Page 13 of Yours, Always

Prudence waved a hand in dismissal then turned back to the table, glancing at her phone. She knew she should call Greyson. Knew that they had to have a conversation before he came home, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to pick up the phone and didn’t know why. Oh…she did know why…but she didn’t want to admit it to herself after all these years. She’d always had a schoolgirl crush on Greyson but then again, so had every other girl—and some boys, too. He’d been the tall, good-looking popular athlete. She, the short, chubby nerd.

She’d never tried to pursue anything with Greyson as they headed into high school. He’d constantly seemed to be dating one cheerleader or another. But he’d always made time for her, though, going to movies together, eating at the corner burger joint after school or spending Saturday nights playing board games. Annabelle and Gabe were often a part of these get-togethers, sealing their bonds of friendship.

Prudence closed her eyes as she thought of that last night before Greyson had left to go out west. Charles Senior had given him an old beater car the last time he’d visited Amber Falls on a college break and told him to go get his dreams in Hollywood. He’d landed a role for a big action movie, faster than anyone thought he would, considering he hadn’t auditioned in person at all. He’d kissed her. He’d told her that he loved her. Everything her little high school heart dreamed about happening had finally come true. And she let him go. After asking her if there was a reason for him to stay, she’d said “no”. That bittersweet moment flooded her memories as if it were yesterday.

It was late by the time the first yawn reached Prudence’s lips, and she found herself sitting close enough to Greyson for their shoulders to touch.

“Are you ready to go home?” he asked, leaning into her.

Prudence turned to him. “Not quite yet.”

“You know, Pru, you’re my best friend.”

“You’re mine too, Greyson,” she said, her eyes searching his. “What brought this on?” she questioned, knowing he wasn’t one to wear his emotions on his sleeve.

“I just needed to tell you that. We’re moving apart, and I want you to know, I’ll always be there for you,” he said, the desperation evident in his voice. “Day or night, I’ll answer your call. Every time.” He brushed a tendril of hair behind her ear. “I love you, Pru.”

Prudence’s breath caught. “Greyson, I—” Greyson put his hands gently on her cheeks and placed the softest kiss on her lips. “Oh, Grey,” she exhaled in a sigh.

Greyson dropped his hands, and Prudence’s cheeks heated as Chuck came up to them.

“You’re leaving this afternoon, right?” an oblivious Chuck asked Greyson.

“Yeah, I am. We start shooting in a week, so I’ve gotta get going, man,” Greyson answered him, his eyes finding Prudence’s in the dark, reaching his hand out to clasp hers. “Unless there is a reason to stay?” he questioned softly, so only Prudence could hear.

In that instant Prudence knew. She knew if she said “stay” he would. He’d do anything for her, that’s the way it had always been. But she knew this one chance at stardom meant everything to Greyson. This was his opportunity to truly shine. To share his light with others, to explore his passion and hone his craft. Just as she needed to go to Atlanta, he needed to go to L.A.

With a sad smile, she whispered, “No. No reason,” as she untwined their hands and let go.

She’d known at the time it was the right decision—knew now it had still been the right decision. They’d needed space from each other by then. Having been in such a constant state of separate togetherness for so long, she would have never known if her following him to Hollywood would’ve held Greyson back from his dream or if it would have led to bitterness or resentment. Possibly on both of their parts. She’d had her own dreams to pursue that were not connected to being Greyson Atwood’s partner. He’d been true to his word over the years, though, and had answered her calls, every time.

Prudence reached up and touched her lips, convinced she could still feel the soft pressure of Greyson’s, but at the same time still not believing it had ever really happened. The memory had faded into half-consciousness. A fever dream, for all she knew. In all their conversations, over all these years, it had never been brought up again. Maybe his trip back to Amber Falls was to be the inevitable conclusion to that kiss and confession of love.

She shook her head, clearing out the cobwebs. His trip back home was nothing more than that of a man who needed a break. She was still small-town Prudence, and he was still Hollywood-movie-star Greyson. Their lives couldn’t be any more different, not to mention the entire continent that separated them. And she was with Chuck.Yes, Chuck.

The ringtone of her phone fully broke Prudence out of the spell of past reminiscences. She glanced around the coffee shop, surprised at how long she’d been lost in thought. She spied the couple that had walked through the door earlier still drinking their brew and let out a sigh of relief that she hadn’t been woolgathering for so long that Devlin had locked her in overnight. Prudence grabbed her ringing cell and contentment flowed through her at seeing Greyson’s face on the screen. She took a sip of her cooling latte before swiping up to answer. “Greyson!”

“Pru! Long time, no talk.”

Prudence smiled, thinking that no matter how famous Greyson was, he was still the dork who used to play eboard games with her. “It hasn’t even been twelve hours, Grey.”

“Yeah, well, it seemed like longer.” He glanced off to the side of his phone, silently mouthing something that could have been the word ‘no’. “I really thought about our conversation and decided to book a ticket to come home, Pru.”

Prudence’s heart lifted, even though she already knew this. “I’m so happy! This visit home is exactly what you need.” Her eyes squinted as Greyson looked off to the side of his screen again, shaking his head this time. “Everything okay there? Did you call at a bad time?”

Greyson rolled his eyes as a woman came around to stand behind him. “Well, hi again, Prudence. I didn’t even hear the phone ring.” Nadia leaned over Greyson’s shoulder. “I thought maybe you could talk some sense into him, but it appears I’m mistaken.” Prudence could swear Nadia’s drawl got more Southern every time she spoke with her. “So, the two of you had this planned out and there’s just nothing I can do about it.” She shook her head, her eyes watering. “Right in the middle of awards season, too. There’s so much press he should be doing, not to mention Samantha Crane.”

“Nadia, we talked about this. I’m not nominated for anything else, and I’m ready for a break.” Greyson shook his head. “Sorry, Pru. I don’t even know how she gets in here.”

Nadia straightened and her eyes cleared. “I see there’s no reasoning with you.”

“It’s time to go,” Greyson said emphatically with a hint of exasperation.

“Hmm. We’ll see about that.” She pulled the script out of her purse and tossed it on his coffee table. “Take the script with you at least.” she turned and waved with a flick of her hand. “Prudence, dear, see that he gets some of that rest he claims he needs. And, Greyson—take a nap. You look terrible.”

Prudence laughed at Greyson’s expression as he followed behind Nadia and locked the door after her. “I swear, if she wasn’t the best agent in the business, I’d dump her so fast.”

“You’d be running back to her a day later and you know it.”