His lips remained pressed closed, his eyes narrowed the tiniest bit.
“The thing is, if we remain together—”
“You say that like it’s not likely.” His words were harsh.
“Then we need to work as a team. People in a relationship should be on the same team, shouldn’t they?”
His head angled just slightly to the side. “How is me giving you a gift showing that we’re not on the same team?”
She shouldn’t have started down this road. What did she know about sports? She’d never played a team sport in her life. But she knew how hard it was for people who weren’t aiming toward the same goals to work together. She’d seen that tension at her first dancing job in Vegas. The showgirls had performed the same numbers while working toward their own selfish ambitions. Many had been cutthroat in their attempts to claw or sleep their way to the top. The only women who weren’t that way had given up their dreams. They’d quit having any ambition at all. Together, the dancers had looked good on stage, but behind the scenes, the tension and drama had been cancerous. She’d hated it.
A relationship wasn’t the same as a dance troupe, she knew. Or a sports team. But the analogy still worked.
“On a basketball team,” she said, “everybody wants to win the game. Sometimes, that means one player passes the ball to another instead of taking a shot, because the other player has the better chance of scoring. Maybe that first person didn’t get the applause, but that’s not the reason they play. They play to win the game.”
His eyebrows lifted, and he almost smiled. “I didn’t know you were such a fan.”
“I’m not, I’m just saying—”
“What does basketball have to do with a gift?”
“When two people care about each other, they work together to achieve their goals. They’re on the same page. If one is trying to do something, the other helps.”
“And in this case…?” he prompted.
“You need to pay off a debt, and I know that. I want us to work together. Which means, you don’t waste money. Not even on me. And I understand that and support you. I don’t expect”—she indicated the restaurant, the remnants of their pricey dinners, and the jewelry box—“fancy meals or fancy gifts or flowers. I’d be just as happy grabbing takeout and eating on a park bench.”
She expected him to be pleased with her words. To find relief from the pressure of spending money on her. Instead, he snatched the gift and shoved it back in his jacket. “Fine.”
“Why are you mad?”
“I’m not mad. I’m just…” But he didn’t finish. When the waitress walked by, he asked for the check. He paid it, and they walked out of the restaurant in silence.
After they got in the car—he didn’t open the door for her like he’d done before—he pulled away from the parking space and headed toward Red’s house.
“Can you please just talk to me?” she asked.
“What do you want me to say? I bought you a nice gift, and you threw it in my face, along with all my faults and failures. All I wanted was to forget about my stupid crap for a little while. Is that so terrible?”
“If by ’forget’ you mean you spend money you don’t have, then maybe, yeah.”
He took a deep breath. “I know what you’re saying.” The anger had drained from his voice. Now he just sounded defeated. “For the record, the necklace wasn’t that expensive.”
“For the record,” she said, “it was beautiful.”
He reached across the center console and took her hand. “I want to shower you with gifts.”
“I don’t need your gifts.”
He lifted her fingers and kissed them gently. They were quiet until he pulled into Red’s driveway. After Derrick slid the gear into Park and cut the engine, he took her hand again. “I hope, someday, you’ll do more than just care for me.”
She was forming an answer, but he continued.
“You’re not there. I know. And I’m not pushing you. I’m just laying it out there. I know I said it the other night, but I was a little drunk and a little… Well, maybe not myself. So it was a lousy time to say it.”
She knew what was coming and wished he wouldn’t. But she’d already shut him down tonight with the necklace. She couldn’t do it again.
“You’re right about the team thing.” He angled his shoulders to better face her. “I’ve never really been part of a team. What I do is dog-eat-dog. I played tennis in high school. Loved singles, hated doubles, because I hated having to depend on anyone else. I don’t know how to be a teammate.” He swallowed, looked beyond Harper. “Russell and Betts are a team. They’re together in everything.”
“They seem to be.”
“It’s beautiful. My parents weren’t like that. They fought a lot.” He focused on her again. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I’m just saying, I want that someday. And not with just anybody.” He leaned closer. “I love you, Harper. I hope someday you’ll love me, too.”
She didn’t trust him nearly enough to consider anything deeper with him. But after he’d bared his soul, she couldn’t very well say that. She placed her hand on his cheek and kissed him. “You’re a kind man, Derrick Burns.”
His chuckle was dark. “You might be the only person in the world who thinks so.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Harper finished reading her Bible before seven the next morning despite Derrick’s suggestion that she sleep in. In her new life, she welcomed mornings. Nothing like her old, pre-prison life, which had thrived in darkness, drinking, and drugs.
She remembered one of the women who’d visited her in prison, a sweet Christian lady who ran the codependency group there. Whenever anyone would confess something particularly awful, she’d say, “Beautiful things only thrive in the light.”
Harper was learning to thrive in the light.
It was Saturday, and again, clouds had moved in. She pitied all the folks who spent their weekdays trapped in office buildings, the people who yearned for sunny weekends. Based on her phone’s weather app, they’d be disappointed today.
Since Derrick had promised to look after Red, Harper donned her running clothes and cheap tennis shoes, threw her hair into a ponytail, and stepped out of her room. She usually used the back staircase, which led straight to the kitchen, but she hoped to avoid Derrick and Red. There’d be plenty of time to visit later, and she didn’t want to get pulled into a conversation that would keep her from her jog.
She shoved her phone in her shorts’ pocket, just in case, and went down the stairs that led to the foyer. She was just about to open the door when she heard Derrick’s voice in the kitchen.
What was he saying?
“Of course you wouldn’t have to invest that much, but these stocks are supposed to go through the roof.”
“And if they don’t?” Red asked.
“It’s what you’ve always told me. Make sure the investment is sound, do your homework. This company’s numbers are good. They’re making money. They’re poised to take off. If they don’t, it’s not like you’ll lose everything. You’ll just have to wait it out.”
“What kind of company is it again?” Red said.
“Tech. They build computer parts.”
“Like Intel and Qualcomm?”
“Uh…” Derrick stumbled, obviously surprised to find Red so well informed. “Yeah, sort of.”
What was going on? Derrick hadn’t mentioned any investment to her. She’d heard nothing about it at the beach the previous weekend.
“How much do you need, son?” Red didn’t sound eager or curious about the investment. Just tired.
“Whatever you want to invest.” Derrick, on the other hand, sounded overly relaxed. Like it was all no big deal to him. He was good at that offhand tone. Very good. “But if I were you, I’d throw a couple hundred grand at it. I think the stock will double in the initial offering. Then, you can sell if you want, take your profit.”
Harper looked at the front door, told herself she should g
o. What happened between Derrick and Red wasn’t her business. Derrick was his grandson. She was just Red’s nurse. And Derrick’s girlfriend. Despite what she told herself, though, she tiptoed into the dining room, careful to stay out of sight.
Red blew out a long breath. “Let’s cut the act. You’re in over your head again, and you need me to bail you out.”
“No, no,” Derrick said. “It’s not that. It’s just this investment—”
“Where’s the prospectus?”
“I forgot to bring it, but I can get you one.”
“And you’d need me to make the check out to you?”
“Well…” Derrick cleared his throat. “I’m investing, and the more we put in, the better—”
“Listen, kid,” Red said. “This ain’t my first rodeo, and you’re not the first desperate man who’s tried to get money out of me. You forget, I was your father’s father, and you’re your father’s son. I told you the last time I bailed you out I wasn’t gonna do it again.”
The chair scraped against the floor. Then she heard footsteps on the tile. “I’m not asking you to bail me out, Gramps. I’m trying to get you in on the investment of a lifetime.”
“Hmph.” Red was a lot sharper than Derrick gave him credit for. “Fortunately, I have all the money I need to last me until I leave this earth. So I’m going to skip your little investment.”
“Fine.”
Before she could react, footsteps stomped toward her. Derrick stepped into the dining room and froze when he saw her. His face was red, but the color faded as they stared at each other.
He continued past and bolted up the staircase.
Harper pasted on a smile and entered the kitchen. Red was seated at the table. The effects of his conversation with Derrick were etched on his face. “You on your way out?”
She glanced through the window at the cloudy day. “I was going to, but it looks like rain. I think I’ll just stay here with you.”
He nodded, nibbled his breakfast. Seemed Derrick had gone all out. Red had eggs and toast, not to mention a little bowl of assorted berries she’d picked up a few days before. He opened his newspaper and focused on the stories there.
She poured herself a cup of coffee, doctored it up, and got a bowl of fruit before joining Red at the table.
They sat in silence. The sound of Derrick pacing in his room upstairs was a frantic background beat. She was halfway through her coffee before Red spoke.
“How deep is he in?”
It wasn’t her place to get involved. But Red wasn’t stupid. “It’s bad.”
He folded the newspaper and set it down. His fingers rapped on the table.
She ate a blueberry, then a blackberry. The sweet of one mixed with the tart of the other and created a nice combination in her mouth, but she could hardly enjoy it.
Overhead, Derrick pounded on something. Probably his bureau.
“He’s mad at me,” Red said.
“It’s not your problem.”
“I told him the last time I bailed him out that it would be the last time.”
“Did he tell you it was an investment then, too?”
Red shook his head. “Just asked me for money. Twenty thousand. Not small potatoes, but this time… Two hundred? What did he do?”
Red didn’t seem to want an answer, which was good, because Harper didn’t have one.
“I did everything I could to help George.” Red still didn’t look at her. He was focused behind her, or maybe on events long past. “I bailed him out too many times before I said ’enough.’ I thought if he knew I’d quit giving him money, he’d get his act together. They have those support groups, but he never went. Just blew every penny he had at the tables, and when I didn’t help him, he mortgaged his house, his business. His wife was right there with him. She’d talk about how they needed to quit, but she was just as bad as he was. They’d gamble together, they’d win, all was well. They’d lose, and they’d fight.” Red focused on Harper, his sharp blue eyes watery. “I knew better than to bail Derrick out. But the poor kid had lost his parents. He just had me, a grouchy old man. How do you do the tough-love thing in that situation? I got into the same stupid patterns with him. And now he’s following the same path his father took.”
“It’s not your fault, Red. You know that, right?”
“Of course it’s not my fault.” His voice was sharp. “He didn’t come to live with me until he was eighteen years old. The die had been cast long before that.” He nibbled his toast, then set it down as if he was too drained to hold it up. “I sure wish I could’ve helped him, though.”
The banging and pacing above quieted. She hated to think of how defeated Derrick must have felt. There’d be no easy way out of this situation for him.
Worse than that, she’d witnessed the whole thing. Witnessed him trying to swindle his own grandfather, this sweet, sweet man who’d done nothing but try to help him.
How desperate must Derrick be?
How low could a person fall?
She couldn’t quantify the first and knew too much about the second.
They finished their breakfasts in silence. Red never glanced at the newspaper again. Poor man was worried. Heartbroken.
She knew how he felt.
Ten minutes later, Derrick’s footsteps sounded on the stairs. She heard a thud, and then he stepped into the kitchen. “Something came up.” He focused on his grandfather, avoiding Harper’s gaze. “I’m headed back to the city.”
Red nodded once. “Glad you came.”
Derrick gave Red a pat on the shoulder.
He looked at Harper, and she stood and walked to the front door. She stopped beside Derrick’s suitcase and turned to face him. Arms crossed.
He snatched the bag, opened the door, and stepped onto the stoop. She thought he was going to leave without a word, but instead, he held the door open. “Can we talk out here?”
She stepped into the muggy day.
He strode to his sedan, popping the trunk with his key fob halfway there. He tossed the suitcase in, then returned to the front step. He stopped a few feet from her and raked his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You’re so desperate, you lied to your grandfather.”
He crossed his arms. “You don’t understand. I’m in trouble, Harper. These people—”
“How much is that car worth?”
“Not enough.”
“It’d be a start, though.”
“If I owned it, but I’m behind on my payments as it is.”
“Could you refinance your condo?”
He swallowed. “I’ll figure out something.” He wore khakis and a golf shirt and looked like the successful young businessman she’d first thought he was. Nobody would ever know what he was capable of based on his looks. “I don’t want this to come between us.” Derrick stepped closer and reached for her hands.
She stepped back. “You’re joking, right?”
His arms dropped. “Harper, I need you. And you need me.”
“I just heard you try to con your grandfather out of two hundred thousand dollars.”
His brown eyes lost their spirit, hardened until they looked like lifeless marbles. “It’s not as if he doesn’t have the money. He’s loaded. He’s got millions.”
“Which he earned, Derrick. He spent a lifetime earning it.”
“He got lucky in real estate.” He stepped toward her again, and she backed up until she was pressed against the doorway. He was too close and too angry. “He gambled on real estate and won. But he looks down on me.”
“Real estate and poker aren’t the same.”
“Whatever.”
“Step back, Derrick.”
“I need you. And you need me.”
Was he crazy? “I don’t need this.”
He leaned closer, close enough to kiss her. She lifted her hands to block him, turned her head.
He didn’t back up, just hovered, eyes hard.
She wanted to s
cream, to push him away.
A car door slammed down the street. The sound seemed to bring Derrick to his senses. He took a step back. Blinked. His eyes were black as tar. “You’re dumping me, after all I’ve done for you?”
There it was. Because he’d gotten her this job, she owed him.
Except it had been Red who hired her. Red who paid her. And it was Red who could be trusted. Not Derrick.
Definitely not Derrick.
“I don’t owe you anything.”
“Great. So I’ve lost my biggest client and the potential for another client—because of you.”
He was delusional, but she kept her mouth shut.
“I lost big in poker that night because you wouldn’t let me stay with you.”
As if she ought to have slept with him to keep him from being an idiot. All that would have done was made her an idiot, too.
“I’ve lost Gramps. And to top it all off, you’re dumping me.”
“You should try taking responsibility for your own mistakes, Derrick. You’d be surprised how much better your life is when you realize you’re in control of your own decisions.”
“Said the felon.”
Hot rage made her hands tremble. “It’s time for you to go.”
“You can’t order me away from my own grandfather’s house.”
She crossed her arms and stood her ground. She lived here. Derrick didn’t. End of story.
He stared at her, seemed to be waiting for her to back down. Well, he’d be waiting a long, long time.
Spitting a curse word, he spun, ran to his car, and peeled out of the drive.
She watched the street until long after he’d disappeared.
That was not how she’d planned for this day to go. She waited for some twinge of regret or remorse. All she felt was relief.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ever since Derrick had tried to swindle him out of money a few months before, Red hadn’t been the same. His moods shifted faster than the autumn weather, and she walked on eggshells around him. Sometimes, he was the happy-go-lucky guy she’d first met. Other times, he seemed so depressed she worried for his health. Still other times, he was angry, lashing out at her and anyone else within earshot.
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