Saving Grace #Wattys2016

Chapter Eight

PETER FACINELLI AS PARKER HATHAWAY

Sorry for keeping you guys waiting so long, I thought I hit the publish button but clearly writing at 2:47 in the morning three days ago had its downfalls. Enjoy!

After our little chat, dinner was finally ready for us to sit. Hardy, of course, sat next to me but with a new twist; he was holding my hand underneath the table. His parents and everyone else saw it when he never let it go from walking, which we held hands freely. His mother gave me a wink and Jack shook his head in the best way possible.

"I hope he asks you out, Grace." Jack said before privately. "It'll be a shame if he doesn't."

"You're alright with it?" I asked hopefully. "If we date?"

"Of course." Jack replied. "The missus and I would be delighted to have you be a part of the family." Oh thank you God, the last thing I wanted to ever worry about if we decided to date was his family. The only people that seem to have problem with it were the men of the West family. I did have the complete dishonor of meeting Hayden West face to face and it seemed like his couldn't get his off of me. This made me angry and Hardy angrier. He looked like he wanted Hayden as mashed as the potatoes that were made with the dinner steak. But the only thing that scared me was the way he stared; like a cat about to pounce on a toy, lip licking and all.

Creepy. Like father, like son.

Finally, Emma came down and took some of Hayden's attention off of me and transferred it to her. So here I sat with not one, but two, of Houston's most famous white families, eating dinner and swapping funny stories.

It's funny and scary how comfortable I felt here. Like I belonged which I definitely didn't.

"Well, I just love your mother." Maggie stated, flipping her bold red hair.

"For our night on the town, I had a gorgeous dress on. Ripped it getting out the car. I told Donald I wouldn't step foot out the car until wait got to Abby."

"Trust me, the woman stays true to her word." Her husband replied gravely. "I had to drive all the way down there to get the damn dress fixed."

"Your mother was a saint. She was packed up, ready to go. And she looked like she had a long day but when she saw me, boy oh boy, she came with the needle and thread." After dinner, I excused myself to stand out on the deck for some fresh air. On the horizon I saw the bright lights of Houston that calmed me.

"You're missing the party." A male voice that wasn't Hardy called out. Hayden

West stood a foot away from me with his hands in his pocket, smiling. "I thought it would be nice to check on you."

"How sweet of you." I really didn't want to talk to him or be alone with him.

"My mother told me your Danny Stewart's sister?" I nodded. "Wow, he didn't mention you're were so....so beautiful." Normally, I would have accepted the

complement, but from Hayden, it seemed like a trap.

"Thank you; I seem to get that a lot."

"I bet. I've already seen that you take after your mother like that. The only difference is that you're wild like your brother. You don't want to follow the set rules for girls."

"You got me." I smiled without thinking and he took it as an invitation to come closer. Bad, bad, bad.

"I wonder," He thought when he was a foot away from me. "Just how wild you

are."

"Hayden," Hardy walked over with hidden anger. "Your father's looking for you."

He stood right by me. "And I've been looking for you."