Chapter 1276: Happy Birthday, Grace
[PRESENT TIME]
Grace chuckled as she hugged herself in the tub, thinking about how she had just stolen an hour of Haines’ time. Who would have thought her regular romantic advances would distract him so much that he wouldn’t even notice they had just driven around the city?
"No wonder Penny is always energetic," she whispered, tilting her head back. "That was fun."
The corner of her mouth lifted into a soft smile. "And I... survived cancer," she murmured, laughing again before reaching for the glass of wine she had been enjoying as a final indulgence for the night.
"Happy Birthday to me," she whispered, her eyes softening. "Cheers to that."
Hopefully, this year wouldn’t be as hard as the last.
******
Meanwhile...
Max parked outside a convenience store, his fingers tapping impatiently against his phone as he dialed number after number.
"Why isn’t she answering? That crazy woman!" he gritted out, glaring at his phone when Lily didn’t pick up. When he tried again, it went straight to voicemail. She had turned it off. "That damn—"
He tensed when Ginnie stirred beside him, letting out a faint hum in her sleep.
"Shit," he muttered under his breath, shaking his head. Taking a deep breath to clear his thoughts, he refocused on his phone and tried calling Hugo instead. But Hugo’s phone didn’t even ring. It was dead.