Chapter 511

Natalia's POV

When we finally reached the house later that day, Max bolted inside before I could even get the stroller up the front steps. I heard his footsteps pounding up the stairs, followed by the slam of a door.

I stood there in the foyer for a long moment, just staring at the empty staircase. Jane looked up at me uncertainly.

Grace suddenly appeared from around the corner, wiping her hands on a dish towel. “Jane!” she exclaimed, smiling. "You're just in time. I really need your help with something. Think you could do that?"

"What is it?" Jane asked, perking up.

Grace ushered her toward the den. "I need you to organize the books on the shelf."

"How? By letters? Or maybe colors?"

“However you like," Grace laughed. “Just make it look good, okay?"

"Okay!"

Grace returned a few moments later. I was still standing there, holding onto Hope's stroller. Grace's face softened, and she gently lifted the sleeping Hope, then settled her into the sling across her chest without waking her.

"Wanna come garden with me?" Grace whispered.

I nodded and followed her out the back door. The garden was exactly what I needed right now; the smell of warm soil, freshly dampened, filled the air. The sunshine was balmy against my skin and several of the planter boxes were already full of sprouts. It was quiet and peaceful.

Grace and I knelt down by one of the boxes. I helped her tend to the young tomato plants, carefully checking them for damage or disease and binding small stakes to some of the taller ones. We worked in silence for a while.

"I saw Isaac today," I finally said as she gave me a handful of dried beans to plant.

Grace looked at me in shock. "You mean the guy who Andrei—”

"Yeah. That one." I ripped a stray dandelion out of the planter with perhaps a bit more force than necessary.

"Is he..."

“He's fine. He was nice, actually. Bought me coffee. And he... He gave me his number in case I ever need to talk." I shook my head. "But Max is even more furious with me than before. He won't even look at me now."

Grace sighed. "He's just upset. He'll come around. He's always been kind of like that, after all. It's just the way he deals with his emotions."

"It's not healthy," I pointed out. "And what hurts the most is that I think he got it from me. Running from his problems. Į jammed my thumb into I the soil, making a hole, and dropped

a bean into it. I covered it with a small mound and moved onto the next space.

"He got it from both of you," Grace pointed out. "You run from your problems, Andrei retreats into himself. Neither of you are the best communicators. That rubs off on a kid."

I snorted. "Real comforting, Grace." I sighed. “But I always appreciate your honesty."

"I know it's what you need the most."

"Yeah. I do."

We worked in silence for a while longer. I finished planting the row of beans, then moved on to tending to the strawberry pots, which were already stuffed full of Funners Carefully moved some of the runners to fresh spaces, then took a

watering can and doused everything.

It was nice to just work with my hands for a while. And Grace's presence, firm but quiet, was always a comfort. We worked until the sun reached its zenith, and by

then, it was time to start thinking about dinner.

That evening, decided to make

dinner for everyone. I wanted to make Max's favorite, but I also wanted to thank Damon and Grace. for everything spent an hour in the kitchen preparing chicken parmesan with garlic bread and a salad. Grace offered to help, but I told her I wanted to do it myself. She understood, and left me to my devices.

When everything was ready, I set the table. Damon helped me carry the food out,

and Grace went upstairs to get the kids.