Chapter 2: Complaints Over Dinner

APOTHECARY SHOP

POV MARCELINE

Grey's piercing eyes were like a tidal wave that threatened to swallow my snarky smile. Even when he was angry, he was still very attractive. But I held his gaze and waited for him to go on about his "problems."

"What would you say if your parents forced you to get married before knowing someone?" he asked.

I shrugged. "Hard to say since my parents are only focused on me graduating college and taking over the shop. At this point, I think they would be concerned if I started dating."

Grey did another sweep of the shop before turning back to me, confusion on his face."They want you to run this dying shop? Why?"

I scowled."This shop has been here for almost 70 years. My parents have helped countless people with their ailments. It is an honor to be able to study plants and to be able to take over the shop."

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Anyways, back to what I was saying. I don't want to get married right now. I barely even want to date."

"Is there a specific reason, you know besides your pessimistic attitude?" I asked.

Grey slammed his hands on the table in front of me. I jumped back and moved a step away from the desk. As he looked at me, a few strands of hair came loose once again and spilled over his forehead.

"I don't need anyone in my life like that. I find the whole concept of marriage barbaric. Coupled with the fact that my parents are basically forcing me into one and you have my worst nightmare. Short of working for them I can't think of anything else that is worse," he ground out while staring into my eyes.

I felt the tension wash away as bubbles of laughter escape my throat."That's the worst thing you can think of?" I doubled over as laughter poured out of me, there was no way he was serious right now. Standing back up, I wiped a tear away and collected myself.

Grey was now standing with his hands in his pockets, his shirt had finally dried. His eyebrows were raised in what I knew to be a question at my outburst. I pushed my uncontrollable curls out of my face and cleared my throat.

"I'm sorry, but that sounds like a relatively small issue in my world," I teased.

Before Grey could respond I heard the doorbell ring again throughout the shop. I tensed for a moment, remembering that I had already locked the door. I peeked around Grey and saw my parents standing there, staring at Grey.

"Marcy, who is this?" my dad asked, looking like he was getting ready to come stand between us.

My mother softly hit my fathers arm, “How could you not recognize him? He’s been all over the TV. This is Grey Downing. He is the son of Martha and Bob Downing, the people that own Downing Corp.”

My father rolled his eyes, “Of course dear. But what is he doing all the way down here?”

I looked at Grey and back at my parents, giving them a reassuring smile, "He was just…looking for something for his mother."

Grey quirked an eyebrow at me. I gave him a look to just go with it. My parents were still standing in the entryway. Although my mother had a strange, dreamy smile on her face as she continued to stare directly at Grey.

Grey turned around and extended his hand. "Hello, it's nice to meet you. Your daughter was just going over the difference in some salves you sell. But I think I'm going to have to pass for now. I need to reconnect with my mother to make sure I'm getting the right one."

My mother smiled at him. "Of course. But since you are here, would you like to come to our home for some afternoon tea?”

Grey turned back to look at me, his face full of questions. My eyes went wide and as subtly as I could I tried to tell him to say no. He must have enjoyed the small amount of fear in my eyes, because he returned my gaze with a devilish smile.

Turning back to my parents, I could practically hear the smile on his face, "I would love to, thank you." I held in my sigh as my parents opened the door and ushered him out of the store.

***

MARCELINE'S HOME

POV MARCELINE

This was not happening. Why did my mother have to extend our home to everyone in town? This was not the first customer my parents had invited over for tea. Most of our regulars had been to our home many times for tea or meals.

Grey was sitting on our very old and worn-out couch, smiling like a cat in a mouse den. My mother had brought him a glass of water and insisted that we both just sit and chat while they finish making the tea and preparing a snack to go with.

As soon as my mother had gone through the door for the kitchen I pounced. "Why did you accept her invitation?"

Grey took a long drink of water, staring at me, before responding, "Why wouldn't I?"

"We are strangers to you!" I quietly hissed, "We could be murderers for all you know."

Grey chuckled, "I'm used to people offering me their company. I was raised to never say no."

I huffed and sat back into my father's comfy chair. Crossing my arms and legs I gave him another look. "You seem to have a pretty easy life, I don't know why you complain so much."

Grey set his glass down with an audible thunk. "I think I complain an adequate amount for my nightmare of a life."

I rolled my eyes, "Says the rich billionaire."

Grey threw up his arms, "Fine then, tell me about someone worse off at this very moment."

I sat up a bit straighter, "Well since you asked. Currently, my parent's shop is losing customers faster than we can count. This being their only source of money we are looking at financial ruin within the year. I'm about to graduate college, at least hopefully. The science department is losing most of its funding, so I might not be able to graduate with my degree in biology."

I continued before he could interject, "That would mean all the thousands of dollars my parents saved up to send me to college would be for nothing. The past 5 years would be for nothing. But even if I did graduate, there wouldn't be a shop for me to run so I'm out of a job. Leaving all of us stranded."

"Why don't your parents just get new jobs?" Grey asked, looking bewildered.

"Because they are almost 60 years old!" I quietly shouted. "Who would hire them? Their only skill is with plants and herbs, they don't have any others."

Grey crossed one leg over his knee, "Well why don't you just start studying something else?"

I pinched the bridge of my nose, "And where do you suppose I'm going to come up with that money?"

"You could get another job," he said flatly.

"How could someone so handsome be so stupid," I sighed. I watched as he moved around the couch, looking uncomfortable at my comment. "I can't take another job while also studying, running my parent's shop, and taking care of them at the same time," I finished.

"Okay," Grey said, holding up a hand to stop me from going on, "I get it. You are much worse off than me."

"I feel like that should have been obvious," I said dryly.

"You'll have to excuse my ignorance," Grey grumbled, "we don't exactly live in the same world."

"That is something we can agree on," I laughed.

A strained silence fell over us as we waited for my parents to finish their preparations. I watched him as he examined my family's home. He had swept his hair back up into perfection and he looked much too sophisticated to be sitting on my parents' ratty couch.

Grey cleared his throat and I realized he had caught me staring at him. I sat up straighter in my chair but didn't look away.

"What if I told you there was a way for both of us to get what we wanted," he said, right as my mother came through the door with the tea tray.