Page 69 of The Curveball

He can stay there.

“About two hours ago,” I whisper back.

Wren muffles a laugh and starts pulling me toward the exit.

“Wait, Wren.”

I nudge her behind me slightly when her dad approaches. Odd. The man might be standoffish, but he’s her father. Still, the urge to stand between them takes hold and I can’t help it.

Grant looks between us, an arrogant smile on his face, then he holds out his hand to me. “I’m convinced.”

“I’d say that’s great, but frankly, sir, it doesn’t matter if you were convinced. I care about your daughter.”

He sniffs, but nods, pulling back his hand. “Good. Then, I suppose we’ll see you both at your banquet next month.”

My brow furrows. “My banquet? The fundraiser?”

“Yes. Didn’t Wren mention it? We were invited to attend. Normally, it’s our busier time with the holiday rush to the slots, but since Wren said you two were seeing each other, we’ll make it a priority. Admittedly, I wasn’t certain if this relationship was one of Wren’s stories.”

“I love her stories.” I can’t help it. Words keep blurting out.

Grant chuckles, but when I don’t join in, he clears his throat and continues. “As I told Wren, if I was convinced you were truly seeing each other, that would change things for our donations. You can expect, as promised—”

“Dad,” Wren tries, but he barrels over her.

“—for Pierson Co. to match the donations you’ve acquired to-date. If you’ll give me the financials, then I’ll make the arrangements on our end.”

I don’t give much of a reaction at first. Big words need time to settle. After a few seconds, my face scrunches in confusion. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand what you mean.”

Grant smiles. “Didn’t Wren tell you?”

“Dad, please.”

“What’s the problem? This is a good thing.” Her dad looks at me. “Since you’re important to my daughter, it means you’re important to all of us. I’m matching your current donation fund.”

It hits me like a blow to the chest. This was the reason Wren wanted to keep this going? Because her dad promised an astronomical donation?

She did this . . . for me?

Grant’s cell phone rings. He inspects the screen, then faces us. “Get me the financial reports, Mr. Marks. We’ll see you both at the banquet, yes?”

He turns away with a brisk wave before we can answer, phone lifted to his ear.

I don’t know what to say. Wren shifts by my side. This was the motivation behind convincing her father we were a couple. Nothing for her benefit; it was all for me.

Wren startles when I take her hand. “Griff, I—”

“Come on,” I interject, voice rough. “Let’s get out of here.”

CHAPTER21

WREN

I’ve never seenGriffin Marks silent.

It’s eerie, unnatural, and I have no idea what’s going on in that busy mind of his.

He hasn’t released my hand since we left my dad’s house. I take it as a positive. If he was furious I’d kept the whole donation ultimatum from him, he wouldn’t touch me. Unless he’s frozen in place with fury.