Secrets & Lies

22| Finder's Keepers

I wasn't surprised that I dreamt about Grant last night. Dreaming about what I lost seemed to be a common thing lately.

"I can't do this anymore. It's best if we go our separate ways."

That kept repeating in my head, over and over again. He's never said something so...final, to me before. There was something in his voice that said it was over. Done. It was hard to wrap my brain around that. Even if I married Amelia, I guess I expected to still see Grant around—even if we weren't intimate.

Knowing that he wanted nothing to do with make me feel sick. And it fucking hurt. Is this what Amelia felt when my brother ran off to UCLA? If so, I'm going to kick his ass.

I got up from my bed, did my morning routine, then dragged my feet to the kitchen. I opened the fridge, reached past some very old pizza, and grabbed a beer. Whatever. It was 2pm somewhere.

I lit a cigarette and sat in the rocking chair on the porch of the cabin. This is pretty much all I've been doing since I got here. Besides the desperate running the first two days. Now, I sat here, listened to the sounds of nature, and tried to drink my issues away.

I knew I was going to have to face my problems at some point. I was going to have to face my family at some point. But that wasn't today. Or tomorrow. Or next week, apparently.

I paid for a couple weeks in advance for the cabin. I had no idea when I was going to leave. I had no idea when I was—

The sound of a car approaching caught my attention. I knew who it was. There was only one person it could be.

I heard the sound of the ignition being turned off. Car door opening and closing. Then...that voice. "I thought you quit."

I glanced up at Grant as he started walking towards me. "I thought you didn't want anything to do with me anymore."

He stopped at the bottom of the porch and crossed his arms over his chest. He was wearing a pair of faded jeans and a blue polo. I'd be lying if I said he didn't look fucking good.

"That's not what I said, Logan."

"No? Right." I sucked my teeth. "You're exact words were, 'I can't do this anymore, Logan. It's time we go our seperate ways'. Did I get it right?"

Grant looked away briefly. I knew he wouldn't answer my question. "People are looking for you. You need to go home."

I didn't doubt that they were looking for me. But they wouldn't find me here. No one knew about this place. Only Grant and I did. "I'm not going back. Not yet."

Grant threw me his sat phone. "Then you need to call your mom. She's freaking out."

I tossed the phone down in the chair next to me and took a drag of my cigarette. "Really? And how do you know that my mom is worried?"

Grant met my stare. "Amelia and Wyatt came to my hotel room."

He didn't need to elaborate. There was only one reason that Grant would show up here. The truh of that fact pissed me off a little. "He knows," I said flatly.

"Yes."

I snorted, trying to act like this didn't faze me. In all honesty, it scared the hell out of me. "How did he take it?"

Grant stayed where he was. "He doesn't care, Logan. He cares about you. I had to convince him not to come with me to find you."

That didn't surprise me. I knew Wyatt would be steadfast on coming along. It's a miracle that Grant got them to trust him. Then again, I trusted him, too. More than I should. I hadn't seen him since that night he came by the lake house...