Rielle skirted the pile of shopping bags, intending to duck out of the kitchen, but he circled her wrist, stopping her. “Please stay.”
“I don’t want to intrude,” she whispered.
“You’re not. So stay.”
“All right.”
Gavin mixed Vi’s drink and poured a soda for Sierra. “All right, sweetheart, tell me about your day and show me what you got.”
“First, we went to the toy store. There were so many awesome fun toys it was hard to pick one. So I got Amelia a Gloworm because I remembered how much I loved mine.”
That caused a pang. Didn’t seem that long ago Sierra was dragging that dirty, well-loved Glo-worm everywhere.
“Then we went shopping for girl clothes at the western store. Omigod the stuff is so cute. You should see the tiny jean skirt with pink leggings and a button-up western shirt with lace edging. And she’s getting matching pink cowgirl boots with rhinestones!”
Sierra was talking enthusiastically about all the things they’d bought…for someone else?
“Which leads me to this.” Sierra flipped the lid off a shoebox, taking out a pair of pink cowgirl books with rhinestones on the toes and dark pink leather decorating the shaft. “Aren’t these the coolest boots you’ve ever seen? I wanted some so bad…” She squealed and leaned over to hug Vi. “Thank you so, so much, Grams, for buying them for me.”
“You’re welcome, dear.”
Gavin went motionless. Since when did Sierra call Vi…Grams?
Since Vi started buying things for her.
“I cannot wait to wear these to school tomorrow. Marin will be so jealous.”
“The bottoms have a slick finish so make sure you scuff them up first,” Vi warned.
“Will do.” Sierra hugged her boots. “It is insane how much I love these things already.”
Vi laughed.
Sierra tossed the box on the floor and snagged another bag. “Then we went to this boutique called Sweet Repeats that sells the funkiest things. Jewelry, clothes, scarves, jackets.” She grinned. “Check this out.” She held up a black suede jacket with fringe on the underside of each sleeve. “Look at the metal studs on the lapels and down the front. It’s bad-ass, but doesn’t make me look like a thug.”
“And you can wear black with anything,” Vi pointed out.
“I will wear it with everything, I promise. Thank you.”
Vi had bought her a f**king leather coat, too?
Sierra pulled out yet more things Vi had purchased for her.
A pair of jeans with rhinestones on the rear pockets and the front pockets.
A fur-lined vest.
A long-sleeved thermal shirt the same pink as the boots with Cruel Girl emblazoned across the front.
A bag overflowing with bangles and baubles.
“And last, but certainly not least…” Sierra unwrapped a cork bulletin board. She piled two stacks of fabric and two spools of satin ribbon on top of it. “A memory board for my room. We’re gonna fancy it up next week, huh, Grams?”
“Absolutely. As long as it doesn’t interfere with your school work.”
Sierra jammed all her new items back in the bags and hugged Vi. “Thank you so much for today. I had a lot of fun.”
Vi brushed the hair back from Sierra’s face. “I did too. We’ll do it again soon.”
“I hope so. Gotta put my stuff away!” Sierra announced and raced from the room.
Gavin swallowed a gulp of his drink. “Well, that won’t happen again.”
“What?”
“You taking Sierra out and buying her everything she wants.”
“Why is this a problem for you? Because I didn’t ask your permission to buy my granddaughter a few things?” Vi held up a finger to stop his protest. “Yes, Sierra is my granddaughter. You may still have a problem with our family ties, but she doesn’t. Don’t expect her to have your issues with the situation, Gavin.”
“So is it a coincidence, that she started calling you Grams after you bought all that shit for her?” he demanded.
“Sierra has been calling me Grams for months. Never in front of you, because she’s been afraid of how you’d react. Now I see that her fear was justified.”
Why hadn’t Sierra come to him with this name change business? “And because she’s accepting of the family tie, that gives you the right to try and buy her love or affection or attention or whatever it is you want from her?”
Vi skewered him with a hard look. “That gives me the right to spend my own damn money however I see fit. I bought gifts for my other granddaughter, so it’s only fair I do the same for Sierra. And don’t forget, you wouldn’t let us buy her anything for her sixteenth birthday. Then today she sees me buying things for Amelia’s birthday? How do you think that made her feel?” She jabbed her finger at him. “Exactly like you do. Like you aren’t really part of the family. Like some family members matter more to me than others.”
“Fuck.”
“Why did you move here, Gavin, if you didn’t want your daughter to be part of our family? You expect her to stand at arm’s length like you do? She is not you. You are her father, but you shouldn’t have the only say in whether we can build a relationship. Doesn’t what she wants matter?”
“Oh, trust me; she’ll be your BFF if you keep buying her things every time you’re together.”
“That’s the only reason Sierra could possibly want to spend time with me? That’s bullshit. You’re making horrible assumptions about her. And about me. That girl is not shallow, and yet I suspect sometimes you treat her like her mother. So you shouldn’t be surprised when she acts exactly how you treat her.”
Gavin’s jaw tightened.
“I’m not trying to buy her love. I’m not fostering a relationship with Sierra to get to you either, because if I thought I could buy your love? Son, I would’ve gladly paid the price the day you came looking for us. As far as today? I won’t apologize. I won’t let your paranoia and distrust ruin the wonderful afternoon that I got to spend with my granddaughter.”
They stared at each other without speaking.
Gavin knew Vi had several legitimate points, but he was still pissy.
“I can’t deal with this right now.”
It wasn’t until he went looking for Rielle that he realized she’d witnessed the whole scene…and he’d left her in the kitchen.