by Megan Ryder
“I may have wanted to see more of the house, you know.”
“We don’t have time.” He replied shortly. He hustled her into the pickup and drove out of the driveway, tires spinning, shooting pieces of loose gravel behind them.
*
Grady steered the car towards the gated community where they were staying for the week. What the hell was going on with Brigid? She was acting jealous, of all things, as if he had been cheating on her, as if she wasn’t the one to put the kibosh on their whatever it was they had. Now, she was acting as if she had a claim on him when he knew damn well she didn’t want him.
She huffed in the seat next to him, staring out the window. He slammed on the brakes and cranked the wheel to a little side spot in the road, something of a scenic overlook spot. He shifted into park and turned off the ignition. Finally, he turned, resting his right arm on the seat back and fixed a hard stare on her.
“Okay, what the hell has gotten into you, Brigid?”
“Me?”
She looked innocent, to anyone who didn’t know her. He could swear he saw a gleam of guilt in her eye, as if she knew exactly what he was asking about. She ducked her head as he continued to stare, and looked out the front window.
“I had forgotten how beautiful the island is.”
“Yeah, gorgeous. You never answered my question, Brigid. I may not be as smart as you lawyers, but I know when I’m being snowed.”
She whipped her head around. “I never said you were stupid.”
“You never thought I was as smart as you guys either but here we are. So, what was going on back there? With Janine?”
“I don’t know. It all just came out.”
“You mean to tell me that a lawyer and a smart woman had a brain fart?”
She glared at him. “Not so elegant but now that you bring it up. How long have you been seeing Janine?”
Her words took him by surprise. He had been trying to get to get to the bottom of her attitude and, while he’d always known she was blunt, he didn’t quite expect her to take him head on. A slow grin crossed his face. Jealous. Maybe she wasn’t quite unaffected by him as she professed to be. Interesting.
“Seeing her? We’ve been working on the cottage for about six months or so. We had a few meetings before that, planning the work, etcetera.”
She snorted. “Are you being deliberately obtuse? You know that’s not what I meant.”
“Yes, I know. But you’re ridiculous. We were seeing each other. I wouldn’t cheat on you, although that didn’t seem to bother you with Mike.” He spat the last word, his own green-eyed monster rearing its ugly head.
“Mike and I were college study buddies and it was just plus ones for business functions. Nothing personal. You and Janine seemed awfully chummy.”
He laughed. “I’m like that with the other guys on my crew. I can assure you, I never dated one of them. I’ve never dated or slept with Janine. Yes, we’ve shared food but that was always in terms of the job, nothing more.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Maybe you are stupid if you couldn’t see that she clearly wants more with you.”
Now it was his turn to snort. “Please. My stay on the island is temporary. She lives here, working with her father on fall house maintenance and construction. My home is in Houston. Nothing can ever happen between us. She knows that.”
“Are you sure? She seemed to be quite interested in you.”
He grinned at the note of jealousy in her voice. She wasn’t quite as uninterested in him as she had said. He might have rushed her a bit Friday night, with his declaration, but it might have been the best thing he could have done. He had forced the issue of them and she had no choice but to react. As usual, she backed quickly away from anything personal but now she was rethinking her decision. Leaving the field wide open for him.
Time to up his game. He wasn’t out yet. Maybe he had given up too soon.
“Are you jealous?”
“Jealous? Me?” She barked a laugh. “Don’t be ridiculous. I just don’t think she’s right for you.”
He furrowed his brow. “Really? I don’t see how that’s possible. She’s more like me than anyone I’ve dated in a long time.”
“You’ve only dated me in the past four years.”
He grinned, knowing he was gloating but he couldn’t resist. “So, you admit that what we were doing was dating.”
“Yeah, I guess,” she grumbled. “But don’t let it go to your head. We still won’t work out. We’re too different.”
He couldn’t stop from smiling. He faced front and started up the truck, and shifted into drive. “We should get going. Caroline is going be wondering where we are.”
Before he could pull out, she laid a hand on his cheek, turning his head to face her. “Grady, we’re too different. It will never work. You’ll hate my working all the time, resenting me and fighting with me. And I’ll worry every day that you’ll walk out on me. Grady, neither one of us deserve that.”
He gripped her hand in one of his own, holding it against his cheek for a long moment as he looked into her eyes. She finally looked away, and tugged at her hand, but he wouldn’t release it until she raised her eyes again. “I disagree, Brigid. You just need to give us a chance. But you’re too afraid. I can be patient.”
This time, when she yanked her hand away, he let it go. After a moment, he pulled out and headed to Caroline’s.
Brigid didn’t know it yet but she was still interested. He just needed time and patience. And this week was the perfect time to convince Brigid he could be the right guy for her. Although she brought up one issue that niggled at him. Could he trust her not to walk out on him, that he would be enough for her? But he was convinced they could figure everything out, if only she would give them a chance.
He’d already been waiting four years. What were a few more days?
Chapter Six
They pulled up to the Masters’ house and Brigid jumped out as if she had been scalded. She slammed the truck door and grabbed her things out of the back, swinging around almost violently. Her grip on her laptop bag slipped and it flew out of her hands, headed straight for the gravel driveway. Her stomach turned and she lunged for it but she wasn’t going to make it. Out of nowhere, Grady snagged the bag just before it hit the ground.
“Saved you again.” He offered the bag to her, a solemn expression on his face.
“If that has a laptop in it, maybe you should have let it drop.” Caroline spoke from the steps, a disapproving tone in her voice. “Brigid, we discussed this.”
Brigid grimaced then turned to face her friend and the bride, Caroline, feeling like a little kid called to the principal’s office. “Caroline, I…”
Caroline looked at the bag. “You’re not bringing work to my wedding, are you?” When Brigid tried to speak, Caroline arched an eyebrow. “That’s not an excuse you’re handing me, is it?”
Brigid grinned. “You definitely are your father’s daughter. Just as tough as he is.”
“Don’t let her intimidate you, Brigid.” Matthew broke in smoothly, stepped out onto the step next to Caroline. “She understands the score, probably better than anyone.”
Caroline frowned. “This is my wedding week. Is it wrong of me to ask for my bridesmaids and my groom to be focused on that and not work? We have a lifetime for work. Lord knows, it’s all I hear at home.”
Matthew put his arm around her. “Well, you have my undivided attention for the week, and the honeymoon.”
She looked up at him. “Promise?”
“Definitely. But lay off Brigid. You remember how difficult this time was for me when I was up for that promotion? She has it tougher with Peterman than I ever did.” He pulled her close and kissed her head.
Caroline pursed her lips. “Well, I just asked for one week. You’d think Dad could order her to take a break, tell Peterman to lay off. But, whatever, as long as she participates in everything. And I mean everything.”
Brigid climbed the three ste
ps and kissed Caroline on the cheek. “Don’t worry. I’ll get done as much as I can before everyone gets here and work around the schedule. Promise. Your wedding will be perfect.”
Caroline sniffed but hugged her back. “Grady, can you bring Brigid’s things upstairs? Matthew will show you where.”
Caroline steered Brigid inside and towards the kitchen, away from her father’s study, where Brigid had planned on parking herself for the afternoon, as promised. Instead, she sat at the kitchen table and went over schedules and the plan for the week, while drinking lemonade. Meanwhile, her foot danced nervously under the table, her tension over Peterman’s edits weighing on her mind, dreadful thoughts chasing each other around in a circle like a dog chasing its tail.
Finally, Caroline leveled a steady look at her. “Brigid, can you really not take one week off from the job? For me?”
Brigid’s hands twisted in her lap and she stared down at them. “You know how it is, Caro. You remember what Matthew had to do for the job. He had a lot of pressure on him, dating the boss’s daughter. I have pressure too, you know. I’m a woman and friends with the boss’s daughter. I have to prove myself, maybe more than the other associates.”
“So, you’re saying it’s my fault? That you both work yourselves to death because of your friendship with me?”
“Of course not. We’d have to do the same anywhere we went. But that’s the job.”
“You don’t have to tell me. Not only was my childhood wrapped up in my father’s absenteeism, but then my fiancé, and now one of my best friends. I really hate the law.” The fierceness in her voice caught Brigid off guard and her head whipped up.
“I never knew you felt that way.”
“Would it have changed anything for you? I thought not. It wouldn’t change Matthew either. And I understand that, but it gets lonely.” Underneath the fierce tone was a hurt.
Impulsively, Brigid leaned forward and hugged her friend. “I’m sorry I’ve neglected you. I guess I haven’t been a good bridesmaid.”
“None of you have, but who’s judging. With Anna working in California, and Delaney in her own world, I’m just glad you all are coming for this week. So, I really want us to regain our closeness. I miss all of you. So much.” Caroline gripped Brigid’s hand. “I need you to be involved, not off buried in your books like so many summers.”
“Like you ever let me get away with that.”
“Damn right. And I won’t this weekend either.” Caroline stood up. “Let’s get you settled, okay?”
*
Brigid and Caroline headed up the stairs and to the right, towards the master bedroom. Just past the landing, Caroline opened a door.
“Your old room, a little changed of course.”
Brigid laughed. “I remember when your mom redid the place. The downstairs looks awesome.”
“Well, I hope you like this update. Blues and yellows, vintage cottage style.” Caroline threw open the door and gestured for Brigid to head inside. “I’ll let you unpack and rest a bit. I’ll be downstairs.”
The bright yellow walls were accented with white trim. The queen-sized bed was adorned with a blue and white toile comforter and looked so amazingly comfortable. Brigid couldn’t remember the last time she had slept through the night. Maybe it was when she was last in undergrad, just after senior year.
It had been a quiet fall. Anna was off practicing in town theater, close to getting her big break in Hollywood. Delaney was back in Houston, dealing with the legal fallout from her father’s arrest. Only Caroline and Brigid spent time on the island, Matthew working at the firm between law school semesters. It was her last fall without worries, the time she used to rest up for the ordeal ahead and to grow closer to Caroline. While they had always been friends, Caroline and Delaney had had a special friendship, one that had developed over a lifetime. Brigid had almost not gone to the island that fall, feeling awkward and uncomfortable with it not being a group. But Caroline needed her and she couldn’t let her down.
Coincidentally, that fall had been when she first met Grady. Matthew would come over on weekends and he had brought his brother, probably to make Brigid feel less like a third wheel and more like a part of the group. She had also found out later that Matthew was trying to reconnect with his brother, after almost a decade apart, thanks to their parents’ divorce. Just hearing about that divorce and custody agreement made her glad she had no interest in family law.
She and Grady hadn’t hit it off at first. He was too laid-back, too easygoing. He was content with not finishing college and going into his father’s contracting business. She tried to convince him of the benefits of a business degree, how he could grow his business so much more if he had business knowledge. He said he didn’t need a fancy college degree to know how to help his customers. His trade school background was enough. She had given up convincing him. If he wanted to waste his life and not reach his full potential, that wasn’t for her to decide.
Brigid ran her hand over the light and fluffy comforter. She sat on the edge and lay back, falling into the five pillows at the head of the bed, her troubles, and a persistent headache, fading away. She let out her breath and her muscles unwound and loosened. God, she needed this vacation, more than she had ever thought.
Her gaze fell on her suitcases and the laptop bag and right like that, her tension was back. She needed to get up and hang the dress in the closet before it needed pressing again. But her body refused to move, loving the soft comforter that felt like she was sleeping on clouds. Her eyes suddenly flew open.
Why was there a duffel bag with her suitcases? She only owned one for the gym, another place she hadn’t been in months, thanks to her crazy work schedule.
The doors to the balcony opened and Grady walked in the room. “Hey, Brigid.”
She sat poker straight. “What are you doing in my room?”
“Our room.” He gestured to the luggage. “Apparently, you weren’t kidding about Caroline and her matchmaking ways.”
She jumped to her feet. “There’s no way Caroline would do this. Not even to Delaney and Ethan, and they used to be engaged. This is crazy. I need to talk to her.”
She bolted out the door and, from the open landing, she leaned over the railing. “Caroline!”
Caroline emerged from the kitchen and looked up to the stairs. “What’s wrong Brigid?”
“My room. You put Grady in there too.”
Caroline looked confused. “But I thought you two were a couple. And it solved our room problem.”
Matthew stepped out next to her. “What’s going on?”
Brigid sighed. “I told you. We’re not a couple. Grady was just helping me out Friday night.”
“Really?” Caroline arched her brow. “Are you sure about that?”
“Of course. Now, one of us needs to move.”
Caroline was already shaking her head. “There’s no room. The other four rooms are for Delaney, Ethan, Anna, and Wyatt. Matthew is in my room. I’m staying in the master suite until Friday when my parents come.”
“What engaged couple doesn’t stay together before their wedding? You’ve been living together for years.”
Mathew grimaced. “Caroline thought this would be a nice idea, for us to stay apart for the month up to the wedding. It would make the honeymoon and wedding more special. So, she moved back home for the month.”
“Fine. I’ll sleep in the office. There’s a pullout there and I’ll probably spend more time there anyway.”
“What kind of a guy would I be if I let a woman sleep on the couch. I’ll take the couch.”
Caroline shook her head. “Mom redid that room and the couch is gone. She said dad would use it to work late and sleep in there instead so she took away his option.”
Brigid made a sound of frustration. “There has to be another option.”
Grady turned her around and spoke so only she could hear. “We could just grow up and deal with it. I could crash on the floor or at the cottage.”
“Caroline will kill you if you’re not here.” She sighed. “Okay, we’ve slept together before. We can do it again.”
“We’re all set, Caroline.” Grady called down, then looked at Brigid. “Just don’t fall in love with me.”
“As if.”
Chapter Seven
Brigid changed into shorts and a t-shirt and escaped the bedroom and buried herself in Mr. Masters’ study but, somehow, she couldn’t seem to concentrate. Maybe it was lack of sleep, or knowing Grady and his hard body was going to be sleeping next to her for a whole week. She and Grady might not have been a good match in real life but between the sheets, they were combustible.
She had never found sex to be anything great. It was nice but not enough to change her direction or plans. But that first night with Grady, they had connected unexpectedly, and she finally knew what Anna had meant when she said her eyes rolled back in her head. It had been easy to fall into a pattern with Grady. They were both pretty busy, too busy to date but sex had become their release from the stress of their everyday lives. They had tried to keep the relationship, or whatever they wanted to call it, a secret but Caroline and Matthew had suspected. No one pushed them to be overt in their dating and they had fallen into a comfortable foursome, a way for the girls to get together and the brothers to catch up on their lives.
She had come to rely on Grady being there until Friday night when things had gotten more serious than she had wanted and she did what she always did when things deviated from the plan. She backed away, or ran away depending on one’s perspective. Instead of cutting him out of her life, she had to face him, and sleep with him, all week. Not what she had planned. How could he have wanted more from what they had? What guy wasn’t happy with a no-strings, purely sexual relationship? It worked for them.
Well, it worked until it didn’t.
A quick knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. The door opened and Grady stepped in the room. He frowned as he took in her sitting at the desk, her laptop booted up and papers stacked around her.
