A Taste of Love (Book #1)

What are you doing here

I was supposed to have at least 3 more days in Vegas. In the middle of eating with Jayson my phone went off with a text from my dad telling me I needed to get home as soon as possible. He didn't go into detail and he told me not to call him either. All he said was I needed to get home that something was going on with my grandmother. Jayson couldn't get me back to his house fast enough. When he pulled up on his drive way, I barely gave him time to stop before I jumped out and ran into the house. By the time Jayson had made his way to me, I already had everything crammed into my bags. He kept asking me what was wrong and I just kept shoving him off and ignoring his questions. I just needed to get home. I needed to get to my grandmother. I hope she was ok.

Which now leads to me being back at the airport in Oregon. I feel bad about leaving Jayson I did with no explanation, nothing at all. I didn't even kiss him goodbye. I hope I can manage to fix that later. I look around until I spot Caroline standing there. I knew something was seriously wrong. She wasn't even smiling as I walked up to her.

"Caroline. What is going on? My dad texted and said I needed to come home ASAP. By the look on your face you know what's going on. Is my grandma ok?" Carolina threw her arms around me.

"I'm so sorry."

"Carolina. What ? What happened? Damn it!" I pulled myself away from her.

Carolina let a tear fall down her cheek as she said the three words I never wanted to hear. "Your Grandma died."

That feeling of heartache hit. When it hit, it hit hard.

Now three days later we are at my grandmothers funeral. She had a heart attack. They tried to do some repair but she didn't make it out of the surgery. I knew this day would come one day but I had no idea it would happen now. I didn't even get the chance to make her a great grandma. I felt tears slide down my cheek as I was standing there with my family watching my grandmother be berried into the ground.

I slide my arm around my dads waist. "Are you ok daddy?"

My dad, Kevin, puts his arm around me as well with unshed tears in his eyes. "I'm ok baby. I'm sad but I will be ok."

"Hey Scarlet." Caroline walks up to my other side.

"Hey babe. Thanks for coming." We hug.

"You knew I would be here. I couldn't let you go through this on your own. By the way, do you know who that guy is over there standing to the side?"

I turned to where she was looking and my mouth fell open. It was Jayson. He gave me a small smile when he was me looking at him. I took off running in his direction. When I got to him I jumped. Of course, he caught me. I threw my arms around his neck. At that moment I was so overwhelmed that I could no longer keep my tears in. It was a mixture of happy and sad tears.

"I'm here baby. I'm here. It's ok."

I cried in his arms for a little longer and then I pulled back.

"I'm sorry. I got tears and snot on your shirt."

"It's okay. It's worth it. I'm sorry to hear about your grandmother. I went into town looking for you and a lady told me this is where you would be. I'm sorry I didn't get here before now. I had some business I had to take care of. I knew something was wrong especially when you haven't returned any of my phone calls or texts."

"I'm glad that you're here. But why are you here?"

"Why don't we sit down and talk about that later? I'll let you get back to your family. Call me later and we can meet up."

"No. I mean, we can talk later. But please don't go. I don't want you to." I intertwine our fingers together and give his hand a squeeze. Him leaving even if it's just for a few hours is the last thing I want right now. When I saw him standing here I can't even begin to explain the feelings I felt. All I know is I was happy. I didn't want him to leave my side.

He nods at me and pulls me into his side as we make our way over to my parents and best friend.

"Mom. Dad. Caroline. I'd like to introduce you to Jayson."

All of them look in our direction and smile. I can tell that my mom and Caroline wanted to say more but they all managed to tell him it was nice to meet him. 

"We are having a few people over to the house once we leave here. I hope you can join us Jayson."

"Thank you Mr. Anderson. If Scarlet wants me there, I'll be there sir." I give his hand a squeeze as he says this.

"Jayson and I are going to go for a walk. We will meet you all at the house. Caroline would you like to take my car?"

"I can do that. You know I love your car." My best friend looked at me and gave me that look that said "We will be talking about this later"

I hug my parents and then my best friend. "I'll see you all soon"

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Jayson's POV

Walking up while the funeral was going on was nerve wrecking. I didn't even know if she would want to see me. She had been ignoring my calls and texts since she left me in Vegas with no reason.

Now that I know the reason I feel bad for thinking all the things that were running through my head the last few days.

When her friend pointed me out at the funeral I thought she was running away but instead she ran to me and jumped into my arms. She burst into tears as she did so. All I could do is hold her. Now here we are walking through a park hand in hand. I have her pulled into my side. We make it to a little picnic area and we sit down across from each other. She is looking at everything but me. I can tell that her mind is all over the place. I needed to assure her that I was here and everything would be ok.

"Are you ok?"

"At this very moment, I'm fine. I'm heartbroken but I'm fine. My grandma was one of my favorite people. Everyday, as far back as I can remember, she was always around. The past couple of years she had constantly been joking about me finding a man and settling down to have her some great grands. Now, she will never get to see that. She doesn't even get the chance to meet you. Why couldn't I have met you sooner?"

I wasn't expecting her to say that. That means she really likes me, right? I reach over the table and put my hand on top of hers. "Baby, she will always be here with you. She may not be here physically but she is here. She's probably watching the two of us now. Smiling. And one day when you do have kids she will watch over them for you. You will be able to tell your children all kinds of stories about her. Just from what you tell me, she seems to have been an amazing woman."

Scarlet begins crying again. "How is it you always know the right thing to say? I know you're right though. This is just going to be so hard. I feel like I'm losing one of my best friends."

"Death is always hard. I have lost people. Just what ever you do try not to fall in that slum. Once you do, sometimes it's hard to pull yourself back out. I will be by your side as much as you allow to help you get through this."

Before I know it she is standing and leaning across the table to place a soft sweet kiss on my lips. "Thank you. Thank you for showing up today. I know I didn't tell you much and I was a complete ass leaving the way I did, but thank you. I'm so happy you are here with me."

"I'm here as long as you will have me. I'm crazy about you. I took a week off from work so I am all yours until I have to go back."

She stands up. "Come on. Let's head back so we can go to my parents for a little while."

As we are walking to my rental car she stops and looks up at me, "By the way, you said you took a week off from work. How did you know I'd want you here?"

"I didn't. I just hoped that you would."