"Hi," she said, her voice light and polite. "I’m Selina."
She pulled out the chair across from him and sat down with a quiet, graceful ease.
Gray blinked at the name, surprised at how soft it sounded. It suited her somehow.
"I’m Gray," he replied, offering a faint smile. "It’s nice to meet you."
Beside them, Conrad looked like he was about to burst with joy. The man was absolutely beaming. He nudged Edward with his elbow like a kid watching his favorite movie unfold in real time.
Selina glanced sideways at her grandfather with a look that clearly said: Please behave.
Conrad only raised both brows in innocent defiance.
"So," Selina said, turning back to Gray. "You’re the one who saved him."
Gray rubbed the back of his neck, before shrugging his shoulder.
"I didn’t really do much. I just pulled him out of the way."
"From a truck."
"Well, yeah. But anyone would’ve done it."
Selina tilted her head slightly, studying him. "Not everyone would’ve. Most people these days would take out their phones and record instead."
Gray couldn’t argue with that. That’s what happened back then, after all.
Gray just shrugged his shoulders again, not wanting to discuss it any further.
That made her laugh. However, that threw Gray off more than it should’ve.
He looked at her again. She wasn’t what he expected at all. He thought that she would be spoiled because she was the only living keen of Conrad, but it seemed like that wasn’t the case. If anything, she looked like she found the whole situation funny. .
But she was still being kind and respectful.
"So... your grandfather does this often?" Gray asked, glancing sideways at Conrad, who was now pretending to read the menu like he wasn’t eavesdropping on every single word they were saying.
Selina chuckled softly before shaking his head.
"No. This is definitely a first."
Gray raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
"Oh, yeah. He’s been talking about ’some mysterious guy who saved his life’ for days. But I didn’t think he’d go this far."
Gray leaned back slightly in his chair, exhaling.
"I’m guessing you got dragged into this too."
"Kind of," Selina said with a wry smile. "He asked me to lunch. I just didn’t know it would be an ambush date."
Gray laughed under his breath. Somehow, he could feel his body slowly relaxing as they got into a conversation.
"Great. So we’re both victims."
"Yup," She grinned. "Looks like it."
As they were talking, a waiter arrived just then and placed a new menu in front of her. She thanked him politely, then flipped it open without missing a second.
"Do you like seafood?" she asked, glancing up.
Gray blinked.
"Yeah. I mean... yeah, I do."
"Good. Because I’m starving."
Gray looked at her, then at the menu, and then back at Conrad, who was doing his best to look completely innocent as he sipped from his glass.
Gray sighed again and leaned forward to look at the menu.
Well... he did say one lunch.
And honestly? It wasn’t looking all that bad.
Selina scanned the menu quickly like she already knew what she wanted. Meanwhile, Gray was still pretending to read when all he could actually focus on was the fact that he was sitting across from a beautiful woman—because an old man tricked him into it.
She didn’t seem awkward, though. In fact, she looked more comfortable than he felt.
"I recommend the grilled sea bass," Selina said without looking up at Gray. She was jus casually talking at him as if she was used to it. "It’s light, but filling. And it doesn’t leave you smelling like you fought the ocean barehanded."
Gray chuckled. "It seemed like you’ve been eating that a lot."
"Yup," She met his eyes briefly, then smiled again. "Trust me."
He wasn’t sure if it was the way she said it or just the natural confidence she carried, but he found himself closing the menu without a second thought.
"Then I’ll try it," he said. "We’ll see if your recommendation holds up."
"Good," she teased as she set her own menu down.
Their drinks arrived soon after. Conrad, of course, was already halfway through his second glass of wine. He was humming under his breath as if showing hos good his mood was for today,
Edward, on the other hand, sat still in dignified silence for the most of it. After a few minutes, he finally leaned over and whispered something into Conrad’s ear.
"Oh, right," Conrad said almost instantly, as he placed his wine glass down with a soft clink. "Gray, Selina, I have a meeting downtown in 10 minutes."
"Wait. You’re leaving?" Gray blinked. He squinted his eyes, almost suspicious of it.
"Mhm." Conrad nodded, already rising from his chair. "I’m an old man with a busy schedule, you know."
Even Selina raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"I thought you said you were free all day?"
Conrad waved his hand dismissively.
"My dear, you know your grandpa. He’s so focused on his business. And I remember we have a board meeting today. You know, I’m afraid they’d be lost without me."
Selina made a face at her grandpa’s words. She didn’t believe anything he was saying.
When Conrad realized it, he excused himself once again. He looked as if he was rushing to go out of the restaurant with Edward. Then, as he passed behind Gray, he leaned in with a whisper. "Take your time. She’s worth it."
"You’re unbelievable." Gray stared at him blankly.
"And you’re welcome."
With that, Conrad patted his shoulder twice, motioned for Edward to follow him, and disappeared through the patio door like an innocent man.
Silence followed after the old man’s exit.
Selina let out a soft sigh and rested her chin on one hand.
"Well," she said, glancing at Gray again. "Looks like we’ve been officially abandoned."
"More like your grandpa left us for a reason."
Selina laughed again, and Gray couldn’t help but chuckle along.
It wasn’t the lunch he planned, but it wasn’t bad either.