armor and suddenly you're here everyday and helping me with everything! Cooking, cleaning...."

Vince held up his hand. "Why don't you tell me what's really wrong with you? I'm not good at playing detective."

Grace sighed as she chewed on her bottom lip and looked down at her feet. What she wanted was to throw herself into his arms and let him kiss her senseless. She wanted him to teach her what it felt like to truly be made love to by a man and not a teenage boy in a hormone fueled lust. She wanted to place all her faith in Vince and let him take all her worries away.  But none of those things were things she could allow to let happen. Not when Vince could pack up and leave any moment.  

"You're temporary," she finally managed to whisper around the lump in her throat. Vince was quiet for so long that Grace wondered if he'd even heard her at all. She found the strength to look up at his face and the look of uncertainty in his green eyes took her breath.  

"You uh..." Vince cleared his throat. "You don't want me to stay?"  

"No! No, it's not that!" Grace assured him as she reached out and laid her hand on his bare forearm. Vince looked so good today. He was wearing a black t-shirt, a worn pair of jeans and scuffed boots. He looked like some kind of movie star but it was more than just his looks that had Grace falling in love with him.  

She loved his warm and caring spirit. She loved the way he treated Cadence and the way Cadence loved him. She loved how calm and understanding he'd been toward Ester, even when her grandmother insisted on calling him George.  

And then there was the way Vince was toward Grace herself. He was spoiling her, plain and simple. He'd been cooking her meals,  helping with the cleaning, going over Cadence's flash cards with her and watching Jeopardy with Ester. And he'd been doing all of that just so Grace would have more time for relaxing. Grace had rested more in the last few days than she had in the last few years.  

Every night when Vince would leave, Grace would walk him to the door and he would spend several long moments simply studying her face as if trying to memorize every inch of it but he had never once tried to kiss her.  

Grace was terrified. Falling in love and needing someone was a very dangerous and scary thing and Grace was beginning to find herself doing both.  

"Then what do you mean by temporary?" Vince asked quietly, his voice an eerie sort of calm as if he were just waiting for a storm to hit.  

"I mean you're on vacation," Grace replied. "And that means you'll be leaving soon and I.. I don't want to get too used to you being around."  

Vince swallowed hard. "What if I told you that I'm here for as long as you'll keep me around?"  

Grace blinked several times and shook her head. "But you own a company! You have to get back to it!"  

Vince shrugged. "I built my company from the ground up and I have a staff in place that is very capable of running it without my daily presence. And there are always e-mails, instant messages and video chats for those times they need my input. I have several employees who are fully capable of taking over my office and I would still be within reach if something too serious came up."  

"What are you saying?" Grace gasped. "Are you saying that you want to stay here? In Clifton?"  

Vince grinned that half grin that put those lines around his mouth as he ran his knuckle across her cheek gently. "I'm saying you need to get Ester and Cadence ready and come to the park with me for a picnic."  

Grace was left reeling by his sudden change of topic and she glared at him. "That law school background is showing itself again," she scolded. Vince simply chuckled quietly. Grace sighed. "What do you want to take on our picnic? I'll go pack it."  

"Already done," Vince countered. "I told Meg yesterday that I was taking you on a picnic today and she got everything ready and it's in the car waiting. All you have to do is bring yourself."  

Grace smiled and threw her arms around his neck, feeling more cherished than ever in her life as he held her tight. She put her lips to his ear and felt his grip tighten. "You are amazing," she whispered, knowing that it was the truth and being scared to death of it all at the same time.

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

"Where are we going, mommy?" Cadence asked the next morning as Grace helped her into black leggings, a white t-shirt and a red corduroy jumper.  

"We're going to go to town and surprise Vince with breakfast." Grace poked her nose gently. "He's been taking such good care of us that it's time we do something for him."  

Cadence's brow wrinkled up. "What about church?"  

"We might go to service this evening," Grace replied. "Your grandma is too wore out from yesterday to get up and go this morning."  

Grace brushed out Cadence's long blond hair as the girl hopped from foot to foot. They made their way into the living room and Grace swooped down and kissing her grandmother's wrinkled cheek as the woman sat in her recliner and watched her shows. "Are you sure you don't want to come, grandma?"  

"I'm sure, Grace, just go on without me. The trip to the park yesterday wore me out." Grace smiled and nodded as relief filled her. Ester was having one of the clearest and best mornings that Grace could remember in recent history. She wouldn't have to worry at all about leaving her here for a few hours.  

 Grace was getting ready to lead Cadence out the door when the phone rang. She sighed, backtracked to the corner of the kitchen and picked it up. "Hello?"  

"Hello Grace." Grace recognized Grant's voice and wondered why he was calling her. He hadn't spoken two words to her since catching her and Vince nearly kissing on the street.  

"Good morning, Grant," Grace replied, sparing a glance at the clock. She had to get to town soon before Vince had the chance to make it here, because she had no doubts he probably planned on coming.  

"I need to talk to you." Grant sounded serious. "Can we meet this morning?"

"Actually I had plans and I was just getting ready to leave. I can meet you later this afternoon if you'd like?"  

"Are you going to see Vince? My news is about him, Grace. He's not the man you think he is," Grant warned.  

Grace felt irritation creep its way in. Grant sounded very much like a five year old taunting her with the age old '

I know something you don’t know’ . “What news do you have, Grant?”

"I'd rather tell you in person. I'll come there if you want...."  

Grace clutched the phone a little tighter. "I don't have time for this, Grant. If there is something truly wrong then you need to tell me now. If not, and this is just some ploy to keep me from Vince, then you need to grow up. I'm sorry your feelings are hurt but I was always clear with you about wanting nothing but friendship. Now I really do have to be going."   

"Where are you going? To spend more time with Vince?" Grant sneered. "You know the whole town is talking about all the time you've been spending together. If you really cared about Cadence you wouldn't do things to cause such rumors to go around."  

Grace nearly yelled with rage as he pushed the magic button. Everything Grace had ever done since Cadence had been born was in the girl's best interest and she didn't like having her motherly instincts questioned. "I'm glad your true colors are finally showing through, Grant," Grace snapped. "I always considered you to be a friend."  

Grant sighed. "I'm just worried about you..."  

"No, you're worried about yourself. Now I have to go. Goodbye." Grace hung up quickly and took several deep breaths to soothe her temper. She didn't want Grant's call to ruin the day with Cadence and Vince. She turned to Cadence with a smile. "Are you ready, gremlin?"  

Cadence nodded happily. "Can I carry the picnic basket?" Grace nodded and handed the basket full of biscuits, honey and fresh fruit salad to her daughter. "Vince will be happy, won't he mommy?" Cadence asked as they headed toward the car.  

"I'm sure he will, Gremlin. He likes you a lot," Grace replied.  

Cadence giggled and hopped in her seat. "I like him a lot too. Does he like you a lot, mommy?"  

"I don't know," Grace said as she buckled Cadence's belt. "I think he does."  

Grace shut the door and walked around the car and Cadence was ready to continue the questioning just as soon as Grace slipped into the driver's seat. "Do you like him, mommy?"  

Grace turned the ignition and nodded. "Yes I do. I like him a lot."  

"Are you falling in love like the princesses in my movies?" Cadence giggled. "You have to dance and kiss if you are!"  

Grace laughed. Oh if only life were as simple as children's movies.  

As Cadence became lost in the songs on the radio, Grace felt a nagging doubt creep into her mind. While she was sure that Grant had been trying to scare her away from Vince on the phone, she also knew that he must know 

something about the man that she didn’t know if he wanted to meet and tell her about it.

What could it be? Grace didn't believe for a second that Vince was dangerous in any way... She decided quickly that the news couldn't be anything too serious. She was just angry that her friend had turned out to be such a selfish ass.  

Grace helped Cadence from the car when they reached the Inn and they walked hand in hand up the back steps and through the door. Vince had told her that he was staying in room four upstairs and so that's where Grace headed.  

Cadence knocked on the door but no one answered. "He's not here," Cadence pouted, her bottom lip coming out a good two inches.  

"He went for a run," Bella, one of the housekeepers informed them as she walked down the hall. "He should be back soon. Would you like me to let you in his room?"  

"I don't know..." Grace bit her lip. She didn't want to make Vince angry or cross any boundaries.  

"He'll be happy to see you," Bella insisted as she waved her hand. "Grace, I don't know what you've done for that man but he's not the same one that he was when he checked in here. He won't mind a bit if you're here and waiting. As a matter of fact, I would say that it would make his day."  

"Yeah, mommy!" Cadence enthusiastically agreed. "Vince loves us!"  

Grace felt a blush flame to life on her cheeks and she knew Bella noticed but the woman said nothing, she simply pulled out her keys and opened the door to Vince's room. "Make yourselves at home," Bella urged with a sweep of her arm and Cadence wasted no time before running in.  

Grace followed her daughter and looked around Vince's place. He hadn't been joking when he'd said he was unorganized. It was plain to see that Vince didn't care about keeping things neat. The bed was unmade, an afghan was tossed carelessly over the couch, dirty clothes were in a crumpled pile on the floor and the tiny kitchenette was a mess.  

"Mommy, can I watch TV?" Cadence asked, hopping up on the couch.  

"Sure Gremlin. I'm going to clean Vince's kitchen for him."  

Grace got the television going and on Cadence's favorite show before going into the kitchenette and getting started on the mountain of dishes that sat there. She was just finishing up the last of the dishes when she heard papers rustling behind her. Grace turned just in time to see Cadence pulling papers and files out of a brown leather briefcase.  

"Cadence, no!" Grace exclaimed. Cadence dropped the papers as if they had burned her as Grace dried her hands on a towel and rushed over.  

"I'm sorry, mommy!" Cadence gasped with tears in her blue eyes.  

Grace sighed. "You'll have to apologize to Vince when he gets back because I have no idea how to put these back the right way. You know better than to mess with grown up things, Cadence."  

"I know, mommy. I'm sorry."  

Grace gave her daughter a reassuring smile and then began to attempt to pick up all the papers. A picture of a brick building caught her eye and Grace pulled it out to study it closer. She recognized the Clifton courthouse. Grace flipped through more pictures and realized that Vince had photos of every business and building around town.  

She found another paper with a list of all the homes that were late on their mortgage and insurance payments. The word acquisition was written at the top and in red ink messy handwriting had scribbled the word doable beside a staggering dollar amount.  

Grace felt her heart breaking as she continued to see paper after paper about her tiny town. She found a computer generated picture labeled 'Clifton'. It was full of high rise hotels, resorts and fancy storefronts. The park, the tiny main street and all of Clifton's old time charm were gone. There was nothing left that was remotely similar to the town that Grace loved so much.  

So this is what Vince was really doing in town. This is what he'd been planning all along. He'd been doing nothing but lying to her.  

---

"Hello, Mr. Griffin," Bella greeted when Vince came back into the inn.  

He ran his hand through his sweaty hair and tipped his head. "I've told you to call me Vince."  

She gave him a teasing smile. "You have guests in your room. Two pretty ladies. The little blond seemed very excited to see you and the auburn haired one smiled a little herself."  

Vince's lips curved in a happy smile before he bounded away, taking the steps three at a time. He had wanted to clean up a bit before seeing Grace but there was no way he'd take the time to use the downstairs bathroom for that now. He wouldn't keep his ladies waiting.  

Vince knocked quietly but no one answered the door and so he opened it and stepped in. He froze instantly when he saw Grace on her knees on the floor with her back to him. Cartoons were playing on the television and Cadence was sitting on the couch watching them.  

"Grace?" Vince called cautiously. Grace leapt to her feet and spun around with anger flashing in her gray eyes. Vince held up his hands. "What's going on?"  

"This!" Grace snapped and Vince realized for the first time that she was holding a fistful of his old paperwork about Clifton.  

"I can explain that," Vince assured her.  

"Don't bother. I might not be big city smart but even I know a rat when I see one," Grace snapped. "You lied to me. You've spent all this time with Cadence and me and the whole time you were planning on buying this town out from under everyone and ruining it! You're going to destroy everything we love!"  

"No, Grace. Listen to me," Vince stated sternly.  

"I'm not interested." Grace threw the papers at him and they scattered on the floor around him. "This is my home, Vince, and I don't know who you think you are but I won't let you destroy it."  

"I don't want to," Vince promised, his heart hurting at this turn of events. "Those papers are old, Grace. Those haven't been the plan for a while now."  

"And why should I believe anything you say now, vacation man?" Grace demanded. She turned to her daughter. "Let's go, Cadence."  

"But I wanted to stay and eat breakfast with Vince," Cadence argued.  

Grace shook her head and pointed a stern finger toward the door. "Let's go." Cadence stuck her bottom lip out in a pout but did as she was told with stomping feet.  

"Grace, if you'd just listen to me... I never actually lied to you.." Vince began but Grace threw him a look that was full of so much disappointment and hurt that it had him falling silent.  

"Didn't they teach you in law school that omission is still a lie?" she asked sadly. Without another word, Grace left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.  

Vince stood there staring at the door and attempting to process what had just happened. He didn't know what had led to Grace finding those papers but he cursed himself a million times for not throwing them away when he'd had the chance. He had taken all those pictures and tallied up all those numbers on his first day in Clifton! And the futuristic picture had been done long before Vince had even come here!

His laptop dinged on the table, letting Vince know he had an email. He opened it to find that Patricia had sent him all the information he had asked her for. It was all the papers and figures about rustic lodges, campgrounds and renovations to the town.  

 "Why couldn't you have sent this ten minutes sooner?" he growled at the computer. Vince clicked print and gathered up the papers as soon as they were ready. All he had to do was show these papers to Grace, make her see that he didn't want to destroy her home and surely she would forgive him for not telling her the real reason he'd come to Clifton.  

Vince dashed from the inn and was about to get into his car when he felt a hand clasp his shoulder. Vince turned to see Grant wearing a smug grin on his face. "Where you going, city boy?"  

"I fail to see how that's any of your business," Vince replied tightly.  

Grant grinned and rocked back on his heels. "Oh it's my business," he assured him. "It's my business if you're on your way to Grace's house. She told me on her way out to make sure you didn't follow her. She's done with you, city boy, and I'll have you arrested if you attempt to contact the woman against her wishes."  

"Is that right?" Vince asked as his free hand clenched tightly into a fist.  

"That's right," Grant replied with a cocky laugh. "Am I gonna get to arrest you today?"  

Vince knew that Grant was blowing hot air but he also didn't doubt that Grace was damn angry with him. He should probably avoid a showdown with the deputy and give Grace time to cool off a bit before he talked to her. "No handcuff will be necessary, deputy," Vince assured him before heading back toward his room.  

His gut was clenched with worry over losing Grace and Cadence.. Vince wasn't sure he could bear it after all they'd done to change him--help him. He sighed as he closed the door to his room and flopped down on the couch. This certainly wasn't how he had wanted today to go.

---

"What's wrong with you this morning, Grace?" LeRoy demanded as he came out of his office at a little after ten to find her sitting beside the van she was supposed to be changing oil in, resting her forehead against the cool metal.  

"Nothing," Grace replied quickly, embarrassed to have been caught looking so vulnerable.  

"Something is wrong with you." LeRoy argued. "You're usually the hardest worker I've ever had and today you've done nothing but sit and stare into space. And I've never seen you go a whole two hours without smiling before."  

Grace sighed. "I guess I'm just upset because I learned that some things weren't what I thought they were."  

"Things?" LeRoy questioned. "Or people? Perhaps a certain person in particular?"  

"He plans on destroying the town, LeRoy. He wants to level everything and bring in resorts and big hotels... he'll ruin the town."   

"Really?" LeRoy raised his brow. "Because when I talked to my brother last week, that wasn't what he said that he and Vince talked about at their bank meeting last Monday."  

"What are you talking about?" Grace demanded as she stood up and wiped her hands on her coveralls.  

"Mitch told me that when Vince first arranged the meeting he had been interested in discussing mortgages that were in default and properties behind on their taxes with the interest of taking them over. However, when Vince got there on Monday, the man had changed his mind and...." LeRoy sighed. "He made arrangements to pay all the mortgages and taxes that were owed just so long as his name could remain anonymous. And he also asked for pictures of the town back in its heyday."  

Grace sat down hard upon the metal toolbox. "He did?" she whispered, attempting to wrap her head around everything.  

"Yes," LeRoy nodded. "As of tomorrow every business and home in and around Clifton will find their mortgages are current and their taxes are paid.  

"I..I don't even know what to say," Grace stammered. She felt more than a little foolish for assuming the worst and storming away from Vince the way she had. She knew she would have to find him during her lunch break and beg for his forgiveness.  

Last night had been the worst night of sleep that Grace had ever had and it hadn't been because of Ester or Cadence who had both slept like logs. No, the problem had been Grace's mind and her heart warring with one another. She had missed Vince. She'd missed his deep voice telling her goodnight, calling her after getting back to his room at the inn and telling her he'd see her tomorrow. She had missed that. She loved that. She loved him, she realized.  

She had been so hurt when she'd thought he was there to destroy her town. She had assumed the worst about him because deep down she had expected him to one day let her down and hurt her because that's what she was accustomed to. Grace had hurt Vince and she was ashamed. She could only hope that he would be more willing listen to her apology than she had his explanation the day before.  

"Well I just thought you should know that," LeRoy muttered. "You obviously love the guy and I can't stand to see you moping around here like some sad-faced clown."  

"A clown?" Grace asked with a smile. "Really?"  

LeRoy chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, you know, one of those one with the sad face."  

"I'm not sad anymore," Grace promised.  

"Good. And you'll talk to the poor man? Bella told me they could hear him pacing his room until way into the morning this morning."

Grace sighed. Bella was married to LeRoy and therefore anything that happened at the inn  was quickly told to LeRoy who then happily retold the story to all the men over Coffee at the diner in the mornings. Small town America was certainly not the place for anyone who liked privacy.

"Yes, I'll talk to him at lunch," Grace assured him. LeRoy nodded and disappeared back inside his office. Grace couldn't seem to stop smiling as she slid beneath the van and got to work.  

She was nearly finished the with oil change when she heard footsteps on the concrete floor of the garage and someone knocked on the wall. "I'll be with you in a minute!" she called out.  

Grace finished fastening the oil pan and slid from under the van. She pulled out her rage and wiped her hands as she stood and turned around. Her breath caught in her chest when he realized that it was Vince standing by the door.  

"I need an oil change," he said with a tiny shrug.  

"Really?" Grace asked, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the van.  

"No, not really." Vince quickly closed the distance between them and fixed her with a determined stare. "I need for a very stubborn-headed, strong-willed woman to please listen to me."  

"Don't you know how to sweep a woman off her feet?" Grace teased.  

Vince shook his head and moved closer. Grace tilted her head back to look into his green eyes. "No, it's not something I've ever had to worry about doing before."  

"That good with women, huh?" Grace mumbled, surprised by the jealousy she felt forming in the pit of her stomach.  

Vince shrugged and appeared uncomfortable. "Most women threw themselves at me but it wasn't because they cared about me or who I really was. They were just throwing themselves at a fat wallet, a full bank account and an unlimited credit card."  

"That's really sad," Grace whispered as she reached up and smoothed a lock of black hair from his brow.  

Vince shifted his feet. "That's just the way it is.. Or was. Grace, you're so different. You're honest and open and real..."  

"I wasn't very nice yesterday when I made giant horses behind out of myself," Grace countered. "I'm sorry, Vince. I should have given you a chance to talk and explain things to me before I ran out."  

"I don't blame you for being upset," Vince assured her. "I would have assumed the worst too after seeing what you saw. I should have thrown those papers away a long time ago but I never have been very organized. Patricia tells me I'm the single most unorganized person she knows."  

"Patricia?"  

"My secretary," Vince replied. "And certifiably the biggest pain I have in my rear but also my only real friend."  

Grace was saddened as she looked up at his handsome face. "You've had a lonely life, haven't you, Vince?"  

Vince shrugged as he cleared his throat. "It's been alright. How can I complain? I've had it a lot better than most."  

"That depends on how you look at things," Grace countered. Then she smiled. "I heard about the bank and the mortgages and taxes."  

Vince's eyes widened slightly. "You did, huh?"  

"Yes. You can't keep secrets for long around here." Then she frowned. "Why would you do that? Why would you change your plans and use your own hard earned money to help so many people that you don't even know?"

Vince tilted his head as he gazed down at her. "For you."  

Grace thought for sure she'd heard the man wrong. "For me?"  

"Yes, for you," Vince repeated. "You do everything for everyone and you ask for nothing. All you wish for is for the town to be returned to they way it used to be and for people to be able to stay here and have work and a place to thrive. I think I've found a way to do that for you. I have the plans right here to show you," Vince held up a folder. "This plan will bring business in without....."

Grace silenced Vince when she rose on her toes, threw her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his.  

---

Vince was too shocked to respond at first but he quickly snapped out of it and his arms snaked around Grace, pulling her body tighter against him.  

Her hands locked around his neck and her fingers buried themselves in his thick hair. Vince tilted her head and moved his lips across hers. One of his hands rose up to cradle the back of her head tenderly.

Vince felt his own knees grow weak when Grace moaned his name and Vince used that moan to deepen the kiss and truly taste her. Her body molded against his and everything else in the world disappeared as Vince became lost in her scent and her taste.  

Never had Vince felt a kiss like this.  His entire body was trembling as he held Grace close and kissed her for all he was worth. He never wanted this to end. He felt so alive. More alive than he had felt in his entire thirty-two years of life. They fit together perfectly and while Vince had suspected so before, he realized for sure in that moment that Grace was his soul mate. She was his one and only. She was the woman he would one day make his wife. She was the woman he would spend every day for the rest of his life making happy.  

"Well hot damn! If I'd of known you offered service like that, I woulda stopped in here a long time ago!" a loud voiced boomed behind them.  

Vince and Grace broke apart quickly but Vince kept one arm firmly around her waist as he spun around to face whoever had interrupted them. "Uncle Pete!" Grace exclaimed much too loudly and quite breathless. Vince was happy to hear that the kiss had impacted her just as deeply as it had him. Her cheeks were flushed and judging by the heat he could feel in his own face, his were too.

"Why hello there, kids," Uncle Pete grinned as he propped his banjo on his side and put his free hand over his very large overall clad belly. 	

"What are you doing here?" Grace asked. "You don't even own a car."  

Uncle Pete laughed and it was a booming sound that seemed to be rising up from his toes. "I came to talk to LeRoy about the bluegrass show we're putting on at the community center tomorrow. You coming?"

"I don't know. We're kind of busy," Grace admitted. "LeRoy's in his office if you wanted to speak to him."  

Uncle Pete winked. "Yeah, I noticed you were busy."  

"Hush!" Grace scolded. "I just meant that I was going to be busy tomorrow!"  

This just made Uncle Pete laugh even more loudly. "If that man's got any brains at all in his head, he'll make sure you're busy every night for the rest of your life." the big man shot back. Grace covered her face and mumbled something that Vince couldn't make out. Uncle Pete turned his attention to Vince. "I don't believe we've met before. My name's Pete but folks 'round here call me Uncle Pete."  

"Vince Griffin," Vince replied holding out his hand and shaking Pete's meaty fist.  

"Nice to meet you, Vince. You really should try to talk that pretty little thing into coming to the show tomorrow night. You could really scrub one off with her."  

Uncle Pete chose then to make his departure to LeRoy's office and Vince stood there blinking several times. "Did he just tell me to...."  

Grace laughed lightly as she spun and put herself back in his arms. "No, he didn't. He means dance. He says that to anyone around here that's new just to get a reaction. He told you to take me to the show and dance with me."  

"To bluegrass?" Vince asked.  

"Yes, but I'm going to be too busy," Grace admitted.  

"Not sure I'd know how to dance to bluegrass," Vince mused. "I know how to ballroom dance like no one's business but...."

"Ballroom?" Grace interrupted with a smile.  

"Yes," Vince nodded. "I'm very good."  

"I've never met a ballroom dancer before," Grace stated before a snort of laughter that she couldn't stop burst from her mouth.  

Vince couldn't believe it. "You're laughing at me!" he accused. Grace shook her head before pursing her lips so tightly together that they nearly disappeared. Vince smiled. "I'll have you know I'm multi-talented. I can ballroom dance, play football and I even speak four languages."  

"Football might counteract the ballroom dance," Grace said graciously. "What position did you play?"  

Vince sighed. "Quarterback."  

Grace's gray eyes twinkled with mischief. "The wimpiest position on the team after the kicker."  

"Wimpy?" Vince demanded. And when Grace broke down into a fit of laughter, Vince found himself laughing right along with her. "You are a wicked woman," he scolded as he bent to pick up the folder he'd dropped during their kiss.  

"I'm sorry, Vince. It's just, you get so serious sometimes and I have to lighten you up."  

Vince shook his head. "You have no idea how serious I was before I met you. If you knew what you and Cadence had done for me already..."

"I love you, Vince," Grace whispered before she flushed bright red and quickly turned away from him. She was wringing her hands and appeared ready to bolt.  

"Grace, sweetheart, turn around," Vince urged gently, though he felt as if his heart was going to burst right out of his chest at her admission. Hell, it felt real good to hear Grace say those words.  

Grace turned slowly but kept her eyes trained on his gray t-shirt instead of up looking up at his face. Vince sighed, put his finger under her chin and raised her gaze to his. "I'm going to make a confession," he said, giving her a little half grin. "I love you too. I never had much of a family. I was raised by nannies and tutors. My parents love me but they never knew what to do with a child. You, Cadence and Ester  have given me something I've never had. I know it's fast, Grace, but the three of you mean everything to me."  

Grace blinked up at him, clearly at a loss for words and so Vince continued. "I have always been so focused on work and nothing else. My employees made fun of me behind my back because I was so stern and emotionless. I wasn't sad. I wasn't happy. I was numb. I felt completely dead inside and then one look at your smile changed all of that. I know you are one hell of a strong woman and you don't need a man to help you but I'd like to stick around and be your man. Will you let me do that?"

"Did you take public speaking classes too?" Grace asked with misty eyes. "Because you give one heck of a speech."  

Vince smiled a real smile. "Yes, I have quite a few closing arguments in law school."  

"I'll bet you won them, didn't you?"  

Vince tipped his head. "Most of the time."

Grace wrapped her arms back around his neck and their lips found one another once again. Vince was the first to pull away and he smoothed a strand of hair from Grace's face before holding up his folder. "I really want to show you this."  

Grace shook her head. "I trust you."  

Vince opened the folder. "But I want your approval."  

Grace smiled. "You're really excited about this, aren't you?"  

"Yes," Vince shoved his free hand through his hair. "I've never been this excited about a project before. It's nerve wracking to be honest with you."  

Grace laughed and moved closer to his side. "Okay, show me."  

Vince began showing her the pictures and plans. She pointed at one in particular. "You own that land?"  

Vince nodded. "It's an abandoned mining claim and the only land I bought since it wasn't owned by a citizen of the town. I figured that would be a good place for the lodges and cabins."

Grace nodded and Vince continued showing her what he'd been working on. He could tell that his excitement was beginning to rub off on her as they discussed the three story log cabin lodge he had planned and the rustic cabins he was busy designing for those that wanted privacy but didn't wish to stay in a tent or RV.

He showed her the side notes he'd made to get in touch with the park committees and discuss sprucing up the land to draw in more tourism and interest. And he'd also begun working with his advertising department to create commercials and ads about the natural beauty in White County to bring attention to the area.  

Grace suddenly took a step back and held up her hand. "Wait, are you doing all of this out of pocket?"

"No, I'm using company money for this but I'll cover any initial losses. I really think that in the long run this will be successful financially, but more than that, it will make you happy. Just look at how much business this could generate here in town and how many jobs this could bring in."  

"You are amazing," Grace whispered and Vince swelled with pride. She glanced back down at the folder and pointed at a picture of Clifton's main street. "What about this?"  

"This is a side project. I'd have to get the okay of the business owners but I'd like to clean up and repaint the buildings. They could all use new windows and roofs and minor repairs. I'd like to fix all the neon add a few more flower boxes and redo the sidewalks."

"Did you honestly plan all of this in a week?" Grace demanded.  

 "Yes."  

"And are you using company money for this too?"  

"No, I can't touch the company money for something like this," Vince replied as he began fixing all the papers so they'd once again fit nicely in his folder.  

"Then where's the money coming from?" Grace asked, her tone clipped.  

"Me," Vince replied simply.  

Grace crossed her arms over her chest and stared hard at him. "Where'd the money to pay the mortgages and taxes come from?"  

"Me," Vince repeated. Her stare turned into a glare and her hands went to her hips. "What's wrong?"  

"I'm not the kind of woman you can buy, Vince," Grace snapped. "You don't have to spend money to impress me."  

Vince sighed and took her into his arms. He rested his cheek on her head and felt her warm breath teasing his neck. "I know," he promised. "I've seen enough of that kind of woman to recognize a good one. I want to do this for you, Grace. Don't worry about the money I'm spending. I have plenty."  

"Define plenty," Grace requested, her voice muffled against him.  

"I'm worth millions. Add to that my multi-million dollar company, the couples hundred millions in the trust fund that I've never touched, my penthouse and the summer estate in upstate New York that my parents gave to me and I never step foot into, and I can safely that spending this money won't hurt me. And I wouldn't care if it did," Vince added. "If it made you happy then it would be worth it."  

Grace was silent a long time and Vince grew worried. "Grace, honey, are you okay?"  

"I... I'm not sure," Grace whispered. "I'm just trying to wrap my head around all that... I've never in my life even dreamt of money like that. I'm lucky if I can afford to get Cadence a new pair of shoes when her old ones begin falling apart."  

Vince tensed. "Does it bother you?"  

"No," Grace assured him, looking up into his eyes. "You are amazing, Vince. You're smart, kind, successful, generous and honest. What more could a woman ask for?"  

"There's not a single person who would agree with you about the generous, kind or honest part. I've been a pretty cold hearted ass most of my life. It was always just business when I hurt someone--or at least that's how I looked at it."

Grace laid her hand on his cheek. "And now?"  

"Now I'm seeing things in a whole new way." Vince was lowering his mouth to kiss her when her cell phone rang.  

She muttered under her breath and pulled it from the pocket of her coveralls. "Hello?" Vince couldn't hear what was said on the other end but he knew it wasn't good when all the color drained from Grace's face. "Thank you. I'll be right there," she promised before flipping the phone closed and shoving it back in her pocket.  

"What's wrong?" Vince demanded.  

"It's Cadence. There's trouble at school and I have to go."  

"You're not going anywhere alone," Vince countered. "I'm coming with you." Grace simply nodded and they headed for the door.

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Grace's feet took on a mind of their own when she stepped into the school and heard her daughter sobbing. She ran into the main office and Cadence rushed to her, throwing her arms around her waist and burying her face in Grace's coveralls which were quickly soaked through with tears.  

"You're okay, Gremlin," Grace reassured her daughter gently as Mr. Franks and Mrs. Avery looked on. Mr. Franks' expression was stern and angry while Mrs. Avery appeared scared and worried. Both of them wore similar expressions of shock when Vince came striding slowly into the office as well, though he remained near the door and out of the way.  

What's going on?" Grace asked as she pulled Cadence away from her slowly. Her entire body froze when she saw the purple welt on Cadence's cheek. She turned her gaze to the principal and teacher and clenched her fist. "Why is there a bruise on my daughter's face?"  

At that announcement Vince pushed himself away from the wall and went to Cadence. He ran his finger over her welted, tear-stained cheek and fixed the principal and teacher with a predatory gaze. He was Vincent Griffin's son after all and had mastered a gaze quite similar to his fathers.  

"What happened here?" Vince demanded in a voice that commanded answers. He knew that Grace was too focused on Cadence to be in any shape to have the talk that needed to be had.  

"Perhaps we should step into my private office?" Mr. Franks suggested with a wave of his hand. Vince nodded. He wrapped his arm tight around Grace's shoulder and led them both into the office. His eyes fell on a boy sitting in the corner beside Mr. Franks desk. He appeared to be around ten or eleven and it appeared as if he'd been crying and was now trying very hard not to.  

"Now, I think we need to hear exactly what happened," Vince stated as he crossed his arms over his chest and stood over Grace and Cadence who had taken a seat in the leather chairs in front of the desk.  

"I'm terribly sorry," Mrs. Avery wept as she wrung her hands. "I let the children leave ahead of me to go to the cafeteria and apparently the boys began to pick on Cadence in the hallway."  

"And what happened in the hallway?" Vince asked the boy who was staring down at his sneaker clad feet.  

"Apparently Jackson and his friends began to pick on Cadence in the hallway and, of course Cadence's response was to throw a punch," Mr. Franks replied before Jackson could speak.  

"They pulled my hair," Cadence accused, covering her head with her hand.  

"I didn't!" Jackson exclaimed. "I swear I didn't do that! We was just fooling.. Just having a bit of fun."  

"You think it's fun to pick on those that can't defend themselves?" Vince questioned with a raise of his brow. "That is not having fun. That is being a coward and a bully. You aren't that kind of child, are you?"  

"No sir," Jackson replied, meeting Vince's gaze. "It wasn't me that pulled her hair, it was Kyle. She turned around to punch him and he moved so she fell and hit her face on the lockers. That's how it happened, honest!"  

"Why would your friend Kyle pull Cadence's hair?" Grace asked as Cadence whimpered beside her.  

"One of the other boys dared him to," Jackson replied with a shrug.  

Grace turned to Mr. Franks. "Deputy Caudill said that he comes by here several times a week. Was he here today?"  

"Yes he's here today, Miss Collins. He'll be in the cafeteria at this time." Vince saw a look of fear on Cadence's face at the mention of Grant's name and he didn't like it.  

"So what's going to happen now?" Vince asked.  

"Kyle has already been taken home by his parents. He is suspended for three days because of his conduct. Jackson here is going to have detention for the week and I'm afraid that you'll have to take Cadence home for the day," Principal Franks replied.  

"Of course," Grace snapped, rising to her feet. "I wouldn't leave her here like this anyhow."  

"I'm very sorry this happened," Mrs. Avery whispered as they stepped out into the hall.  

Grace turned to her. "Mrs. Avery, I know that your job is difficult but please don't allow my daughter to go into the halls unsupervised. Especially now that we know other children are giving her a hard time."  

"Oh but they weren't alone!" Mrs. Avery assured her. "Grant... I mean Deputy Caudill, was walking with them. That's why I really don't understand how this happened."  

Vince nodded curtly. "Thank you, Mrs. Avery." The woman seemed to know she was being dismissed and she scurried away quickly.  

"I need to have a talk with Grant," Grace hissed.  

"Mommy, Grant is mean," Cadence whispered, tugging on the greasy sleeve of Grace's coveralls. "He was laughing," she added before wrapping herself around Vince's leg.  

Vince felt ice fill his veins. He barely managed to ground out the words. "He did what?"  

"He laughed but when I fell he ran away...."

"The principal said he's in the cafeteria. I'm going there now," Grace growled.  

Vince shook his head. "I'll go. You should take Cadence home and get her settled down."  

Grace's eyes flashed with temper. "But I should..."  

Vince laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Partners remember? Now you're in no shape to go have a showdown with him without tearing his head off. Let me deal with Grant and you tend to Cadence. She needs you right now."   

Grace took a deep breath and nodded. "You're right. She's upset and I need to focus on her." Grace bit her lip. "Vince, just remember that he's a cop so you can't..."

Vince chuckled. "I'm not a violent person by nature so he should be okay."  

Vince watched Grace and Cadence walk out the wide double doors of the school before setting off for the cafeteria. Thanks to the din of noise coming from within, the room was easy to find. Vince scanned the crowd for Grant and it didn't take long to spot the man. He was wearing jeans and a t-shirt and was lounged against the wall speaking to a woman who Vince assumed was a supervisor. Grant wasn't wearing a gun and Vince wondered if the man was off duty. He quickly crossed the circular room with wide and purposeful steps.  

"Hello Grant," he said with a polite, controlled tone that years of training had taught him well.  

Grant's eyes widened and he cleared his throat as he stood straight. "Hello Vince." Vince took note of the fact that even standing as straight as he could, Grant was still a good six inches shorter.  

"Can we step outside and speak for a moment?" Vince asked politely.  

Grant spared a glance toward the young woman beside him and then sneered as he returned his gaze to Vince. "I don't think so. I'm not going to spend my day off talking to some city boy."  

"If it's your day off then why are you here in the first place?" Vince inquired, folding is hands behind his back.  

"That's none of your business, city boy. Now if you've got a problem why don't you just come down by the station when I'm on duty and we can discuss it."  

"You can stop calling me city boy, Grant. I think you've made it clear that I'm not from around here. And why won't you come outside with me? You'll bully little girls that can't defend themselves but you won't come out for a quick chat with a 

city boy ?“

Grant swallowed hard and once again looked at the woman beside him who was frowning as she stared between the two men. Finally Grant shook his head. "I'm not scared of you, Vince. If you want to have a chat, let's go have a chat."  

Grant quickly walked away and Vince tipped his head to the lady before following after him, keeping his hands folded behind his back because he wasn't quite sure he trusted himself enough to let them loose.  

Once outside and out on the sidewalk in front of the school, Grant spun around. "So what's this chat about, city boy?"  

"I want to talk about what kind of twisted coward encourages adolescent boys to tease and torment a poor handicapped girl who can't defend herself," Vince replied, his tone calm and even.  

Every ounce of color drained from Grant's face. "I didn't have anything to do with what happened to Cadence this morning."  

"So you're a twisted coward and a liar on top of that. Those boys were being encouraged by someone and I'd be willing to bet my last dollar that that someone was you. Cadence admitted to her mother and I that you laughed at her."  

Grant puffed out his chest and clenched his fists. "I'm about tired of you calling me names! Them boys were just fooling around. Boys will be boys."  

Vince's own temper was raging but he kept his manner cool and collected. "I wonder if the sheriff knows what kind of man his deputy is? I wonder if he would things the same way as you do. Does he believe that 

boys will be boys ?“

"Is that a threat?" Grant demanded.  

Vince shrugged nonchalantly. "We could just settle this right here," he suggested. "I know you like picking on little girls and this might sound cliché but, why don't you pick on someone your own size?"  

"You want to fight me?" Grant demanded incredulously.  


"It wouldn't matter if I did. A worthless coward such as yourself isn't man enough to throw a punch. At least not against a man who would be more than a match for you."  

"That's it!" Grant exclaimed. "You come down here and worm your way into Grace's life while filling her head full of lies about who you are and what you want with this town.. You never should have come here!"  

Vince shook his head. "You're just throwing a temper because she turned you down, Grant. Maybe she could see that deep down you were nothing but a boy and what she wanted all along was a man."  

Vince was aware of the sheriff at the tiny gas station across the street watching their confrontation. It was clear that Grant had not noticed the man. "I'm gonna kick your damn ass!" Grant bellowed. His fist flew out and caught Vince hard in the jaw.  

Vince felt the pain all the way to his toes and his head rang. It would seem the little man packed quite a punch! Vince's plan, once seeing the sheriff, had been to goad Grant into throwing a punch and then letting the sheriff deal with him. But now? Now that Vince's blood was rushing and his head was throbbing, he wanted to bloody a couple knuckles of his own.  

The quiet and despondent Vince that he had been for the first thirty-two years of his life would never do anything so impulsive and out of control but he had changed quite a bit in the last nine days or so.  

He clenched his fist, pictured Grant's face as a punching bag and let his arm go with thirty-two years of pent up aggression surging behind it. Grant stumbled backward, spit out blood and soon the two men were wrestling around on the ground with the sound of boot steps pounding on the pavement toward them.  

---

"I'm really not a bad guy," Grant muttered through his fat lip as he and Vince sat across from one another in a jail cell a short time later.  

"You could have fooled me," Vince replied as he shook his wrist. The momentary rush he had gotten from turning Grant's face into mush was long forgotten now that his knuckles burned and his hand ached.  

Grant let out a long, angry huff and it whistled quite comically through his busted nose. Vince wanted to laugh but his own bruised and aching jaw kept his laughter at bay.  

"I'm not a bad guy and I didn't want those boys to hurt Cadence. I should have stopped them from picking on her and I guess it makes me a pretty big ass since I didn't, but I didn't want her to be hurt."  

"Why did you let them do it?" Vince demanded.  

Grant shrugged as he kicked at the dirty concrete floor with the toe of his sneaker. "I don't know..." he admitted. "I really don't now."  

Vince could hear true regret in the man's voice and it was almost enough to make Vince feel sympathy for the man.. And that almost, of course, was not at all. The two men fell silent for a long while before Sheriff Martin Short walked up to the cell.  

"Well, Mr. Griffin, this isn't exactly how I wanted to have my first real meeting with you," he stated, putting his hands on the bars.  

"It's not what I had planned either, sir," Vince admitted, rising to his feet.  

The sheriff pulled a ring of keys from his belt and unlocked the door. He motioned for Vince to step out and Grant growled when the sheriff shut the door behind him, leaving the deputy locked inside. As Sheriff Short led Vince toward the main door, Vince let his gaze take in the jail.  

"This place looks like a jail from an old western," he said.  

"That's exactly what it is," Sheriff Short replied. "Not many jails are built into the bottom of the courthouse anymore and they quit using wood and steel quite a few years ago."  

"How much do I need to pay for my release?" Vince asked as the sheriff handed him his wallet, keys and cell phone.

Sheriff Short shook his head. "Nothing. Word gets around in towns like these, Mr. Griffin, and I've heard about more than one charitable donation you've made. And seeing as how Grant was the one in the wrong here, no matter how you slice it...."

Vince sighed. "Take it easy on him. I pushed him into hitting me and I knew exactly what I was doing. I think he truly regrets doing what he did with those boys this morning and you should probably just let him out. I don't think he'll be repeating that mistake again any time soon."  

"I'm sure he won't!" Sheriff Short agreed. "You taught him that lesson good. You know, for a man from the city you sure do throw a good punch." Vince heard Grant grumble from inside his cell. "Are you sure you don't want to press charges?" Sheriff Short asked. "You have every right to since he threw that first punch."  

Vince tipped his head. "I'm sure. I can't say what Grace will want to do about what happened with Cadence but as far as what happened on that sidewalk, it's over as far as I'm concerned."  

Vince shook the sheriff's hand and then stepped out the doors and into the sunlight. He stood on the sidewalk a moment simply breathing in fresh air and was quickly joined by Grant. "Well I'm on light duty for a while but it could have been worse," Grant admitted. "Thanks for not pressing charges."  

Vince frowned and wondered what light duty in this town meant. As far as he could tell their crime rate was in the negative digits and even the cops on regular duty did little more than eat donuts and guzzle coffee. Vince shook his head. "I didn't do it for you, Grant. Truth is I have no respect for a man who will do what you did. I did it for Grace because you used to be her friend and so I'm hoping you have some hidden redeeming qualities that I've yet to see."  

Grant hung his head and stuck his hands in his pockets. "I've known Grace all my life and I've been in love with her for about as long. I just couldn't figure why she'd pick some outsider form the damn city over me."  

"So you were jealous? Jealousy made you treat Cadence that way? If you want to be some hard nosed son of a bitch with me because I stole your girl then that's just fine but you'll leave that little girl alone, do you understand?" Vince practically snarled, regretting the fact that his hand was hurting because throwing another punch was looking like a nice prospect.  

"Hey now, I never hurt Cadence and I didn't tell those boys to either. I just didn't... stop them," Grant muttered the last words and sighed. "I know it was wrong, Vince, and I'm ashamed, alright? It won't happen again and I plan on having a talk with those boys about the dangers of bullying."  

"You should heed your own words, officer," Vince warned.  

Grant nodded. "Point taken."  

Vince was about to turn and walk away but paused. "I think you should know that I'm not going anywhere."  

"I'm starting to get that impression," Grant admitted. He stood straighter and fixed Vince with a hard stare. "You better be good to Grace. That woman has had a damn hard life and doesn't need you coming in and breaking her heart."  

Vince nearly laughed. "I hardly think you have any right to be telling me how to treat Grace after what you've done. Since I've already told her and I hear that news travels fast in this town I figure it'll only be a matter of time before you find out so I'll just tell you now--I love that woman and I love Cadence and I would never do anything to hurt either one of them." He looked down his nose at Grant. "I'm not the kind of man who would do a thing like that." Vince's final words were dripping with blame and Grant once again lowered his head in shame.  

---

"What happened to your face?!" Grace demanded when she opened her door and saw Vince standing on the porch with an angry welted, bruise on his jaw.  

"I tripped and fell and smacked it on a fist," Vince replied with a grin and wink at Cadence who was giggling behind Grace.  

"Cadence, mommy will be right back," Grace said sternly before putting her hand on Vince's chest and pushing him backward so she could walk out onto the porch. She closed the door behind her and put her hands on her hips. "Grant hit you?"  

"I hit him back," Vince assured her. He put his hands on her bare upper arms and stroked her shoulders with his thumbs. Grace knew he loved it when she wore tank tops and she could feel the rush of heat from his touch clear to her toes.  

"I thought you said you weren't a violent person," she reminded him, doing her best to ignore what his fingertips were stirring within her.  

Vince nodded. "And we've already covered the fact that you've changed me."  

Grace shook her head and fought back a smile. "So I've turned you into a violent maniac?"

Vince grinned a lazy half grin that always made her weak in the knees. "No, silly woman. You've made me feel, Grace. I was numb before and ever since I met you I..." Vince paused when Grace looked down at her feet. "What's wrong?" he asked.  

Grace swallowed hard and lifted her gaze back to his. "It's just that you say the nicest things."  

Vince's brow rose. "And that's a bad thing?"  

Grace sighed. "I'm just not used to hearing them... at least not from someone who means them."  

"I mean them, Grace," Vince vowed. "And don't let anyone make you believe differently for a solitary second. And you might as well get used to hearing them because I've been saving them up for a long time."  

"I love you," Grace whispered.  

Vince swooped low and captured her lips in a kiss. It was different from the kiss they'd shared in the garage. It was slower, softer and somehow sweeter. It was full of less lust and more tenderness. When Vince finally pulled away, Grace's head was spinning.  

He put his hands on her cheeks and smiled. "Likewise," he replied leaning in and brushing his lips against her ear. It wasn't until Grace put her hand on his cheek and saw him wince in pain that she remembered his run in with Grant's fist.

"So, how does the other guy look?" she asked, unable to fully hide her amusement. Grant deserved to have the hell beat out of him after what he'd done to Cadence and Grace hoped that Vince had done just that.  

Vince smiled. "Let's just say he can whistle a very lovely tune through his nose and he won't be sucking from a straw for at least a week." Grace laughed loudly and Vince chuckled as well.  

Grace reached out her hand and took his in it. "Well come on then, Rocky. Let's get you some ice for that jaw."

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Grace was exhausted when she finally made it home the next day. Vehicle after vehicle had driven into the garage which was odd in a community where many people worked on their own cars. Grace had been forced to work through her lunch and she was disappointed when Vince hadn't shown up to give her a hard time about it.  

Picking Cadence up from school had been interesting, to say the least. Mr. Franks had been doing some major butt kissing to both Grace and Cadence and while Grace was happy to see him treating her daughter with more kindness, she couldn't help but wonder what had caused the sudden turnaround.  

After all of that, Grace and Cadence had had to stop by the store and get groceries. But Grace forgot the majority of her stress when she pulled in the driveway and saw that Vince's car was sitting there. Grace's arms were loaded with shopping bags as she made her way up to the house with Cadence skipping and dancing around her. The door opened and Vince came hurrying out, taking a good majority of the bags and lightening her load.  

"What are you all dressed up for?" Grace asked as she looked him up and down. He was wearing a pair of jeans that fit him perfectly, emphasizing his long lean legs and nice rear. His brown leather work boots appeared to be new and he had on a blue and gray checked flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up on his forearms. He looked good enough to eat and Grace's mind instantly went in a very naughty direction.  

Vince's next words were enough to bring her out of her daydreams about night things. "We're going dancing."  

"Dancing?" Grace demanded as she stepped into the house and dropped her bags on the counter. "What are you talking about?"  

"Can I go? Can I go?" Cadence exclaimed, jumping up and down.  

"Of course you can," Vince replied, ruffling her hair. "You'll have to dance with me and teach me just how to dance to blue grass."  

"I can wear my pretty flower dress!" Cadence yelled, before dashing off to her room to find it.  

"George, will you be willing to twirl me around the room a time or two?" Ester asked from her chair in the living room.  

Vince grinned. "My night would not be complete without spinning you around at least twice."  

"Thanks a lot," Grace huffed as she began emptying the bags and laying the groceries on the counter.  

Vince frowned. "What did I do?"  

"You've made it so I have to be the bad guy when I tell them we can't go to the bluegrass show," Grace informed him with irritation.  

"And why can't we go?" Vince asked calmly.  

"I told Uncle Pete yesterday that I would be too busy. Weren't you listening?"  

"Yes, I was listening. I thought you were just trying to get rid of Uncle Pete and get back to kissing me." Vince gave her a wink that had her smiling despite her annoyance.  

Grace sighed. "Vince, I have too much to do."  

"What do you have to do?" Vince asked. "Tell me and I'll see what I can do to help."  

"You have some kind of a hero complex, don't you?" Grace demanded, opening the cupboard and stuffing a cereal box inside.  

Vince handed her a second box. "Hero complex?"  

"Yes. You rode on in and have taken it upon yourself to try to fix every issue in my life."  

Vince seemed to think a moment and then he nodded. "Yes. My life's mission is to see you happy and smiling always. I guess that means I have a hero complex when it comes to you."  

"At least you admit you have a problem," Grace grumbled as she put the milk in the refrigerator.  

"That's where you're wrong," Vince countered, catching her on her way back around the kitchen and pulling her into his arms. "I don't see it as a problem."  

He gazed down into her eyes and Grace found her body molding against his as if it had a mind of its own. "Now tell me," he urged. "What has you so busy?"  

Grace laid her cheek against his chest and listened to his heartbeat beneath her ear. "I was an idiot and agreed to help with the festival that's coming up which means I have a gazillion cookies, cakes, pies and pastries to make. Plus, now they want me to make cookbooks with grandma's recipes so we can sell them to all the out of town people who come in just for the festival and love her baked goods."  

"So baking and making cookbooks?" Vince frowned. "That's the reason you can't go?"  

"Yes," Grace sighed. "I have to get started putting the recipes together and I have to plan a trip to Lexington so I can go to a print shop there and have them all put together and made into books. I also have to get all my crusts and dough ready so I can freeze them all until closer to time or it will be a mad dash later."  

Vince shrugged. "How about I help?"  

Grace lifted her head and raised a brow as she looked up at him. "Help? No offense, Vince, but you can't bake as was proven by your attempt to bake corn bread earlier this week. I believe this is one time when you simply can't help me."  

Grace saw his green eyes flash and she realized that she had just challenged him instead of discouraging him. She groaned. She had known that Vince was the man who took on anything that challenged him head on and her big mouth had just ensured that he wasn't going to drop this.  

"Watch me," he warned. He pulled away from her and fished his cell phone from his pocket.  

"You actually have it with you today?" she asked and he grinned guiltily.  

"Yes, I've been neglecting my responsibilities lately and I figured I should at least carry the thing. I'm going to put it on speakerphone so you can 

meet who I’m talking about when I talk about Patricia.“

Grace simply nodded and stood there silently. She had no idea how his secretary would be any help with a festival but she would humor him and see what Vince had up his sleeve. He dialed a number quickly and it began to ring.  

"Griffin Real Estate and Development," a bored voice picked up on the fourth ring.  

"Why do you sound so sad when you answer the phone, Patricia? Part of your contract states that you are to sound happy and welcoming when answering calls," Vince scolded with amusement in his eyes.  

"Are you teasing me, boss? I have no idea how to respond to something like that."  

"I need you to do something for me," Vince stated.  

Patricia laughed lightly. "Of course you do. Sir, do you realize that this is the longest I've gone without seeing that sour face of yours? I haven't been glared at, snapped at or told to mind my own business and simply do what I was hired to do in weeks! I am addicted, sir, and I need my crack back."  

"Are you really that mean?" Grace whispered teasingly.  

"Who was that?" Patricia demanded, sounding very curious. "That sounded like it just might be a certain mountain mechanic you've mentioned several times.  

Grace's eyes widened and she was certain that Vince's cheeks flushed a bit. "Her name is Grace," Vince replied. "And there's something I need you to do, as I've already said."  

"Yes, yes. Down to business as usual. You are a workaholic, boss, or at least you used to be before you got lost in those mountains. Nice to meet you, Grace. I hope you're taking good care of my lost little butterfly."  

Grace frowned. "Butterfly?"  

Vince pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers and shook his head. "Don't ask. Patricia, do you think you could focus?"  

"There's that surly tone I've missed so much. What do you need, sir?"  

Vince blew out a long breath. "I need you to put that publishing degree of yours to good use."  

"I thought I did that everyday, sir? You hired me based on my exceptional publishing skills and my superb secretarial expertise."  

"I hired you because you came for the interview and refused to leave," Vince countered.  

Patricia clicked her tongue. "Yes, well, persistence is often seen as an asset."  

Vince sighed and pinched his nose harder. He'd had a headache long before Grace had come home today thanks to a conversation he had had with his mother. Patricia's antics were only making it worse.  

"Patricia..." Vince warned.  

"Yes, boss?" she asked innocently.  

"I need you to use the company funds and get a flight to Kentucky. Then rent a car and drive yourself to Clifton."  

"What!?" both Grace and Patricia exclaimed in unison.  

Vince shook his head at their outbursts. "Grace, she can help. Patricia, don't argue. Think of it as a paid vacation away from the office. You even get to help design a cookbook and do a little baking."  

"Oh I tremble with anticipation, sir," Patricia replied dryly. "Tell me, Grace, are there any eligible men in Clifton?"  

"A few," Grace replied after several moments of thought. "Most of them are really young, though."  

Patricia laughed. "Oh, darling, that's just the way I like them!"  

Vince groaned but Grace laughed loudly. She could already tell she was going to like Patricia. She seemed like the kind of person who dealt with life with humor, sarcasm and quick wit.  

Vince cleared his throat. "It's Tuesday evening now so you should be able to get everything ready and be here no later than Friday afternoon."  

"Vince!" Grace scolded. "You need to ask her more nicely than that. She doesn't even have to help at all! It's my fault I have too much to do and your fault that you feel the need to play hero. She doesn't deserve to be ordered around that way."  

Grace couldn't believe Vince was doing this. Calling in back up to help with her responsibilities? It was too much! Grace had never in her life had help and she was just now becoming accustomed to Vince's help but to have him calling in someone else simply so they could have time to go to a dance was beyond anything Grace had been prepared for. Was the man going to see everything in life as an obstacle he just had to tackle?

"Oh boss, I like her," Patricia stated. "She sound so cute when she speaks with that little country accent of hers. And I love the way she puts you in your place. She's quite smart you know. You really should treat your most trusted advisor and valued employee much better than you do...."

Vince grumbled. He shook his head. "Patricia, it would mean a lot to me if you could come and help Grace design some cookbooks and do a little baking. If you could be here by Friday afternoon, that would be wonderful. Do you think that would be something you could do, please?" Vince's voice dripped with false politeness.  

Patricia gagged. "Now that just felt wrong."  

Vince rolled his eyes. "I can't please both of you at once," he stated simply.  

"You're head is hurting, isn't it?" Patricia asked suddenly.  

"Yes," he replied and Grace's eyes narrowed.  

"Have you talked to your mother today?" Patricia inquired. "She's been calling the office nearly nonstop since you left."  

Vince appeared uncomfortable as he glanced at Grace. "I did."  

"She's still quite upset about Widgett," Patricia admitted.  

Vince frowned. "Widgett?"  

"That's the name your father gave to that dog you got him."  

"I think you mean the dog you got him," Vince countered.  

"Oh yes, of course. That's exactly what I mean," Patricia replied off-handedly.  

"As much as I would love to sit and continue this intellectual conversation with you, I have to be going because I have plans."  

"Plans sir? I've never heard you say you have plans before."  

"Yes, I'm taking Grace and her family to a bluegrass show."  

"Yeehaw," Patricia mused.  

Vince sighed. "You'll be here Friday?"  

"I live to serve, sir."  

Vince chuckled as he hung up and shoved his phone back into the pocket of his jeans. He didn't even have time to draw a breath before Grace stepped in front of him. "You have a headache?"  

Vince shrugged. "It's nothing new. The doctors say it's stress and blood pressure. I'll just take some pain reliever and I'll be fine."  

"No you won't," Grace countered firmly with a shake of her head. "Don't you know how bad those things are for you?"  

"I tend to forget when my head is pounding."  

"Sit down," Grace ordered, pointing toward a kitchen chair.  

Vince raised a brow but did as she told him. Grace came to stand behind him and her fingertips began to work his temples, messaging away every bit of tension and ache. Vince nearly melted into a puddle right there on the spot.

"You're an angel," he moaned.  

Grace laughed lightly. "Haven't you ever had someone message away your headache?"  

"No," Vince replied honestly. "I haven't."  

"Does your mother always stress you out this bad?" Grace questioned, moving her hands from his temples to his shoulders and feeling the tension he carried in them.  

"She tends to have that effect on most people who are unfortunate enough to find themselves on her bad list."  

"And why are you on her bad list?"  

Vince sighed and leaned back into her touch. "Many reasons. I'm not making my living as a lawyer. I'm not married to a plastic bodied trophy wife from a respectable family and I haven't given her seventy-five grandchildren that she can spoil and dote over."

"You horrible son," Grace teased.  

Grace was attempting to sound lighthearted but Vince suspected there was something bothering her. He took her hand and pulled her around him, sitting her down in her lap and cradling her against him.  

"Vince! Cadence could walk in at any moment!" Grace scolded.  

"That George always has been a rascal," Ester chimed in from the living room causing Grace and Vince to laugh in unison.  

Vince gave Grace a squeeze and lightly kissed her cheek. "Now tell me what's wrong with you," he urged.  

Grace shrugged. "I feel bad that your mother gave you a headache."  

Vince chuckled. "Don't. It's not the first and I can promise it won't be the last--unless I throw the cell phone away completely and live off the grid."  

Grace chewed her bottom lip. "Will I ever meet her?"  

Grace instantly regretted the questioned when she saw the apprehension in Vince's green eyes. "Why don't we talk about this later?" he asked, his lips curving into one of those false, polite smiles that Grace hated so much. "Right now you need to be getting ready so we can go have a good time."  

Grace gave him a quick kiss before hopping off his lap and disappearing in to her room. She didn't want to be hurt by what Vince had said. It was clear the man loved her and Grace didn't doubt that. But it was also clear that Vince didn't want her to meet his family. Why was that? Was she not good enough? Or was it that he didn't plan on being with her long enough for her to meet his family?

That thought hurt worse than she expected and Grace took several deep breaths to combat the pain as she shoved the worry aside. She would simply enjoy Vince for however long he was in her life. Forever would be nice but life had taught Grace that good things tended to never last for very long.  

---

"Well I have to admit, this is different than the country clubs and dance halls I've been to parties in before," Vince said as he looked around the crowded community center. The band was already in full swing and the sound of fiddles and banjos filled the air.  

"Vince, will you dance with me?" Cadence exclaimed, tugging on his hand.  

"I think I can do that," Vince nodded, letting his gaze go over the people who were already stomping and bouncing to the sound of the music on the hardwood floor. Vince leaned in toward Grace. "This looks a lot like the dancing I saw in Ireland."  

"You've been to Ireland?" Grace asked with awe and just a touch of jealousy. "That's where most of our ancestors came from."  

Vince winked at her and then let Cadence pull him into the dancing crowd. Grace led Ester to a set of long tables and helped her take a seat in a metal folding chair. She sat down beside her grandmother and watched Vince and Cadence whirling around.  

Grace fell even more in love with Vince as he twirled Cadence around and around and threw his head back and laughed with her. He seemed to have given up on dancing like everyone else and was instead letting Cadence lead him. Grace had never seen her daughter look so happy and she knew that Cadence had needed this. She needed a father--a daddy.  

A tear formed in Grace's eyes and she quickly looked away from the scene. "Are you thirsty, grandma?"  

Her grandmother nodded without looking at her so Grace stood up and made her way to the refreshments table. Grace poured some soda into two plastic cups and made her way back to Ester.  

"Grace!" Meg exclaimed, catching sight of her and bouncing over. "I see your man is burning it up on the dance floor with Cadence."  

Grace smiled as her gaze sought them out and she saw Cadence desperately attempting to teach Vince to dance like everyone else. She smiled. "He's so good with her."  

Grace sat down and handed Ester her drink. Meg sat down across from her. "He's good with you too. I've never seen you take the time to come to something like this before."  

"He is something else," Grace replied thoughtfully. "And he doesn't take no for an answer."  

"Aww!" Meg batted her lashes. "My friend is so cute in love."  

"So where's Ben?" Grace asked, changing the subject away from her love life.  

Meg pointed toward the stage. "He's playing with the band." Grace saw him and his banjo among the other men giving the crowd something to dance to. Meg tapped the table. "So, how are things between you and Mr. Perfect?"  

Grace picked at a chip in the table top and shrugged. "I'm scared."

"Scared?" Meg laid her hand over Grace's and frowned. "Why are you scared?"  

"I feel like it's all too good too fast," Grace admitted. "I just keep waiting for someone to leap out of the bushes with a camara crew and yell 'Haha! We got you.'"

"It's not like you to be so gloomy," Meg scolded gently. "You've always been the one who keeps her head up no matter what."  

"I'm not gloomy," Grace insisted. "I'm cautious."  

Meg shook her head. "Well stop! I know what a man in love looks like because I've been married to one since the day after our high school graduation." Grace looked out at Vince who caught her eye and threw her a smile. Meg laughed. "That, dear friend, is a man in love and he isn't going anywhere."  

Grace felt her heart lighten a bit and remembered just why Meg had always been her best friend. They continued to talk, laugh and gossip the way friends do and lost all track of time. Meg looked up and smiled. "Uh-oh, Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome is heading this way."

Grace looked quickly toward the dance floor and saw a sweaty Vince and overheated Cadence heading her way. "I think she needs a break," Vince stated. "She's getting a bit too warm."  

"You're pretty hot yourself," Grace winked.  

Vince held out his hand. "Dance with me?"  

Ester quickly nodded. "I don't mind if I do."  

Vince gave Grace a helpless look and she smiled. "You did promise her a twirl or two."  

Vince helped Ester to her feet before leaning down and brushing his lips against Grace's cheek. "I will get ahold of you before the night is over."  

Grace flushed. "I'll hold you to that."  

Vince grinned before leading Ester out onto the floor. Grace turned her attention back to Meg but stiffened when she heard a familiar voice behind her. "Hello Grace."  

Grace turned to see Grant standing behind her with his baseball cap clutched in his hand. She gasped at the state of his face. Grant's nose was swollen and cut and his lip was split and quite fat. Grace felt a smile attempting to pull at her lips. Apparently Mr. Big City had a mean right hook.  

"Hello Grant," she replied, her voice like ice. Grace felt rather than saw Vince's eyes on her from where he was dancing with Ester.  

Grant shuffled his feet. "Can I talk to Cadence?"

Grace wanted to tell the asshole no and to get lost. She had never been the type to hold grudges against those who did her wrong but what Grant had done had gone beyond hurting or wrong her. He had hurt her daughter and had laughed as others had done the same. The bruise on Cadence's cheek was a stark reminder of Grant's actions.  

"I don't know, Grant," Grace snapped. "Can I trust you to speak to my daughter?"  

Grant nodded and his blue eyes shown with remorse. "Yes, you can."  

Grace clenched her jaw tightly and nodded. Grant stepped beside her and then crouched down to be on Cadence's level as she sat in her seat and leaned in close to Grace. The girl shirked away from Grant and looked up at Grace.  

"It's okay, gremlin," Grace assured her and, if it wasn't and Grant tried to do anything out of the way, he'd have her foot so far up his manhood that he'd have to go to the hospital to have it removed.  

Grant sighed. "Cadence, I want to tell you that I'm very sorry for what I did and what I allowed those boys to do. Bullying and being mean to others is always wrong and I never should have allowed that to go on. I'm going to try to put a stop to bullying in our school and I think, with Vince's help, I may be able to do just that."  

"Vince's help?" Grace frowned. "What does Vince have to do with it?"  

Grant looked up at her. "He met with the principal and several of the teachers today. He's going to fund an anti-bullying campaign and I'd say they'll talk about it at the next PTA meeting. He wants to line up guest speakers and offer rewards for good behavior and stiffer punishments for those caught bullying."  

"That man..." Grace sighed as her eyes caught Vince's across the crowded room. He smiled at her and suddenly Grace knew. She knew that she had found the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. Vince was the man that she wanted to marry. The way he was with Cadence and Ester was unlike anything Grace had ever dreamed of. He was kind, protective, caring and strong. For the first time in her life Grace felt like she was living in a fairy tale and it was all because of Vince.  

Grant cleared his throat and had her attention coming back to him. He was once again looking at Cadence. "Cadence, will you forgive me for laughing at you? I did a very bad thing and I know that and it will never happen again, I promise. If you can't forgive me, I understand, but I'd really like it if you could give me another chance to prove I'm sorry."  

"It's up to you, gremlin," Grace assured her when Cadence looked up at her. The girl chewed her lip and picked at the flowers on her skirt. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Okay."

Grant nodded. "Thank you, Cadence." He stood up and looked at Grace. "Can I talk to you in private for a minute?"  

Grace stood and glanced at Meg. "Will you keep an eye on Cadence?"  

"Sure thing," Meg replied, throwing a glare that would freeze fire at Grant whose shoulders slumped.  

Grace followed him outside and rubbed her arms. The air was getting cooler and a breeze was picking up. Grace saw dark clouds rolling in and realized a storm was coming. She looked at Grant. "What do you want?"  

"Grace, I really am sorry for how I've been acting. I just kept the hope up for so long that one day you and I would be more than friends and when I saw you falling for someone else, especially an outsider that none of us knew, it brought out a jealous side of me that I'm not proud of."  

Grace wrapped her arms around herself and shrugged. "I'm not sure what you're wanting me to say, Grant. I forgive you, I suppose, since Cadence does, but our friendship is over. You aren't the man I thought you were because the man I thought you were wouldn't have done that to a little girl who couldn't defend herself."

Grant sighed. "I'll work hard to earn your respect back."  

Grace was going to respond but instead let out a yelp of shock when a clap of thunder tore the evening sky and rattled clear to her bones. "Oh no..." Grace moaned and, on cue, Cadence's scream could be heard over the music and noice.  

"Mommy!" she cried as she came barreling out of the community center and flew into Grace's arms so quickly she nearly caused them both to go toppling to the ground.  

"It's okay, Cadence. It's just a bit of thunder, nothing to be afraid of," Grant assured her.  

Lightning flashed in the distance and another clap of thunder, louder than the first, shook the air. Cadence began to cry and Grace smoothed out her hair. "It's okay, gremlin. We'll go on home."  

"What's wrong with Cadence?" Vince demanded as he came out of the community center with Ester on his arm. He threw a threatening glance at Grant but Grace shook her head.  

"It's the storm," she assured him. "She's scared of them."  

Vince nodded and released his hold on Ester. He crouched down and held out his arm and Cadence went running to him, throwing her arms around his neck. He stood straight, pulling her with him and her legs wrapped around his waist. "I better be getting you ladies home," Vince said as the first drops of rain began to fall.  

Vince put his arm around Grace's shoulder as she took hold of Ester. "It's raining, George," Ester stated as the cold drops picked up tempo.  

"Yes it is, Ester. I better get you home before you melt."  

Ester snorted. "I won't melt."  

Vince laughed. "Sure you will! Something as sweet as you can't be left out in the rain."  

Ester smiled and nudged Grace with her elbow. "That George always has been a charmer."

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

"I'm gonna get soaked!" Cadence exclaimed as they pulled into the driveway and rain pelted against the car.  

"Not me," Ester taunted as she sat wrapped in Vince's suit jacket which had been rolled into a ball and tossed in the backseat.  

"Mommy!" Cadence whined.  

Grace sighed and laid her head back against the seat. "It's okay, gremlin. Mommy will get you dry clothes when we get inside."  

"But...." Cadence persisted.  

"Cadence," Grace warned.  

Vince shook his head. "If she gets wet she might get sick."  

Grace was about to argue that Cadence would be just fine but the sight of Vince's thick fingers undoing the buttons on his flannel shirt caused all arguments to die on her tongue. She saw the muscles in his broad shoulders working as he slid the shirt down his arms. Grace felt her mouth go completely dry as she took in the sight of him. She hadn't been aware that they made big city businessmen that looked like that....

His shoulders were broad, his chest was wide and strong before tapering down to lean hips. He had a light dusting of black hair across his chest and another patch just below his belly button with a trail that led....Grace forced her eyes back up as her face flamed red.  

This man was built like a Greek statue. He was chisled and so perfect, it nearly hurt to look at him. There was a small scar on his shoulder and a mole on about the third ab down. Grace licked her lips and realized she was drooling. Vince didn't seem to notice the effect he was having on her as he twisted in his seat, (emphasizing those muscles) and wrapped Cadence in his shirt.  

"Time sure has been good to you, George," Ester noted.  

Color stained Vince's cheeks as he turned back around. "Uh.. Thanks Ester," he mumbled. He glanced over and caught Grace's eye and she knew there was no way she would be able to hide her desire for him and so she quickly looked away and put her hand on the door handle.  

"It's time to brave the flood," she muttered, not looking forward to the soaking they were going to get.  

"I'll carry Cadence if you help Ester," Vince replied.  

Grace simply nodded in response without looking his way. Looking at him caused her body to heat and her thighs to clench. It was a temptation she had not felt since she'd been a teenager and it was stronger somehow than she could ever remember it being.  

Grace threw open her door and hopped out. The rain soaked her nearly instantly. She opened the back door of Vince's rental car and helped Ester out, keeping Vince's jacket over her grandmother's head. She saw Vince scoop Cadence out of the other side and they all dashed up to the house as quickly as they could.  

It was after eight and Cadence and Ester were exhausted so Grace decided it was a good time for bed. She shook out her wet hair and pointed down the hall without looking at Vince who was standing with his hip propped against the counter and his arms crossed over his chest. "I'm going to get them changed and in bed. I'll be back out in a while."  

"Okay," he replied.  

Grace noticed his voice seemed tight but she didn't dare let her eyes fall on him for fear she'd either melt to a puddle on the spot or throw him down and make love to him on her worn, white linoleum floor. Quickly, Grace shoved those thoughts aside and ushered her daughter and grandmother down the hall.  

---

Vince leaned against the counter and breathed deeply through his nose, fighting his own inner battle with desire. Grace's yellow sundress, (the same one that she'd wore to church and he suspected the only one she owned), had become thoroughly soaked in the rain and had been clinging to every inch of her body. Her auburn hair had been wet and sticking to her face and droplets of water had been running in rivlets down her bare arms and legs.  

Then Vince had seen the way she had been looking at him and Vince had never in his life been struck with a jolt of need like the one he'd felt shoot through him.  He wanted to caress that velvety skin, bury his nose in that in that soft hair and breathe in her scent. He wanted to feel that slender body beneath him and watch her eyes, full of love, slip closed as he took her higher and higher...

Vince let out a hiss of pain when his fists clenched so tightly that his fingernails nearly pierced the skin. He quickly left the kitchen and strode back outside. The rain was still beating down on the tin roof and Vince was more than happy to walk out into it and allow the droplets to cool his heated skin.  

 The thunder seemed to have passed and Vince was happy for that. Maybe Cadence would be able to rest tonight without being too frightened. With the rain cooling him, Vince was able to think beyond his desire for Grace and focus on just how much he loved that little girl in there and her mother.  

Vince had never wanted to be a husband or a father. His job, his company, had meant too much to him for him to even consider making anything else a priority. But now? Now that career he'd worked so hard for didn't seem as important. That life he'd been living working himself to the bone for his company seemed so empty and meant nothing in comparison to the life he lived now. Vince had no urge to rush back. No urge to ever go back to that city and live that life of false smiles and polite conversations with fake people.  

Maybe it was time to step down. Vince had worked more in the last twelve years than most men worked in their entire lives. He deserved to be able to sit back and simply enjoy the fruits of all that labor. Of course he would still own his company and continue to make money from it and his many investments, but his constant presense in New York would no longer be needed.  

Vince had enough money to last him for his entire life and leave some for generations to come. There was no need for him to work himself to the bone back in New York when his heart was right here in Clifton.  

"Vince?" Grace's voice called from the porch. Vince turned to see her standing on the porch, still wearing that wet dress, and watching him as if he were completely crazy. "How long have you been out here?"  

Vince shrugged. "I don't know."  

"Why are you standing out in the rain?" she asked, her eyes scanning him up and down. Vince felt his body heat under her appraisal.  

"I'll come in..." he began but stopped when she shook her head and stepped out into the rain herself.  

"I've always wanted to dance in the rain," she admitted.  

Vince smiled. "I  do still owe you that dance."  

Grace slid into his arms and Vince held her tight against him, knowing he'd found his forever. "I've never done anything quite this crazy," Vince admitted as he spun her around the rain soaked grass as droplets continued to beat against them.  

"You rebel," Grace teased and Vince swooped down and caught her lips beneath his own. He kissed her soflty, tenderly, and felt her grip on him tighten as her fingertips dug into his bare back. Grace moaned against him and Vince knew that with the way she had herself pressed against him his arousal would be unmistakable.

When Vince felt her moving against him, he lost all control of himself and deepened the kiss. He plundered her mouth wildly, feeling a hundred different things at once.  

 Grace's fingers were pressed against his skin, running up and down his back, leaving trails of fire in their wake. Her body was pressed against his and they moved to music that only the two of them could hear. Grace's soft moans were washing over him and he wanted nothing more than to make love to her.

"Vince.." Grace gasped as she broke the kiss and looked up into his eyes. Her gray eyes were dark with passion, her cheeks were flushed and her lips were swollen and red from his kisses and the sight of that only had Vince wanting her more.  

"Grace.." he replied, searching her eyes for the answer to the question he knew she'd recognize.  

She stared at him a moment and then threw her arms around his neck and pressed her lips hungrily to his own. Grace jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her quickly up onto the porch and into the house without ever breaking the hungry joining of their lips.  

Vince knew the way to her bedroom and he wasted no time carrying her there. He sat her on her feet and pulled the tiny sleeve of her dress down her shoulder, following its path with his mouth and drawing gasps from Grace's parted lips. Vince could feel Grace trembling in his arms as he laid kisses along her collarbones and then dropped lower as he slid the dress down her body and it pooled around her ankles.  

Vince kissed and licked at the edges of her black lace bra and Grace's fingers found his hair and her fingertips buried themselves deep inside the stands. Vince moved his lips back to her and his hands found the clasp of her bra and unsnapped it, freeing her tiny breasts from the confines of that black lace.  

Grace watched him as he gazed at her and she saw the desire in his green eyes. Vince's breathing was raspy and his jaw was tense. He almost seemed to be in pain and Grace knew exactly how he felt. Passion and desire were blinding her, clouding her senses and making her body tremble and ache. His big hands, so rough and yet soft as velvet as they touched her, ran down her hips and traced the edges of her practical cotton panties.  

Grace heard him chuckle and her face reddened with embarrassment. "Blue cotton?" he asked with amusement as his fingers worked their way under the elastic waistband.  

"Hush," Grace scolded breathlessly as his lips brushed against her stomach.  

"With little pink flowers?" he added, his voice little more than a growl as his fingers brushed against her most sensitive flesh.  

"Hush," she whispered, throwing her head back as his lips pressed against her trembling thighs.  

"You are beautiful. Natural and beautiful," Vince groaned as he slid her panties down her legs and rose back to his full height.  

"I haven't been with a man in a long time," Grace admitted, feeling more than a little nervous. What if she disappointed him?  

Vince smiled and kissed her tenderly. "I've never been with a man," he teased. Grace found herself laughing but that laughter quickly turned into a groan when Vince pressed more kisses against her collarbones and chest until she was pressing herself as tightly against him as his blue jeans would allow.  

"Make love to me, Vince," she pleaded.  

Vince growled and Grace felt him tremble against her skin. "I thought you'd never ask."  

---

"Do you believe in things that are meant to be?" Vince asked as they lay in each other arms, wrapped in tangled sheets a shot time later. Vince had been ashamed and embarrassed by how quickly it had been over and he had assured her that it had only been that way because he'd been celibate for so long and next time it would be better. Grace had just smiled and assured him that there was no way it could be better--Vince replied to that by kissing her hard and quick.  

"I never used to," Grace admitted, feeling sleepiness settling in as Vince stroked her bare arm with his fingertips.  

"And now?" he urged.  

"Meeting you changed my mind," she answered honestly.  Grace snuggled closer against him and Vince rested his head on her shoulder, pressing his cheek against hers.  

"You sound tired," he teased.  

"I am a little," she replied, arching her back and stretching.  

"I should go," Vince said sadly but Grace grabbed his arm as he attempted to get up.  

"Why?"  

"Cadence," he replied simply. "I'm sure she's not used to seeing men staying the night with her mommy."  

Grace frowned. "No, she's not," she agreed with a sigh. "But what are you going to wear?" she questioned, glancing down at his jeans which were in a wet heap upon the floor.  

"I guess I'll have to wait for them to dry," Vince stated with a shrug.  

"I'll put them in the dryer," Grace offered. She grabbed the sheet and wrapped it around herself as she stood up before going to her dresser.  

Vince propped himself up on his elbows and grinned. "What are you doing?"  

"Getting a nightgown," she replied.  

"No, I mean why are you hiding your body from me with that sheet?"  

"I'm not hiding," Grace insisted. "I'm just..."  

"Don't you dare try to say shy because you certainly weren't shy with me a just a while ago," Vince reminded her which earned him a sharp glare.  

"I'm not the kind of woman you're used to seeing," Grace stated as she pulled a white, sleeveless, floor-length sleeping gown from her dresser.   

"What's that supposed to mean?" Vince demanded as he rose from the bed. Grace couldn't help but notice that he made no attempt to hide his nakedness from her. Damn, but that man was something... Droolworthy, if Grace was being completely honest.  

"I mean, that I don't have the best parts money can buy!" Grace exclaimed with exasperation. She headed for the bedroom door, planning on going to the bathroom to get dressed.  

"Grace, if I wanted a store bought woman I could have had one a long time ago," Vince informed her. He caught her by the arm and pulled her to him. "What I want is you." He kissed her lips gently. "A real..." his lips moved to her cheek,"..beautiful.." he grazed his teeth across her neck, "..gorgeous woman," he finished, before stooping low and licking at her blushing breast.  

Grace moaned and pulled his head back up as she felt her legs turn to jello beneath her. "Point taken," she assured him as she slid into her gown. "Now I have to get your cothes dry."  

"Is there something I can put on until then?" Vince asked. "I feel a little awkward walking around naked when Ester or Cadence might walk in and see me."  

"I have one of these in pink," she teased, twirling in her gown.  

"Ha.Ha." Vince shook his head.  

"Actually I think there might be something," Grace said a moment later. She rushed to her closet and pulled out a box that hadn't been opened in years. She opened it and moved aside her grandfather's pocket watch and wallet to find the flannel pajamas that had always been his favorite.  

She held up the red and black checked flannel shirt and pants. "It's not real stylish and might be a little snug since you're bigger than my grandpa was but it'll keep you covered."  

"Thanks." Vince took them and pulled on the pants. He attempted to shrug himself into the shirt but it quickly became clear that his shoulders were simply too broad. Grace glanced down at his legs and failed to hold back her laughter when she how hight the pants rode up on his shins.  

"Are you laughing at me?" Vince demanded with a smile.  

Grace nodded. "Yes. Yes, I am."  

Vince lauged as well and pulled her into his arms. "I love you," he whispered.  

Grace kissed him softly. "I love you too." She pulled away. "And now I have to get your clothes dry."

Vince sat down on the edge of the bed while Grace went to the tiny laundry room and tossed Vince's wet clothes inside. She was just walking back into the bedroom when Cadence began screaming and crying from her bed. Grace sighed, knowing it was a nightmare but before she could reassure Vince of that and go to her daughter, the man was on his feet and running to her room.  

"Cadence?" he asked cautiously as he entered the room.  

"Vince? Vince, the monster is gonna get me!" Cadence exclaimed as she jumped out of bed and ran to him.  

He wrapped her in his arms and shushed her soothingly as she cried against his stomach. "There, there, Cadence, don't cry. I won't let anything happen to you," Vince vowed.  

Tears filled Grace's eyes as she stood in the doorway. Vince was a natural father it would seem. He was perfect for the job with the way he made Cadence laugh, protected her from bullies and even soothed away nightmares.  

"I had a bad dream, Vince," Cadence whispered. "The monster was going to eat me."

"The monster won't get you, sweetheart," Vince promised. "Let me let you in on a little secret. Those monsters are scared of me so now that they know I'm around to protect you, they won't be coming back."  

"Will you be here forever?" Cadence asked, a lone teardrop hanging from her lashes as she looked up at him. "Like a daddy?"  

---

Vince stared down at the little girl staring up at him so lovingly, so trustingly, and felt emotion clog his throat. He had never in his life been closer to tears than he was in this moment.  

Daddy.  

Who would have though that stern, stoic business tycoon Vince Griffin, would be so moved by such a simple word?

"I don't plan on going anywhere, sweetheart," Vince promised, smoothing her messy blond hair from her face. "There may be times that I have to leave for a day or two on business but I'll always come right back to you and your mommy. The two of you mean everything to me."  

Grace cleared her throat as she stepped into the room and when Vince turned to look at her, he saw her wipe a tear from her cheek. Cadence yawned. "I'm sleepy, mommy. Can you and Vince tuck me in?"  

Grace smiled. "Of course we will, gremlin."  

"And you'll wait 'til I'm asleep before you leave?" Cadence added.  

"We won't leave a second sooner," Vince vowed.  

He picked her up and carried her to the bed, laying her down gently and pulling the covers up to her chin. Grace slid into the bed on one side and Vince slid onto the other and they cradled Cadence between them.  

"Sing to me, mommy," Cadence whispered, her eyelids already growing nearly too heavy for the girl to hold open.  

Grace blushed as she glanced at Vince. "Okay." She kissed Cadence's brow and then began singing 'Swing Low, Sweet Chariot', which she had told Vince before was the only song that had ever been able to quiet the girl ever since she was an infant with the colic.  

Vince knew that in that moment he was closer to heaven than he had ever been before. This is what he'd been born for. He hadn't been born to run a company, work eighteen hour days or make millions. He hadn't been born to please his impossible parents and marry a trophy wife and attend fancy dinner parties. None of that mattered. He'd been born to make love to this beautiful woman. To love her with all his heart and give her anything and everything she ever wanted. And he'd been born to take care of this little girl and chase away the monsters under her bed and in her dreams.  

Nothing in the world mattered but this.  

Vince glanced at Cadence and realized the girl was fast asleep, though Grace didn't seem to notice as she lay there with her eyes closed and hummed softly. Vince reached across Cadence and ran his thumb gently over Grace's cheeks. She opened her eyes and Vince smiled. "Marry me?"  

Vince hadn't even realized the words were going to fly out of his mouth until they were said. Grace's jaw dropped and she stared at him with shock. Vince's heart thundered against his ribs and he suddenly wished he could take it back.. Not because he didn't want to marry her but because he didn't know what in the hell he would do if she turned him down! He couldn't go back to life the way it had been before Clifton. He couldn't go back a life without Grace taking his breath away, Cadence teaching him about the innocence of children and Ester calling him George.  

"What did you say?" Grace whispered.  

"Marry me," he repeated, searching her eyes.  

"W..why?" Grace stammered.  

"Why should you marry me?" Vince asked quickly as he rubbed his neck. "I have no idea why I'd be good enough for you but can I tell you why I want to marry you, Grace? I was lost for so long before you came along. My whole life was numb and I was just going through the motions but not really alive. I'm alive now, honey, and it's because of you and Cadence and Ester. You've given me more than I could ever hope to repay just by giving me your love. I'd like to have the chance to be a husband to you and a father to Cadence. I promise right now that I'll never let either one of you down. Will you marry me, Grace?"  

Grace was silent for a long moment and Vince thought for sure he might die..or vomit... either one would be unfortunate.  

Finally Grace nodded. "Of course I'll marry you, Vince. There's no other man I would ever want to be married to."  

"You'll never regret saying yes," Vince vowed as he leaned across Cadence to press a feather light kiss to Grace's lips.  

Grace smiled a shaky smile. "I'll never make you regret asking."

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

"LeRoy, let me know if you see a red Jaguar pass by your window," Grace called out that Friday a little after nine as she lifted up the hood on a truck.  

"Will do, Grace," LeRoy hollered back from his office. "You expecting somebody? That seems like an awful fancy vehicle."  

"It's one of Vince's friends from New York," Grace replied. Leaving out that it was a woman and the reason for her visit. She still wasn't too sold on the idea of Vince calling in back up to help her with things that she had gotten herself into.  

"I take it he's rich too?" LeRoy inquired.  

Grace sighed. Sometimes small town and their nosey ways were too much. "It's a she and I honestly have no idea."  

LeRoy stepped out into the garage shaking his head. "Your fiance's female friend is coming all the way here from New York just to visit him and you're okay with that."  

Grace rolled her eyes as she dug a greasy wrench from her toolbox. "I'm not exactly the jealous type."  

"Good," LeRoy laughed and patted her on the back. "Because that man loves you. I'll keep an eye out for the car." LeRoy disappeared into his office, closing the door behind him, and Grace got back to her work.  

In all honesty, she was a bit a nervous and intimidated about meeting Patricia. She knew that Patricia had been Vince's friend and a very important part of his life for a long time and she desperately wanted the woman to like her. Patricia was due to arrive anytime and while Vince had given her directions to the garage, Grace worried that she still wouldn't find her.  

Vince was busy meeting with park officials and a wildlife committee about the possibility of fixing up some of the trails and natural tourist attractions in the area. He would be in meetings all morning but would be coming by at lunch to take her and Patricia out to lunch. Grace had no idea what Patricia would do to entertain herself for hours in a garage but  she figured she'd come up with something.  

Grace sighed and laid down on the concrete before sliding herself beneath the truck. She was just finishing up fastening the oil pan when she heard the sound of high heels clicking on concrete.  

"Hello, is anyone here?"  

Grace recognized Patricia's accented voice. "I'll be right out," she called from beneath the truck. She took a deep breath to prepare herself for meeting the woman she'd heard so much about. She slid herself out from under the truck, wiped her greasy hands on her coveralls and turned.  

Amusement filled her at the sight of the woman currently standing in the garage looking very out of place. She was tall for a woman, over six feet, though some of that height came from the heels on her bright red, open-toed shoes. Her black skirt was tight, very short and seemed like something a twenty year old stripper would wear even though Vince said Patricia was somewhere around fifty years old. He couldn't be sure because she had written 'none of your business' on the date of birth section of her job application.  

Patricia's blouse was red and flowing and tucked neatly into her skirt. There was a black suit jacket tossed over her arm and a black leather satchel held by her perfectly manicured hand. Patricia's face was flawless. Not a single wrinkle or line marred her smooth skin. Her thick brown hair was pulled back in an intricate coif on the back of her head. She was so willowy that she made Grace, who had always been on the skinny side, feel a little bloated.  

Patricia slid her sunglasses,(probably costing more than Grace's car), up onto her head and raised one perfectly arched brow. "Are you Grace?"  

"Yes," Grace snapped out of her appraisal of Patricia and held out her hand. "You must be Patricia."  

"Oh thank God!" Patricia exclaimed dramatically as she shook Grance's hand. "At least now I know Vince hasn't completely lost his mind and that he has much better taste than that horrible mother of his."  

Grace had no idea how to respond to that. "Th..thank you?" she offered.  

Patricia looked her up and down. "Never thought I'd meet a female mechanic from the middle of nowhere Kentucky. You aren't what I had pictured. I had a mental image of a rather buff and burly woman with just a hint of a mustache."  

Grace smiled with amusement. "You thought Vince would be interested a woman like that?"  

Patricia shrugged as she glanced around the messy garage. "I've never seen Vince interested in any woman so I honestly had no idea."  

"So, how did your trip go?" Grace asked, turning the subject away from Vince and his tastes in women since the man wasn't here to defend himself.  

"Oh it went just fine until I got behind one million slow drivers on these back roads you have here which truly aren't fit to be called roads at all. Do you know that GPS makers actually have the nerve to call these highways?"

"The nerve of some people," Grace agreed, unbothered by Patricia's words because of the good nature in the woman's eyes.  

"Honestly, I was raised in a small town," Patricia admitted in a whisper. "But don't tell Vince because it would ruin the image that I work to maintain in front of him."  

Grace leaned in. "I wouldn't dream of it," she whispered back.  

Patricia's light laughter filled the garage and Grace instantly felt comfortable around the woman. She had a carefree spirit and easy going nature just like Meg. Grace had a feeling that, given time, they could become very good friends.  

Patricia looked around again, tapping her satchel against her leg. "This is a very nice garage you have here," she said with just a hint of boredom in her voice. "I see all the necessary car fixing pieces."  

"Yeah, it gets the job done," Grace agreed.  

Patricia tilted her head as she studied her. "You really are quite beautiful you know. You have a Grace Kelly look to you--back in her younger days."  

Grace blushed and pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Thank you. My grandmother loves Grace Kelly and convinced my mother to name me after her."  

"The name suits." Patricia winked. "Now where can a woman get a meal around here? I'm famished."

 "Meg's Diner," Grace replied. "Vince is actually going to come pick us up sometime soon and take us to eat. He's in a meeting right now."  

"A workaholic even on vacations," Patricia sighed.  

"He really is a good man," Grace defended him quickly. "I've never seen a man so dedicated to helping others."  

"Helping you, darling. He's dedicated to helping you. The man never had much of a mind for any charity before. He never thought of anything but his job. And now I'm in the process of interviewing people to find a replacement because, apparently, he's done." Patricia clicked her tongue and her eyes sparkled with amusement. "I believe he wants to take up engine repair."  

Grace stood there in shock. Vince hadn't said a word to her about quitting his job or giving up his company.  Grace wasn't at all sure she was comfortable with him making such a sacrifice for her! Vince had spent his entire adult life building that company, and while Grace knew that she couldn't move Cadence to New York City, there had to be some other arrangement they could come to so Vince could still have the company that meant so much to him.  

"So what are we doing to this one?" Patricia asked, setting her satchel and jacket down on the cool cement and pointing toward the truck.  

"Oil change," Grace replied, knowing that she'd have to talk with Vince later. "I'm almost done, just have to add the new oil."  

Patricia rubbed her hands together and her eyes lit up. "Let me do it!"  

"Are you sure?" Grace questioned skeptically. "You might get dirty."  

Patricia raised her brow. "Darling, I am a professional when it comes to lubing."  

---

Vince was happier than he could ever remember being. He had a woman he loved more than life who had agreed to be his wife, a daughter who kept him smiling, a grandmother who kept him laughing and all the best things that no amount of money could buy. Add to that the fact that all of Vince's plans for this town and the county were going according to plan and Vince was practically walking the clouds!

The only thing that could put a slight damper on his happiness was knowing that Patricia would be arriving soon. The woman would probably blow the gates of hell right off this small town but Vince couldn't help but like her. She was wild, uninhibited and just a little crazy but she was his friend and she would keep Grace busy while he went away for the weekend.  

Vince wasn't happy about having to leave but he had always known that if by some miracle a woman stole his heart, he would have her wear his grandmother's emerald and diamond ring.

Of course that meant going to his mother and asking for the ring which was something Vince was dread more than a root canal without anesthesia. He could only imagine what Beverly's reaction would be to learning he was going to marry Grace. He hadn't even let the woman know that Grace existed yet but she would simply have to accept it and move on. Vince wasn't changing his mind.  

Who knew? Maybe his mother would notice how much happier and lighter he was and quickly give her his blessing without too much incident. That thought made Vince chuckle and he was still chuckling when he walked to the open garage door and stepped inside.  

His laughter died on his tongue when he saw his secretary standing inside wearing a miniskirt and a several hundred dollar blouse holding up a bottle of engine oil and looking very pleased with herself.  

Grace was leaning with her hip against a truck and an amused smile was lighting up her face as she watched both LeRoy and Uncle Pete fawn over Patricia.  

"You wanna rub one off with me?" Uncle Pete offered with a wink.  

Patricia laughed. "Well, handsome, you are a few years older than the ones I normally go for but, then again, I  always have had a thing for musicians."  

"Woohoo! Did you hear that boys?! I got me a pretty woman to twirl around at the next dance!" Uncle Pete wiggled his hips as if dancing and Patricia put her hand on his shoulder and laughed.  

Grace's gray eyes moved past everyone in the garage and Vince saw them light up when they landed on him. Vince would never get tired of being looked at that way and he knew he'd do everything he could to make sure she looked at him like that for the rest of her life.  

"Vince," she sighed and he needed no further incentive to close the distance between them and wrap her in a hug.

Vince kissed her hair and moved to her side, keeping his arm around her waist. He smiled at Patricia. "I see you made it in one piece."  

Patricia ogled at him as if he had sprouted a second and perhaps even a third head. His smile broadened as her frown deepened. "Who in the hell are you and what have you done with my boss?"  

"I'm your boss, Patricia. Are you still jet legged or has your motion sickness medicine not worn off yet?" Vince asked with amusement.  

"No, you cannot be the Vince Griffin I have known for over twelve years. That Vince Griffin never smiles, never sounds amused and does not walk around in sinfully tempting jeans and t-shirts."  

"Vince here is a stand up guy," Uncle Pete defended him quickly.  

"Don't worry, Uncle Pete," Vince assured him. "I can handle her." He tipped his head at Patricia. "I trust you made it down here without incident and didn't kill anyone along the way?"  

"Why would she kill someone?" Grace inquired.  

Vince stooped lower and laid his lips against her ear, feeling her tremble as his breath washed over her. "Because Patricia here has a very strong tendency toward road rage and is well known around New York for being the woman you don't cut off. As a matter of fact, the DMV has her picture on the wall."  

Patricia waved her hand. "That's because I'm so beautiful, boss."  

"Right," Vince replied without conviction.  

"Stop being your charming self and take your woman and I out to lunch," Patricia ordered dryly.  

Vince tipped his head. "Of course."  

Patricia rolled her eyes. "I don't even know who you are! Apparently the mountain air has altered the blood flow to your brain cells and caused the friendly portion of your frontal lobe to magically come to life after lying dormant for thirty-two years!"

Vince shook his head toward Patricia as Grace pulled away from him and walked to the front of the truck. She began to pull off her coveralls and Vince knew she didn't realize he was watching her as she bent low to yank the fabric over her shoes.  

"No, it wasn't the air," Vince replied quietly as Grace stood back straight, smoothed out her t-shirt and redid her ponytail.  

"No, I suppose not," Patricia agreed knowingly. She was smiling as she walked to Grace and took her by the arm. "Darling, you have this big strong man wrapped around your finger. Come on and let us talk about whether or not you're taking full advantage of that situation."  

Vince muttered under his breath as Patricia dragged Grace from the garage. "You better go catch 'em, boy, or you'll be in for a world of hurt. That Patricia seems like a worldly woman," Uncle Pete warned, nudging Vince with his elbow.  

Vince was chuckling as he started after his woman and his secretary.  

---

"So you need all these recipes organized into a cookbook?" Patricia asked, looking at the hundreds of cards tossed into an aged wooden box.   

"Not all of them," Grace assured her. "I'll only do the best ones." Grace sat Cadence up at the table with her homework. After they'd eaten lunch, Vince had talked Grace into signing Cadence out of school early and now they were all crowded into Grace's tiny house.  

 "I'll do that," Vince said, taking the flash cards from Grace and sitting down across from Cadence.  

Grace gave him a grateful smile before going back to Patricia. "I can see why Vince's likes you so much," Patricia muttered as she fingered through the stained and worn recipe cards. "You're just as unorganized as he is."  

"My grandmother used to keep everything organized and neat but she's not been feeling up to doing that in the last few years," Grace admitted.  

"Where is grandma dearest?" Patricia questioned. "Vince told me all about her, or should I say George told me all about her?"  

"Grace!" Ester exclaimed, storming into the kitchen. "Who is this hussy and what are you doing with my recipes?"  

"Grandma! You shouldn't call people hussies!" Grace scolded as her face flushed.

"Well, only a hussy would wear clothes like that," Ester sniffed.  

"Well thank you, Mrs. Collins. That's just the look I was going for," Patricia winked.  

"Vince, what's a hussy?" Cadence questioned innocently. Grace burst out laughing as Vince cleared his throat loudly and looked at her with panic.  

"It's a woman with beauty, style and charm, little one," Patrica spoke up.  

"I want to be a hussy!" Cadence exclaimed with excitement. Grace groaned and hid her face with her hand while Vince seemed to become choked on his breath and bent to his knees coughing loudly.  

"Well okay then," Patricia lifted up the wooden box. "Let's get back to these recipes!"  

"What about my recipes?" Ester demanded. "My husband will be home soon and he'll expect supper. Grace Elizabeth Collins you know better than to bring so many friends home so late at night! I should ground you until further notice."  

Grace sighed. "Grandma, I'm twenty-eight years old."  

Ester glanced around appearing quite confused for a moment before shrugging and heading back into the living room. Grace's eyes dropped to the floor as her heart hurt. "Don't mind her," she whispered. "She doesn't know one day from another much any more."  

Before Grace had time to compose herself and look up from the floor, Vince was behind her and wrapping her tight in his arms. Grace leaned into his support for several long moments before pulling away and walking around the kitchen island where Patricia was attempting to pretend she was looking at recipe cards and not watching their public display of attention.  

"Cadence, why don't you go play for a while?" Vince offered and the girl happily escaped her flash cards and disappeared down the hall to her room. "Patricia, I need to speak to you outside for a moment."  

Both Patricia and Grace frowned at him. Patricia held up a recipe card. "Boss, I'm busy being Betty Crocker right now." Vince shook his head and grumbled under his breath causing Patricia to beam. "There's that surly boss I know and love so well. I knew you were still in there somewhere."  

Patricia stood from the stool and Grace slid the wooden box of recipe cards toward her. "I'll go ahead and pick out the ones we'll use while you're out there," she offered, though she wasn't at all sure what to make of Vince's sudden mood change.  

He suddenly seemed stressed and on edge and it made Grace uneasy. She watched Patricia and Vince walk outside and tried to concentrate on her recipe cards.  

---

"I am very proud of you, boss," Patricia said as they stood together on the porch. "They aren't what I would have picked for you but they seem to be exactly what ou needed."  

 Vince squinted into the warm September sun and gripped the porch banister. "I want you to keep Grace busy this weekend. Get the recipes ready and take her to Lexington where she says there's a printer who can make the cookbooks. I will leave my credit card with you, since Grace would never accept it, and I want Cadence to get all the new clothes that she needs, Grace had been talking about doing that for a while now..."

"Boss, take a breath," Patricia ordered gently as she crossed her long, slender arms over her chest. "Something has you stressed and worried because you always talk too much when you're stressed and worried. You know I think there is a therepy that could help with that..."

"Yes, firing annoying secretaries," Vince interrupted.  

Patricia shook her head and waved her hand. "You wouldn't fire me. I'm irreplaceable."  

Vince snorted. "Those candidates for the COO position are coming in tomorrow, aren't they?"  

Patricia studied her long red nails. "Yes and I still can't believe you're allowing Davis to do the interviews. That man can't make decisoins to save his life. He agonizes over whether to have ham or turkey on his sandwich at lunch."  

"Davis isn't doing the interviews," Vince countered. "I'll be flying out tonight and I'll return Sunday night or Monday morning at the lastest."  

"You are?" Patricia asked and then her eyes narrowed. "You're going to talk to your mother, aren't you? That's what has you so stressed! You're going to ask Grace to marry you and you're going to talk to your mother about it... but why do you want that horrid woman's.. I mean your lovely mother's, opinion on your love life?"  

"Are you done?" Vince asked with amusement as he crossed his arms over his broad chest and looked down his nose at her.  

Patricia propped her hip against the porch banister. "Quite."  

Vince nodded. "I've already asked Grace to marry me and she's already said yes. However, I don't have her ring yet."  

"I'm sure there are jewelers closer than New York where you can get a ring, boss," Patricia stated with boredom, clearly trying to sound uninterested after his scolding.  

"Yes," Vince admitted. "But they wouldn't be my grandmother's ring."  

"How romantic!" Patricia exclaimed, clapping excitedly. "Who would have thought my cantankerous, angry, serious, no-nonsense, workaholic grumpy..."

"Patricia.." Vince warned.  

She nodded curtly. "Right boss. It's just so, for lack of a better word, strange."  

"I'm sure it seems that way to you," Vince agreed.  

"Perhaps your mother and father will come to the wedding. And they could bring Widget. He'd look quite charming in a tiny tuxedo and he can carry the rings on a pillow...."

"Patricia, you're getting carried away again," Vince grumbled.  

"Sorry, boss," Patricia amended. Then her face sobered. "Grace seems to be a woman with a lot of responsiblities on her shoulders. These people are lucky you found them."  

Vince looked in through the window. He saw Grace sitting at the counter looking through recipes with Cadence at her side and Ester's television was blinking in the living room. He shook his head and smiled before looking back toward Patricia. "No, they're not," he assured her. "I'm lucky I found them."  

---

"You're leaving?" Grace asked as she walked Vince to his car.  

"Yes, I have to look into hiring a COO at the company to run things.  

"Vince, I... I wanted to talk to you about that," Grace said quietly as she wrung her hands.  

"What?" Vince asked, taking her hands in his.  

"I don't want you to give up what you love for me and my family. There has to be some way to make things work without you giving everything up."  

"Grace, I'm not giving up anything that means anything to me any longer," Vince promised.  


Grace shook her head. "But Patricia said your job was your greatest passion."  

Vince nodded. "Keyword in that sentence is 

was. That’s past tense. The moment I met you my priorities began changing. I honestly don’t care about that job anymore and it wasn’t for wanting to make sure I have a legacy to leave to my children, Cadence included, I would probably be tempted to sell the company outright.“

"Are you sure you're real?" Grace whispered as she gazed up at his face. "Because some days I'm sure that I'm going to wake up and find out that all of this was just a dream or some cruel trick."  

"God, I hope not," Vince replied, taking her into his arms and spinning her around. "I love you, Grace. Don't worry about what I'll be giving up because what I'll be gaining means so much more. Besides, I'll still be CEO of the company and that means that from time to time I might have to go to New York but I'll always come back as quick as I can."  

Grace nodded. "Well, have a nice trip and then come back home safe and sound."  

"Always," Vince promised. "Tomorrow you'll be going to Lexington to print those books. Patricia has my credit card and I expect you to get Cadence any clothes that she needs and anything else that you, Cadence or Ester might want."  

"Vince.." Grace warned, her gray eyes flashing with temper. "I don't need your help taking care of my family."  

Grace was taken aback by the hurt and anger she saw on Vince's face. "Am I going to be your husband?" he demanded.  

"Of course you are," she replied quickly.  

"Then, and correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it my duty to provide for my wife and children? Doesn't that make you all 

my family too?“

Grace sighed. "Of course we're your family, Vince, but I'm not marrying you because you can provide for us."  

Vince flashed her that lazy half smile that she loved. "I know that and that's why I'm more than happy to give you anything and everything you ever want or need."  

Grace knew she was defeated. She poked his chest. "Well, just so long as you understand that I don't expect it."  

"Duly noted," he replied before kissing her nose. "Now, I have to leave but have fun with Patricia. She's a little out there but she's a good person and I'm sure she'll be more than willing to tell you all about my sordid past."  

"You have a sordid past?" Grace asked skeptically.  

Vince chuckled. "No, but I'm sure by the time she's done, you'll be convinced that I did."

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

"Mommy! Mommy! Patricia's making pancakes!"

Grace's eyes flew open at the sound of her daughter's excited voice. Her gaze immediately went to her alarm clock and she leapt from the bed when she realized it was three minutes after eight! Why hadn't her alarm gone off? She had set it for five so that she could get up, get in her run and get her grandmother and daughter up and dressed so she could be at work by nine. They would never make it now!

"Mommy, did you hear me?" Cadence yelled once again from the kitchen. "Patricia is making pancakes."  

"Okay, gremlin!" Grace called back. "I'm up."  

Grace stumbled her way into the kitchen, rubbing at her gray eyes. "Good morning!" Patricia greeted brightly from where she stood at the counter in black slacks and an emerald green blouse, stirring a bowlful of pancake batter with gusto.  

"Good morning," Grace mumbled. She glanced toward the living room and saw Ester sitting in the chair while watching television in her robe and house shoes.  

"The coffee is ready if you'd like some," Patricia informed her. "I wasn't sure how you took it or I'd have you a cup waiting."  

"Thanks." Grace went to the coffee pot and quickly filled a cup. As she took a drink and let the warm caffeine heat her blood, she turned to Patricia. "This is really nice of you, Patricia, but I hope you know I don't expect you to cook for us."  

"Oh I know!" Patricia assured her. "I like to keep busy."  

Grace took another sip of coffee and headed toward the phone on the wall. "I'll have to call Meg and tell her I overslept and will be late for work. I only planned to work a half a day today so now I'll have even less hours."  

Patricia nodded and the hot pan sizzled as she poured pancake batter onto it. "Yum! Yum! Yum!" Cadence exclaimed, bouncing with each word.  

Grace wondered why her daughter was acted as if she'd never before had breakfast. Patricia probably thought Grace was a horrible mother who starved her daughter, then again, Grace could just be being overly sensitive about things because she wasn't a morning person and her routine had been blasted to bits today.  

She picked up the phone and dialed her best friend. "Hello, best friend!" Meg said in her usual chipper way. "I wondered when I'd hear from you."  

"I'm so sorry, Meg," Grace sighed. "For some reason my alarm didn't go off..."

"I turned it off," Patricia spoke up from the stove as she flipped pancakes. "I was under strict orders," she added, seeing the look of disbelief on Grace's face.  

"Thanks to you, I'm going to be late for work," Grace ground out.  

Meg cleared her throat. "Actually.. Um.. About that.. You're uh.. You're fired," she managed to stutter out.  

Grace nearly fell over and she gripped the doorframe tightly to hold herself up. "Fired? But Meg, I need that job! What did I do?"  

"Nothing!" Meg promised quickly. "Grace, you didn't do anything.. Oh this his hard! You're my best friend, Grace, but I'm under strict orders that you are no longer allowed to work two jobs."  

"It seems like a lot of people are under strict orders to mess with my life!" Grace exclaimed angrily. "And I bet I can guess where those orders came from!"  

"Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome," Meg supplied an answer.  

"Mr. Moody, Bossy and use to getting his way," Patricia supplied another.  

Grace let out a long breath to attempt to combat the anger that was wanting to bubble to the surface. How dare Vince just try to step in and completely take over her entire life! Grace could take care of herself and had been doing so for a long time before he showed up.

"I'm coming to work," Grace insisted.  

"No, you're not," Meg replied stubbornly. "You're fired. If you come you'll just be working for free."  

"You don't have to listen to him!" Grace exclaimed with frustration.  

"Yes, I do. He's a very convincing person when he wants you to see things his way and he's right! You are engaged to a multimillionaire! He might even be closer to a billionaire if it came right down to it. You certainly don't need the little bit of money you make working every weekend in my diner."  

"I have to go, Meg. Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome is about to hear my opinion on this little stunt he pulled," Grace grumbled. She hung up the phone and glared at Patricia. "You came into my room and turned my alarm off?"  

"Yes, I happen to like my job and he would have fired me had I allowed you to wake up at five in the morning," Patricia informed her without looking up from the pancakes she was currently cutting into hearts.  

Grace rubbed her face with her hand. "Vince isn't the boss of me."  

"Yes, however, he is the boss of me and I have to do as he wishes," Patricia replied as she sat the plate full of heart shaped pancakes on the table in front of Cadence with a flourish that had the girl giggling.  

Grace gripped the phone tightly and stepped out onto the porch so she could have a bit of privacy. There was a coolness in the air and mist was still hanging heavy over the mountains. Grace dialed Vince's cell phone number and thought of all the angry things she wanted to say to him.  

"Vince Griffin," his tired voice answered.

The exhaustion in his tone had Grace forgetting some of her anger. "Good morning, Mr. Griffin."  

"Grace!" Instantly his voice sounded lighter--happier--and Grace knew then that she wouldn't yell at him like she had wanted to. Stupid love. "How are you?" he asked. "How's Cadence."  

"Cadence is fine," Grace replied. "I, on the other hand, am very aggravated."  

"You called Meg, didn't you?" he asked with a sigh.  

Grace gripped the phone a little tighter. "Yes, I did, and apparently I'm fired because you said so. Can I ask why you did that?"  

"It's simple," he replied. "You work too hard."  

Grace could just imagine him shrugging and giving her that look that told her he knew he was right. "Vince, I love you and I appreciate everything you've done for me, for Cadence and for this town but you had no right to do that with Meg. I work two jobs because I have to, Vince. I have to have the money."  

"No, you don't. You don't need that money anymore and there's no point working yourself to death for no reason."

"Is that right?" Grace demanded. "What am I supposed to do, Vince? Sit around and become a desperate housewife of Clifton County?"  

Vince chuckled. "If you want to."  

"Did you talk to LeRoy too? Am I going to be sent home when I show there on Monday?"  

"Of course not," Vince said with exasperation. "You enjoy being a mechanic and you told me that yourself. I would never try to take something away from you that you loved doing. I know you are a strong, independent woman and I respect that but at the same time I am a rich man and you working yourself to the bone and having no time for yourself is not something I will allow."  

"You won't 

allow ?“ Grace hissed.

 Vince grumbled on the other end. "Wrong choice of word. You woke me up and I haven't had my coffee yet," he accused. "Can you honestly not see where I'm coming from? I love you and I care about you and you are working yourself to death. You don't have to do that anymore. Take more time for you, more time for your daughter and more time to just live instead of always working so hard."  

Grace sighed. "Okay. I understand where you're coming from and I can see your point but, Vince, I just wish you would have talked to me about this before you left instead of going behind my back and making decisions for me."  

"I'm sorry. It won't happen again. My only excuse is that I knew you'd get angry and I'm a chicken."  

"You are a highly respected businessman. I highly doubt that you are a chicken."  

"Cluck cluck," Vince insisted.  

Grace laughed. "I miss you already," she said softly as she wrapped her arm around herself.  

"I miss you too," Vince replied. "But I have to get ready. I have a breakfast meeting in about an hour but I'll call you this afternoon. Have fun in Lexington today and be careful but more importantly, spoil yourself, Cadence and Ester. Pretend I'm there and get anything the three of you want."  

"Yes sir," Grace clipped as if she were a soldier. Vince chuckled, they said their goodbyes and Grace went back into the house.  

"Is there going to be bloodshed?" Patricia asked with amusement.  

Grace shook her head and put the phone back on the hook. "No, I'm not going to hurt him. But sometimes that man is infuriating."  

"Tell me about it," Patricia agreed. Then she smiled. "But I suppose his heart is in the right place."  

---

Vince rose from the bed and walked to the window of his penthouse suite. He looked out over the city and frowned. He had always loved the city and it had been his home for his entire life, but now he couldn't get over the fact that all he saw was concrete and cars.  

He missed seeing trees, mountains, rivers and tiny storefronts. Everything here was so rushed and loud. There were honking horns, car doors slamming and delivery trucks backfiring. People were rushing on their way to work and run errands and no one even seemed to notice one another. No one took the time to stop and say hello or even wave. It was strange how quickly New York City had gone from home to a place he didn't feel like he belonged anymore.  

 Vince scratched at his bare stomach and thought about his conversation with Grace. He was glad that she wasn't going to fight him about quitting her second job. The woman worked too hard and it simply wasn't something that Vince wanted to see her doing anymore. Vince would never try to control her or stop her from doing what she loved but he knew for a fact she didn't love working every weekend in that diner.  

Vince glanced at the clock and sighed. He was nervous about today. He had to be at the office by nine to start the interviews for the COO position. He was going to narrow it down to two options and then let Patricia make the final call since she would be the one working daily with whoever was hired.  

It wasn't the thought of those interviews though that had him nervous. No, it was the dinner at his mother's house that had him on edge. He was going to tell then about Grace and ask his mother for the ring. He knew it stood a good chance of turning into an ugly confrontation but was hoping that it wouldn't.  

But Vince couldn't think about that yet. First things first, he had to get through the interviews and then worry about dealing with Beverly and Vincent Griffin.

Unfortunately, time always flew when you were dreading something and Vince found his driver pulling into his mother and father's long driveway. He let out a long breath when they stopped before the massive mansion that his parent's called home.   

Just before he exited the phone, Vince's phone rang and he looked at the screen to see Grace's picture. "Hi sweetheart," he said as he relaxed against the seat.  

"Are you okay?" she asked.  

"It's been a long day."  

"Did you get your interviews done?"  

"I narrowed it down to two applicants but the final call will be up to Patricia since she'll have to work with him or her the most," Vince replied. "What about you? Are you all having a good time?"

"Patricia is wearing me out!" Grace exclaimed with a light laugh. "We decided to just get a hotel room down here because Ester is too tired for the return trip tonight."  

Vince smiled. "Did you get your cookbook done?"  

"Yes, surprisingly! I thought we'd have to drop everything off and come back another day to pick it up but Patricia mentioned your name and, boom, they were stumbling over themselves to get it done."  

"See, there are perks to being with a man like me who has a family like mine."  

"So, if you're done with your interviews when will you be heading back?" Grace asked and he could tell she was eager to see him. Vince wanted her just as badly.  

He sighed. "Tomorrow morning. I'm having dinner at my parents house tonight."  

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow then," Grace whispered softly.  

Vince smiled. "Give Cadence a kiss for me."  

"I will," Grace promised. "Patricia wants to talk to you."  

Vince grumbled. "Of course she does."  

"Hello boss," Patricia's voice came over the line a second later.  

"Hello, Patricia. Take it easy on Grace. She's not a professional shopaholic like you."  

"She's keeping up quite well and we've nearly maxed out your credit card," Patricia countered.  

Vince rolled his eyes. "If you're trying to anger, worry or otherwise bother me then you are failing miserably."

"Of course, of course, because you would give her absolutely 

anything ,“ Patricia teased and Vince heard Cadence giggling in the background.

"Is there something you wanted?" Vince asked, knowing his mother was probably watching him through a window and wondering what was keeping him in his car.  

"Yes," Patricia assured him. Vince heard a door open and close. "I have privacy now," Patricia said. "Have you talked to that horrible woman about the ring?"  

"No, I haven't spoken to her yet. I am actually sitting in the driveway right now and waiting to go in for dinner.  

"Well, good luck, boss, and if they lock you up in the loony bin or any other such place, I will don my black spandex and sneak in to help you escape. Just so you know, Grace doesn't suspect a thing. She's actually having a very good time."  

"Good she needs to unwind and have fun." Vince sighed. "I have to go now."  

"Give Widget a kiss from me," Patricia called.  

"Goodbye Patricia."  

"Goodbye boss."  

Vince flipped the phone closed, slid it into his pocket and sighed as he got from the car. He made the long walk up to the wide cherry doors. He adjusted the suit jacket and tie he was wearing and then knocked three times. The door was answered quickly and Vince found himself looking at the short, gray haired man who had been his parents butler for as long as Vince could remember.  

"Good evening, Bernard," Vince greeted politely.  

"Good evening, sir. It's been a long time since I've seen you here."  

"Not nearly long enough," Vince mumbled when he saw his mother come sweeping down the grand staircase in her prim and proper tailored skirt and blouse. Her blond hair was elegantly styled on the back of her head and her clear, age defying face was clearly angry.  

"Nice of the prodigal son to finally come back and pay a visit to his aging mother and father," Beverly declared haughtily.  

Vince tipped his head in apology as he slipped off his suit jacket and handed it to Bernard. "I apologize, mother," he said, laying a kiss to her offered cheek. "I have been busy with other things."  

"Down there in Mayberry, as you call it?" she inquired as she led him toward the sitting room. "What could you possibly have been doing down there this long?"  

"Well that's actually something I need to speak to you about."  

Beverly stopped walking and looked up at him. "I don't like the sound of that. What's going on?"  

Vince took a deep breath. It would be better to simply get down to it instead of beating around the bush. "I met someone, mother, and I've asked her to marry me. She agreed and I need grandmother's ring."  

Beverly let out a high pitched gasp and Vince rolled his eyes and caught her just before she hit the floor.  

"What on earth did you do to your mother, boy?" Vincent Griffin's deep voice commanded.  

Vince looked into his father's stern ice blue eyes and sighed. "I told her that I found the woman I want to marry."  

Vince stared hard at him for several long moments and then downed the remaining scotch from the crystal glass in his hand. He shook his head and wiped his mouth with his hand. "Oh dear."  

---

"What in the world is wrong with you?" Beverly exclaimed a short time later after she'd regained consciousness. She was pacing back and forth across the sitting room like an angry cat while Vincent sat in his arm chair smoking his pipe and petting the tiny puppy that was resting on his leg.  

Vince sat in the matching arm chair rubbing at his aching temples and willing himself to die. "There is nothing wrong with me, mother."  

"Did those mountain people do something to you?"  

"Like what, mother? Run a probe? Conduct experiments? Alter my brainwaves?" Vince was certain he heard his father chuckle but then again the old man could have been choking on his cigar smoke. Or, maybe he was allergic to his new pet.  

 "Any of those things would explain this sudden case of craziness you seem to have developed!" Beverly shouted. "Giving up your career and moving to the middle of nowhere to be with some woman who is so far beneath you?"  

"Throw your fit if you must but do not say another ill word about Grace," Vince warned.  

Beverly sniffed and threw her hands in the air. "Oh excuse me! This 

Grace , tell me about her.“

"Beverly calm down before you give yourself a cerebral hemorrhage," Vincent stated firmly and Beverly glared at him before resuming her pacing. Vincent looked at his son. "Vince, you've worked very hard to create that company. Are you certain that you want to simply walk away from it?"  

"What you both fail to realize is that I'm not giving up anything. I am still the CEO. That company is mine and will be for a long time to come. I simply no longer wish to live in New York and so I'm hiring someone else who can take care of the day to day running of Griffin Real Estate and Development," Vince informed them for what felt like the tenth time.  "As a matter of fact, I'm considering opening a small branch of the company right there in Clifton County as well as running the campground."  

"Campground?" Beverly spat as if the very word was poison. "My Harvard educated, business man son is going to be a campground operator?"  

"Disgraceful, I know," Vince noted dryly. "None of this, however, is any concern of yours, mother and father. You raised a smart son and I know exactly what I want and what I'm doing. Now about the ring..."

"You want to put your grandmother's ring on the finger of some ignorant, mountain hick?!" Beverly demanded with vehemence.  

Vince stood slowly, using his height alone to put his mother in her place. "I have asked you politely not to speak ill of Grace. Do so again and you will lose a son."  

"What else am I supposed to think of her since you will tell me nothing?" Beverly sniffed, attempting to sound regretful.  

"Grace is a very strong woman. She is beautiful, independent and fun loving. She brings out the best in me and I love her. Isn't that enough?"

"Does she come from good bloodlines?" Beverly inquired.  

Vince raised his brow. "Am I getting a wife or a racehorse?" he mumbled and this time he was certain he heard his father chuckling.  

Beverly stuck her manicured finger under Vince's nose. "Son, do not test my patience!"  

"I love her mother and she loves me. That's all that matters."  

Beverly snorted. "She loves your bank account."  

"No, actually she doesn't." Vince shook his head. "That would be the one hundred and seventeen women that 

you attempted to set me up with.“

"Have you even though about what this could do to your father's career?" Beverly demanded, obviously choosing to ignore his comment.  

"Father's career will be just fine," Vince grumbled. His head was throbbing and he wished Grace was here to rub the pain away the way only she seemed to able to. He was rubbing at his own temples but was applying so much force he knew he would have to stop soon or hit brain.

"Okay then. You say she is independent. What does she do for a living?" Beverly asked, seeming to calm slightly.  

Vince groaned inwardly and decided it was time for the proverbial shit to hit the fan. "She's a mechanic," he replied and then he began a countdown under his breath. "Five, four, three, two, and now..."  

"A MECHANIC!" Beverly screeched. Vince winced and Widget let out a yelp and buried herself under Vincent's arm.  

"Beverly, you scared her," Vincent scolded. "Son, you know better than to spring something like that on your mother."  

"On me?" Beverly demanded of her husband. "Aren't you equally as horrified?"  

"I'm worried about our son making a mistake, yes, but as he said, he is a smart man and we truly have no control over what he does," Vincent replied as he scratched the frightened puppy's stomach.  

"I take it Widget is fitting in?" Vince asked.  

Vincent smiled, an odd sight for Vince to see on his father's face. "We get along splendidly."  

Beverly stepped between the two of them. "Vince, I am your mother and I am telling you that I am deeply worried for you."  

"There is no need to worry, mother," Vince assured her. "Grace is a good woman and I love her and I love her daughter as if she were my own..."

"Daughter?" Beverly's brow rose. "This Grace is 

divorced ?“

"No ma'am," Vince replied, realizing that his mother was very likely about to pitch another fit, and given her tight scruples, this fit could prove to be the biggest yet.  

"An unwed mother? You are going to run the Griffin name through the mud by attaching yourself to a poor mountain mechanic who is also an unwed mother?! This is absolutely ridiculous. You will not put your grandmother's ring on the finger of a woman who could not even manage to keep her legs crossed until marriage!"  

"Goodbye mother," Vince managed to growl through clenched teeth as he turned quickly and headed for the sitting room door.  

He could hear his mother and father arguing as he went to the house entryway and met Bernard at the door. Vince took his jacket from the man's waiting arm and Bernard smiled. "I wish you all the best, sir. She must be quite the woman to have captured your attention."  

"That she is Bernard. Tell me, were you listening at the door again?" Vince inquired.  

"Of course I was, sir. I have to find my entertainment when I can."  

Vince tipped his head and then walked out into the cool evening air. He was just opening the back door to his waiting car when his mother called out for him. Vince blew out a long breath and turned slowly.  

"Vince wait!" she called breathlessly as she ran down the steps and came to him. "Here's the ring," she added, holding up the sparkling emerald and diamond ring that his grandmother had worn for sixty years. Vince reached for it but Beverly snatched it away. "I want to meet her first. If she gets my approval then you can have your grandmother's ring and put it on her finger."  

"Isn't that a bit childish? Even for you?" Vince mumbled.  

"I am trying to compromise. If you're going to be hard-headed and stubborn, I will simply take the ring and pawn it at my earliest convenience," Beverly snapped, slipping the ring into her skirt pocket.  

Vince sighed. "Calm down. There is a festival starting next week and running into the weekend. You and father should come. You can meet Grace and her daughter then. I have no doubts that if you overlook your usual prejudices you will come to love them just as I have."  

"We shall see about that," Beverly replied skeptically.  

"But I will warn you," Vince added, fixing her with a stern gaze. "If you say one insulting or spiteful thing to Grace, her daughter or her grandmother, I will turn my back on you and you 

will lose a son.“

Beverly rolled her eyes. "I understand. She means a lot to you and I promise to be on my best behavior."  

Vince just shook his head. "Whatever you say."  

---

"I missed you!" Grace exclaimed breathlessly the next afternoon as Vince stepped onto her porch and she threw her arms around his neck.  

He hugged her tightly. "Not nearly as much as I've missed you," he promised, breathing her in.  

"Vince!" Cadence came running from the house with her blond pigtails swinging. Vince released his hold on Grace and wrapped the girl in a tight embrace. "I missed you!" she exclaimed.  

"I missed you too, sweetheart. Did you have fun while I was gone?"  

"Yep. We went shopping," she said as she pulled away. "Do you like my new dress?"  

Vince smiled as he looked at the pink dress covered in tiny white flowers. "That's a very nice dress. Very beautiful."  

"I got a bunch more clothes too. Mommy said it was too much but Patricia kept getting more anyway."  

"Good. I wanted you to get all you wanted," Vince assured her. "Where is Patricia?" he asked as he turned his gaze back to Grace. She looked beautiful today in a pair of form fitting jeans and a yellow t-shirt. Her auburn hair was loose and falling around her shoulders and Vince could see in her gray eyes how much she had missed him. He knew there was no way a man could ever get tired of being looked at like that.  

"She is dazzling us with her culinary skills," Grace replied with a smile.  

Vince frowned. "She has those kinds of skills?"  

"Of course I do," Patricia replied, stepping out onto the porch. "You must have overlooked that section of my resume."  

"Apparently," Vince mused dryly.  

Grace put her hand on his cheek. "You look a little stressed. What's wrong?"  

Vince sighed. "I'm afraid I have some bad news."  

"What kind of news?" Grace asked, clearly worried.  

"It seems we're going to have some visitors," Vince replied. "They are coming in next Wednesday so they can enjoy some of the festival."  

"Who's coming?" Grace asked impatiently as Patricia laughed and walked back into the house, whistling with every step she took.  

"My parents," Vince stated with dread.  

"That will be fun!" Grace's eyes lit up. "I can meet my future in-laws."  

"You have no idea what you're in store for," Vince warned. Honestly he was not looking forward to the visit. He knew that if anyone could scare Grace away from him, it would be his mother.  

"You've been putting up with all the craziness that is my family and my life. How much worse could yours be?" Grace teased. 	

Vince just shivered and shook his head. "You have no idea."

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

"Today is the day," Vince stated with trepidation. "I have to pick my mother and father up at the airport."  

 

He stretched out on the bed and Grace snuggled deeper into his embrace as she glanced at the clock. “You being here is having a very bad effect on my workout routine,” she mused, realizing it was already six o’clock and she would have to get Cadence up and ready for school soon.

Vince's teeth grazed her neck and he winked. "I think I can come up with a way to get your heart rate up a bit."  

Grace trembled as she swatted his arm. "Stop that!" Grace scolded. "I have things to do. Cadence has to go to school and I have to run the booth."  

"I guess you're right," Vince conceded with a sigh. "I can't be late to pick them up or I'll never hear the end of it."  

"What will your mother say when she knows you're staying here with me?" Grace wondered.  

"Nothing if she knows what's good for her," Vince replied. "Besides, if I wasn't here then the monsters might get Cadence," he added with a sleepy smile.  

Grace kissed him lightly and climbed out of the bed. "You've come a long way from hiding all of that from me," Vince said, his eyes roaming over her naked body. She gave him a wicked grin and then pulled on her thick cotton robe.  

"That's okay," Vince growled as he rose from the bed and Grace felt her mouth go dry at the sight of him. "I remember what everything under that robe looks like."  

"That's good because you won't be seeing it again for a while," Grace informed him.  

Vince frowned. "And why not?"  

"Because I want your mom to think I'm a decent woman so you'll have to stay at the inn while they're here."  

"But we're getting married so why does it matter?" Vince asked with a pout.  

"It matters to me," Grace replied.  

"Fine but if that's how you feel then we're getting married this weekend."  

Grace laughed. "What?"  

Vince crossed his arms over his chest. "You heard me."

"Vince, a wedding can't be planned in three or four days."  

"Yes it can," Vince countered. "You've already said you want to wear your grandmother's dress. I know that Mavis could get those alterations done by Sunday and would be happy to do it if you asked her. Meg could supply the food and I know that flowers are easy enough to get." Vince smiled. "You said you wanted simple and simple can be done in three or four days."  

"You're serious, aren't you?" Grace gasped. "You want to marry me this weekend?"  

"Of course I'm serious. You already know how I feel about you and as far as I'm concerned any time we spend waiting is time wasted."  

"And you really want back in my bed, right?" Grace teased.  

Vince grinned. "There's that too." He walked to her and dropped down to his knee.  

Grace felt a flush cover her cheeks. "You do realize that you're still naked don't you?"  

Vince winked as he took her hands in his. "That's all part of my master plan to coerce you into saying yes."  

"It's quite effective," Grace admitted with a smile. Being this openly attracted to and teasing with a man was still something new to her and she was still attempting to get used to it.  

Vince tilted his head. "Is that a yes?"  

"That is an, 'you are absolutely crazy.'"

"Yes, I am," he replied. "Crazy in love." Vince gave her a lopsided grin and Grace covered her face with her hands.  

"You are an idiot."  

"I am a naked, crazy idiot who is desperately asking you to become my wife this Sunday. Why don't you give me an answer so I can stand up and get dressed. I'm freezing down here."  

"If you say it's possible then I'll believe you and, of course I'll marry you this Sunday."

Vince stood up and took her in his arms. Grace felt her body heating at the knowledge that he was holding her and only her robe was separating their naked bodies.  She quickly distanced herself from him. "Now put on some clothes while I go take a shower," she ordered.  

"I'm not used to taking orders," Vince admitted. "I've always been the boss."  

Vince's haughty gaze made her laugh. "Well get used to it, chief. You aren't in the ballroom anymore. "

"Was that a crack at my dancing past?" Vince asked with faked indignation.

"Why yes, yes it was," Grace admitted and she laughed as he lunged for her. Before he could reach her, Grace leapt out of his reach and disappeared down the hall.  

---

Vince was dressed in one of his highest quality suits that he'd brought back from his trip to New York when Grace stepped into the kitchen. "Are you dressing up like that just to go pick your parents up?" she asked as he handed her a steaming cup of coffee.  

"Yes," he replied. "They'll expect it."  

"Should I dress up?" Grace asked with a frown as she glanced down at her jeans and t-shirt.

"No," he swatted her wet ponytail. "You look perfect."  

"Good," Grace replied. "Because high heels and silk don't exactly go with grease. I'm helping with the school booth this morning." Grace didn't have to work at the garage this week because it was shut down due to the festival.  

"If I wanted high heels and silk, I would have picked high heels and silk. What I want is you, just the way you are," Vince replied as he kissed her cheek. "Now I'm going to go wake Cadence up and tell her goodbye. I'll be back sometime this evening."  

"I'll be at the festival," Grace said. "I'm going to work there this morning and then take Cadence back to play this afternoon. I'll be starting  the baked goods and cookbook booth tomorrow."  

"Good," Vince licked his lips and patted his stomach. "I have a very large sweet tooth."  

"Well for a dollar fifty you can have a cookie or you can pay three dollars for a block of fudge or a brownie."  

"You drive a hard bargain," Vince winked before heading toward Cadence's room.  

Grace busied herself tidying up the counters with her shaking hands. In all truth she was terrified about the prospect of meeting Vince's family today. What would they think of her? She knew she probably wasn't what they had wanted for their son. According to Vince, Beverly had paraded woman after woman she had considered marriageable in front of Vince and he had turned them all down--and Vince certainly made it seem like those women were the opposite of her.

Patricia had warned her that Beverly was an uppity, two-faced harpy of a woman. She would act one way and then, without warning, do a completely one hundred and eighty degree turn and change her personality--which usually involved yelling.  

Grace let out a breath and blew her bangs from her face. She was a strong, independent woman and she wouldn't let a couple of rich people from the city cause her to doubt herself. Vince was in love with her and she loved their son so surely they would see that and accept it.

---

"Honestly now! We've been in this car for nearly three hours!" Beverly exclaimed as she smoothed out her white slacks and glared at her son. "Are we going to arrive there sometime today?"  

"Yes, mother. Why don't you just sit back and enjoy the scenery?" Vince asked as he fought the urge to turn the radio to full blast to drown out her constant complaining.  

"I did enjoy the scenery for the first hour," Beverly informed him. "But after all this time the sight of these mountains and trees is simply becoming tedious."  

"Your mother is just in a bad mood because there was a lot of turbulence on our flight and it rattled her nerves," Vincent spoke up from the back seat. "Isn't that right, Widget?" he added as he held up the little pup and allowed it to lick his nose.  

"For heaven's sake, Vincent! I still can't see why you had to bring that horrid beast with you! All she is good for is peeing, pooping and chewing up my best shoes!" Beverly stated with a roll of her eyes.  

"At least she does not spend her time squawking around and finding nearly everything to complain about," Vincent countered in a whisper.  

"Are you honestly trying to insult me? If you're going to do so at least do it loudly enough that I can hear you properly," Beverly sniffed, glancing into the back seat.  

"Next time we'll fly in first class by ourselves, Widget, and put the grumpy passenger in coach," Vincent grumbled as he cuddled the pup against him and looked out at the passing mountains.  

Beverly crossed her arms over her chest as she returned her gaze to the windshield. "Oh for the love of God! I am going to be taking that horrid dog to the pound at the first available opportunity."  

"Admit it mother, you're fond of the pup too," Vince teased.  

"Oh yes, about as fond as I would be of an abscessed tooth. Do you know that she chewed up my brand new Gucci purse?"  

"No, I did not know that," Vince replied.  

Beverly sighed and looked out the window as she leaned back in her seat. "I'll meet Grace tonight?"  

"That's right. She and her daughter will be at the festival."  

"And this festival?" Beverly inquired. "Do they have food?"  

"Yes they do, mother. I believe they even have those blooming onions which I know are your favorite."  

"That's all I need to add several more inches to these thighs," Beverly mumbled but Vince could tell by the way her eyes lit up that the woman had every intention of buying a deep friend onion at her earliest convenience.

"Grace is looking forward to meeting you," Vince told her. He left out the fact that he and Grace planned on being married Sunday. He wanted to give them time to get settled in with their new surroundings before causing his mother's blood pressure to skyrocket and his father's nose to get stuck in that upward position it so often traveled in when Vince did something he didn't approve of.

"Is she really?" Beverly inquired. "I would have thought that between you and that floozy Patricia, she would be scared to death of meeting me."  

"Grace isn't the kind of woman that scares easily," Vince informed her. "I think you may have met your match in her."  

Beverly simply crossed her hands on her lap and sighed. "We'll have to see about that."  

---

"Can I get my face painted, mommy?" Cadence exclaimed as they walking along the hundreds of booth set up under the tarps and tents. There were craft booths, face painting booths and even booths selling fresh produce and hunting supplies as well as dozens of others.  

"Of course you can, gremlin," Grace replied and Cadence ran over and hopped up on the empty stool. The crowds weren't bad since it was a weeknight but Grace knew that once Friday arrived this place would be flooded by hundreds, maybe even thousands of people from Clifton and all the surrounding counties.  

As Cadence told Kristin Howell, a third grade teacher from school, what she wanted on her face, Grace scanned their surroundings for Vince and his parents.  

"Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome hasn't made it back yet?" Meg asked, walking to her with Ben in tow.

Grace was wringing her hands. "No, not yet."  

Meg frowned. "I know you're not nervous. You're Grace Collins, life's ass kicker extraordinaire. They are going to love you and even if they don't, who gives a crap? Ben's family still calls me the little tramp who came along and ruined their son before he could become all he could have been."  

Ben grinned. "I knew it was all your fault."  

Grace felt a lot of her uneasiness melting away as she listened to her friend's antics. Then all of that tension came crashing back when she heard Vince's voice calling out for her.  

Grace plastered a smile on her face and turned to see her fiancé walking her way with a man who appeared to be an older version of himself only with blue eyes, and a tall rather beautiful woman in white slacks, a black blouse and a tailored red jacket. Her blond hair was stylishly swept back away from her face and her nose was in the air as if she smelled something terrible.  

"Did you have a good trip?" Grace asked as Vince swooped low and laid a kiss to her brow.  

He hugged her with a smile. "I contemplated shoving razor blades in my ears, does that tell you anything?" he whispered so only Meg, Grace and Ben could hear him.  

"Son, are you going to introduce us?" Vincent demanded in a loud, commanding voice. Grace tilted her head when she realized that his stern demeanor was offset quite comically by the tiny pup nestled in the crook of his arm.  

"Of course," Vince replied, standing straight and turning around to face his parents. "Mother, father, this is Grace, Meg and Ben," he said, pointing to each of them in turn. "You all, this is my mother Beverly and my father Vincent."  

"It's very nice to finally meet you both," Grace said as she held out her hand.  

"Likewise, my dear," Vincent replied warmly enough as he shook her hand.  

Beverly glared at her offered hand before curling her nose and shaking it. "Oh dear!" Beverly cried disdainfully as she pulled her hand away. "I have some very good moisturizing cream that I get from France. You could stand to use some, I do believe."

Grace flushed with shame and quickly shoved her calloused hands in her pants pockets. "I probably should use more moisturizer," she mumbled.  

Vince wrapped his arm tight around her and threw his mother a warning glare. Beverly sniffed and quickly looked away.  

"So..." Meg's voice filled the awkward silence as she rocked back on her heels.  

"Where is Cadence?" Vince asked.  

"She's...coming," Grace replied with dread when she saw her daughter hopping off the stool and heading their way with her new artwork on her face. Kristen had certainly outdone herself with the zombie look. Cadence looked as if her skin was rotting, torn and oozing and she had quite intricate stitches painted on her lips.  

Not exactly the first impression that Grace had been hoping for.  

Vince was chuckling as Beverly turned. "Yes, I would like to meet the little girl I've heard so much about." Her eyes landed on Cadence and she screamed as she leapt backward into her husband's free arm and clutched at her heart. "Oh, dear God!" she exclaimed with horror.  

Cadence tilted her head and smiled, which of course only served to exaggerate the stitches on her lips. "She's silly, mommy."

Grace was shocked when Vince began to laugh so hard that he was forced to stoop down and hold his knees to support himself. Tears streamed down his face and he seemed to have trouble catching his breath.  

"You think that's amusing?!" Beverly demanded, pointing at Cadence with a trembling finger.  

"No, I think that's hilarious," Vince assured her, standing slowly and rubbing at his stomach as he swiped his hand over his face. He smiled at Cadence. "Come here, sweetheart."  

Cadence ran to him and jumped into his waiting arms. He kissed her hair and Beverly and Vincent shared a look as they watched Vince keep one arm around Cadence while wrapping the other around Grace's waist.  

Beverly shook her head. "What on earth has happened to our son?" she whispered absently and Vincent simply shrugged.

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

"I want to ride the rides, Vince! Can we go ride the rides?" Cadence asked, grabbing his hand and bouncing a while later, seeming to be oblivious to the tension among the adults.  

"Of course we can," Vince replied.  

"Actually dear, your father and I are quite tired and we'd like to go and rest," Beverly stated. "Aren't we tired, dear?" she asked, throwing Vincent a pointed look.  

"Oh yes," Vincent made a big show of faking a yawn. "Exhausted."  

"I'll take you both to the inn," Vince sighed. "Your mommy can ride with you until I get back, Cadence."  

Cadence pouted and tugged his hand harder. "I don't want to ride with mommy. I want 

you to ride with me.“

"Cadence, you don't whine," Grace warned sternly.  

"But mommy...."

"Grace, I don't want to disappoint her," Vince said. "Why don't you take my mother and father down to the inn and I'll take her up to the rides. You can join us once they're settled in. Please?"  

"Well...I..uh.." Grace stammered.  

"Please mommy!" Cadence begged.  

Grace wanted desperately to say no but she didn't want to show any kind of fear or weakness in front of Vince's parents. She had a feeling that would sign her own death warrant, so to speak. "Sure," she relented, though she tossed Vince a look to ensure the man knew they'd be talking later. "That sounds like a plan."  

Vince quickly looked away from her and wrapped his arm around Cadence's shoulders. "Well the monster and I are going to go. Mother, father, I'll check on you when I return to the inn tonight." With that, Vince quickly walked away with Cadence giggling and skipping alongside him.  

"I thought he hated giggling," Beverly mused with a shake of her head.  

"He did once say he would scratch out his own eardrums with a cactus rather than listen to the sound," Vincent agreed. Then he shrugged and scratched Widget behind her ears. "But I suppose a man is allowed to change his mind."  

 Grace wasn't quite sure what to add to their conversation and so she bid farewell to Meg and Ben and motioned for Vince's parents to follow her. "I'll take you both to the inn. Where is your luggage?" she asked.  

"In the trunk of Vince's car," Vincent replied.  

Grace nodded and they began the long walk to the city parking lot with an uncomfortable and oppressive silence surrounding them.  

"How old is your daughter, Grace?" Beverly finally asked, breaking the silence.  

"She's nine years old," Grace replied.

"Oh..." Beverly nodded.  

Grace could tell there was more that Beverly wanted to say but was clearly unsure how to say it. Grace sighed and continued. "She was born with what the doctors call mild mental retardation." Grace shivered just as she always did when she said those words. "She currently has the mental maturity of about a five year old."  

The silence became even more strained after Grace's confession and they arrived at Vince's car. Grace pulled her keys from her purse and opened the trunk. Vincent reached in and grabbed his own small suitcase leaving another suitcase, a matching bag and a smaller toiletry bag inside.  

Beverly quickly snatched the small toiletry bag and then looked at Grace expectantly. "My back is hurting from the long car ride."

Grace wanted to tell the woman to take the suitcase and bag and shove them both up her ass but she knew she couldn't. This was Vince's mother and despite the fact that Vince didn't seem to concerned if they got along, Grace knew that it would make things run much more smoothly if she could earn the woman's approval.  

"Okay, I'll get them," Grace forced out politely.  

Vincent shook his head. "Why don't you hold Widget and I'll get those bags," he offered.  

Grace nodded her thanks and reached for the dog which growled and snapped at her hand.  

"Perhaps that horrid dog is a better judge of character than our son," Beverly noted dryly.  

Grace took a deep breath to combat her temper and offered Vincent a smile. "I'll carry the bags, it's really no trouble. As a single mom, I've gotten used to packing groceries, purse, baby and all. Two little bags won't be a problem."  

Grace realized how wrong she was about halfway to the inn. She was convinced that Beverly must have planned all of this and stuffed the bags with various rocks and bricks. There was simply no way that clothes alone could weigh so much!  

Grace grunted as she readjusted her load and decided to end the oppressive silence. "I'm sure the two of you have some questions for me," Grace said. "Questions that would be more comfortable for you to ask without Vince standing over us. Now would be the time for you to get them off your chest."

Beverly and Vincent shared a look of surprise at Grace's forwardness and then  Beverly nodded. "What exactly attracted you to our son?"  

"Your question surprises me," Grace admitted. "Vince hates 

beating around the bush as he calls it and I would have thought his parents would have the same straightforward nature.“

"She seems to know our son well," Vincent stated.  

Beverly waved her hand. "Hush, Vincent, and play with your dog."  

Grace sighed. "I think the question you really wanted to ask me was, am I with your son for his money."  

Beverly sniffed. "Well are you?"  

"I won't lie and say that knowing Vince is successful and rich isn't a bonus because it is but it isn't why I love him. I have always been independent and I've been raising my daughter and taking care of my grandmother by myself for many years."

"I have a hard time believing that a woman struggling on her own to raise her mentally retarded daughter would not fall in love with a man who has money simply because he can make her life easier," Beverly stated.  

Grace gripped the suitcase handle a little tighter. "Please refrain from calling my daughter mentally retarded. I don't like the words and there are much more polite terms you can use to refer to her," she snapped. "And as far as Vince goes, there is nothing I can say to you that will convince you I'm not with him for money. I could talk about how loving, caring and warm he is to me and to my daughter and grandmother. I could talk about how he does everything he can to show us he loves us and wipes away tears and scares away monsters under the bed but none of that would matter to you.  

"Yes, I am relieved to finally be able to buy my daughter clothes that haven't belonged to five children before and I'm grateful to be able to get her new shoes without waiting until her toes are showing through her old ones, and I'm beyond thankful that the Vince has offered to pay for the medicine my grandmother's insurance just stopped paying for so she can retain some of her mind and remain with us just a little longer. However, I'm not with him for those reasons. They have nothing to do with the love I have for your son."

Beverly huffed. "Well I..."  

"And furthermore," Grace continued, her temper piqued. "All I heard from Vince was how he was expected to take a 'trophy wife' of your choosing. Correct me if I'm wrong but aren't those the types of women who are with men for their money?"  

"I.. well.. That is.." Beverly stammered.  

Grace tipped her head in thanks to Vincent as the man opened the door to the inn. She stepped inside and continued. "But then again, those women come from good families with money themselves and, of course they don't have calluses on their hands because they've never had to lift a finger for anything," Grace stated, leading the couple up the stairs toward the room that Vince had reserved for them. "I, however, wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I was raised by my grandparents from the age of five after my mother changed her mind, I ended up pregnant by a boy I thought loved me at eighteen and found myself alone three months after giving birth. My grandfather died and my grandmother lost her home so I worked two jobs and I scrimped and saved to buy another one for her, me and my daughter to live in. I'm not much, Beverly, but I am proud of what I am."  

They reached the door to the room and Grace sat the bags down. "I am a woman with hands calloused from hard work, a house that is never clean and could use some updating, a car that is on its last leg and probably near to death but I have earned every bit of it without ever asking for a handout."

Grace pulled key to the room from her pocket and placed it in Vincent's hand. She looked at Beverly who was considerably paler than she had been earlier and seemed quite speechless. "I trust that tomorrow you'll be a bit more considerate to the fact that, although I may not be rich and high class, I am still a human being as is my daughter and you have no right to look down your powdered nose at us."  

Grace turned on her heel and walked away before either one of them could overcome their shock enough to speak. "Of all the egotistical, arrogant, snobby, horrible people I've ever met...." Grace growled as she stepped out into the sunlight.  

"Anyone I know?"  

Grace turned and saw Grant coming down the sidewalk toward her. "This day just keeps getting better," Grace mumbled.  

"Sorry, I guess I should leave you alone," Grant admitted.  

Grace sighed. "No, you're okay. I just met some new people and I let them get under my skin is all."  

"Vince's parents? I saw you walking with them."  

Grace's eyes narrowed. "Yeah, they don't think I'm quite high-class enough for their son. They have no problem with gold diggers just so long as they're plastic surgery enhanced gold diggers with rich daddies."  

Grant smiled. "I do have a badge. If you want to lead them across the street, I could always get them for jaywalking."  

Grace found herself laughing. This was the Grant she remembered. The lighthearted tone, the teasing in his blue eyes. It was almost enough to make her forget about the jealous streak he had shown which had led to him mistreating her daughter...almost.

"I heard from Vince that you nearly lost that badge."  

Grant sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, but thanks to him I was able to keep it."  

"Your nose looks like it feels a little better," Grace noted.  

Grant laughed. "Yeah, I don't whistle when I breath anymore. I have to admit that I didn't think the city boy would actually hit me."  

"He's a good man," Grace vowed.  

Grant nodded. "I'm seeing that now. He'll be good for you and Cadence I think."

"Well I'm glad you think so," Grace snapped sarcastically. Then she winced. "I'm sorry."  

Grant just shrugged. "I deserved it. But before I turned into a complete and total ass, I was your friend."  

"Yes you were," Grace agreed.  

"And I care about you and Cadence."  

"I know you do, Grant," Grace admitted with a smile. She laid a gentle, reassuring hand on his arm and he gave her a grateful smile.  

"Are you on your way to the festival?" he asked.  

"Yes, Cadence wanted Vince to ride rides with her and I'm eager to see just how green his face is."  

"Probably not green at all," Grant stated. "I have a feeling that man could walk through shit and come out smelling like roses."  

"Yes, he probably could," Grace agreed.  

"Well let me walk you to the festival," Grant offered. "I'm heading that way anyway," he added at her doubtful look.  

Grace nodded slowly and they headed down the road. They were just passing Mavis's pharmacy when the heavyset woman came bustling out. "Mavis, the sheriff was looking for you," Grant informed her.  

"He was?" Mavis asked with a blush as she smoothed out her hair. "Where is he?"  

 Grant grinned. "He was going to get a funnel cake the last I saw him."  

Mavis appeared torn. "What's the matter, Mavis?" Grace asked.  

"I really want to go get a funnel cake with Martin," Mavis admitted.  

"Then go!" Grace urged.  

"But I told Vince that I would get your measurements so I could get those alterations done to your grandma's wedding dress for Sunday. He called me about twenty minutes ago and told me you'd be walking this way."  

"He did, huh?" Grace asked with a shake of her head. No wonder the man had been so quick to agree to her taking his parents to the inn.  

"Yes.." Mavis replied hesitantly.  

"Don't worry, Mavis. I can stop by tomorrow morning after I take Cadence to school. Does eight o'clock work for you?" Grace asked.  

"That would be fine!" Mavis exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "Now, I'm off to woo the sheriff!" she added before bustling away quickly with an extra hop in her step.  

"A wedding huh?" Grant asked quietly, his gaze fixed on the empty park.  

"Yes."  

"This Sunday?"  

"That's right," Grace replied, wondering why she felt guilty when she had no reason to.  

"I know I doubted him at first," Grant finally spoke after several quiet moments. "I was worried he'd break your heart and, well I guess I always saw you as mine so it felt like he was stealing you away. But I can see the change in you since he got here. You always smiled before but sometimes it seemed kind of forced and it doesn't ever seem forced anymore. You no longer seem tired and weighed down and Cadence laughs more than I've ever seen her laugh before." Grant sighed. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm happy for you."  

"Do you want to come Sunday?" Grace offered quietly.  

"Uh..no," Grant shook his head quickly. "But I honestly do wish you both the best."  

"Thank you, Grant."  

---

"How horrible were they?" Vince asked as he held Grace out on the porch that night. Ester and Cadence were already tucked snuggly into bed and the cool night air blew around them lightly. Vince was putting off leaving because he wanted to stay here with Grace forever. Even five minutes away was too far.  

"Not horrible at all," Grace replied quickly.  

"You're lying," Vince accused.  

"No, I'm not," Grace countered defensively as she walked to the porch swing and sat down.  

"Okay then," Vince replied unconvinced. He sat down next to her and Grace curled up against him with her head on his chest.  

 "I'm meeting Mavis tomorrow morning to get the measurements done for the wedding dress and then I have to go down and run the baked goods booth for the rest of the day." Grace sighed. "It's going to be a long one."  

"Patricia's coming back in tomorrow," Vince said, enjoying the way Grace's body fitted so perfectly. It was amazing how at peace a simple thing like snuggling on a porch swing could make a man feel. "She is going to run the booth part of the day so we can spend time together with Cadence."

"She's coming in again? Already?" Grace asked with surprise. "What about work? Isn't there a company to run in New York?"  

"Yes," Vince replied. "And there are plenty of people up there to run it. Patricia is the absolute best organizer and planner I know and she wants to help with the wedding. I'd like to have her there since she's  one of the only friends I've ever had."  

"Of course," Grace replied, snuggling closer. "You really should give her a raise for all the extra things she does for you."  

Vince chuckled. "No, I can't do that. She's rewarded for her hard work every time she gets me grumbling." Vince kissed her hair. "It didn't make you angry when I sent you with my parents today did it?"  

"Angry, no. Confused, yes. But then I talked to Mavis and it cleared things up. You really do just like to take charge of everything don't you?"  

"Yes I do," Vince replied without apology. "I always have been that way so you might as well get used to it."  

"That's fine," Grace replied. "Just so long as you get used to me complaining about it."  

"Complain away, sweetheart. That's what I'm here for."  

"Thank God for you," Grace whispered before yawning widely. Vince smiled and buried his face in her hair, kissing her head. "And thank God for Patricia," Grace added. "From what I hear, your mother isn't very fond of her and it may take a bit of the fire off of me."  

"You tell me if my mother pushes things too far," Vince ordered. "I'll put a quick stop to it."  

Grace smiled. "I'm a big girl, Vince. I can handle Beverly Griffin."  

Vince just grinned and held her tighter. "If you say so."

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

"Did you bake these yourself, Grace?" Vincent asked as he sampled yet another triple fudge brownie the next day.  

"Yes, I did. I used my grandmother's recipe," Grace replied.  

"And where is your grandmother?"  

"She is down at the stage listening to music."

"If these are your grandmother's recipes then why isn't she down here helping to promote them?" Beverly asked from where she sat in a lawn chair flipping through one of the cookbooks that Grace and Patricia had put together.  

"My grandmother has dementia," Grace replied with a friendly smile as she handed a balding man with a big belly his bag full of cookies. "Some days she resembles her old self but most days she is either a child or reliving some moment in the past."  

"Oh.." was all Beverly said in response before burying her head back in the cookbook.  

"That's three dollars a brownie, dad," Vince warned with a smile as he walked into the booth and swooped down to give Grace a quick kiss.  

 "You called me dad," Vincent stated, blinking several times. Grace watched with amusement as the two men studied one another and Vince rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.  

"How many of those have you eaten?" Vince asked, turning the conversation back to the brownies.

"Three I believe," Vincent replied.  

"Five," Beverly spoke up. "He has eaten five of those calorie-ridden gems. Soon I will have to go back to the inn and get his sweatpants because the buttons on his trousers will burst."  

Vince shook his head and raised his brow at his father. "Pull out your wallet because you've gorged yourself out of fifteen dollars."  

"Nonsense! He can have the family discount," Grace cut in with a wink as she went about setting out some saran wrapped rice crispy treats. "Two dollars a brownie."  

"What a gem you are," Vincent beamed as he pulled out his wallet and fished out a ten dollar bill.

"Gem," Beverly snorted, never looking up from the cookbook. "She's marrying our rich son, she doesn't have to worry about money."  

"Mother..." Vince warned.  

"She's right, Vince," Grace cut in. "You are very rich and you're most definitely mine." She stood on her toes and kissed his lips tenderly.  

Grace felt his lips attempting to curve beneath hers and Beverly harrumphed loudly before slumping down lower in her chair. "You are wicked," Vince whispered as their kiss broke.  

"I have not yet begun to get wicked," Grace assured him. She pulled away from him and crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned against the tent pole. "So when is Patricia coming in today?"  

Vince closed his eyes and Grace saw his mouth moving as he counted down silently from three. "Please tell me she is not talking about that horrid secretary of yours!" Beverly exclaimed just as Vince got to the number one.  

"Yes, mother, the horrid secretary is coming today. She should be here sometime this evening."  

"I've always liked that woman," Vincent stated as he sat down and pulled Widget into his lap.  

"Please, you have only liked her since she got you that horrid dog!" Beverly spat. Grace nearly laughed. It would seem that according to Beverly Griffin nearly everything in the world was horrid. "That woman is mouthy, vulgar and she dresses like a two cent hooker. Honestly I think that's the only reason Vince has kept her around all these years. She looks good when she props her miniskirt clad legs on his desk."  

"Actually," Vince countered. "I keep her around because I love to watch your head explode when you're forced to be in the same room as she is."  

"It isn't like you to be so spiteful," Beverly sniffed. "I think being around these low-class people has had a negative impact on you."  

"Low-class people," Grace ground out under her breath as she roughly bagged some cookies for a man who worked at the school.  

"Honey, those cookies didn't do anything wrong," Vince soothed as he rested his hand gently on the small of her back.  

"No, but if I'm this rough with your mother then you may get angry," Grace replied, flashing a fake, toothy smile.

"I wouldn't get angry with you," Vince assured her. "Though I might sell tickets to the show."  

"So tell me, why is Patricia coming to this rundown town?" Beverly questioned, unaware of the conversation between Vince and Grace. "She seems a woman who would prefer a 

faster way of life.“

"She's coming to help us get ready for the wedding," Vince replied, deciding this was as good a time as any to watch his mother's head implode.  

"

Wedding? “ Beverly hissed. “I wasn’t aware you had asked her yet. I don’t see a ring on her finger!”

"That's because you won't give it to him, dear," Vincent replied absently, looking quite sleepy after his brownie binge.  

"When is this wedding?" Beverly questioned, barely managing to keep her voice level.  

"Sunday," Vince replied.  

Beverly's eyes nearly bulged from their sockets. "Sunday? As in three days from now?!"

"That's right," Vince nodded.  

"Vince, you are making a mistake," Beverly warned. "You haven't known this woman long enough to marry her! She is a single mother. A poor woman with nothing who has had to scrimp and save. How do you know she even loves you and doesn't just see you as an easy way out of her problems?"  

Vince felt the last of his patience snap. His head began to pound as he glared at his mother and fought the urge to throttle her head. He felt Grace stiffen beside him but before either of them could say a word, Vincent rose to his feet.  

"I believe you just overstepped those boundaries that Vince mentioned earlier, dear," he warned.  

Beverly glared at her husband. "I will not stand by and watch my son make such a horrid mistake!"  

"What mistake would that be? Falling in love, marrying and building a life with a woman who wasn't born into money the way he was?" Vincent asked calmly. "Because if that is his mistake than I'm afraid I made the very same one forty plus years ago when I walked into that diner in Jersey and caught sight of that feisty waitress who ended up spilling my coffee on me."  

The color drained from Beverly's face and her eyes took on a faraway look as she remembered the day her husband was speaking about. Vincent smiled. "My mother told me I was foolish to fall in love with such a woman. She said that woman was nothing but a vulture. That she was someone who had nothing to offer me and simply wanted to use me for my money without giving me anything real in return."  

"Your mother was a horrid woman, God rest her soul," Beverly whispered.  

"Beverly, dear, you know how much I love you and I know how much you truly love me and our son, but right now you sound an awful lot like that horrid woman."  

Grace looked over at Vince and saw the man looked quite shocked as his wide-green eyes looked back and forth between his parents. Grace turned her attention to Beverly who let out a groan and covered her face with her hands. In a move that was quite out of character for the prim and proper lady, she looked at her husband through her fingers and shook her head. "Oh my God, Vincent, I've turned into your mother...."

Vincent merely nodded, grabbed another brownie and sat back down in the chair, wrestling with Widget who was attempting to sniff the chocolate treat.  

"I'm.. I'm going for a walk," Beverly whispered before turning quickly and leaving the booth.  

Vincent and Vince shared a look clearly arguing without words about which one of them was going to go after her. Grace sighed and shook her head. "I'll go get her."  

"Are you sure?" Vince asked skeptically.  

Grace nodded. "I'm sure."  

"You should take Widget," Vincent offered. "She's quite good at defense."  

Grace couldn't help but smile before she walked into the small crowd in the same direction that Beverly had taken. The festival was pretty slow this time of day because of work and school. It was easy enough to find Beverly. The woman's tailored clothes stuck out sharply among all the denim and camouflage.  

"Beverly, are you okay?" Grace asked, jogging to catch up with the woman.  

Beverly didn't look at her but she did slow her pace to allow Grace to fall in step beside her. "Do you actually care?" Beverly demanded quietly.  

"Of course I do," Grace replied. "You're Vince's mom."  

"You're a much nicer woman than I am," Beverly admitted.  

"You were just worried about your son," Grace assured her. "I understand that."  

"No, I was worried about his father and I. I was worried about what people would say when they discovered our son was giving up everything to be with a woman who they would say was beneath him. I was thinking of everything that you lacked in what I wanted for my son and in doing so I failed to realize that you are everything my son wanted for himself."  

"Um.. Thank you?" Grace mumbled, unable to think of anything else to say.  

Beverly stopped walking and turned to face her. Grace met her gaze and for the first time she saw something other than disdain in Beverly's eyes. "Don't thank me! Forgive me!" Beverly insisted. "When I first met Vincent I was a lot like you. I didn't have a child out of wedlock, mind you, but times have changed." Beverly folded her hands in front of her. "I worked two job back then to support my mother who was dying of cancer. I was born and raised in Jersey. I was loud, mouthy and opinionated. Then one day when I was working a double shift in that roadside diner, who should happen in but a fancy dressed, slick talking city man."  

Beverly smiled at the memory. "Now I wasn't the type of woman to be impressed by a man like that but this man was different.. .there was something in his eyes when he looked at me that got me all tangled up in knots. And Vincent was telling the truth. I was so beside myself that I did spill his coffee all over his thousand dollar suit and do you know what? Instead of getting angry he just laughed and invited me to dinner."  

Beverly sighed. "Needless to say we fell in love but his mother hated me. Every change that she got, she was putting me down and telling me how far beneath her son I was. And so I changed myself. I conformed to be just what she wanted me to be for Vincent. Now, forty years later, it would seem that I have become her."  

Beverly shivered and Grace waited patiently for her to continue. "My son loves you and he loves your daughter. I have never seen him happy the way he is when he is around you both. You seem to be a kind and yet strong woman and exactly what Vince needs. While I still think this is moving awfully fast and, while you've both made it clear that it's not required, you have my blessing."  

"Thank you, Beverly," Grace replied, feeling as if a giant weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Life would be so much easier if she and Beverly could at least get alone.  

"Now let's get back to our men," Beverly urged. "Before my dear husband eats your entire supply of brownies."  

---

"I have to go pick Cadence up," Grace said, checking her watch later that day.  

"I'll go with you," Vince quickly volunteered.  

Grace shook her head. "I need you to stay and run the booth. Meg said she'll run it this evening but I need you to run it until she gets here because it'll be four or five."  

Beverly stood up. "I'll accompany her."

Vince raised a brow. "You seem to be getting along better."  

"We've reach an understanding," Grace replied with a smile and Beverly nodded in agreement.  

"Okay. Tell Cadence that I'm up for another ride on that spinner she liked so much last night."  

"Are you sure?" Grace teased as he pulled her into his arms. "You were green for quite a while after you got off of it."  

"That was just because I hadn't been on one in so long," Vince promised. "Tonight, I'll outlast her."  

"I'm not sure you can outlast the gremlin on carnival rides," Grace warned. "She is a professional and takes her year training very seriously." Vince smiled and kissed her gently. "Remember to check on Ester now and then. She's still listening to music," Grace reminded him.  

Vince nodded. "I'll take care of things," he promised.  

Grace smiled up at him before pulling away and waving for Beverly. "Let's go then, Beverly. I promise Cadence will be a bit less scary this afternoon minus all that face paint."  

"You seem to have picked well, son," Vincent said as the women walked away and he stood up.  

"I'm surprised you've been so open and quiet about all of this since you always wanted me to marry a woman who would improve the Griffin name," Vince admitted.

"Yes," Vincent agreed. "And I believe she will."  

Vince's phone rang and Vince answered it without checking the I.D. "Hello?"

"Well hello to you too, boss," Patricia answered, her tone hard, which told Vince one thing--Patricia was very, very irritated.  

"Is something wrong?" he asked.  

"Oh no!" Patricia snapped. "Everything is one hundred percent a-okay and life is perfect because me and my passenger will be arriving in your town in approximately an hour."  

"Passenger?" Vince questioned. "Did you bring a date?"  

"No, my dance card is reserved for Uncle Pete," Patricia assured him. "The passenger I am referring to is more like a fungus only much less welcome."  

"Stop being such a bitch," another female voice snapped.  

Vince's heart slammed to a stop and he found himself smacking his chest in an effort to get it working properly again. He would recognize that voice anywhere. "Please tell me that is not Brittany."  

"Fine. It was 

not Brittany.“

"Yes, it was," Vince argued with a groan. "Why in the name of all that is holy did you bring your loony cousin?!"  

"I'll have you know she is a step cousin and twice removed on top of that!" Patricia informed him.  

Vince pinched his nose between his finger to ward off the headache he could feel coming. This wasn't going to go over well with Grace--hell, it wasn't going over well with him! "Then tell me, why did you invite your step cousin, twice removed to come to my wedding? You know that she can't get within one hundred yards of me without attacking me."  

"She doesn't attack you, boss," Patricia countered. "She's just affectionate."  

"Oh I'm attacking him," Brittany vowed. "I've already picked that man as my first husband."  

Vince didn't laugh because he knew the woman wasn't joking. That woman had a knack for showing up everywhere and she didn't care what means she had to use to come on to him. This was just great! Grace and his mother were getting along and his fear that his mother would scare Grace off had been eased only to be replaced by the worry that Grace would be furious and call things off when Brittany showed up.  

"Patricia," Vince ground out tightly. "What on God's green earth made you invite her?"  

"I didn't, of course. She overheard me on the telephone speaking about coming to Clifton for you wedding..."  

"Which isn't going to happen!" Brittany piped up.  

"..And I just figured it would be better if she came with me instead of coming herself."  

"Keep your friends close and your enemies closer," Vince mumbled.  

"Exactly sir."

Vince hung up without another word and attempted to will his head to stop hurting.

"Trouble?" Vincent asked as he hooked Widget's leash onto her studded collar and sat her on the ground.  

Vince nodded. "Brittany Turk."  

"Oh..." Vincent said flatly. "Trouble with a capital T."  

"The only woman that mother would have been 

more horrified to find out I was marrying,“ Vince agreed.

"Let's hope you and Grace are solid," Vincent warned. "Because if anything can crack a foundation, it's a woman with an agenda."  

Vince felt his worries grow but on the outside he smiled and nodded confidently. "We're solid. There's nothing to worry about."

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

Grace could tell instantly that something must have happened while she and Beverly had been gone. The positive energy Grace had been filled with over Beverly's acceptance of her and her daughter was suddenly dashed when she saw the troubled look in Vince's green eyes when they fell on her.  

"What's wrong?" Grace asked him, as Cadence became focused on Widget.  

"Patricia isn't coming alone," Vince replied quietly. "She's bringing someone."  

"A date?" Grace's brow furrowed. Why would Patricia bringing a date bother Vince?

"No, not a date," Vince warned. "A guest. A very loud, bothersome, slightly disturbed guest."  

Grace swallowed hard. "Why do I think this is going to be worse than when your parents arrived?"  

"It won't be worse," Vince assured her. "Just promise me something."  

"What?" Grace asked cautiously.  

Vince sighed. "Promise me you won't believe a word she says and you won't be threatened."  

"Threatened? Why would I feel threatened." Grace asked. "You said you hadn't been serious with anyone for a long time before you met me."  

"And I hadn't. But this woman seems to think we share something special, her and I, and..."  

"Did you share something special?" Grace demanded, feeling her defenses raise. Why would Patricia bring a woman whom Vince had had a relationship with to their wedding?  

Vince opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by Beverly's horrified voice. "What in the world is that..." she covered Cadence's ears. "...

whore of a woman doing her?!“

Vince groaned and Grace turned just before her jaw nearly dropped to the ground. Patricia had arrived and standing beside her was a woman barely five feet tall. She had an hourglass figure to rival that of Marilyn Monroe but that was where the similarities ended. This woman had flaming red hair with golden highlight, her skin was like porcelain and her eyes were wide and green beneath her thick lashes.  

She was a very beautiful woman, until you got to her mouth. What once might have been a pretty bow shape had been altered and changed by collagen and botox. Her lips pursed unnaturally and just seemed to hang there off her face.  

"Vincey!" the woman exclaimed as she rushed toward Vince, swaying her voluptuous hips.  

Grace gave Patricia a dumbfounded look. 

‘Vincey?’ she mouthed and Patricia simply shrugged before hanging her head like a whipped puppy when Vince sent her an icy glare.

Then Vince was muttering, stuttering and holding his hands in the air when the mystery woman threw herself against him and held him tightly, burying her face against his chest.  

"Brittany, why don't we allow Vince to breathe?" Patricia offered, grabbing the woman's arm and peeling her off of Vince. Vince took several giant steps back and threw a worried glance at Grace. Truthfully, Grace felt more amused than anything but she did her best to keep a straight face.  

"Oh, Vincey, I've missed you so much!" Brittany whimpered, her lips flapping as she spoke. "You never did call me back, sweetheart."  

"Patricia," Beverly snipped. "Why did you bring this 

woman with you?“

"Because I am a horrid woman, your highness," Patricia replied dryly. "Come along, Brittany, let's get somewhere where we can freshen up."  

"Oh dear, yes!" Brittany exclaimed, smoothing out her itty bitty green dress. "I'm sure I must look just terrible." She smiled up at Vince expectantly but he was looking determinately away from her.  

"You look beautiful," Grace assured the woman.  

"Oh, thank you!" Brittany exclaimed brightly. "I'm Brittany," she added, shaking Grace's offered hand.  

"I'm Grace. It was so nice of you to come all this way for our wedding," Grace replied, her voice dripping with false sweetness.  

"

Your wedding?“ Brittany hissed, dropping Grace’s hand as if it had burned her. “This is your fiancée?” Brittany demanded of Vince.

Vince put his arm around Grace's shoulders and pulled her closer. "That's right."  

Brittany put her manicured hands on her shapely hips and tilted her head to the side, emphasizing the unnatural shape of her lips. "We'll just have to see about that!" she spat before storming away, her body bouncing in all the right places.  

"Patricia, I am going to kill you," Vince stated and Patricia squeaked when Vince started for her with his hands aimed at her throat.  

"Vince!" Grace exclaimed, coming between them.  

"I really am sorry, Grace," Patricia vowed. "I didn't invite her, she invited herself, and I figured it was better that she come with me than alone and on the loose. She doesn't necessarily mean harm, she's just a little crazy."  

"She means harm," Beverly snapped. "She's been after my son for years."  

"I had better go after her or she'll end up getting herself into trouble." Patricia sighed and followed after Brittany.  

"Who in the world was that red-head?" Meg asked as she and Ben joined them in the booth.  

Grace fought back a smile. "Apparently, that's my competition for Vince's heart."  

Meg tilted her head before bursting out in laughter. "That's your competition? Oh, that's a good one! She looks like one of those.. What are they called? A duck-billed platypus!"  

Grace could no longer hold back her laughter and even Vincent and Beverly laughed quietly. Grace put her fingers around her mouth and pulled her lips out, causing Cadence to giggle. She turned to Vince, hoping to get him laughing along only to have him turn away from her.  

"I'm going for a walk," he mumbled before walking away with his shoulders slumped.  

"I'm sorry," Meg quickly apologized.  

Grace shook her head. "You didn't do anything. I'll go after him."

"I'll watch the booth," Meg replied. "It's my turn."  

"And we'll take Cadence to the rides," Beverly offered.  

"Ben, will you go get Ester and bring her to the booth? She's by the stage. Mavis has been keeping an eye on her." Ben nodded and headed that way. Grace looked at Cadence. "You be good for Beverly and Vincent." Cadence nodded as she lifted Widget into her arms.  

Grace sighed and hurried down the street in the direction that Vince had taken. She left the low din of the festival behind her and saw Vince turn into the park. Grace cursed how short her legs were compared to his as she jogged to catch up.  

"Vince?" she called as she rounded the corner and found him standing on the iron bridge with his forearms propped up on the cool metal railing. "Can I ask why you walked off like that?" Grace demanded gently as she came to stand beside him and mirrored his stance.  

Vince looked down at the trickling stream and was silent for a long time. "It's okay if you want to change your mind about me," he finally whispered.  

"What?" Grace shook her head. "What are you talking about?"  

"You called me perfect, Grace, and now you know that's not true. I have snobbish parents and an insane stalker."

"You're perfect for me, Vince," Grace assured him. "That's all that matters. We don't get to pick our family and as far as stalkers go, have you forgotten about Grant?"  

"You don't understand," Vince argued. "She really is crazy."  

"Be honest with me," Grace insisted. "Do I have anything to worry about? Do you and Brittany have a history?"  

Vince turned and put his hands on Grace's shoulder's to turn her to face him. He rested his palms against her cheeks and stroked his thumb across her jaw. "You never have to worry about any woman taking me away from you and no, Brittany and I do not have a history, unless you count several restraining orders and break-in attempts."

Grace didn't want to laugh and so she tried to hold it back which only served to make it sound as if she were strangling. Vince shook his head and dropped his hands. "You're laughing at me."  

"I'm laughing at the situation!" she assured him, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "It just seems like every time we turn around there is someone who doesn't want us together and this time it's a crazy red-haired platypus."  

"I'm glad you find her entertaining," Vince mumbled, pinching his nose between his fingers. Grace sighed and moved behind him so she could rub his temples. His shoulders immediately relaxed.  

"Are you mad at Patricia?" Grace asked.  

"Mad? No, I'm not mad. I'm furious. She should have never said a word about Clifton, or me, or you, or any of it anywhere near Brittany. She knows how that woman is."  

"How does Patricia know Brittany?"  

"Step-cousin or something like that," Vince replied, his voice sounded much more relaxed with Grace messaging his temples.

"We just have to make it until Sunday. After Sunday we'll be married and there's nothing anyone will be able to do about it," Grace reminded him. "And I do have friends in law enforcement." She winked. "Say the word and I can have her locked up until then."  

"I don't think we need to do that," Vince replied. "Just promise me that..."  

"I've got your back, Vince. I'm not going anywhere," Grace cut him off before he could finish.  

"We better head back," Vince sighed and pulled her back around him. "Did you leave Cadence with my parents?"  

"Yes."  

"Oh no.. my parents have never taken care of a child. I'm not even certain they're responsible enough..."

Grace laughed. "Widget seems happy enough."  

Vince smiled and kissed her forehead. "Just the same, I think we should head back. And also, I'm not sleeping at the inn anymore. I'll sleep on the couch at your house if you insist but I'll not be sleeping in the same building as..."  

"The platypus?" Grace inquired.  

Vince laughed and gave her a real smile that brightened the afternoon. "Exactly."  

---

"Grace, you look beautiful!" Meg exclaimed as Grace stepped in front of the full length mirror in Mavis's living room later that evening. Mavis had taken her measurements that morning and already had the dress complete. The woman was a saint in Grace's opinion.  

"Very classic," Patricia approved.  

Grace smiled at the swooping neckline, lace sleeves and bell skirt. She had opted out of wearing the heavy veil and Mavis had removed the panel of lace from the chest that would have come up to Grace's neck.  

"Mommy, you look like a princess," Cadence whispered with awe as she circled Grace. "You look just like Cinderella."  

"I feel like Cinderella," Grace admitted, swinging her hips to send the skirt swishing around her legs.  

"I don't see what's so great about it," Brittney huffed from her chair in the corner. "And I don't think Vincey will like it either. It would look better on someone who had the body to fill it out."  

"What are you even doing here?" Meg demanded.  

Brittany stuck up her nose and wriggled all her impressive parts, her lips drooping considerably. "I was invited by my cousin," she replied, crossing her arms under her well developed, (or well installed), breasts.  

"Step cousin, twice removed," Patricia countered quickly. "And I didn't invite you. I didn't see you hiding behind the fichus in the corner and you eavesdropped like the little snoop that you are."  

"I was not hiding," Brittany snipped. "I happen to be petite."  

"I'm not worried about what she thinks," Grace assured the room with a wave of her hand. "I look beautiful in my grandmother's dress and jealousy doesn't look good on anyone."  

Brittany huffed and stood up, smoothing out her tiny green dress. "I believe I'll step outside for a bit." She strode out with her dress riding up on her thighs.  

Grace didn't spare her a glance but Meg glared after her. "Finally," Ester grumbled. "I didn't think the duck would ever leave." She rose to her thin legs and came to stand beside Grace, studying their reflections in the mirror. "You look beautiful, dear."  

Grace felt tears filling her eyes at the sight of her and her grandmother standing together. For a moment it was easy to forget that she lost more of that strong woman every single day.  

"My son picked well," Beverly agreed softly. "You are very lovely, Grace."  

"She is Grace Kelly reborn in my opinion," Patricia stated.  

"I have no idea how to do my hair," Grace admitted, laying her hand over the auburn strands  

"Don't you worry about your hair and make-up. Between all of us women, we've got you covered," Meg promised.  

"Do a spin, mommy!" Cadence requested eagerly. Grace smiled and spun in a quick circle causing Cadence to giggle happily.  

"Who are you marrying?" Ester asked with a frown.  

"Vince, Grandma."  

Ester shook her head. "I don't know him."  

Grace sighed and smiled at the old woman. "George."  

Ester's eyes widened and she nodded. "Why didn't you just say so? He'll make you a fine husband."  

"Of course he will," Meg agreed. "He's head over heels in love with our Grace."  

"I have something to go with your dress," Ester announced. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a velvet jewelry box. Her arthritis ridden hands shook as she opened it and revealed  the gold and diamond cross lying on the cream satin inside.  

Grace covered her heart with her hand and gasped. "Grandma, it's beautiful."  

"I wore it when I married your grandfather and now you can wear it when you marry George."  

"Thank you, Grandma."  

Ester smiled and closed the jewelry box before placing it in Grace's hand. "I love you, dear."  

Grace couldn't speak as emotions clogged her throat and several tears slipped down her cheeks. Ester simply patted her on the back and returned to her chair. "So who was that duck woman and what in the world happened to her lips? Does she have a disease?"

Grace moaned and covered her face with her hand as the room burst into laughter.

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

"Where are we going, son? We've been driving a long time and instead of seeing more, I'm seeing less," Vincent stated as he looked out the window at the growing mountains and thickening forest around them.  

"That depends on the way you look at it," Vince countered.  

Vincent frowned and tilted his head to the side as he continued to stare out the window. "No," he disagreed. "Either way I look, I still see less."  

Vince found himself chuckling and then stopped suddenly as shock settled in. He had never once chuckled, laughed or joked with his father. Vincent Griffin hadn't been the chuckling type. He'd been too stern, too serious and too professional to ever do something as immature as crack jokes and laugh.  

Vince glanced over at his father and saw him holding Widget in his lap as he looked down at the little dog and petted it lovingly. Vince made a mental note to thank Patricia when he saw her. It would seem that Widget had had a positive impact on his old man.  

"So where are we going?" Vincent asked again.  

"I want to introduce you to someone," Vince replied. "He has a vast collection of war memorabilia, photos, weapon and even vehicles. I really think it's museum quality."  

"I have always loved war history," Vincent said, sitting up straighter in his seat. "You don't think he'll mind if we look?"  

"No," Vince replied, working hard to hide the amusement he felt inside. "No, he won't mind at all."  

Ten minutes later, Vince put his car in park and turned if off outside Old Man Foster's house. 	Vince glanced over at his father to see him staring at the place in shock. "This looks like an old army fort or something. Are you sure someone lives here?"  

"I'm sure." Vince opened his door and stepped out and his father followed suit. Vince led him a little ways toward the house and then stopped. "Shoot, I forgot something in the car. You go ahead and knock and I'll be right behind you."  

Vincent simply nodded and kept walking, too caught up in his own excitement over his surroundings to pay much attention to his son.  

Vince smiled when his father knocked on the door of the camouflage house and his smile turned into a laugh when Old Man Foster came bursting out of it with his gray hair flying in every direction and that shiny assault rifle in his hands.  

"What the hell!" Vincent demanded before leaping backward. He stumbled but caught himself. "Vince!" he called out.  

"Who the hell are you?" Old Man Foster demanded. "I don't want no damn Charlie around my place."  

"It's okay, Old Man Foster," Vince assured the man as he walked over. "That's my father and to my knowledge he is not now, nor has he ever been, a Charlie."  

"Vince!" Old Man Foster smiled good naturedly and set the but of the rifle on the ground, leaning against it like a cane. "It's good to see you again. I didn't realize you were still in town."  

"Yeah, I'm still here," Vince replied.  

"That rifle..." Vincent managed to croak, though he still had his hand over his heart as if holding it inside his chest.  

"It's an ak-47 with a folding stock," Old Man Foster supplied.  

"My father has always been a military history buff," Vince told the crazy man.   

Old Man Foster nodded. "That's a good thing to be because history repeats itself." He scanned their surroundings and whispered. "It's always repeating itself."  

Vincent tossed a quizzical glance in his son's direction. "It is?"  

"Of course it is!" Old Man Foster exclaimed. "Those damn Charlie are everywhere. Why don't we get in the house and out of the line of fire while we talk?"  

Without another word, Old Man Foster disappeared inside. Vince motioned for his father to go ahead but Vincent stood firm. "I'll follow you," he insisted. "I'm still not at all certain that you aren't going to get us both killed."

---

"Son, can I talk to you a moment before you leave?" Beverly asked that night outside the inn.  

Vince glanced back toward the festival where Grace and Cadence were lost somewhere in the crowd waiting on him. It was late and he was tired. "Yes, of course," he replied.  

Beverly led him around the side of the building where they'd have a bit more privacy. "I want you to give this to Grace," she said as she pulled his grandmother's ring from her pocket.  

"You do?" Vince asked, his fingers reaching for it cautiously, certain that she'd yank it away at the last moment.  

"She will be a good wife for you. She is everything that I should have wanted for you all along and I was foolish to doubt you. You will be a wonderful husband and father. You've done well to bring Grace and Cadence into our family."  

"Thank you, mother," Vince replied, wrapping her in a warm hug. He felt her stiffen at first as public displays of affection were not common in their family but she loosened up quickly and buried her face in his chest.  

"I love you, son."  

"I love you too, mom," Vince replied. Beverly pulled away and quickly wiped her face to hide her tears. "You should back in there to father," Vince urged. "He met a man tonight who has a large collection or war memorabilia. Father and the man spent the evening talking about starting a museum in town. I've never seen a single kid in a candy store any more excited than father is now."  

"Great," Beverly muttered with a roll of her eyes. "That is just what I wanted to spend hours talking about tonight."  

Vince grinned and kissed her head. "I better get back to Grace and Cadence. We have to get Cadence home and into bed because she has school tomorrow."  

"You're staying at Grace's?" Beverly inquired.  

Vince nodded. "Yes, and I have been for a while now. She made me sleep at the inn last night because she wanted you to think she was a 

good woman, but now that Brittany has shown up, I’m going home.“

"Grace didn't have to prove to me that she was a good woman," Beverly insisted with a shake of her head. "And I want you to stay as far away from Brittany as you can."  

"That's what I intend on doing," Vince assured her.  

They walked back around to the front of the building and the door to the inn burst open. Brittany came flying out and Vince stumbled back. She had changed from her little green number into a thin strapped, silky black gown that barely fell past her ass. The black contrasted with her pale skin and her red hair fell in waves down her back.  

Vince had to admit that she looked ready for the pages of playboy magazine themselves but there was no way he'd give up the real woman he had waiting for him for a roll in the sack with this crazy chick and her platypus lips.  

Remembering the way Grace had imitated her earlier had Vince laughing quietly. "Are you laughing at me?!" Brittany demanded with a stomp.  

Vince tried to stop but found the couldn't. "Yes, yes I am." He was still laughing as he walked away, eager to get back to his woman and daughter.  

"Better luck next time, duck face," Beverly sniffed as she shouldered her way past Brittany and walked into the inn.  

Brittany was fuming! Vince was hers! He'd been hers since the first time she'd seen him all those years ago. Brittany would not lose him to small town country hick with nearly invisible tits and tiny hips. She would have Vince and use any means necessary to get him.

---

"Grace?" Vince called out quietly as he stepped into the house late that night. He'd been surprised when he'd gotten back to the festival and Patricia had informed him that Meg had given Grace, Cadence and Ester a ride home because Cadence had been terribly sleepy.  

Vince had rushed back, worried that maybe the girl had been sick and his concern grew now that he was inside. The kitchen was too dark and the house was quiet.  

 Vince saw a flickering light in the hallway and he frowned as he stepped toward it. Then his heart skipped a beat when he saw the single white candle glowing on the shelf. Grace's jeans and t-shirt were tossed onto the floor and a little further down the hall, lay her black lace bra that was his favorite.  

The woman was trying to seduce him! Vince pulled off his shirt and dropped it to the floor before quickly striding across the hardwood floor. Who was he to disappoint her? Vince stepped into the bedroom and his knees trembled when he saw her.  

Grace was sprawled on the bed and wrapped in red satin. The gown's tiny straps cut across her collarbones and the black lace at the neckline swooped low on her chest as the same black lace on the hem rode up on her creamy thighs. 	

More candles were lit in the room and they caused Grace's auburn hair and light skin to glow. "What's the occasion?" Vince managed to ask, though his voice was little more than a deep rumbling murmur.  

Grace grinned and rose from the bed. She sauntered toward him, her tiny hips swaying with the movement. "Can't a woman just want to please her man?"  

"Is this an attempt to prove to me that you're better than the rest?" Vince asked suspiciously, even as he placed his hands upon her hips and pulled her slender body to him.  

Grace flushed as she bit her lip and he knew he'd hit the proverbial nail on the head. "Would you be angry with me if it was?" she inquired.  

"No, sweetheart. No, I wouldn't be angry at all," he assured her. Grace let out a gasp of shock when Vince scooped her up into his arms. He smiled down at her before laying her gently in the bed and kissing her thoroughly.  

---

They lay spent in each others arms a long time later. Vince's fingers were tracing gentle circles on her bare arm as she buried her fingers in the dusting of hair on his chest and listened to his heart beating steadily beneath her ear.  

"While I'm not complaining..." Vince began. "..you do know that you that you don't have to compete with any other woman, don't you?"  

Grace smiled and kissed his chest. "It never hurts to mark your territory."  

Vince laughed before pulling away from her and rising from the bed, earning a disappointed glare from Grace. "Where are you going?"  

"I have to give you something," he replied. Vince fished his jeans from the bedroom floor and pulled the ring from the pocket.  

"What is it?" Grace asked, sitting up in the bed and wrapping the sheet around her to ward off the chill in the fall night air.  

"This.." Vince walked to the edge of the bed and dropped to his knee, holding out the diamond and emerald ring.  

"Oh my...." Grace gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.  

"You are the love of my life. My one and only. For so long my business was all that mattered to me and I knew I'd never give this ring to any woman unless she made me want to put her first. I've found her, Grace."  

"Do I know her?" Grace teased, her sense of humor once again sparking to life to hide the rise of emotions in her chest.  

Vince smiled and took her hand gently. He slid the ring onto her finger and then laid his hand gently on her cheek. "I think you might."  

"Vince, it's beautiful," Grace whispered, staring down at the gems as they glittered in the candlelight. "I'll be the talk of Clifton walking around with this big rock on my finger."  

"You deserve to be the talk of Clifton. You've earned the attention."  

"The notoriety you mean," Grace countered. "The women at the salon will carry on for hours!"  

 Vince winked. "I could always take the ring back."  

He chuckled when Grace clutched her hand to her chest. "No you, can't!"  

His gaze softened as he kissed her cheek. "I love you, Grace."  

"I love you too."  

Suddenly Cadence cried out with fear and both Grace and Vince knew it was another nightmare. "I've got her," Vince said quickly.  

He grabbed a pair of folded, flannel pants off the dresser, pulled them on and quickly walked out of the room. Grace sent up a prayer of thanks for that man. He was already an amazing father to Cadence and Grace knew he would be an equally amazing husband.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

"So where are we having this little shindig of a wedding?" Meg asked Saturday morning as she, Beverly, Patricia, Grace and Cadence sat at the baked goods booth. Vince, Vincent and Old Man Foster had gone to speak with owners of empty lot outside of town about the possibility of creating a veterans memorial and museum.  

"The park," Grace replied. "Vince knows how much I love that place, and if I'm being honest, I fell in love with him in that park so it just seems right."  

Meg batted her lashes. "Are you going to stand on the bridge to say your vows?"  

Grace nodded. "That's positively Hollywood material," Patricia beamed.  

"Where is that horrid cousin of yours, Patricia?" Beverly asked with annoyance.  

Patricia crossed her long legs. "She's at the inn making herself beautiful."  

Beverly snorted. "Is dynamite involved? That could cause a horrid mess in that charming little inn."  

Grace laughed as she slid a customers cookies into his bag and handed it to him. Since it was now the weekend, and the last day of the festival, the crowds had certainly increased.  

"I was actually surprised when she didn't attempt anything at dinner last night," Grace admitted. Friday had passed by shockingly smooth. No one made any smart remarks and no one had tried to come between her and Vince.. Honestly, it made her nervous and had the words 'calm before the storm' flashing in her mind.  

"Mommy, can we go ride rides before the parade starts?" Cadence asked.  

Grace glanced around at the crowd of people flipping through the cookbooks and picking out sweets. "Gremlin, mommy is busy right now."  

"Please, mommy..." Cadence pleaded.  

Grace glanced at her watch. It was ten in the morning which meant there was an hour before the parade would start. Grace hoped Vince would be back by then. She wanted to see him experience his first small town parade.

"I can man the booth," Beverly offered.  

Grace frowned. "Are you sure?"  

"The woman seems pretty sure," Meg assured her. "I would help but I have to help Ben get ready for the parade. He's riding in a float with his bluegrass band."  

"Bluegrass?" Beverly inquired with a frown.  

"Yes," Meg proudly boasted in her usual bouncy way. "He plays the lead banjo."  

"How..lovely," Beverly mused dryly.  

"My thoughts exactly," Patricia agreed. She and the prim and proper lady shared a look of horror. "We did not just agree on something, did we?"  

Beverly sniffed. "I should hope not," she denied with a quick shake of her head which caused her pearl earrings to glitter in the morning sunlight. "How horrid," she added quietly.  

"C'mon, mommy!" Cadence exclaimed, bouncing up and down and tugging her hand. Grace laughed, her daughter's enthusiasm was infectious. She motioned to Patricia. "Can you keep an eye on Ester?" she asked.  

Patricia nodded and breezed her way across the tent to Ester who was busy knitting. "Of course I can. Ester and I will be running this town. Won't we, Ester?"  

Ester glanced over her shoulder at Patricia and raised one thinning gray brow. "Do I know you."  

Grace just shook her head and let Cadence lead her away. Grace loved watching her daughter play and have fun. While Grace was not with Vince for the money, it was a welcome relief to no longer have to worry about where her daughter's next pair of shoes were going to come from and to have more time to spend with the girl.  

Grace had never had the money to let Cadence have this much fun at the festival but Vince had insisted the girl was going to do whatever she wanted this year. Grace knew that Vince had already spent a small fortune on tickets, games and cheap toys. She also knew that Vince must have made a generous donation to the carnival because now, when they saw her and Cadence coming, they simply called them guests of honor and would now allow them to buy tickets for the rides they wanted.  

"Ride it with me, mommy!" Cadence exclaimed, pointing toward a ride called 'The Rocketball'. Grace's stomach dropped at the sight of that iron monstrosity but Cadence was jumping up and down with excitement.  

It appeared that 'The Rocketball's' sole purpose, the only reason it existed, was to spin you around as quickly as it could in one direction and then, in a whiplash inducing turn of events, begin to spin you backward.  

"Are you sure that's the one you want to ride?" Grace asked, hoping her daughter would change her mind.  

But Cadence was like a bulldog with a bone as she ran to the ticket taker. "Me and mommy wants to ride. We're guests of honor."  

Grace covered her face with her hand while the ticket taker laughed, bowed low and opened the gate. "You're in luck, honorary guests. This ride is just ending and you'll be the first passengers aboard the next one."  

Cadence beamed while Grace moaned. "Lucky us," she mumbled.  

Grace and Cadence waited their turn and were led onto the ride and seated in one of the metal carts. The lap bar was secured tightly over their legs and Grace swallowed hard. The ride attendant grinned. "Keep your arms inside the ride, ladies, and have a nice ride!"  

Cadence was bouncing up and down with excitement. Grace was trembling herself but it wasn't from excitement... she never had cared much for carnival rides.  

Just as the ride jerked to a start, Grace caught sight of Vince coming through the crowd. She raised her hand to wave at him but knew he hadn't noticed her before the ride began its path of doom and destruction. Grace held on tight, willed her breakfast to stay where she had placed it that morning and the ride picked up speed.  

Then out of the corner of her eye, Grace saw a flash of pink. She whirled her head around her grip on the metal bar tightened when she saw Brittany standing with Vince. Vince's hands were moving animatedly and Brittany threw her head back and laughed before laying her hand on Vince's arm.  

Grace wanted off this ride! The redneck country girl inside of her was roaring to life at the sight of another woman touching her man. Suddenly the ride stopped and Grace thought she was going to be freed but she had forgotten about its sudden backward transition and her neck snapped as it kicked up an even faster speed than it had used while going forward.  

When the ride finally stopped for good, the attendant unhooked their restraints and Grace helped Cadence from her seat, though Grace was probably in more need of help than her daughter. Her legs were shaking, her stomach was rolling and her head was still spinning as if the ride had never stopped. She even forgot momentarily about Vince and Brittany until Cadence called out, "Vince!"

The young girl ran ahead of Grace who was trying desperately to walk in a straight line toward Vince but ended up stumbling sideways and had to backtrack. "Thank God you're here," Vince sighed as she finally reached him and he pulled her into his arms, holding her tight.  

Grace gently shoved him away before covering her mouth with her hand. "You don't look so good, Gail," Brittany mused with a loud pop of her gum.  

"My name's Grace," Grace mumbled as bile rose in the back of her throat and she realized she was going to be sick.  

"Whatever." Brittany rolled her eyes. "

Grace , you look like hell.“

Grace was faintly aware of Vince asking her what was wrong just before her stomach gave one final roll and her breakfast came spilling back out of her and all over Brittany's rather expensive looking bright pink heels.

"Oh my God!" Brittany screeched in horror.  

Grace covered her mouth with her hand as her eyes widened. "I'm so sorry," she squeaked.  

Vince wrapped his arm around Grace's shoulders. "Let's get you to the inn so you can rest," he urged, concern filling his features. "I think you're worse at those carnival rides than I am," he attempted to tease gently.   

"What about me?" Brittany demanded.  

Cadence giggled. "Your shoes are dirty." 	

Vince nodded. "Very dirty," he agreed. "You really should do something about that."  

Despite the fact that her stomach still felt like death, Grace couldn't help but smile at the look of rage on Brittany's face and the sound of her angry screeching as she turned and stomped away.  

"I was hoping you'd run her off," Vince admitted as he guided Grace and Cadence down the crowded streets of town. "Though I didn't think you'd choose such a 

messy method.“

"Very funny," Grace groaned. She leaned into Vince's embrace as he kissed her hair. "What did she want anyway?"  

"In my pants," Vince growled out with irritation. "I'm sensing a fourth restraining order in our future."  

"Fourth?" Grace demanded and then she covered her stomach and swallowed hard. "Fourth?" she asked more quietly.  

"Yes, fourth. That woman has been a thorn in my side for many years. I'm still contemplating putting a bullet in my loyal secretary for bringing her here."  

Grace shook her head. "No, if you're going to kill anyone, start with Platypus Barbie. You're a businessman so you should understand all about starting at the source."

Vince laughed before smiling down at her. "I really want to kiss you right now but...."  

Grace groaned. "My breath stinks?"  

Vince smiled, a teasing light in his green eyes. "That and you have something on your lip."  

Grace squeaked with horror and covered her mouth with her hand. So much for making herself seem like competition for Brittany. She would guarantee that Brittany had never walked around with vomit on her face... A smiled formed on Grace's face.  

But at least now the woman had to walk around with it on her shoes.  

---

Vince settled Grace down into his mother and father's bed at the inn and insisted that she take a nap. He realized that she had truly been very sick when she snuggled beneath the covers and agreed.  

Vince walked Cadence back down to the festival and he stopped at Grace's booth to check on his mother, father, Patricia and Ester.  

"Hello boss," Patricia chirped cheerfully.  

"Patricia," Vince replied, raising his brow.

"I saw Brittany just a short while ago," Patricia informed him, her lips twitching with suppressed amusement.  

"Is that so?" Vince glanced around and wondered if he needed to take cover beneath one of the many bales of hay around.  

"Oh yes," Patricia smiled. "She seemed quite upset and kept repeating, 'I need bleach' and 'burn these shoes'."

Vince couldn't help but chuckle. "Is that so? Did she say anything else?"  

"Other than, 'I'm going to kill that redneck hick of a woman for stealing my man and ruining my shoes'?" Patricia inquired.  

Vince stiffened. "She threatened to kill Grace?" he demanded as he watched Cadence playing with Widget and wondered if he should find the sheriff.

"Yes, but I believe it was the vomit talking, boss."  

"Is Grace ill?" Beverly asked after giving a man change for his twenty. Vince could hardly believe that his mother, Beverly Griffin, had lowered herself to the position of cashier. It would seem that Grace, Cadence and this town had had just as good of an impact on her as they had him.  

"Apparently the love of my life handles the carnival rides worse than I do," Vince replied with a chuckle when he remembered just how green Grace's face had been before she'd lost her stomach all over Brittany's eight hundred dollar shoes.  

"How did things go with the war memorial?" Patricia asked as she sniffed at a brownie.  

"It went well and I believe it's going to happen," Vince replied. "Why on earth are you sniffing that brownie? I can assure you that Grace didn't poison them."  

Patricia studied the brownie as if it were some complicated mathematical equation. "Just attempting to decide if it's worth the calories."  

"That would be a one hundred percent resounding yes, my dear," Vincent spoke up as he shoved the last of one into his mouth. "They are very much worth it."  

"Not worth the tailoring bill we're going to have to pay in order to have his suits fitting him again," Beverly countered with a shake of her head. Vincent just let out a contended sigh and settled down into his lawn chair to allow his sugar coma to begin.  

Vince had never seen his stern father as relaxed and at ease as he had been the last few days. It would seem that Clifton agreed with him as well--or maybe it was just the chocolate.  

Ester looked up from her knitting and cleared her throat. "George, where's Anna? Is she coming to the parade?"  

Vince winced inwardly, thankful that Grace had not been here to hear her grandmother's slip up. He had found out over the last few weeks that Anna was Grace's mother. The woman was a prostitute and drug addict who had run out on her daughter and never looked back.  

"Anna can't make it, Ester," Vince replied with a placating smile. "But Grace will be coming if she feels up to it. Won't that be nice?"  

Ester appeared confused for a moment before shrugging her frail shoulders and going back to her knitting. "Yes, I suppose that would be nice," she stated. "It would be nice to see Anna again too. That girl hasn't called her father and I since graduation. Her father was just saying the other day that he's going to tan her hide the next time he sees her."  

"I'm sure he will," Vince agreed and Ester gave him a big smile while everyone else shared looks full of varying degrees of sympathy and pity.

A shrill ringing voice interrupted the peaceful morning. "Oh, 

Vincey !“

Vince counted to three and took a deep breath before turning to face Brittany. Patricia clicked her tongue. "Dear cousin, I'm glad to see your feet are sporting slightly fewer 

accessories than they were the last time you stormed by here.“

Brittany's pale skin flushed as she tossed her long red waves of hair over her shoulder. "Well there was no harm done, I suppose." She turned her attention to Vince and smiled up at him.  

Vince wanted to be angry that she was following him around. He wanted to tell her to get lost and never find her way back. Yet all he could think in that moment as her collagen filled lips spread across her face was 

quack quack.

"Take a walk with me, Vincey?" she offered. "You can show me around this 

charming little town.“

"He can show you to the nearest bridge and assist you in jumping off of it," Beverly muttered causing Patricia to let out a snort of laughter.  

"Actually, Brittany," Vince countered, fighting the urge to laugh at the pout Brittany sent in Patricia's direction. "I would rather go and check on my fiancée. I only came back here to drop off Cadence."  

Brittany rolled her eyes. "Oh yes, 

Gretchen .“

"Grace," Vince ground out, using his years of training to force a polite smile.  

"Of course. Grace. She really is quite charming, Vincey, but I am sure that I could show you a much better time." Brittany wiggled her considerable assets in her tight red mini-dress, pressing her medically enhanced breasts against his arm.  

Vince paled and leapt back. "On that note, I'm leaving," he stated. He turned to his family and Patricia. "Cadence, mommy and I will hopefully be at the parade but just in case we're not, you stay with Beverly, Vincent or Patricia, okay?"  

She nodded as she snatched a rice crispy treat from the table and grinned ear to ear. "Okay Vince!"  

Vince started down the road and his fists clenched when he heard Brittany's short strides and high heels clicking behind him. "C'mon, Vincey..." she whined.  

Vince rounded on her. "Leave. Me. Alone. Brittany." he warned. For years he'd been putting up with this woman. She was tireless in her pursuit of him and Vince's good breeding and deeply ingrained manners toward woman were quickly wearing very thin.  

"You don't really mean that," Brittany replied breathlessly, her fingers caressing his arm.  

Vince jerked his arm away and glanced across the road to see Grant watching them from beside the courthouse. He cursed under his breath at his bad luck and when Brittany opened her mouth to speak, he silenced her with his best Vincent Griffin stare.  

"You will leave me alone, now. I am in love with Grace, I am marrying Grace and I have never had any interest in you and never will. Find someone else to stalk, Brittany, and get on with your life."  

Vince turned on his heel and strode away, leaving her standing there, her lips moving like a fish out of water--or perhaps a duck.

Despite his anger, Vince found himself chuckling as he entered the inn and took the steps two at a time. He used the key to unlock the door to his parent's room and opened the door only to find that Grace hadn't done as he'd asked.  

Instead of resting, it appeared she had washed her hair and was currently busy tidying up the tiny kitchenette. "That's not what I had in mind when I said take a nap," Vince scolded as he entered the room and closed the door behind him.  

Grace smiled guiltily. "I can't relax when I'm nauseous. I have to stay up and keep moving or it gets worse. I'm actually feeling quite a bit better now and the parade will be starting soon."  

"You still look a little green," Vince noted. "Do you normally get that sick on rides?"  

"When I was a kid yes," Grace admitted, chewing her lip. "I hadn't ridden in a long time. Meg or Ben would always ride with Grace while I worked one booth or another. I never had time to ride with her until this year."  

Grace let out a sigh, which turned into a groan as she covered her face with her hands. "What's wrong?" Vince asked, his concern growing as he thought maybe she was getting sick again.  

Grace peeked through her fingers at him. "Did I honestly throw up on 

her ?“

A slow smile spread across Vince's face as he closed the distance between them and moved her hands so he could kiss her flushed cheek. "Do you want the brutal honesty or should I sugar coat it?"  

"Sugar coat it," she finally mumbled.  

Vince shrugged. "It was only her shoes."

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

"You cannot sleep here, George," Ester argued sternly as they stood in the kitchen at Grace's that evening.  

"Grandma..." Grace argued but the old woman quickly silenced her with a pointed look.  

"You are getting married tomorrow and it would be back luck for him to see you before the wedding. He will stay at the inn."  

Grace was about to argue further but Vince politely tipped his head at the determined woman. "You're right, ma'am," he admitted graciously. "I will stay in my mother and father's room for tonight," he added with a glance toward Grace.  

Grace was busy trying to remind herself that Vince was hers, he was loyal and he wouldn't betray her. She was trying very hard to not think about what could happen with he and Brittany in the same inn for the night.

"Grandma, go to your room and get ready for bed. I'll be there in just a minute to help you," Grace urged gently. Ester nodded and shuffled down the hall in her robe and slippers.  

"What's wrong?" Vince asked, once they were alone.  

"Nothing," Grace quickly replied.  

"So that line between your eyebrows has nothing to do with the platypus?" Vince asked, raising his brow.  

Grace shrugged and rubbed at her forehead. "I trust you and I'm not the jealous type."  

"Good, because you have absolutely no reason to ever be jealous," Vince vowed as he pulled her into his arms and kissed her gently. "And I'll stay in my mother and father's room at the inn just to keep duck face from getting any ideas."  

"You're on a roll with the names tonight, aren't you?" Grace asked with a smile.  

Vince grinned. "You're a bad influence."  

Grace smiled, kissed his lips one more time and pushed him gently toward the door. "Well go on if you're going, Mr. Big City. I have to get Grandma to bed."  

"Give Ester an extra hug from me," Vince urged and Grace nodded, surprised to find herself getting choked up. She assumed it was just because she was already emotional and nervous about tomorrow. It wasn't everyday that a poor, struggling single mother from a middle of nowhere town married a real life prince charming.

"Wait!"  

Vince stopped at the door and turned just in time for Cadence to run into his arms and hug him around the waist. "What's wrong?" he asked her gently. "You know you're not supposed to get up once mommy and I tuck you in."  

"I have a question," Cadence replied, swinging her princess gown around her legs as a crease formed on her brow.  

Vince smiled and smoothed her blond hair from her cheeks. "What would that be?"  

"When you marry my mommy will that make you my daddy?"

Vince felt his throat tighten and his eyes burn. The great business tycoon had been reduced to tears by a question from the most innocent nine year old he had ever met. "Um..." Vince swallowed hard and blinked rapidly in an attempt to stop any of those tears from rolling down his cheeks. He hadn't cried in his entire adult life and he didn't want to start now--not with Grace watching on.  

"Are you okay, Vince?" Cadence whispered. "Did I make you sad?" Her pudgy hand came up and wiped at his cheek and Vince realized he hadn't been as successful at stemming those tears as he'd hoped.  

"I'm not sad, Cadence. You didn't make me sad," he assured the girl as he laid his hand over her cheek. "You just made me really happy."  

Cadence giggled. "You cry when you're happy?"

Vince cleared his throat and smiled. "I guess I do."  

Grace's hand come to rest on his shoulder. "Let's get back to bed, gremlin."

Vince shook his head. "She's alright, Grace."  

"Yeah mommy," Cadence nodded. "I'm alright."  

Vince studied the girl closely. "Cadence, would you like for me to be your daddy?"

"Yes," Cadence replied without hesitation. "I've never had a daddy. Sarah at school told me all the things her daddy does with her and you do all those things for me. Will you be my daddy for real when you marry mommy?"

Vince tried to speak but his throat seemed to have tightened to the point that speech was impossible. Instead, he nodded and threw his arms around Cadence, hugging the little girl as tight as he could.  

"I love you daddy," her little voice stated, muffled against his chest.  

"I love you too, Cadence."  

"Gremlin, why don't you go to your room now and mommy will be in in a minute to tuck you back in?" Grace insisted with tears in her voice.  

"Okay mommy." Cadence was beaming happily as she skipped back down the hall.  

Vince stood straight, swiped his hand across his face and then turned to Grace who had tears on her own cheeks as well. "Thank you, Vince. Thank you for everything you've given to us."  

"Grace, I would give you the world if I could," Vince insisted. "I owe it to you after all you've done for me."  

"Well get out of here before I refuse to let you leave," Grace warned, pointing toward the door. Vince smiled and kissed her gently before doing as she said. Grace stood on the porch as he pulled out and she waved as he drove away.  

Vince had his mind quite occupied as he drove down the tight mountain roads. He and Grace had never spoken much about Cadence's real father. Vince glanced at the dash clock. It was only eight-thirty in the evening so there was still plenty of time to find the man if he lived close and have a long talk with him about allowing Vince to adopt Cadence.  

He had promised the girl he'd be her daddy and step-father just wasn't going to do.  

---

"Grant?" Vince called out when he saw the man stepping out of the jail under the courthouse. Grant wasn't Vince's first choice of person to talk to about Cadence's biological father but he would do.  

"Yeah?" Grant replied, glancing around cautiously.  

"I need to ask you a question."

"Oh..." Relief filled Grant's features. "Ask away."  

Vince nodded. "I need to know who Cadence's real father is and if he still lives around here."  

Grant blinked several times. "Why?"

"I need to have a talk with the man."  

"Has he been giving Grace a hard time about something?" Grant demanded angrily.  

Vince held up his hand. "No. I just need to talk to him about Cadence."  

Realization dawned in Grant's eyes and he nodded slowly as he scratched at his cheek. "I guess I should have realized.... His name is Tyler Hoffman and he lives about an hour away from town down some old back roads."  

"Are there any other kind of roads around here?" Vince asked dryly.  

Grant chuckled. "I don't reckon there are." Grant rubbed the back of his neck. "You want me to drive you out there?"  

Vince wanted to say no, however he didn't know the way to get there and he had a feeling GPS wouldn't be much help. "You sure you aren't busy?" he asked.  

Grant shook his head. "Naw, I'm not busy. You're a good man, I guess, and you're going to give Cadence something she's never had and I can respect that."  

"Thanks, Grant," Vince replied, feeling the tiniest seed of respect for the other man beginning to grow.  

"Besides," Grant added. "Tyler is a mean, nasty, drunk nowadays. He never used to be that way but things have gone downhill for him in the last few years. It probably wouldn't hurt to have a law officer with you when you speak to him."  

The two men made their way toward Grant's patrol car. "Does he have anything at all to do with Cadence and Grace?" Vince asked.  

"No," Grant shook his head. "Not since Cadence was a little baby and he cut and ran. We all went to school together. Me, Grace, Tyler, Ben and Meg and we were all good friends. I had a crush on Grace so things got tense between me and Tyler for a while but she had eyes for him and nobody else and he seemed to care about her so I had no choice but to let it go." 	Grant stopped speaking as the two men got into the car. He pulled onto the road out of Clifton and sighed. "We all thought Tyler was gonna put Clifton on the map back then. He was one hell of a quarterback and destined for greatness. Then just a couple weeks after graduation, Grace was pregnant."

Grant shook his head. "They all, meaning Tyler, his mama and his daddy, tried to talk Grace into 'getting rid of it' but she didn't want any part of that. After a while, Tyler seemed to accept it and the direction his life had taken. He got a job at the garage and him and Grace started talking about getting their own place and getting married. Then one day when Cadence was only a few months old, Tyler took off. He went back to his mama and daddy's and never looked back at the kid and woman he'd left behind. Grace, being the stubborn woman that she is, refused to chase after him or even demand the child support he owed her."

"That woman is too stubborn for her own good sometimes," Vince agreed.  

"Yep, always has been," Grant replied. "You better make sure you can handle it."  

"Oh trust me," Vince's eyes narrowed slightly at the warning in Grant's tone. "I can handle her just fine. I was raised by one Beverly Griffin and I have a secretary who was sent up through the fiery gates on the stubborn side of hell. I can handle Grace."  

Grant laughed and Vince found himself relaxing a bit. The lawman wasn't really all that bad and had been making an honest effort lately to atone for the wrongs he'd done and be a better influence for the kids at school. Vince supposed everyone was entitled to make mistakes just so long as Grant made sure he never made another concerned Grace and Cadence.  

Vince's phone rang and he shoved his hand in his pocket to fish it out. He took a look at the ID and groaned. "Hello Patricia, I was just talking about you a moment ago."

"Hello boss," she chirped back brightly. "It must be one hell of a conversation if it includes my name. No wonder my ears are burning."  

"Why are you calling me?" Vince asked as he looked out into the darkness at the passing trees and rocks.  

"Just seeing where you were. Grace talked to Beverly a while ago and told us to be expecting you."  

"She called to see where Brittany was, didn't she?" Vince asked, his heart falling a bit at knowing Grace didn't fully trust him. How on earth could he convince her that there was truly nothing to worry about? Vince wished he understood more about the fairer sex.  

"Yes," Patricia replied. "Us women have to be proactive about these things."  

"You're a woman!" Vince stated, his mind coming up with a sudden idea.  

"How nice of you to finally notice, sir," Patricia muttered dryly.  

Vince ignored her sarcasm. "Maybe you can tell me what I need to say in order to convince Grace she has nothing to worry about where Brittany is concerned."  

"There is nothing you can say, sir," Patricia replied.  

Vince sighed and leaned back against his seat. Patricia clicked her tongue. "Where are you since you're not at Grace's and you're not here?"

"In a police car."  

"Should I call your lawyer, sir?"  

"No, Grant and I are going to speak to Cadence's biological father."  

"You and Grant, sir?"

"Yes."  

"Good luck, sir."  

Vince hung up and slid his phone back into his pocket. "Was that the secretary you mentioned?" Grant asked.  

Vince nodded. "Yes it was."  

"That other woman you mentioned, 

Brittany, she seems interesting…“

Vince glanced at Grant and then laughed loudly. "Sure. Sure, we can call her that."  

"What happened to her face? Was she in an accident or something?"

"No, it wasn't an accident. She did that to herself on purpose."  

"Dear God..." Grant let out a low whistle. "And Grace is jealous of her?"

"Crazy, I know," Vince agreed.  

Grant chewed the inside of his cheek and tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "She doesn't have a reason to be jealous, does she?"  

Vince raised his brow. "I don't think that's any of your business."  

"It is though," Grant insisted. "Grace is, or was, my friend."  

Vince sighed. "No, Brittany is nothing for Grace to be worried about. The woman is crazy and somehow convinced that I am in love with her. And for some reason I can't get her to understand simple English no matter how many restraining orders I take out."  

"So you have a stalker?" Grant grinned. "I can honestly say we don't get many of them in Clifton."  

"Actually I might need your help," Vince admitted.  

"With what?"  

"I need you to help me keep Brittany away from my wedding tomorrow."  

Grant raised his brow. "How?"

Vince shrugged. "However you see fit, officer."  

Grant laughed. "Well you 

are the town billionaire and you let me keep my badge so I guess I owe you one.“

Vince shook his head. "Trust me, after a few hours with Brittany, the debt will paid in full and it'll be me that owes you."  

---

"This is it?" Vince asked as Grant put the car in park and turned off the ignition in front of a rundown mobile home. Dogs were barking as they yanked on their chains in the dirt covered yard. The car and truck parked in the drive were more rust than metal.  

"Yeah, this is it," Grant replied. "It looks like his mama and daddy are gone so at least you won't have to deal with his daddy. That man's a real bastard."

"I'll be back," Vince said, opening the passenger door.  

"Do you want back up?"  

Vince shook his head and stepped from the car. As he started up the yard, he sent up a prayer that all the dogs lunging for him wouldn't suddenly break their chains.

The porch was rickety and weak beneath Vince's feet as he stepped onto it and Vince expected at any moment to fall completely through. Vince knocked several times on the scarred door and waited several moments but it remained closed. Vince sighed and knocked again.  

"Wait just a damn minute!" a loud angry voice bellowed from inside.  

Vince took a step away from the door and heard Grant get out of his vehicle. Vince glanced behind him to see the deputy leaning against the hood of the car. Vince turned back to the door just as it was yanked open and he found himself looking at who he assumed must be Tyler.  

The man had greasy blond hair that was scraggly and hanging past his ears. His blue eyes were blood shot and his gaunt cheeks were covered in stubble, clearly having been a long time without seeing a razor.  

"Who the hell are you?" Tyler demanded, scratching at his stained tank top covered gut with the hand that was clutching a beer can.

"My name is Vince Griffin," Vince replied politely as he held out his hand. "Are you Tyler Hoffman?"

Tyler glanced down at Vince's offered hand and sneered as he shook it quickly. "Yeah, that's my name," he replied. "What the hell do you want?"

"I actually need to have a talk with you," Vince said.  

Tyler laughed. "Hey, I've heard about you! You're that damn city slicker that's been claiming he's gonna fix up Clifton. That town's a lost damn cause if you ask me. I believe you're wasting your damn time."  

Vince looked off into the night as owls hooted and crickets chirped. He shook his head as he returned his gaze to Tyler. "Well I didn't ask you and we'll just agree to disagree on that."  

Tyler chuckled and scratched at his stomach once again. "Well I guess we will." He let out a beer scented belch. "So what do ya want?"  

"I was hoping to talk to you about adopting Cadence," Vince replied. "I am interested in becoming her legal father."  

"Who?" Tyler questioned with a frown. He squinted and took a swig of his beer.  

Vince clenched his fists and counted down from three as he felt that familiar dull aching throb beginning behind his temples. "Cadence," he repeated. "The child you made with Grace." He wasn't about to call Cadence this man's daughter.  

Tyler chuckled as he wiped the back of his dirty hand across his mouth. "That little retarded girl? Do whatever you want. I don't claim that little piece of shit or her whore of a mother."  

Vince had never felt anger like the rage that seemed to fill his entire body in that moment. Tyler was standing there a sneer on his filthy face and the fact that he was drunk did nothing to soothe Vince's anger. He glanced back at Grant and knew by the look on the deputies face that he had heard Tyler as well.  

Vince raised his brow at Grant and the other man nodded. Vince turned back to Tyler and gave the man a cold smile before clenching his fist and swinging, putting everything he had into the punch that slammed into Tyler's nose.

The dogs on the chains went crazy. Barking, yipping, growling and trying desperately to get at Vince who simply shook out his hand and crossed his arms over his chest.  

"Dammit!" Tyler exclaimed as he held his bleeding nose and stared at Vince as if he were crazy. "I think you broke my damn nose!"  

"That's not all I'll break if you speak about Grace or Cadence that way again," Vince warned.  

Tyler let out a whimper and turned his attention to Grant. "Grant, you're an officer! Ain't you gonna do something?"

Grant shrugged. "About what? You want me to take you to the hospital? That was a pretty hard tumble you took off the porch when you hit your face on the post. You really shouldn't get so drunk that you're stumbling."	

Tyler glared and Vince stepped into his line of vision. "Can we have that chat now?"

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

Grace was awakened by the scent of bacon frying which had stomach rolling and her scrambling from the bed and rushing to the bathroom. Her gags and heaves soon drew an audience. She glanced at the door to find Ester, Meg, Patricia and Cadence watching her with frowns on their faces.  

"Are you sick, mommy?" Cadence asked, laying her little hand on Grace's back.  

Grace's stomach was still weak and she was light headed as she stood up straight and leaned against the wall. "A little, gremlin."  

"Just pre-wedding jitters, I'm sure!" Patricia said a bit too loudly. "Now come on Ester and Cadence. Let's go finish breakfast so we can all eat and get starting on making the bride beautiful."  

"My mommy is already beautiful," Cadence argued as Patricia led her down the hall.  

"Yes, I know, but we're going to make her a bombshell," Patricia replied.  

"What's a bombshell?" Cadence asked, her brow wrinkling in a frown and they moved too far away from Grace to hear their conversation.  

"Grace?" Meg said quietly as she stepped into the bathroom and grabbed a washcloth from the cupboard. She ran it under some cold water and handed it to Grace who placed it against her mouth and breathed deep. "I've done this for you before," her friend stated bluntly.  

"Yes, you have," Grace whispered, resting her free hand over her stomach.  

Meg put her hand on her arm gently. "Are you pregnant?"

Grace fixed her gaze on the faded yellow paint across the room and tried to focus on breathing instead of giving in to her queasiness. Was she pregnant? It would explain the weak stomach she'd had the last couple of days and the sudden exhaustion that she had explanation for.

"I might be," she whispered.  

"How does that make you feel?" Meg questioned, keeping her voice even. It dawned on Grace that they'd had this exact same conversation over ten years ago when she had discovered she was pregnant with Cadence.  

How did she feel about the possibility of being pregnant? She didn't have that overwhelming sense of dread and hopelessness that she'd felt the last time. Vince was a good man--a great man--and he'd been a natural father with Cadence. Money wouldn't be a concern and the baby would be well provided for and Grace wouldn't have the stress of raising the child alone.  

Grace found her mind wandering to what their baby might look like. Would it have her gray eyes and Vince's dark hair? Or perhaps her auburn hair and his sharp green eyes. Would he or she share their father's little half smile or have her wide expressive grin?

Grace felt her lips curving into a smile. "Happy," she finally replied. "I'm happy."  

"I'm going to run to my house and get a test," Meg offered. "I always keep them in the cupboard 

just

in case ,“ she added at the sight of Grace’s raised brow.

Grace nodded and Meg gave her a small hug before bouncing away down the hall. Grace was unable to stop herself from groaning at the sight of all Meg's energy. Today was supposed to be her day to be energetic and happy. She certainly wasn't supposed to feel like death.  

Tears pricked behind her eyes, furthering her belief that she was already suffering from pregnancy hormone overload, and then she gripped the toilet and fell to her knees as her stomach rolled.  

---

"Nothing to do now but wait the full two minutes," Meg stated as she sat the test on the sink and covered it with a washcloth to keep herself and Grace from peeking. Then she took a seat on the edge of the tub with Grace.  

"What will Vince say?" Grace whispered, staring down at the worn tile floor.  

Meg shrugged. "Something like, 

‘I’m happy and I love you ,’“ she replied, doing her best New York accent. Grace laughed but it due more to nervous energy than Meg’s words. “Didn’t you all use protection?” Meg asked. There was no judgment in her voice, simply curiosity.

Grace moaned and covered her face. "No. I didn't even think about it. Why did I think about it? After what happened to me as a teenager I have no good excuse to not think about it!"  

"Calm down," Meg scolded, laying a tender hand on her arm. "Deep down your heart knew that this time was different. He is your soul mate, your forever, just the same as Ben is mine. Deep down your heart knew that this was meant to be and you didn't need to worry about preventing a child because any child created by the two of you together would be loved and cherished. You are the best mother I have ever known and look at Vince with Cadence. He's a natural!"

Grace blinked back tears and hugged her best friend. "That was quite a speech!"  

"Thank you," Meg replied, smoothing out Grace's hair. "I practiced the whole time I was gone getting your test."  

"Is it ready?" Grace asked, nerves and jitters plaguing her despite knowing that things would be very different with Vince than they'd been with Tyler.  

Meg checked her watch and nodded, "Yes."  

Grace reached for the test but then yanked her hand away. "You do it!"  

Meg slid the test from under the washcloth and studied it closely. Grace watched her best friend's face for any sign of emotion or hint as to what the test showed but Meg kept her face blank. "Well!?" Grace demanded stubbornly.  

"You're going to be a mommy."

Before Grace could form a response, the door to the bathroom burst open and Patricia came flying in. Her long skinny arms and legs were a blur of movement as she rushed to Grace and hugged her tight.  

Grace was shocked by this sudden display of affection from the usually aloof and sarcastic woman. "This is so wonderful," Patricia gasped in her ear.  

"Let go please..." Grace whimpered, her stomach giving another roll and rebelling against being held so tightly.  

"Come on," Patricia urged as she held out her hand. "What you need is some dry toast and a small cup of tea. It will settle your stomach right down."  

Patricia led Grace into the kitchen and Cadence rushed over, her little hand coming to rest on Grace's stomach. "Mommy, you're gonna have a baby?"

Grace nodded and laid her hand on Cadence's blond hair. "Yes, but we have to be quiet about it, okay? Vince doesn't know yet and I want it to be a surprise."  

Cadence giggled. "Okay, I won't tell daddy."  

"A baby? You and George are going to have a baby? Ester exclaimed from her rocking chair.  

Before Grace could respond the sound of something hitting the floor by the front door had her whirling around. Beverly stood in the entryway with an expression of shock. Her purse and a bag she'd brought along had been dropped on the linoleum floor.  

"A baby?" Beverly whispered, her lightly painted lips barely moving on her pale face.  

Grace shoved her messy auburn hair behind her ear and nodded as she took the cup of tea Patricia held out. "Yes, ma'am."  

"Oh lord have mercy!" Beverly exclaimed. She pressed her manicured fingers against her temples and groaned. "My Harvard educated, multi-millionaire, business tycoon son is going to have a shotgun wedding!"  

Grace wasn't sure what to say. She heard Meg stifling a laugh and then Patricia stepped forward balancing a plate of eggs and bacon on one hand. "Yeehaw!" she called, knocking her thin hip against Beverly's.  

Grace was unable to keep herself from laughing. Beverly tugged down the jacket of her green skirt suit and took a deep breath before launching herself across the kitchen and wrapping Grace warmly in her arms. "Thank you for all you've done for my son."  

---

"I made the calls son," Vincent stated as he walked up to Vince who was busy supervising the park preparations for the for the wedding that would be taking place in two hours. His wedding. How strange a thought that was.  

Vince was getting married. He was no longer spending every moment of his life running the company he had built and his lips had gotten quite accustomed to smiling. Vince couldn't even remember the man he'd been a little over a month ago. The Vince Griffin who had first arrived in this town was gone--dead. He had changed, been reborn, the day that Grace had given him a sultry smile, promised him fun and sent him to Old Man Foster's.  

Vince found himself smiling at memories and then his father's voice broke through his thoughts. "Did you hear me?" Vincent asked with amusement in his eyes.  

"No, I'm sorry. I was busy thinking. What did you say?"

"I said, I made the calls," Vincent repeated. "It wasn't easy to get in contact with the right people, seeing that it is a Sunday, but I got it done. The paperwork will be all ready for you no later than Wednesday this week. You, Grace and Tyler will all have to meet at the courthouse to sign the papers and it will take several weeks to finalize before Cadence will legally be a Griffin."  

"And how do you feel about that?" Vince asked cautiously.  

Vincent's ice blue eyes looked up at the sky a moment before a smile curved his lips and he met his son's gaze. "A week ago I would have been horrified. I would have argued with you. I would have told you that having a girl like that, born out of wedlock with her 

disabilities in the family would make us look bad. It would hurt our good name…“

"And now?" Vince urged.  

"Now, I realize that I was the one making our family look bad. All those women your mother and I paraded around in front of you, all the times we pushed you too hard to get married to someone who would love your bank account and prestige, not you." Vincent shook his head. "I'm sorry, son. I'm glad that you were smarter than your mother and I had become in our old age. Grace and Cadence could never harm our family name. They are beautiful women, full of life and goodness, and I am damn proud that you had the good sense to bring them into our family."  

Vince stood there blinking. That was the most praise he had ever received from his father and it touched him deeply. "Thanks dad."  

Vince smiled and Vincent smiled back before blinking quickly to do away with the moisture that had gathered in his eyes. Vincent cleared his throat. "Now about this wedding. Your mother isn't at all pleased that it isn't taking place in a church."

Vince sighed and was about to assure his father that his mother would be just fine but the sound of clicking heels caused him to fall silent. "Hello Vincey!"  

"Oh dear...." Vincent mumbled before seeming to become very interested in the decorations.  

"You are not welcome here, Brittany," Vince stated bluntly as he turned to face the pest of a woman.  

Brittany pouted, which of course only served to make her bottom lip appear even 

more swollen than it had before and would have made Vince laugh if he wasn’t so worried about her ruining Grace’s wedding.

"Oh come on, Vincey. You know you don't want to marry that small town nobody," she argued, wriggling her body which was encased tightly in a little pink wrap dress that showed off most of her cleavage and stopped just two inches down her thighs.  

"Oh but, Brittany, I really do. I love her," Vince replied.  

"But you haven't even tried me yet," Brittany reminded with a purr. She reached out and took his hand. "Come back to the inn and give me thirty minutes. I promise I'll change your mind and you won't regret it."  

Vince jerked his hand away and fought the urge to smack her with it. "The answer is no, Brittany."  

Vince saw Grant step out of the courthouse and he let out a relieved sigh as he threw a thankful gaze up toward the sky. Vince called out for the other man and he looked his way, stifling a laugh behind his hand when he saw Brittany.  

Grant jogged to them. "Is there a problem?"  

Vince nodded. "Brittany here said she would love to spend some time at the jail. She is interested in seeing how the inmates are treated..."  

"I never said that!" Brittany exclaimed.  

"Come along then, Miss. I'll be more than happy to show you our cozy accommodations." Vince chuckled as Grant dragged a kicking and stammering Brittany away from them.  

"Well you took of that rather efficiently," Vincent stated. "Nice to see you're learning from your father's example and making friends with members of law enforcement."

Vince laughed as he threw his father a wink. "It never hurts to have a man with a badge who owes you a favor."

Chapter twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

Grace stared in the mirror and couldn't believe she was looking at herself. She looked as if she'd been pulled off of a nineteen-fifties movie screen.  

"I told you the Grace Kelly look is the look for you," Patricia said with a smile as she stood behind her.  

"You truly do look beautiful, Grace. That Vince is one lucky dog of a man," Meg agreed with a smile.  

Grace couldn't help but smile. The dress, the hair, the diamond and gold necklace glittering in the bathroom light... Grace looked like a queen. Regal, sophisticated and gorgeous. Three things she had never once even considered for herself. Even her fingernails were clean after Patricia's hour of careful attention.  

"Mommy, you look like a movie star," Cadence said with awe and then she gave a twirl, spinning the belt skirt of her flower girl dress around her legs. "How do I look?"  

Grace smiled at her daughter and laid a gentle hand on her cheek. "Like the prettiest little gremlin I have ever seen." Cadence giggled and took off bouncing down the hall.  

"My son did very well for himself," Beverly admitted with a tear. "You are beautiful."  

"Thank you," Grace replied awkwardly. She wasn't accustomed to anyone saying things about her looks.  

"Okay, ladies! We have to be going now!" Patricia exclaimed as she glanced at the dainty silver watch on her wrist. Grace smiled at the other woman. She was wearing sky high heels, a flirty floral knee length skirt and a mauve ruffled top. Her dark hair was pulled back intricately upon her head and her make up was flawless. She looked as if she'd been pulled off the covers of vogue.  

Grace and Vince had chosen not to have bridesmaids or groomsmen and opted to instead keep things as simple as they could. Grace would have chosen Meg for the maid of honor had she had one and Meg certainly looked the part in her emerald green strapless dress that brought out her eyes and her black kitten heels.  

Even Ester had dressed in her Sunday best and put her favorite strand of pearls, which her husband had bought for her on their wedding day, around her neck.  

"We're going to be late if we don't get going," Patricia urged, trying to usher everyone toward the door.  

"We cannot be late," Beverly warned. "Punctuality is of the utmost importance to the Griffins."  

Grace found herself laughing for no real reason as she was rushed from the house and into Meg's waiting car. She, Meg and Cadence were riding together and Patricia, Ester and Beverly were riding in Patricia's red jaguar.  

"Are you nervous?" Meg asked Grace as they started down the road.  

"Yes and no," Grace replied vaguely as she laid her hand over her stomach.  

"Why are you nervous?"  

"I'm not sure Vince will be happy about the baby," Grace admitted. "We never talked about having children."  

"Grace of course he'll be happy!" Meg insisted. "A man can't be that good a father to one child, 

who isn’t biologically his–,“ she whispered, so only Grace would hear while Cadence played with her skirt in the backseat. “–and not want a child of his own with the woman he loves.”

Grace nodded and bit her lip as she stared out the passenger window. Of course Meg was right. Grace knew she was right. But the nagging doubt in her mind still reared its head. The last time she had told the man she loved that she was expecting his child, it hadn't gone over very well.  

"Stop that!" Meg scolded.  

Grace looked over at her. "What?"

"I can read your mind after all these years and I know what you're doing. You're comparing Vince to Tyler. I have news for you, my dear, those two men have absolutely nothing in common.  

"They were both quarterbacks on their high school football teams," Grace countered with a smile that had Meg shaking her head. Her friend knew her well enough to know that her attempt at humor was nothing more than a cover.  

"You're not being fair, Grace. Vince is no Tyler."  

Grace twirled her ring around her finer. "No, he's not," she agreed quietly. "I'm not going to tell him about the baby yet though. I want to wait until after the wedding."  

"I won't say anything," Meg assured her. "But with everyone else that knows, you'll be lucky if it stays a secret. You know how secrets are in this town."

Grace sent up a silent prayer that she'd be able to keep this one if only for a couple of hours--just until after the ceremony. That wasn't asking too much, was it?

---

Vince looked out around the park and knew that Grace would love it. White flowers, mostly daisies because they were Grace and Cadence's favorites, covered the park. Soft music came from the speakers of the stereo beside the first row of white chairs. A young man from town, who ran a video game store, was in charge of manning the songs and so far was doing a good job at it.  

Rows of white chair covered the neatly trimmed grass and a white satin runner ran from the sidewalk up to the bridge where Vince was currently waiting with the preacher from Grace's church. The preacher was once again wearing jeans and a cowboy shirt complete with black fringe and rhinestones. His white hat was clearly new for the occasion and he was reviewing the vows he'd chosen for the couple.  

Vince saw his father and Widget at the other end of the park and all of the townsfolk were milling around and dressed in their Sunday best as they chitchatted and gossiped. This was home now and always would be. Vince knew that as he took a deep breath and looked around him.  

Movement caught Vince's eye and he turned to see Old Man Foster rounding main street and stepping into the park. He was dressed in head to toe camouflage with a rifle over his shoulder and a pistol on his hip. Vince found himself chuckling as the Sheriff Short asked Old Man Foster why he was dressed the way he was.  

"The Charlie don't stop just because it's a special occasion," Old Man Foster assured him.  

Suddenly Patricia came breezing into the park. "Okay, everybody. The bride is coming!"  

Vince felt his stomach tie up in knots as his heart pounded. What if she changed her mind? What if she decided he wasn't worthy? Sweat formed on Vince's brow and he wiped it away with his suit sleeve.  

"You okay there, big city?" the preacher, Brother Mark, asked with a chuckle. Vince glanced at him and nodded but he wasn't at all sure it was the truth.  

He watched as Patricia guided everyone to their seats with an ease and precision that could only be perfected by the fast paced business world she thrived in.  

Vince saw his mother enter the park next. She gave him a teary smile before taking a seat next to his father in the front row of chairs. She glared at Widget when the dog quickly began to chew on the sleeve of her jacket.  

Meg entered next with Cadence on one arm and Ester on the other. Vince smiled at the little girl God had blessed him with. His daughter. He would do anything for that child--and for Ester. Lord, he'd fallen in love with that crazy old woman as well.  

The three of them took their seats and after a glance from Patricia, the young man in charge of music pushed a button and the sound of the wedding march filled the air, causing everyone to get to their feet. Vince waited with baited breath for his bride to walk around the building and come into view. He waited...and waited...and waited.  

'Where is she?'

he mouthed to Meg who shrugged and got to her feet.

"One moment, everyone," she announced. The bridal march stopped playing and murmurs and whispers filled the park. Vince felt his stomach roll. The woman had changed her mind and he was going to be left standing at the alter.  

---

Grace took a deep breath when she heard the bridal march begin to play. She took a step forward, eager to reach Vince, but was stopped when a calloused hand closed around her arm.  

"Wait, Grace."  

Grace froze. She knew that voice. It had been a long time since she had heard it but it was a voice she would never forget. Slowly she turned, her grip on the rose and daisy bouquet in her hands tightening. She glared at the man who had walked out on her and her daughter so long ago.  

"What are you doing here, Tyler?" she demanded. "I have to go. I'm getting married!"  

"I need to talk to you about something," he replied, his blue eyes pleading with her to listen.  

Grace looked at the man she hadn't seen in over ten years. The years had been bad to him and he looked old and washed up. "What happened to your nose?" she asked, seeing the white tape over the swollen and bruised bridge.  

"I uh.. I got some sense knocked into me last night, I guess you could say."

"You can let go of my arm now," Grace warned and Tyler quickly did before running his hand over his greasy blond hair. "What do you want, Tyler?"  

"To apologize for being such a stupid man," he replied sadly. "I wasn't good to you, Grace. I had an image of how my life was supposed to go and in my mind you screwed that up...."  

"I didn't get myself pregnant," she reminded him harshly, feeling old anger bubbling up to the surface.  

Tyler winced. "Yeah I know. And I was a loser and a jackass and I ran out on you and our daughter."

"I already know all of this," Grace grumbled. "So what exactly is your point?"  

"Psst... Grace, we're all waiting on you.." Meg whispered as she came around the corner. "What are you doing back here with.. Tyler?"  

Tyler held up his hands at the look of rage on Meg's face. "I'm just talking to her, Meg. I only need a minute."  

"You've had ten years to talk to her," Meg scowled.  

Tyler nodded. "I just need one more minute."  

"You have thirty seconds," Grace snapped, turning back to face him. She didn't owe the man even that much of her time but he seemed to have something to say so she figured she might as well let him say it.  

"I have been my first twelve hours without a drink since I left you and Cadence. It might not sound like long but for me it is and I have your man to thank. He put me in my place pretty good..."  

"Vince?" Grace frowned and had a sudden sneaking suspicion that she knew who had broken Tyler's nose.  

"Yeah. I just wanted to let you know that you and Cadence deserve a good man like him. He'll provide for you and treat you good.. I uh.. I won't stand in the way of the adoption. Just let me know the day I need to be at the court house to sign papers and I'll do it."  

"Adoption?" Grace was confused.  

Tyler nodded. "Yeah."

Meg stamped her foot. "Grace, you better hurry. Vince is about to head this way if you don't get your butt to him. The poor man looks lost!"  

Tyler sighed. "I won't keep you any longer, Grace. I just wanted to let you know that I won't stand in the way of the adoption. I figure I never have given Cadence anything so the least I can do is give her a good dad.. He'll be better for her than I could ever hope to be..."  

"Thank you, Tyler.." Grace whispered, biting her lip to keep from crying. She wasn't sure when Vince had talk to Tyler about adopting Cadence but it didn't really surprise her. She had figured that Vince would want to and she knew Vince well enough to know that he was a man who did what he wanted without taking the time to talk to anyone about it--even her.  

"No problem," Tyler replied and then he surprised her when he hugged her tight. "I'm sorry for all I put you through and I'm sorry I wasn't around to help. Thank you for taking such good care of Cadence all these years and being so strong. She sure was blessed to get you for a mama."  

Grace just nodded and pulled away. Tyler reached out and wiped a tear from her cheek before smiling and pointing toward the park. "Now go on and marry your city boy, Grace. You look real damn pretty." Tyler shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and walked away with his head low and his shoulders slumped.  

"Grace!" Meg insisted.  

Grace turned to her and nodded and Meg quickly rounded the building and went back into the park. Putting her conversation with Tyler out of her mind, Grace took a deep trembling breath. Tyler was her past and all Grace wanted was to get to her future--to Vince.  

The wedding march once again filled the air and Grace stepped around the building and onto the white satin runner. She saw Vince standing on the bridge and that was all she could see.  

He appeared tense and nervous but all of that vanished from his face when he caught sight of her and his green eyes filled with love. Grace knew a woman could get spoiled by a man looking at her that way and she knew that Vince, being the man he was, would make sure she got spoiled every day.  

Letting out a deep breath, Grace began to long walk to her man. Smiles and whispers surrounded her but Grace wasn't focused on any of that. The words and faces all seemed to blend together.  

All Grace could focus on was Vince. He looked so regal in his tailored white tuxedo. His black hair was slicked back much like a man from the nineteen fifties.  Grace smiled when she realized that Patricia must have picked his outfit and told him how to style his hair. She had made him into the Cary Grant to go with her Grace Kelly.  

It seemed to take hours but finally Grace reached him and he took her hands in his tenderly. "What took you so long?" he whispered as they turned to face Brother Mark and everyone once again took their seats.  

Grace tipped her head to the preacher before whispering back, "Tyler, a broken nose and an adoption."  

Vince's eyes narrowed a fraction. "Do I need to..."

"No, you hit him good enough last night. He said to let him know when he needed to be there and he'll be at the courthouse to sign whatever you need him to sign."  

"Can we start now or do the two of you have more catching up to do?" Brother Mark asked with a chuckle.  

Vince smiled. "Go ahead, preacher man. I've been ready to marry this woman since I saw her in that garage all covered in grease."  

Laughter rang out in the park and Brother Mark began talking about love and marriage but Grace kept her attention on Vince. How had she gotten so lucky? He was strong, loyal, loving generous and self-sacrificing and he was all hers. How did she, a poor struggling mother with nothing but a lot of baggage and quite a few stretch marks, ever turn his head and win his love?

At Brother Mark's request, Grace said the words she was supposed to say when she was supposed to say them and she heard Vince do the same. "I now pronounce you husband and wife," Brother Mark announced, his voice ringing out in the late morning air. "You may kiss your bride."

Grace smiled, threw her arms around Vince's neck and rose on her toes to press her lips to his. She felt his hands close around her hips and he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss.  

Whistles and laughter rang out around them. "Alright, you two lovebirds! That's enough of that!" Uncle Pete bellowed loudly.  

Vince smiled down at her before lifting Grace into his arms and carrying her down the satin runner. Rice and confetti were tossed over their heads and Grace found herself laughing with pure joy.  

Then Grace saw the limousine pull up and she gasped. "Vince, I said I wanted simple!"  

Vince kissed her nose. "And I gave you simple while also giving myself a limousine."  He sat her on her feet and opened the door.  

Grace waved at her family and friends before climbing in, though not before seeing Tyler down the road. He gave her a little wave and then turned back around and continued walking.  

"Meet us at the community center, everyone!" Vince called out before getting in behind her and closing the door. "Do you know the best thing about limousines?" he asked with a wicked grin that sent Grace's heart racing.  

"Plenty of leg room?" she teased.  

"Tinted windows," Vince corrected and then he pulled her into his lap and kissed her hungrily.  

"Wait!" Grace insisted, coming up for air. "I need to talk to you about something."  

Vince sighed. "I know I should have talked to you about adopting Cadence, but I wanted to surprise you..."  

"No, it's not that," Grace assured him. "But you are amazing by the way and the way you love Cadence is one of the many reasons why I am so in love with you.."  

"Then what is it?" Vince asked, sweeping a strand of hair from her face.  

"I was going to wait until tonight when we were back home but too many people know now and it's going to slip out..."  

Vince frowned with concern. "Grace, what is it?"  

Grace let out a breath and decided that if shit was going to hit the fan, it might as well hit it now. "I'm pregnant, Vince."  

Vince's face remained unchanged. He blinked several times and Grace stared around the interior of the limousine, wishing he would say something. "Pregnant?" he repeated, his voice void of any emotion.  

"Yes." Grace forced a smile. "With child. A bun is in my oven. Expecting. Preggers...." Vince put his hand over her mouth to stop her nervous rambling.  

"That happened fast," he stated.  

"Yes it did," Grace agreed, peeling his fingers away from her lips.  

"When did you find out?"  

Grace swallowed hard. "This morning. I got sick again and Meg got me a test...."

"I know a pediatrician," Vince interrupted, pulling out his phone. "He's a damn good one and he works with some of the best Obstetrician's in the country so we can interview them if you'd like and find the one you want to see. You won't be wanting to travel I'm sure but I can make arrangements to fly them out here. They'll give you the best treatment and...."

"Vince!" Grace scolded, her nerves getting the better of her. Vince's voice was silenced as his jaw slammed closed and he frowned at her. Grace threw up her hands. "I just want to know if you're happy or not! I wasn't asking you to lay out a plan of action and begin making calls!"  

"Happy?" Vince tossed his phone to the side and a wide smile split his face. It was the biggest smile that Grace had ever seen there and there was certainly nothing faked or practiced about the joy she saw in his green eyes. "Of course I'm happy. Grace, you've given me so much already! Your love, Cadence, a life and now a baby? I love you."  

"I love you too, Vince. Even if you are a bit too take charge at times."  

Vince rested his forehead against hers and smiled. "You picked me."  

Grace rolled her eyes and pressed her lips to his and he returned the kiss eagerly, reaching one big hand up and laying it across her belly as if trying to touch the life that grew there.  

---

"Marriage looks good on you, dearest friend," Meg said with a smile as she handed Grace an ice old water and sat down at the table beside her.  

The reception was in full swing. Ben and his band and everyone was dancing--even Beverly and Vincent much to Grace's surprise. Patricia had made Uncle Pete's night when she had allowed him to spin her around the dance floor and then she had gotten every single guest up on their feet and dancing the Macarena, claiming it was the single best dance craze to ever hit the world.  

Sheriff Short had caught the garter when Vince had thrown it, much to Mavis's delight since it was she who had tacked four other women and came out of the scuffle with Grace's bouquet.  

"Marriage feels good," Grace replied, twisting open the water bottle and taking a long drink.  

Meg raised her brow. "Have you told him yet?"  

"Yes," Grace nodded. "And you were right. He was happy.. More than happy."  

"Told you so," Meg replied, nudging her gently with her shoulder.  

"Look what a good father he is.." Grace sighed, looking out at Vince who was dancing with Cadence and allowing the girl to stand on his shoes, (which must have cost a pretty penny), as he twirled her around and around. Somehow the man was ballroom dancing to bluegrass music and making it look good.  

Meg clicked her tongue. "You did good, Grace."  

"Okay, everyone!" Patricia exclaimed as she stepped up onto the community center stage. It was clear from her lack of shoes and let loose hair that she'd had more than a few drinks. "It's time to do the train. Boss, you and the bride have to be up front!"

Vince was laughing as he came to Grace and took her hand, helping her to her feet. He put his hands on her hips and soon nearly every guest in attendance had joined their train, going around the room with hoots and hollers.  

Grace was truly getting into the fun spirit of things and she threw her head back and laughed, only to stop suddenly when the door to the community center burst open. At the sight of Brittany barging in, Grace stopped in her tracks, causing a chain reaction down the train, as people crashed into one another.  

"What are you doing here?" Meg demanded as she stormed forward.  

Grant came running into the community center next. "Sorry, Vince, I kept her locked up for as long as I could but she said she had to use the restroom and she got away from me."  

Grace threw Vince a look of shock. "You had her locked in the jail?!"  

He shrugged. "It kept her away from the wedding, didn't it?"  

Brittany stepped forward. "Vincey, I need to talk to you," she chirped in that high pitched voice as she batted her long, fake lashes.  

Grace saw red. She was tired of this barely dressed, platypus lipped, piece of city trash chasing after 

her man! Grace was not a mean or violent person by nature but a woman could only handle so much before she snapped.

"Hold my water," she ordered as she held the bottle out to Meg.  

Meg frowned. "What?"  

"Hold my water," Grace said more firmly.  

Meg took the bottle and Grace lunged for Brittany. Two strong arms closed around her from behind just before she reached the brain dead little twit. Grace found herself pulled back against Vince's broad chest. "Calm down, Rocky. You don't get to fist fight with my child growing in there," he whispered in her ear and Grace calmed down--a little.  

"I want her gone!" Grace snapped.  

"Wait!" Brittany exclaimed, holding up her hands as Sheriff Short started her way. "I'm not here to try to come between you anymore," she promised Vince and Grace.  

"You aren't?" Vince, Grace and Patricia asked in unison.  

"No, I'm not."

"Then why are you here, horrid woman?" Beverly sniffed.  

"To wish the newlyweds well." Brittany's eyes turned sad as she looked up at Vince. "Vincey, I know how much you loved me and how we both wanted us to work out but, I'm afraid it's just not going to."  

"You're right, Brittany. It won't. For once we agree on something," Vince muttered.  

Brittany nodded as she took a step back. "I want you to know that I've moved on and found someone else and I want you to be as happy as you can be with Gail."  

"Grace," Grace all but growled.  

Brittany smiled. "Right. You and Grace will be happy, Vincey, and so will Grant and I."  

"What?!" Grant exclaimed with true horror.  

"Oh silly, Granty," Brittany giggled as she turned around and plucked at a button on his shirt. "You didn't have to lock me up all day to get me to spend time with you. You could have just asked, silly."

"No, no, no! I think you got the wrong idea!" Grant assured her, taking three giant steps back.  

"Good luck, Grant!" Vince called out as Grant ran for the door with Brittany on his heels. "I guess now I owe 

you one!“

The whispers and laughter eventually died down and everyone went back to what they'd been doing before the train had been formed. Vince pulled Grace into a corner while Ester and Cadence went onstage and danced in front of Ben, causing the poor man to laugh so hard that his banjo skills deteriorated greatly.  

"Brittany is gone, Cadence will be officially mine soon, you are my wife and we're going to have a baby... Can life get any better?" Vince asked with a smile.  

Grace rose up on her toes and pressed her mouth to his ear. "Cadence and Ester are staying with Ben and Meg tonight. We'll have the house to ourselves..."  

Vince let out a deep chuckle that was nearly a growl and it caused a delicious little tremor to run down Grace's spine. "I guess it can."

Epilogue

Epilogue

5 years later

"Good catch, Brent!" Vince called proudly. "Now throw it to your sister."

Brent threw the ball but Cadence missed it and took off chasing after it as it rolled through the grass. "Dad, she always misses," Brent pouted, his four year old foot stomping the grass.  

"Not everyone can be a wide receiver, Brent. Some people are born quarterbacks like your daddy here," Vince assured him. Cadence got the ball and threw it back to Vince, nailing him right in the chest. "And I believe your sister is a quarterback."  

"Yeah, I'm a born quarterback!" Cadence said proudly before sticking her tongue out at her little brother.  

Vince chuckled. "Now, kids, that's not nice," he warned when Brent stuck his tongue out back at her. "You better hope your mom doesn't see you."  

"Too late," Grace called out from the porch swing where she sat rocking baby Emily in her arms.  

She smiled at her family as they all gave her guilty grins and went back to playing catch. Life was more than Grace could have ever hoped for and the last five years with Vince had been the best of her life. Only one dark cloud had passed over them and that had been the death of her grandmother a year ago.  

Grace knew that truly it was a blessing in disguise that Ester had passed. Her grandmother's mental state had deteriorated rapidly. She hadn't remembered anyone or anything and eventually Vince had hired nurses to come stay at the house with her when she could no longer do anything for herself because it had been too hard on Grace to take care of her and the children.  

It had been a long time since Ester had known anyone or anything, even herself, but on the morning she passed she had been clear-eyed. She had called Grace by her name, teased 'George', and told her great grandchildren that she loved them before drifting off for a nap that she never woke up from.  

Grace smiled sadly at the memories of her grandmother and then Emily cooed in her arms and Grace's smile turned to one of happiness as she gazed down at her beautiful daughter.  

Thanks to Tyler remaining true to his word, Grace and Vince had three children--Cadence, Brent and Emily. Of course, Vince was the amazing father that Grace had known he would be and he loved all three children equally, despite Cadence not sharing his blood.  

And Beverly and Vincent were the same way. They came to Clifton once a month and while they were here anyone looking in would find it impossible to tell which grandchildren were blood and which weren't.

Grace had even braved New York City several times in the last five years but she didn't like it. It was too loud and too fast. Thankfully Vince didn't seem to appreciate the noise any more than she did and so they didn't go often. Only when his business required and Cadence didn't have school. And it was thanks to Vince, they'd been able to take the children on vacations that Grace never could have taken them on without him. They'd been to Disneyworld twice and had even taken a vacation to Hawaii.  

Thankfully the platypus had been honest in her vow to stop coming after Vince. Grant on the other hand... Grant hadn't been able to escape her and, much to everyone's surprise, the two of them had actually fallen in love. They were living in a two bedroom house just outside of Clifton and without the weekly injections, Brittany's lips had almost returned to normal.  

Patricia made sure to call often and visited every few weeks claiming she couldn't go any longer than that without hearing Vince's surly voice scolding her face to face.  

Life had turned into so much more than Grace could have ever hoped for. She still worked in the garage and loved it and Vince had been true to his word about fixing up the town. Clifton was booming and prospering thanks to all the lodges, campgrounds and the increase in tourism. Vince had even opened up a small branch of his real estate and development company right in town, claiming that he needed something to keep him busy. Though Grace found that most days he came and spent most of his time with her at the garage.  

Their son, Brent, looked just like Vince. He had the same dark hair, piercing green eyes and lazy half smile. It was clear that he was going to be tall as well and a definite heart breaker. Emily on the other hand seemed to be taking more after Grace. Her features were daintier, softer and her hair was auburn atop her four month old head.  

Grace gazed back out through the yard and met Vince's eye. He gave her that half smile that still made her heartbeat quicken. Even after five years together he still got to her. "You kids play nice," he told Brent and Cadence, before tossing Brent the ball and jogging up to the porch.  

"How is daddy's girl doing?" he asked gently as he took Emily from Grace's arms and cradled her against his chest. Emily wiggled and made a face. "I know," Vince chuckled. "Daddy's all sweaty."  

"Any future NFL players in the family?" Grace teased as Vince sat beside her.  

He sighed. "All our hopes rest on Little Miss Emily here."  

Grace curled up against him and rested her head on his shoulder. "So Vincent Griffin the fourth, has life turned out to be all you thought it would be?"

Grace felt him smile as he kissed her hair. "Better, Grace. It's turned out better."