“No, I’m not gonna sit here while he insults you and me like that. Maybe Kerry was onto something when she compared him to Hugh.”
“Grace, it’s fine.” It wasn’t, but I still didn’t want it to bother me anymore. “Half of the people here probably think the same thing.”
Her jaw dropped before she shook her head. “That’s not fine to me.”
“It is what it is. I own the reputation I had before I met you.”
“And? You being a playboy doesn’t give them the right to say what they want.”
“They don’t like me, and this is how people treat those they don’t like.” I shrugged, even as my chest hurt thinking about how Shady Acres had become in the end. “They all are like this eventually.”
Grace pressed her lips together. “Not here. We care about each other.”
“They care aboutyou. Not me.”
“I should?—”
“Grace,” I said gently, “I don’t want you fighting this for me. It was one person, and I can deal with that.”
“Peopledolike you here,” she said. “I know I do.”
“And that’s what matters.” I squeezed her hand. “It’s all I care about.”
“You don’t have to do this, you know.” Grace crossed her arms as we both looked at the antique shop in front of us. “You could hide out in the Treasure Trove until he forgets he contacted you.”
I laughed and shook my head. “Here’s one thing about grumpy old men, if they’re asking for help, it’s dire. I wouldn’t be surprised if he has a fire hazard in there right now.”
“Hughisthe fire hazard,” Grace replied. “But it’s very nice of you to help him. Even if he drives you up a wall today.”
“I’ll survive, and then I’ll go work on the house a little more.”
“See you at home,” she said before giving me a kiss and turning toward the Treasure Trove.
“I think I preferred it when you two were fighting.”
I jumped. Hugh had somehow snuck up on me.
“You’re quiet, do you know that?”
“You’re too busy staring at Grace to notice me.” He crossed his arms. “Now, are you here to help or not?”
I wasn’t sure what to expect when Hugh called me, but him having a job for me to do wasn’t one of them.
The weeks that had passed had been more than decent. They’d actually gone well.
I hadn’t officially decided if I was moving here, but I was close to it. Despite everything that should’ve made me hate thisplace, I was still reluctant to leave Grace. The farthest I’d gone was Knoxville to catch up with Clyde and tell him things had worked out.
Hugh’s antique shop was packed to the brim with things all from a bygone era. For a man with such a reputation, I wasn’t sure what kind of things he would stock. There were a lot of hand-painted plates and oil lamps, as well as old soda bottles. It was a mix of trash and treasure, but I could see myself finding something to buy here if I wanted to.
“What’s the issue?” I asked.
“This outlet shocks me whenever I use it.”
Yeah. That was an immediate problem. “How long has it done it?”
“Eh, about fifteen years.”
I turned to him with wide eyes. “You know that could have turned into a fire.”