Chapter 97
Granger glanced at Thorne, hesitated for a moment, and then accepted the gesture. “Thanks, man.”
They clinked their glasses together, sipping on their drinks as they delved into conversation.
Suddenly, Thorne gave Granger a longer look than usual.
Granger met his gaze and asked, “What’s up?”
Moran chimed in, “You seem… off today.”
A smile cracked on Thorne’s face, silently agreeing with Moran’s observation.
Granger remained unfazed, casually responding, “Do I?”
Moran raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you?” he said.
Granger took a leisure sip of his drink, choosing not to answer.
that moment, some folks came over to greet them.
After they left, Granger glanced at the time, worried Daisy might be getting hungry. Just as he was about to check on her, Daisy and Jasmine returned.
Daisy asked, “Uncle, can I have some of those cupcakes over there?”
Being prone to allergies, Daisy had a restricted diet, so Granger said, “You sit here, I’ll get it for you.”
“Okay.”
Jasmine, on the other hand, was used to fending for herself and didn’t have dietary restrictions. She grabbed something to eat and even offered some to Thorne, asking, “Dad, want some?” Thorne ruffled her hair, replying, “I’m good, thanks.”
As the kids sat munching on their snacks, Vesta shared some of her delicious finds with Jasmine.
Jasmine happily accepted. “Thanks, Ms. Hawkins.”
Daisy, confused, looked up at Vesta and then over to Jasmine. “Minnie, isn’t this lady your mom?” she asked.
The room fell silent at Daisy’s question.
Jasmine paused, then shook her head. “Nope.”
Daisy cautiously asked, “So, you don’t have a mom either?”
Jasmine shook her head again. “No, I do have a mom.”
“Oh…”
On the cruise, souvenirs were being handed out, and Daisy took a shine to a crystal keychain, grabbing two of
them.
Those were the last ones, and Jasmine liked them as well. Seeing that Daisy had taken both, Jasmine felt compelled to ask, “Daisy, could you share one with me? I’d like to give it to Ms. Hawkins.” Daisy hesitated, admitting, “I… I wanted to give one to my new friend…”
Recalling the day’s events with Charlene, Daisy shared with Jasmine, “Today, my uncle and a lady took me to fly kites, we went fishing, rode bikes, and chased butterflies… She is really pretty, she would love this crystal…” The adults, who hadn’t been paying much attention to the kids’ conversation, now turned their attention towards Granger.
Moran immediately prodded, “Granger, what’s going on? Or should I say, what’s already going on?” Getting more excited, he didn’t wait for Granger to respond, adding, “When did this happen? How come you didn’t tell us,
Aght, Thorne!”
Thorne smiled but kept his eyes on Granger, curious about his response,
Granger kept a straight face. “We just bumped into each other by chance.”
“Really?” Moran was skeptical, as if piecing things together. “So, you had lunch together too? I was wondering how you managed kids so effortlessly, turns out you had help!” Granger stayed silent.
Thorne looked at him, delivering the final verdict, “You’re into her.”
Granger hesitated, opened his mouth to speak, but ultimately didn’t deny it.
Vesta was taken aback, her smile fading slightly.
Granger stayed silent.
Thorne looked at him, delivering the final verdict, “You’re into her.”
Granger hesitated, opened his mouth to speak, but ultimately didn’t deny it.
Vesta was taken aback, her smile fading slightly.
“Holy smokes, it’s actually true?” Moran had been jesting, not expecting his guess to be accurate. He quickly asked, “Who is she? Do we know her? Why haven’t you introduced her to us?”