Chapter 60
Grant
Grant didn’t understand. What had happened with Kate? He thought he had finally gotten her to see that they should give a relationship a serious chance at Ginny’s wedding. He tried calling her and texting her after the party, but she hadn’t responded.
Between Kate and his mother, he was having a rough week. Danielle had been emailing him nonstop. All of her emails could be summed up in three words: you owe me.
He didn’t like what had happened in Ethiopia, and now that he had the contract, he didn’t need her anymore. She was dangerous to have around, he decided. He needed to end things with her, just as he’d done with Brandy.
He was furious with Brandy for throwing herself at him. The night of the party, he had walked around the floor, trying to pick up the worst of the trash to help out the custodians. Brandy had followed him into the conference room and started undressing. She backed him into a corner and grabbed his hands, forcing him to kiss her. He was in shock about her forwardness, then he was angry she wouldn’t take no for an answer. He tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she had been drunk.
Then she made another move on him that morning. It was eleven o’clock, so he knew she was stone-cold sober.
“You’re fired,” he told her on the spot.
“You can’t fire me!” she sputtered.
“I just did. Get out.” He was so angry, but it motivated him. He was taking out the trash—for good.
He texted his mother to meet him that night to talk. Then he pulled up the address for Kate’s old professor, Alan Von Breuer. He was up the street from Holbrook Enterprises, teaching at Columbia. Grant decided to pay him a little visit. Maybe once Kate had complete assurances she was safe, things would work out between them. Or he could always have Brandy. He gagged a little.
After his last meeting of the day, Grant knocked on the door of Alan’s house. When the older man opened the door, he didn’t seem as terrified to see Grant as Grant would have liked.
“I haven’t contacted Kate anymore,” he said, leveling his gaze at Grant.
“See that you don’t.”
“You don’t know what you’re playing at here,” Alan told him. “You better be careful.”
“No, you need to be careful,” Grant shot back.
Alan smirked at him as he closed the door.
“One down, one to go,” Grant said to himself.
He went to a bar across town and slipped into a booth.
“I ordered you a drink,” Danielle said sweetly.
Grant ignored the beer. He wasn’t eating or drinking anything from her; he did not trust her at all.
“We can finally be together,” she said dreamily. “After all that I’ve done for you, my dear sweet baby, I think I’ve proved that I want to be the mother you deserve.” She took his hand and stroked it gently. And was a hint of a tear in her eye?
Grant could see how someone more naïve could have been reeled in by Danielle. She seemed so sincere, but he was used to his toxic adoptive parents and the multitude of lying marines under his command, and he had built up immunity to bullshit and manipulation.
“I want us to have a relationship,” Danielle continued, “a real one.”
“Honestly, that’s never going to happen,” Grant said, keeping his face carefully devoid of any expression.
Danielle’s façade started to crack. “I helped you. We had a deal.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Don’t you want to learn about your half-siblings?” she asked desperately.
Grant smirked. “I have a feeling you’re lying about that. If there’s any information, Walter will tell me. I don’t need you.”
“I’ll ruin your contract,” she snarled.
“No, you won’t,” he said. “It’s ironclad, and the president of the mining company likes me. You didn’t think just because you were friends with his daughter that suddenly you controlled him, did you?” He laughed. “No. We’re done, Danielle. I got what I needed from you. Now leave me alone. I’m being adopted tomorrow officially by my father. You lost. Bow out gracefully.”
“You’re going to be sorry!” Danielle screeched at him as she snatched up her purse and stormed out of the bar.
He probably should have played it closer to the vest, but he was frustrated about the Kate situation. Why was she still fighting him?
The next day was the big day. He would no longer be Grant Jones. He would officially be Grant Holbrook. He didn’t know how he felt. Maybe after this, Kate would want him.
Who am I kidding? he told himself. You’re being stupid and pathetic. She doesn’t want anything to do with you.
“Your watch has arrived,” Stefan said when Grant showed up at his father’s house. “I know you will want it for the adoption ceremony.”
“Let me see,” Grant demanded.
“It’s at the dealer. It will need to be picked up.”
“Grant can’t,” Walter said, coming out of the study. “We need to go over some of the sales numbers.”
“Why did they send the watch to the dealer?” Grant asked, frustrated.
“That’s how they do it,” Walter said.
“I won’t make it over there and back in time.”
“Kate will pick it up for you on her way home. She also has to collect Gus from the groomer’s as well before the adoption ceremony.”
After going over the numbers, they waited around for Kate.
“I’ll text her and tell her to meet us at the courthouse,” Walter said finally.
As Grant and Walter were ushered into the judge’s chambers, there was still no sign of Kate.
“I thought Kate would be here.”
“She must have gotten caught up with something,” Nancy assured him. “We can’t postpone this any longer. Mark and Carter aren’t here, either. When we’re all together again, we’ll have a big celebration.”
Grant knew Kate had been trying to avoid him, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad must have happened.
You’re paranoid, he thought. You always think there’s a disaster waiting just around the corner.
He waited patiently as the judge went through the ceremony. After the final papers were signed, the judge smiled at them.
“You are now formally Walter Holbrook’s son.”
Walter hugged him.
“Grant Holbrook, everyone,” the judge said, grinning broadly. Everyone, even Jack, applauded. The judge handed Grant a teddy bear.
“Picture time!” Nancy chirped.
“I don’t need this,” Grant said, handing the stuffed animal back to the judge.
“Everyone who is adopted gets a teddy bear,” the judge said.
“But—”
“Don’t ruin this for me, son. Smile for the camera!”
When they arrived back at the estate, there was still no Kate.
He was starting to become worried. What had happened?
There was no word from her through dinner, and none of them had heard from her by that evening.
“I’m worried now,” Nancy said. “No one’s gotten a text message or something?”
“Her grandmother doesn’t know where she went,” Walter said, “and none of her friends do, either.” He grabbed Grant’s arm and demanded, “Did you do something to her? Did anything happen between you two?”
“What? No!” Grant said, shocked his father would think he would hurt Kate.
“Don’t think I don’t know that you’ve been carrying on an affair with her behind my back,” Walter told him. “I expected you to man up and make an honest woman out of her. She’s clearly infatuated with you. If you’ve run off my assistant, I don’t care how many billions of sales you make. I will bury you.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Grant said. “Honest. I’ll find her. I promise.”
He stayed out all night, driving around, looking for her. The next morning, he went to the office, hoping she would show, but Kate had seemingly disappeared.