Grizz
2001, Fort Lauderdale
Grizz had tried to tell Anthony he wouldn’t be working for him anymore after what had happened at the convenience store, but Anthony was convinced the two guys wouldn’t press charges. And he was right.
Anthony hadn’t been contacted by the police about his wayward employee, and so Grizz continued to work for the landscaping company and noticed that his fellow workers tried to include him more in their conversations. He’d picked up enough Spanish in prison to communicate with them. He wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.
Rocky was a bit of a challenge, but Grizz had always loved animals and found that he was a natural with them. He took pleasure in and was challenged by training the obviously abused animal. Rocky was turning out to be an excellent and well-behaved dog. He went to work with Grizz every single day and kept him company in the evenings and on the weekends.
Grizz had given Mimi a couple of driving lessons since that fateful day in September, and he enjoyed her company. She was a smart girl with a quick wit, and giving her driving lessons propelled him to distant memories of teaching her mother to drive so many years ago. He told her she was a fast learner. She told him that he was a good instructor. He couldn’t be sure, but he felt like he may have been bonding with his daughter.
He hadn’t meant to disappoint Jason by not openly attending his games, so he did the next best thing. He watched from afar and would explain to Jason that he’d been there but had been on his way somewhere and couldn’t stay to say hello. It was the truth and so far, it had appeased the boy. He’d also seen something at a couple of the games that he didn’t care for. Tommy’s business partner, Alec Davis, had shown up as well, and he sat with Ginny. He couldn’t be sure, but he was under the impression that their friendship had waned a bit. Maybe he’d been wrong.
Thanksgiving was approaching, and Grizz checked with Ginny before deciding whether or not to accept Carter and Bill’s invitation to come to dinner. She said she didn’t have a problem with it, and so he’d told Carter he would be there. He knew he wouldn’t even need to ask if anybody else was on the guest list. Carter knew better.
The young man who’d taken Tommy’s life had pled guilty and was now serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole. He had optioned for the plea instead of risking the death penalty.
Matthew Rockman’s trial had been postponed twice and was scheduled for this coming February, which would also be the one-year anniversary of Tommy’s death.
“Tommy told me he’d changed his mind. He wasn’t going to testify against Matthew, and I completely agreed with him,” Ginny told him.
They’d just finished eating turkey at Carter and Bill’s. Jason was playing a video game with Bill. Carter and Mimi were cleaning up. Carter had suggested that Grizz and Ginny go up to the guesthouse and retrieve the telescope that was stored up there. Maybe they could all watch the stars together later that night.
She sat on the bed in the little guesthouse, her hands folded together and clasped between her knees. She looked at Grizz accusingly.
“He’ll get convicted with or without Tommy’s testimony,” Grizz said from the corner, where his telescope had been stored. “Not because of anything Blue did. Because Matthew is guilty. He did murder her.”
Ginny stood then and walked to him, her arms crossed.
“I know you must’ve had something to do with it. Admit it. You had her murdered and made it look like Matthew did it.”
He’d been bending down fiddling with the telescope, but now he stood up and gave her his full attention.
“Yes and no. I did have Blue plan it, so yeah, I’m responsible. But it didn’t happen that way.”
She cocked her head and waited.
“It was all set to go down,” he said. “Jan contacted Matthew with the intention of blackmailing him, and he agreed to meet her. After Matthew left the hotel room, someone was going there to handle her and plant evidence. Except when they got there, she was already dead. Don’t know what she ended up saying to Rockman, but it must’ve put him over the edge, because he’d strangled her with the phone cord. It was not what we had planned, but it still provided truthful evidence against him.”
He didn’t say anything for a few more seconds, and before Ginny could comment, he blurted, “I would’ve stopped it if I could. I would’ve called it off, but I couldn’t.”
Ginny didn’t reply to his last admission because she wasn’t sure she believed it.
“How do you know this? Who told you Matthew really did kill her?”
“Anthony told me. He stays in touch with Blue.” He paused then. “How much do you stay in touch with Blue?”
“Not at all. I can’t even remember the last time I saw him before he came to the hospital. After Tommy married me, we really did stay away from everything gang-related, so that included Blue. The kids don’t know him.” She looked at the ground then. “We never got around to telling Mimi that Blue’s oldest, Kevin, is her half-brother. I’ll tell her one day, but for now, I think keeping it on the backburner might be for the best.”
Grizz nodded. “It is for the best.”
He didn’t want them to have any reason to be in contact with Blue. He was glad she and Tommy had distanced themselves from the life.
She ran a hand through her hair and sighed.
“What is this? What are we doing?”
“Carrying the telescope downstairs to set it up.”
“No, that’s not what I mean.”
“I know it’s not what you mean, Kitten,” he said, his deep voice quiet.
She shook her head slowly. “What good could possibly come from this? From us? I just can’t see where or if it could be anything. Or even if we want it to be anything.”
He took her gently by the hand and walked back toward the bed. She hesitated but let him lead her. After sitting down next to her, he softly said, “I know what I want to happen. I know that I’m still in love with you. I think about you constantly, Ginny. I’ve never stopped thinking about you or loving you, and I’ve thought about this very question nonstop.”
“And?”
“And, if I get to be in the same room with you, to hear your voice, to look into your eyes when you talk to me, just once in a while, then I’m willing to accept that.”
“It would be crumbs, and I can’t see you living the rest of your life on crumbs.”
“They’re more than I deserve, Ginny.” His eyes were sincere and warm.
“I’ve never seen you like this,” she said honestly. “I’ve never seen you so patient. It’s not what I remember.”
“Prison can change a man. Even me.”
He didn’t think he could bear to see doubt about him in her eyes, so he jumped up then and went back to the telescope, his back to her. She followed him to see if she could help. Without knowing she was right behind him, he turned to ask her something and found himself smacking right into her.
His instinct to grab her was immediate. He stood there, looking down into her face, his hands gently clinging to both of her upper arms. She looked up at him, and their eyes met. He slowly moved his hands to her face, lightly caressing her left cheek with his thumb. Their eyes stayed locked. He looked at her lips, then back at her gaze. He saw the invitation, or at least what he hoped was an invitation.
He lowered his mouth to hers.
She held her breath and closed her eyes when she realized he was going to kiss her. She sighed when he gently nibbled her bottom lip. He stopped only to press his lips lightly against hers. He still held her face in his hands and found himself nibbling, kissing, nibbling, kissing. He had to restrain himself from parting her lips and plunging his tongue inside her mouth. The need to taste her sweetness was overwhelming.
He felt her hands reach up behind his neck, pull him closer. She parted her mouth first, the invitation now obvious.
Gently, so gently, he let his tongue explore the inside of her mouth. His erection was immediate, intense and almost painful. He broke the kiss and looked down at her.
“I didn’t mean for it to go this far, Kitten,” he said in a low growl.
“I didn’t either,” she said breathlessly, ignoring the ache she hadn’t felt in a long time.
“I shouldn’t have kissed you. It’s too soon.”
“Too soon?”
“I’m afraid you’re still in mourning. It hasn’t been a year yet.” She knew he was referring to Tommy’s passing. “I don’t want to confuse you or make you do something you might regret later. I can wait until you’re sure of what you’re feeling.”
She was getting ready to answer him that she was a woman who didn’t need to be told what she was or wasn’t feeling when Jason’s voice floated up the guesthouse stairs.
“Did you find Aunt Carter’s telescope?” Jason yelled from outside. “Do you need help?”
**********
The stars were out in full glory that night, and they’d each taken turns looking through the telescope. Ginny watched as Jason excitedly told them he recognized some of the constellations. They were sitting on Carter and Bill’s deck, roasting marshmallows in the fire pit and making s’mores. The porch light cast a warm glow over the happy stargazers as they ate their treats and talked about stars and the things they were thankful for.
“My Dad had some tattoos. But they weren’t scary like some of yours, James.”
The group fell silent and all eyes turned to Jason, who’d been standing next to Grizz as he adjusted the telescope.
“What is this one? I’ve never seen one like this,” the boy said, pointing curiously at one on Grizz’s neck.
“It’s a prison tattoo,” Grizz told Jason. He didn’t look at Ginny for approval. It was going to come up eventually. No use pretending he could hide it.
Jason’s eyes widened, and Ginny held her breath as she waited for what she knew would be Jason’s next question.
“Were you in prison?” he asked, the fascination in his voice obvious.
Grizz turned away from the telescope and gave Jason his full attention. Not taking his eyes from Jason’s, he said, “Yes, Jason. I was in prison.”
“Wow. What did you do?”
“Let’s just say I did things that were bad enough to send me to jail. One day, when you’re older, if you still want to know, I’ll tell you. But for today, let’s just say it’s not something I’m proud of and don’t like to talk about. Is that okay with you?”
“Did you know the guy that died?” Jason asked. “Corbin said my parents knew some guy in prison who was getting killed. He owned a motorcycle gang.”
Ginny had to put her hand to her mouth to stifle a gasp. Jason hadn’t forgotten about Corbin’s comment over a year ago.
“Yes, I knew him.”
“Were you there when he died? Was he your friend? Did you like him?”
Grizz looked over Jason’s head and met Ginny’s eyes. Without breaking their gaze, he answered the child.
“I was there when he died. He wasn’t my friend. And no, I didn’t like him.”
He looked down at the boy and said in a tone that brooked no further conversation on the subject, “And I’m glad he’s dead.”