A Promise Kept

by Anissa Garcia

  He stayed silent as they studied each other, his eyes turning heavy and dark. “There’s something about you, Gracie Lynn.” He gave her a tender kiss and her body thrummed in desire. “And I promised to be good, so I’m trying my best not to take you over.” As he parted, she looked at the opening of his shirt. It had a scooped collar with a three-button placket, and under the left side of his collarbone peeked words from a tattoo.

  Grace reached forward and grazed her fingers across it. “You have a tattoo?”

  Smiling, he let his fingertips trail her jawline. “I do.”

  She pondered how she’d gone so long without knowing that, and she wanted to take time discovering all of him. “What’s it say?” She reached out with her hands to move his shirt aside, but he caught her wrists, his body pinning her down as he pushed her arms back above her head.

  “You’ll have to get me naked to find out, Gracie.”

  “I thought you said you were trying to be good.”

  “I’m still just a man.”

  She wriggled under him trying to unlock his grip. “Show me the tat! You’re such a tease.”

  “Really, cupcake? Don’t even.” She tried to fight him, but he was too strong, and when she felt his erection against her thigh, she stopped squirming and whimpered in want. “Hi, Gracie Lynn.” His voice was heady and dripping with lust.

  “Hey, Matthews.” They gazed at each other with wide eyes, both of their chests pumping in and out with a fervent blaze.

  He let her wrists go and he grasped the collar of his shirt with one hand, moving it aside. Her fingertips skimmed across the words inked on his light skin. She inhaled faintly as she read his tattoo, the cursive lettering small –

  Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.

  His eyes remained on her as her lashes swept up and she blinked. “How long have you had this tattoo, Evan?”

  “Since I was twenty-six. I told you Goethe was my favorite poet.”

  She traced the lettering gently, then placed her palm over his heart. “It’s beautiful, Evan.”

  “Thanks, Gracie,” he said in a quiet whisper as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

  “Why that quote?”

  “Dreams will always stay dreams until you become bold enough to act on them.” Grace stared at him, her mouth agape as he moved to his side of the bed, his back turned towards her. “Try to get some sleep, babe. Our flight leaves tomorrow evening.”

  Grace would never get sleep. Not when her body yearned for the man next to her. Not when he desired her just as much. Not when she was falling for him so damn hard and fast she was losing her balance. Being practical and being in deep infatuation at the same time was highly improbable, but not impossible…was it?

  The daylight streamed through the window leaving Grace the opportunity to study the handsome glow of Evan Matthews. She listened to his steady breathing, watching his chest rise and fall under his hand and the way his long lashes fluttered with closed eyes. Her body curled beside his and she contemplated how far her feelings were bourgeoning for this man and his family.

  Men never wanted to work for her trust, yet here was this gorgeous creature striving to earn hers. Of course, there had been a few men who swore they’d wait for her, but when it came down to it, they weren’t serious. She saw the red flags, expected them, and she instantly backed away as soon as she spotted them. Evan’s red flags weren’t popping up, and the closer she got, the less she noticed them, no matter how much she kept her heart at bay.

  She squiggled out of the bed as quietly as possible and took her clothes with her to the bathroom to change. The smell of something freshly-baked wafted up throughout the second floor and Grace made her way downstairs.

  Evan’s mother sat at the kitchen table reading a magazine and sipping on a steamy cup of coffee. Her crystal blue eyes peered over half-mooned spectacles and she smiled. “Good morning, Grace.”

  “Good morning.” The younger woman greeted as she made her way over to the coffeemaker and pointed. “May I?”

  “Of course, sweetie. Come join me. I have some fresh biscuits here you can munch on. Cream for the coffee’s in the fridge.”

  Grace fixed her cup and sat beside the woman Evan so loved. It wasn’t difficult to see it radiate from him when he was around her. Rebecca reached over and handed her a plate then opened the basket with recently baked goods. “Thank you.”

  “I hope you’ve had a great Thanksgiving with us, Grace. Evan was so excited when he told me you had agreed to join him.”

  “I’m thankful. You have such a fun family.”

  “Oh, honey, you just saw a small bit of them. You haven’t met the aunts, uncles, and cousins. We’re a large bunch, so we can get rowdy. Christmas is insane.”

  Grace smiled at the notion of a full house. “That’s amazing. Did Evan always know he wanted to be an actor?”

  “Oh, yes. Every summer he went to acting camps. He was in every single school play since he was five years old. That boy basically popped out of the womb performing.”

  Grace laughed as she drank her coffee. “He’s very talented.”

  “Yeah, he’s always had a knack for it. And he was always putting on productions here at the house with his sisters. He was the director, of course, and they had to follow the script he’d write for them. Then when he got the cousins involved it became a huge deal. He was always putting on shows.”

  Grace could see younger Evan running around, bossing people into stage positions. “And how did Zach come into the picture?”

  “Middle school was tough for Evan. He’s always been my sensitive boy. His father and I divorced and it wasn’t easy on us by any means, even if Evan makes it out to be so. He was affected by it, but he stepped up in the family and took care of us girls. Zach became like his brother, and we took him in when his parents moved away.”

  “And Mama Matthews became the number one woman in my life that nobody will ever live up to.” Zach approached and bent to give Rebecca a kiss on the cheek. She reveled in the affection, loving her children more than anything. Including Zach.

  “Morning, Zachary. Coffee’s on, and I hope you made up the bed.”

  “Since when has Zach ever cleaned after himself?” Hilary entered yawning and pushed Zach away from the coffee machine, grabbing the carafe before he could.

  “I’m not a total slob anymore, Hilary.”

  “Just a part-time one.” She leaned against the counter and sipped on her black coffee, her eyes closed as she rejoiced the taste. Her straight hair was ratted up on the back of her head and she was still in her oversized pajamas. “Coffee is my life.”

  “Thanks for taking the last of it.” Zach grimaced as he began to make more. “Scoot over, walking dead.”

  “What’s for breakfast?” Evan strolled in and moved toward the table. He gave his mother a kiss and then leaned over toward Grace, his lips taking hers swiftly. “Mmm, you taste like very sweet coffee, Gracie Lynn.”

  “And you taste minty fresh,” Grace said as she ran a hand over Evan’s stubbly jaw.

  He sat beside her and served himself a biscuit, slathering butter and strawberry preserves over it. “How’d you sleep, Grace? Anymore nice dreams?”

  She gave him a warning look, but nobody seemed to catch on to the intent of his question. “I slept fine, despite your snoring.”

  “I may snore, but I definitely don’t talk in my sleep.”

  “Evan, stop,” she whispered under her breath.

  “That’s not what you said last night, baby doll,” he rumbled near her ear. She reached under the table and pinched his thigh. “Ouch,” he laughed and clasped her hand away from his leg. “Okay. Stopping.”

  “I’m guessing there’s some inside joke or sexual overtone type thing going on there, but I’m too tired to inquire or tease at this point. Pass me a biscuit, please.” Hilary sat across from Evan and began to fix her own biscuit as Zach sat beside her.

  “You leaving today too, Zach?” Hilar
y asked as she fixed another biscuit and handed it to him. Rebecca took out eggs and bacon from the fridge and got prepared to cook.

  “No. Tomorrow. Gotta catch up on some stuff at my place.” He ate, looking to Evan who had his eyes anchored on Grace. Zach snapped his fingers at him. “Loverboy, Mike told me to set up that meeting for next week, so I’ll get with your schedule and see when you can fly out to L.A. for that.”

  Evan’s eyes latched to Zach’s with caution, then looked away and nodded slightly. “Fine.”

  “What meeting, honey? You finally found a movie you want to direct?” His mom cracked the eggs into a bowl, poured milk and started whisking them.

  Grace watched as he closed his eyes in frustration and shook his head. “No, I haven’t found one yet. John Whitford wants me to be in his next project.”

  “Holy shit!” Hilary’s eyes popped open and her coffee cup banged on the table. Evan might have been an actor, but Hilary was a huge movie buff. “John Whitford? That’s huge!”

  “You taking it, sweetie?”

  “I don’t know yet, Mom.” He glanced at Grace, letting his knuckles brush her cheek as he went to the stove, taking over the eggs and helping his mother cook.

  “He will if he knows what’s good for him,” Zach asserted.

  “Well, ultimately, it’s what Evan thinks is best,” Rebecca stressed as she turned the bacon.

  “He thought The Ending Series wasn’t best, and look how that turned out,” Zach reminded them. “Thank Christ they kept on offering it to him.”

  “Yeah, he’d be kicking himself in the ass,” Hilary laughed. “And be making genital herpes commercials.”

  “Thank you, Hil, but I don’t think it would’ve come to that.”

  The sound of bacon sizzling filled the room as everyone sipped on their coffee. Grace tried to settle her stomach as she grasped she had been ignoring a huge red flag. Evan was already thinking about his next project. She had to remember his address wasn’t permanent, and he would soon be leaving Austin and her behind.

  Grace had come off her vacation high, and over a week without seeing Evan was giving her major withdrawals. With the combination of his hectic filming schedule and her dealing with maintenance issues from tenants, catching up with her small fan following, and finishing her memoir, time with each other had been limited. They texted and called when they could, but Grace couldn’t help but feel herself pulling back on purpose.

  Evan was in Los Angeles over the weekend, agreeing to one of the biggest film directors in the world, and Grace needed to make sure she was in the right headspace when she realized he was going to leave her. To take her mind off of everything, she worked on finishing the desk in her garage.

  The sounds of Chris Stapleton drifted from her radio as she sanded through the stain. Memories of Evan and his family flashed through her mind, and she began to miss the idea of being in Boston. She had checked the weather app and saw it was snowing there. Texas in December was in the high 70s, and she wasn’t yet in the Christmas spirit. Perhaps it was because she would spend her Christmas the way she spent every one before that. Alone.

  Grace scrubbed at the desk frantically, her mind and heart at war with one another as she fought emotions that were bubbling to the surface. The memoir, Boston, Evan and his stupidly perfect tattoo, and his wonderful family, and his beautiful hands and the way he touched and kissed her was too much. He was making her want so much more with him and she wasn’t sure it was possible. He was all too much.

  “Gracie.” Breathless, she glanced up to see Evan standing in her garage. “I called out your name several times.” Had it really been almost eleven days since seeing him? It felt like ages. He moved toward her, tall and clean and so handsome her heart twisted. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah.” She panted and dropped the sandpaper down on the floor. She turned away and reached for the can of gloss and a paintbrush. Looking at him was painful. She had missed him so much and was longing for his touch. “I thought you were coming in tomorrow.”

  “Caught an early flight.”

  “How’d it go?” She took her gloves off and uncapped the varnish setting it on the desk.

  “It was fine.”

  He moved toward her to give her a kiss but she backed away. “I’m sweaty, Evan.”

  Grace began to dip the brush and she studied the task at hand, ungluing her eyes from him. Her arm swooshed over the wood in a hurry as she tried to bottle her emotions inside. “Gracie, what’s going on?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Stop it. You’ve been weird since we left Boston.”

  “We haven’t seen each other since Boston, Evan.” She chuckled forcefully, trying to keep things light. He wasn’t buying it, but she continued. “Tell me about the meeting. Did you take the role?”

  “What if I told you I didn’t?”

  Grace froze and shot him a glance, his eyes feeling cold. She tried to catch her breath as she set down the paint brush. “You have to, Evan. You’ll regret it if you don’t.”

  “You think?”

  “I know. It’s an amazing opportunity. Please…tell me you took it.” Although it hurt, she meant what she said to him. He wanted the part, and she wanted that for him. The last thing he needed was a woman who would keep him from what he was born to do, and she loved that he was passionate about his job.

  “Things are being discussed.”

  She gave a half-hearted smile, looking down at her hands. “Good. You don’t just turn down an opportunity with John Whitford.” Looking back at him, she saw his lips pressed in a flat line and a crinkle between his eyebrows. He was definitely deep in thought. “Don’t give up that role. I know you want it.”

  “How do you know?”

  She shrugged. “You don’t think I can tell? Besides, his movies are always amazing, and you still haven’t found your directing project. It’ll be good for you to take it on. Fight for the role if you need to, but don’t give it up.”

  He breathed in deeply, and she felt consumed by him, like the space he took was overwhelming her. “I should finish this up,” she said reaching for the brush. Before she could finish the attempt, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her against him.

  Her arms flung around him as he kissed her with potency. His tongue swept over her, dipping inside with a needy motion that begged for more. “I don’t care if you’re sweaty, Grace. I don’t care about the fucking desk. I don’t give a shit about that movie, princess. Not when I need to feel you.”

  “Evan…”

  His hands grasped the sides of her face and she felt the heat of his breath over her as he spoke with a ruggedness that vibrated through her. “Tell me what’s going on inside your head, Gracie.” Her body was tense, but her effort to move away from him failed as he grasped her shoulders. “Don’t run from me. Talk.”

  “I just have a lot on my mind right now.”

  “Is this about the tabloid?”

  Grace parted from him, confusion written on her expression. “Tabloid?”

  “Guessing you haven’t seen it then?”

  “Another tabloid?” Here was something else she needed to worry about. What was being said now? Criticism and scrutiny was not her idea of fun. And what if her parents found out? How would they react to her dating a Hollywood star? Maybe they wouldn’t care at all. It wouldn’t surprise her.

  “Look, why don’t you get showered, and then we’ll get some dinner and talk?” He tried to lean down to kiss her again, but she backed away from him.

  “Or you could talk now.”

  “Like you’re talking to me?” They were silent, the electric sizzle growing between them. She didn’t want to talk because the truth was scary. The truth that this might not last, that she would lose him sooner than she wanted. “Take a shower, Grace. I’ll come over with some food and we’ll discuss things, okay?”

  She nodded knowing this was it. She was going to have to stop it all before she got in too deep, but everything hurt when she thought of how
much she was going to miss everything about him.

  “They found out, Evan.” She held out her phone as he took out the cartons of Chinese food he had gotten delivered. “They know my name. Who I am and what I do.”

  He glanced at the screen and nodded. “Yeah, my people have been asking me about it.”

  “People?”

  “Publicists.”

  She put down the phone that showcased an article of the two of them sharing a kiss at the bar they went to in Boston as well as a photo of them holding hands at the airport. “And?”

  “I haven’t given a statement yet.” They sat at the table with food and silverware before them. Evan speared a piece of broccoli from her chicken with vegetables and chomped on it as he moved his Lo Mein toward her to share.

  “Do you need to?”

  “I want to,” he answered seriously.

  “But why? I mean, maybe it’s better to keep it quiet.” She picked at her food, but had no appetite. Fear, mixed with confusion were taking over her thoughts. He wanted to tell the whole world she was his, yet if it didn’t last, that failure would forever be out for everyone to see. He didn’t seem to care, yet she did.

  “The more we keep quiet, the more they’ll want to find out. It’s better to announce it, Grace.”

  “Look, Evan,” her stomach fluttered as she cleared her throat, “I’ve been putting off talking to you because I admit I’ve been a bit selfish.”

  He stopped chewing his food, his eyebrows raised in interest. “What do you mean?”

  “I like spending time with you, and part of me doesn’t want to do this. The fact that this should end-”

  “Whoa, wait a second. What are you talking about?”

  “Well, I mean, it has to end. This can’t really go anywhere.”

  Annoyance flashed over his manner, and he instantly straightened in his chair. “It’s been going great, Grace. I took you to Boston. I introduced you to my family and my friends.”

  “It was just a poker bet.”

  “Screw the fucking bet. Do you seriously still think I’m playing around with you? Or do you just not want me? What’s the real problem here?”