“A lot of people use Messenger for texting.”

“But you called her.”

“Okay, yeah. But in my defense, I like your sister. And I’m pretty sure the feeling is mutual.”

He heard Colin sigh. “Don’t you see the similarities?”

“Between calling Grace on Messenger and Erin’s husband trying to kill his wife? No, Colin, I don’t see the similarities.”

“No. I don’t mean that. I mean between you using Facebook to contact Grace and Brandt using a dating app to approach her.”

Dameon was completely lost. “Who is Brandt?”

“Desmond Brandt. The man who tried to kill Erin and who manipulated his way into Grace’s life.”

Dameon’s jaw slacked. “What?”

Colin started to stutter. “Oh . . . no. She didn’t tell you that part, did she?”

All the fragmented pieces of the conversation swirled like leaves blowing in the wind. Finally, they settled into a neat little pile. “You’re telling me that the dead man used Grace to get to his ex?” The hair on his neck stood on end.

“Sh-shit. Not exactly. But, oh, damn . . . Grace is going to kill me.”

“What do you mean, ‘not exactly’?”

“Oh, no . . . no more from me. You’re going to have to get the details from Grace.”

“At the Christmas party you’re suggesting I go to.”

“Right. That. Only it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to mention this phone call at the party.”

“So I just show up at a random party without an invitation . . . How does that take away from my stalker reputation with your family?” Especially now that he knew the depth of the stalker concern for Grace.

“You’re a resourceful man, I’m sure you can find an invitation if you try hard enough.”

Yes, he was all that. “Tell me one thing, Colin . . . Did he hurt her?”

Dameon held his breath while he waited for the answer.

“Not physically. But she’s not completely the same since it all happened.”

Even that hurt Dameon’s heart.

“Can I ask you something?” Dameon asked.

“Yeah.”

“If you thought I was anything like this man, why ask me to this party in the first place?”

“To determine for myself if you are.”

That answer Dameon could live with.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

There was a reason Monday memes found themselves on coffee cups, T-shirts, and social media.

Mondays sucked, especially when the weekend slid by without enough restful sleep to make up for a shitty workweek.

Grace sat in a twice monthly meeting with the engineers. Richard was at the head of the table, she and Evan took one side, while Lionel, Adrian, and two interns sat on the other. Because they often worked jointly on projects, they regularly held meetings where they could all talk about the progress or issues and iron things out in a group setting. They all had their strengths in different areas of engineering, and it was here that work was delegated.

She’d made a conscious decision to wear outfits that afforded her the ability to put on high heels on days like this. Wearing the extra few inches gave her the boost she needed to look her colleagues, or better yet, her boss, in the eye.

Richard had started with Lionel and Adrian before moving on to Evan.

“Where are we with the Sierra Highway situation? Are we breaking ground or did the landowner cooperate?” Richard asked.

Evan looked at Grace. “I think Grace has this one,” he said.

“I told him he had to the end of business today to give us the name of the contractor he was using. But I wouldn’t be surprised if he found some stall tactic to give him more time.”

“He’s had months,” Evan said.

“I know. The man is combative,” Grace told them.

“Aren’t they all when the city is coming down on them?” Adrian asked with a smirk.

“Too much for you to handle, Hudson?” Richard asked.

Evan sat forward. “That’s not what she said, Richard. The man’s an asshole. No respect for any of us. I agree with Grace on this one. He’s going to stall.”

“I gave him a firm deadline. I’ve already drawn up what needs to happen. All I need is the okay to move forward and get a crew on this.” Grace said her piece and waited for Richard’s okay.

“Put it in January’s budget,” Richard said.

Grace felt a little victory knowing she could take it to the next level.

Evan went on to talk about one of his lead projects that was wrapping up and another that needed more hands.

Richard approved and turned to Grace.

Like the others, Grace started with the most pressing and ended with the most recent. That being Dameon’s site. She talked about the scope of the project and the pieces their department would be involved in. “I know that Dameon wants to break ground on this by spring. In order to accommodate him, I’m going to need more hands on this. The relocation of the commercial space is a job all by itself.”

After everything she said, Richard only had one question. “Dameon? You mean Mr. Locke.”

She cautioned herself to not hold her pencil too tight or risk breaking it. “Yes, Richard, I mean Dameon Locke.” She found herself in a staring match with him.

Evan, her right hand, offered his assistance. “I can work on the commercial buildings.”

“Thanks, Evan.” She tore her eyes away from her boss and looked at Adrian. “Didn’t you do a soil report recently for San Francisquito Canyon?”

“Been over a year now,” Adrian said.

“Can you find it for me? Might save some legwork.”

“No problem.”

Richard finally spoke. “Looks like you have it all under control, Hudson.”

His tone said he wasn’t happy. “It’s always good to get a jump start on the New Year.” Having accomplished what she wanted out of the meeting, Grace sat back and rested her hands in her lap.

Evan followed her back to her office and waited until the door was closed before saying what both of them were thinking. “What the hell is up with him?”

“Don’t tell me you’re just now clueing in.”

“Okay, he’s always a hard-ass but today was over the top.”

“Starting with he always addresses everyone before me. He constantly attempts to make me sound inadequate or inappropriate. He calls everyone in this office by their first name, and I’m Hudson.” She plopped down in the chair behind her desk.

Evan took the chair on the other side. “Call him out. Start talking gender discrimination.”

She rolled her head back. “I’m not playing that game. I don’t know if it’s gender or personal.” Which was a complete lie. She’d never done a damn thing to Richard that he would hold against her. “Besides, once you go down that road, finding a job after is near to impossible.”

Evan shrugged. “Why do you think I keep my personal life personal?”

Grace huffed. She’d known for years that Evan was gay. “You don’t have to pretend with me.”

“I know. It’s just easier to keep it separate.”