by Elaine Fox
Lily knew she was being toyed with, and knew she was handling it badly. She had to relax. She had to sober up.
She paused a long moment. “You know, Brady, I would really appreciate it if you would get me some water,” she said finally, after taking a deep breath. She’d have gotten it herself, but she wasn’t at all sure that if she got up out of this chair she wouldn’t topple off her heels and into the grass.
Brady placed his beer bottle on the ground and stood up, a smile on his face. “With plea sure, honey.”
Lily’s eyes shot to his, and he laughed.
A moment later he was back with a bottle of water and a cup of coffee.
“I don’t need any coffee,” she said. She wasn’t that drunk. Just a little tipsy.
“It’s not for you,” he said, taking a sip. “So tell me, Lily, why are you with Gerald? Or rather, if you’re here with Gerald, why aren’t you with Gerald? Where is he, anyway?” He looked around the yard, eyes scanning the crowd.
She took a generous swig of the water. “I don’t believe a couple has to be joined at the hip at a party.”
“You two don’t seem to be joined at all,” he said.
She frowned at him. “We were just in there moments ago, talking about falafel.” She gestured toward the house.
“Falafel.”
“That’s right. It’s made from chickpeas.”
He made a face.
“It’s very good for you,” she said piously.
“Maybe. But it doesn’t sound like good conversation. I hope he did better with all the other women he was talking to.”
Lily nearly choked on her gulp of water. “What are you trying to say, Brady? Are you attempting to make insinuations about my boyfriend? Because if you are, you can give that up right now. Gerald may converse easily with others, but he would never cheat on me. Of that, I’m sure.” She sighed heavily, thinking it might be a little too true.
Brady took another slow sip of his coffee. “I’m just wondering, and maybe you can help me out here, why are you with that guy, Lily? He doesn’t even seem like your type. In fact, you seem like you’re having to do some work to be his type.” He scanned her dress with his eyes. “What kind of guy wears a suit to a cookout, for instance? And you look like you’re going to a wedding.”
Lily looked down at her dress, dismayed at his perception.
“Living next door to you,” Brady continued, “I happen to know that you usually dress real well, like, in an appropriate way for a situation. But today you look like a Stepford wife. Is it just because Daddy likes him? Because I met your dad, and sure, he’s a tough nut. But he didn’t seem like the type of guy who’d want his daughter to marry someone who didn’t make her happy.”
Lily was sitting up so straight and tense the cords on the front of her neck began to hurt. “Gerald does make me happy. And who are you to tell me about my father?”
“I’m just curious about you, Lily Tyler. You seem like a together sort of woman, and you’re certainly feisty enough to handle anything thrown your way. Yet you’re driving your daddy’s old car, you’re living in your daddy’s house, and you’re doing everything you can to sell yourself to a partner in your daddy’s firm. Tell me, Lily, is there anything about you that isn’t a product of what Daddy wants?”
Lily glared at him, mouth agape. “That’s—not true.”
“What’s not true? That you’re living like someone who has no respect for herself?”
Lily’s head began to spin, and she suddenly felt as if she might throw up.
“Darling?” Gerald’s voice floated out of the crowd beyond Brady.
Lily looked up into Brady’s unreadable eyes, heart pounding hard, her face flushed.
Brady leaned in close just before Gerald arrived and his words, low and intense, sent a shiver up her spine. “Better quit talking about that kiss.”
Thirteen
“Megan has asked us all to come outside for a moment,” Gerald said, oblivious to the electricity arcing between Brady and Lily. “I believe she has an announcement to make. What do you suppose it’s about?”
“I’m getting another beer,” Brady said. “Gerald, good to see you.”
He slapped Gerald once on the back and strode off, leaving Lily standing in the wake of his unreasonable irritation.
Why had he gone after her like that? She didn’t deserve all he’d said. It was just that he’d seen her in that fancy blue dress, with her fancy-suited man, and he’d thought, Who is that woman? Not the one who’d answered her door in a bathrobe and given in to passion that was a bolt from the blue for both of them, that was for sure.
He was scowling when he reached the patio and headed straight for the bar, where he ran into Megan.
“Sam Adams,” he told one of the bartenders, then turned to Megan, trying like hell to school the expression on his face into something resembling nonchalance. “So, an announcement, huh? Belle expecting a little sister or brother?”
Megan regarded him silently a minute, a curious smile on her lips. “I know this is none of my business,” she said finally, “but were you and Lily just fighting?”
“Fighting?” he repeated, disingenuous as hell.
“Because it looked like you were fighting,” Megan went on. “Which is curious since in my experience people who are relatively new to each other don’t get into subjects that put a look on someone’s face like the one that was just on yours.”
“We might have had a little disagreement.” He wrapped a cocktail napkin around the wet beer, put his spare hand in his pocket, and made himself look Megan directly in the eye. “The look on my face is probably due more to the fact that I’m not used to drinking much, but Sutter said we won’t be flying until at least Wednesday.” He gave her what was probably an unconvincing grin. “So cheers.”
“Your champagnes,” the other bartender said, holding out two glasses for Megan.
Brady looked from the glasses to Megan. “Two fisted. I guess the announcement isn’t about a sibling for Belle then, huh?” He laughed, the sound coming out less than spontaneously.
“Brady, can I ask you something quite bluntly?” Megan asked.
“That question there’s rather blunt all by itself,” he said, looking around the yard in an effort to avoid her frank gaze.
“It’s not really my business except that I don’t want to lead anyone on in any specific direction if those directions are not open for, uh…traffic?” She laughed at herself. “Jeez, that was convoluted. Let me put it plainly. If you’re not interested in Penelope, because, say, you’re interested in Lily, it would be better for everyone concerned if I said something to defuse the current plan.”
Brady’s hand gripped his beer bottle hard. “I like Penelope,” he said, noncommittally. “But the thing is, and I should have told you this before, I’m not dating right now. Anybody. I’m taking a break from that whole…effort.”
“Why’s that?”
He looked at her and grinned, for real this time. “You are the most direct person I’ve ever met.”
She laughed. “I get that a lot. I’m also per sis tent. And not easily distracted. So—why are you taking a break from dating? Bad breakup? Broken heart? Poor dating choices?”
Brady opened his mouth to say all of the above, but was saved by Sutter’s appearance by Megan’s side.
“We’ve got the whole lot assembled,” he said. “Shall we wow them with our news?” He turned his smile from Megan to Brady.
Megan handed Sutter one of the glasses of champagne. “I’m sorry. I just got caught up here.” She turned away with Sutter but shot Brady a parting glance. “We’re not finished!” she said to him, and there was something about her smile that made her relentless prying completely charming.
Sutter and Megan moved to the steps that led down to the lawn and stood quietly. Someone began tapping a piece of silverware against a glass, quieting the crowd. Before long, everyone had silenced, and the two stood looking out over the assemblag
e of most of their friends and family.
“We have an announcement to make,” Megan said, her clear voice sailing high in the summery air.
She looked happy, Brady thought, as did Sutter. They stood close but not touching, as if so confident of the other’s presence that they needed only proximity to be secure.
Megan turned to Sutter, and said, “You go ahead. I’m suddenly too nervous.”
Sutter laughed and raised his glass. “I’ll make it short and sweet. Please join me in raising a glass to my lovely fiancée, Megan Rose, who has taken pity on this poor soul before you and agreed to marry me.”
The two beamed across the crowd as voices rose in delighted congratulations, and glasses tinked together repeatedly.
Sutter and Megan looked at each other and smiled, their expressions speaking volumes about their happiness. Sutter bent down and kissed his fiancée.
Brady’s eyes strayed from the happy couple across the lawn to where Lily stood by the chaise longue, Gerald beside her lifting his glass. Gerald’s eyes were still on the happy couple, but Brady’s were on Lily. She had a hand to her forehead and was looking at the ground. He felt a moment’s unease and took a step forward. He was way too far to do anything, however, when a second later she slowly crumpled to the grass beside Gerald, landing in a pile of fancy blue dress.
Brady dropped his beer, vaguely heard it smash on the flagstone patio, and raced across the yard, heedless of the people who had no idea what was going on and got in his way.
Heart pounding in sudden fear, he wasn’t sure what he’d do once he got there. He knew only that he had to get to her, pick her up, make her all right.
Gerald was just figuring out that the brush against his leg was not the dog but his girlfriend hitting the turf when Brady skidded to her side, immediately on his knees. Gerald turned and gave a startled cry.
“Lily! Good God, what’s happened?” Gerald said, lowering himself to Lily’s other side.
Brady lifted her shoulders and laid her back against one of his arms, straightening her dress with his other hand. He gently pushed the hair from her face.
“Lily,” he said, staring into her face. He lightly tapped her cheek with his palm. “Come on, now. Come back to us. Lily?”
Her eyelids flickered, and Brady took a huge breath, the first one he’d taken since he’d vaulted off the patio toward her.
Then she inhaled sharply and opened her eyes wide, jerking her limbs when she realized she was on the ground.
“Don’t move for a second,” Brady said, holding her tightly, keeping her from rising. He stroked the hair at her temple. “Just lie still for a minute. You’re all right.”
“What? Brady? What happened?” Her voice was soft, and she looked at him almost tenderly. She tried to sit up again, then focused on Brady’s face and leaned back into his arms. “What’s going on?” She clutched his shirtfront with one hand.
“Darling, you fainted,” Gerald said, prying her hand from Brady’s shirt and taking it in his, while bestowing a withering look on Brady. “Come here, sweetheart.”
Gerald reached in and pulled Lily from Brady’s arms, moving her toward him. But she foiled them both by extricating her hand from Gerald’s and pushing herself to a sitting position on her own.
“Oh my God,” she said, sinking her face momentarily into her hands. Then she lifted her head, pushed the hair from her face, and looked up into the crowd around them. “This is so embarrassing.”
“Lily!” Megan pushed through the crowd; behind her were Sutter, Georgia, and Penelope. “Is somebody calling nine-one-one?”
Five people with cell phones raised them up. “On it!”
“I am!”
“Got it!”
“No!” Lily said. “Please don’t. I’m fine. I just—I don’t know what happened.”
“Stand back,” Sutter said to the people surrounding them. “Please, we mustn’t crowd her. Lily, it’s best if you’re seen by a medic. I know we’d all feel better.”
“Yes, Lily, please let them come,” Penelope said.
Lily put a hand to her forehead again. “No, I’m really okay. It’s just that I’m not used to this heat. And I think I had a bit too much wine.”
Georgia pushed past the others to kneel by her side, her shoulders infringing on Gerald’s space, to his obvious annoyance. “Are you tellin’ us you passed out from wine?” she burst. “That’s ridiculous. I’ve never seen you drink that much in your life.”
Lily gave a weak laugh. “No. I’m not drunk. But…I don’t think I ate enough. Please!” She held out a hand to the cell-phone crew. “Please tell them not to come. I don’t need the paramedics. I’ll go to the doctor Monday, I promise.”
She turned pleading eyes from Megan to Sutter. “Tell them to stop. I’m fine. Really. I don’t want to ruin your big day.”
Brady saw tears gather in her eyes and passed her a napkin he’d folded in his pocket from one of his beers.
She took it with a grateful smile.
“I think she’s all right,” he said. “I can look in on her later tonight, too. Make sure she’s still feeling okay. And I’m right next door if she needs anything.” He looked at her again, his heart still laboring to return to a normal rhythm. “Anything at all.”
“Excuse me, but I can do that,” Gerald said tersely.
Brady turned cool eyes upon him. “Of course you can. And I’m sure you’ll be right on the case until you turn into a pumpkin at ten o’clock. I can handle things after that. And I can get her to the doctor on Monday.”
“Congratulations!” Lily burst loudly above their two voices. She gave an embarrassed smile to Sutter and Megan. “This is all very unnecessary and we’re distracting everyone from the real point here.” She gave both Brady and Gerald a pleading look. “Sutter and Megan are getting married! Let’s celebrate!”
She started to push herself to her feet. Brady helped her up with one arm, Gerald grabbed the other.
Megan laughed and reached out for one of her hands. “Thank you. And thank you, too, for breaking up that awkward moment after the announcement. We weren’t sure how to get off the stage.”
Lily laughed but gave a pained look. “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be silly,” Sutter said. “Megan was serious. We hadn’t thought beyond the announcement. You were the perfect denouement.”
Nobody else but Sutter with his impeccable British accent could have uttered that word without sounding gay, Brady thought.
“I think you’re looking a little better,” Penelope said, reaching one hand toward her forehead.
“Yes, your color’s back,” Georgia concurred, elbowing Gerald out of the way and taking Lily’s arm. “Why don’t we go into the house a minute and get you straightened up?”
“Good idea,” Penelope said.
Brady backed up a step as Penelope slid into his place. He let go of Lily’s arm reluctantly.
He could not keep his eyes from Lily as she moved away from him unsteadily. She had fallen with the grace of a ballerina, like a wounded bird, toppling lightly from a tree branch. It had scared him like nothing had ever scared him before.
And…he wasn’t sure if it was his imagination or not, but he could swear Lily squeezed his hand before letting it go.
“Gerald, it’s all right,” Lily said, one hand flat on his chest where they stood at her front door. “I’m fine. I think I just need to get in bed and go right to sleep.”
“But I’m worried about you,” he said, his dark velvet eyes the very picture of concern. “Perhaps I should put off my trip Monday. I’m sure they could wait an extra day for me. That way I could stay here tonight and tomorrow and make sure you’re all right, then pack on Monday and leave Tuesday.”
Lily’s brows rose in surprise. “You’d do—?”
“Oh no, wait.” He smacked a hand to his forehead. “Meeting with Keller Monday night. Can’t cancel it, he’ll think I’m not committed. He’s like that, you know. I’ll be dog tire
d, too, from that long trip, but with the time change in their favor they expect you to hit the ground running.” He shook his head. “But I can stay tonight.”
Lily looked at him in wonder.
“Gerald,” she said firmly, this time with a slight push on his chest. He backed up a step over the threshold. “It’s all right. You go. There’s no reason to rearrange your schedule. Don’t worry about me. Really. We’ll talk once you get there, and I can tell you all about how the doctor said I was perfectly fine.”
“Perfectly perfect, is what he’ll say,” Gerald replied, taking her upper arms in his hands and running them up and down. He gave her a reassuring smile. “Did I tell you how beautiful you looked today? Even sprawled out on the ground?”
She laughed. “Oh yes, nobody ever looked better passed out on the lawn.”
He caressed her arms a few more times, looking at her tenderly. “All right. I’ll let you get to sleep, now. But darling, are you sure I should leave? I could stay until morning, just to be sure you’re all right, that you don’t need anything. I’ll sleep on the couch!”
Lily made herself smile. He meant so well, but she wanted him gone. And soon.
“I am fine. I just need some sleep.” She rose up on tiptoe and gave him a quick peck on the mouth, telling herself it was appropriate and not just because she wanted to avoid the sucking chasm of a kiss like the other night’s. “Go home, get your packing done tomorrow. We can talk in the morning if you want to.”
He stepped forward and took her in his arms, pulling her close. Lily leaned into him. Despite everything else, he did give a nice hug. She laid her cheek on his lapel and inhaled his scent. A Dior scent, he’d once told her. Really for women, but he liked it better than the men’s colognes. She smiled into his summerweight wool. No wonder Doug liked him. He smelled like a girl.
He started to pull away, dipping his head to come in for a kiss.
Lily stepped back abruptly. “You go on, now, Gerald. Enjoy Hawaii while you’re there, and we’ll discuss everything when you get back. All right? Let’s not worry about anything else right now. You’ve got to concentrate on your work, and I’ve decided to teach summer school. It’s best that we get on with it. Right now.” She smiled to temper her words.
