Nothing to lose

Chapter 26: Mia

If I didn't know any better, I'd say today was "act weird around Mia" day.

Grey was acting strange, and I've tried to text him throughout the day, saying that I was just checking in. He kept giving me those one-word responses, and it was annoying the crap out of me.

I had to take a deep breath.

Not to mention, Freya was on her phone all day too. She usually left it in the office when she worked, but she kept checking it like a crazy woman today. At one point, she disappeared, and I caught her in the bathroom texting and laughing.

I quietly stepped back out, pretending I hadn't seen anything, and just got back to work.

Two hours before my shift was supposed to be over, I saw Freya packing a box of pastries, but I didn't remember us getting an order in for something like that.

When I asked her who it was for, she said she was doing a favor for a friend and needed to deliver them.

Then thirty minutes before my shift was over, Grey texted me and said that I should let him know when I was on my way home.

That was probably the longest sentence he had sent to me all day. So you could imagine how peeved I was with him.

Regardless, I tried not to be petty and texted him back.

I power-walked home in less than five minutes. Instead of knocking at the door, I pulled out my keys and let myself in.

First thing, my nose was bombarded with the smell of garlic and rosemary chicken, stuffing, yellow rice, and for whatever odd reason, I could smell the scent of vanilla as well.

The second thing, other than the sunset, there were some warm lights towards the living room at the end of the hallway.

I kicked my shoes off and hurried forward.

Grey stepped out into the hall from the kitchen, stopping me in my tracks. He grinned, "I thought I heard you come in." He placed a kiss on my forehead. He lowered his voice, "I have a surprise for you. But you have to close your eyes. Okay?"

I silently dipped my head into a nod and then closed my eyes.

I felt Grey take hold of my hands, gently tugging me along.

"Keep your eyes closed. No peeking." He warned me.

"Okay," I said softly.

I heard a few clicks somewhere off into the distance. And where I had only seen darkness behind my eyelids, I knew there was now light.

What was going on?

I felt Grey's arms wrap around my waist from behind. He kissed my cheek, "Open them," he whispered in my ear.

They fluttered open, and my jaw dropped soon after. My eyes danced around the room, not knowing what to look at first.

The wall behind our couch was covered in a curtain of strings lights. There were plants everywhere, making the room look like a botanical garden, peaceful and serene.

But the real eye-catcher was the balcony.

"You wanna take a closer look?"

I nodded and felt my legs moving before my brain could give them the signal. Grey reached out in front of me and pulled the French doors wide open.

I gasped. Some more string lights were hanging from the railing with some paper lanterns. More potted plants at the end of one side and in the middle were the cutest pieces of outdoor furniture set I'd ever seen.