The Boss Project by Vi Keeland

She put her hand on my chest and nudged me to one side of the doorway. Then she squeezed into it with me. Our bodies weren’t touching, but they were damn close. She pushed up on her toes and looked into my eyes. “I bet if I left the bathroom door open a bit, I could prove who the pervert is.”

I swallowed. Fuck. I had the strongest urge to show her exactly how perverted I was feeling at the moment. In fact, she was about ten seconds away from finding out, because her attitude was making me hard. She was going to be in for a surprise when it hit her belly. But then Evie slipped past me into the bathroom and wiggled her fingers.

“You might want to step away so I can close the door, pervert.” She grinned.

I groaned. “You’re evil.”

It took every ounce of willpower to walk away as she pulled the door shut. I stood just down the hall for a few minutes, second-guessing myself. Luckily, my ruminations were cut short by my grandmother’s voice. It was just the cold shower I needed.

“Merrick!”

I took a relieved breath before walking to her room. “Morning, Grams. How’d you sleep?”

“A little better. I took that damn boot off.”

I shook my head. “You’re supposed to keep it on so you don’t cause further damage.”

She waved me off. “That foot feels fine. They just wanted another thing to bill my insurance for.”

I looked around the room. Finding the soft cast on the dresser, I walked over and grabbed it. “At least put it on before you get up.”

She grumbled but let me help her with it before we went out to the kitchen.

“You still take your coffee with enough sugar to induce a diabetic coma?” I asked.

Grams used her hands to lift the leg with the hard cast up on the chair next to her. “When you’re as sweet as me, you have to replenish the supply somehow.”

While my grandmother was certainly one of the kindest humans I knew, sweet wasn’t the way I’d describe her. “If your personality comes from what you ingest, I’m surprised you don’t put lemons in your coffee,” I teased. I prepped two mugs and took the seat across from her, sliding hers across the table.

“Thank you,” she said. “So tell me, what are you going to do about Everly?”

“Evie?”

Grams raised her mug to her lips. “Mmm-hmm.”

“I guess she’ll go back after your doctor’s appointment. I know she wanted to be here for it. I’ll see if there’s a flight for her tomorrow morning.”

“I wasn’t asking for her itinerary, dumbass. I was asking when you’re finally going to make your move.”

“What move?”

“I see the way you look at the girl when you think no one’s paying attention. A woman like that won’t be single for long. So stop dilly-dallying and throw your hat in the ring.”

Oh, Jesus. I shook my head. “We’re not having this conversation, Grams.”

“Why the hell not? When was the last time you had a girlfriend? I’m not talking about a hookup—I mean a nice girl to date.”

The word hookup should never come out of anyone’s grandmother’s mouth. “I’ve been focused on my business the last few years. Besides, that’s not what Evie wants.”

Grams frowned. “That twit really did a number on you. I worry about you, Merrick. When you close your heart to opportunity, you miss out on love.”

“I’m not doing that.”

“Okay. So then humor me for a minute. Do you think Everly is attractive?”

I sighed, knowing Grams would never let it go if I didn’t play along. “She’s a beautiful woman, yes.”

“Got a great ass, too.”

I shook my head with a laugh. “Yes, Evie also has a nice figure.”

“Do you often find yourself wondering what’s going on in her head?”

“Yes, but she’s a therapist. So she has a unique way of looking at things.”

“See a future with her?”

I didn’t want to throw Evie under the bus and say it was her who was stopping anything from happening. But it was becoming inevitable.

“Grams, you’re talking to the wrong person. Evie knows I’m attracted to her.”

“Of course she does. But she also sees a man who’s closed off from his feelings and angry at the world—a man who can quickly answer questions about his attraction to her, but say the word future, and you change the subject. You’re two good-looking people. Lust isn’t the problem; it’s being afraid of love.”

“I’m fine, Grams. Really. You don’t need to worry about me. I’m not afraid to fall in love.”

Grams’s face turned serious. “Oh, I never thought you were, sweetheart. I think you’re afraid you won’t be loved back.”



• • •



“Thank you so much for coming today.” I shook my head as I drove. “I would never have gotten her to agree to have surgery without you. What did you say to her when you asked for a few minutes to talk alone?”

Grams, Evie, and I had all gone in to meet with the doctor after she examined Grams. The doctor laid out all of the reasons my grandmother needed a hysterectomy, but Grams was adamant that things would heal on their own. She wanted to give it some time. Then Evie asked if they could have a few minutes alone. Twenty minutes later, my grandmother was signing consent forms and getting scheduled for this coming Wednesday.