Wrapped in Lace

by Lane, Prescott

  CHAPTER THREE

  DREW

  “Drew!” my mother screamed up the stairs of Nana’s house. There must be a class attended by mothers everywhere that taught the fine art of yelling. “Dinner!”

  I yawned and sat up on the bed in Nana’s spare bedroom, a bed that I’d built years ago. I swear, every piece of furniture in this house was crafted by me or my grandfather. She was my biggest supporter besides Pop. He’d taught me everything I knew about carpentry. When he died, Nana and I took it the hardest. Once I made the decision to start my own business designing and making furniture, it was Nana who fronted me the money. No one else in the family knew that. I’d been so proud to be able to pay her back within the first year. I owed everything I had, including the success of my business, to her and Pop. My furniture pieces were all custom, created by my hands, mostly from reclaimed wood. Each piece had a story, a history, a life. I’d made a name for myself in the industry and no one could take that from me, not even my brother and Ellie.

  I stretched my arms overhead, feeling better now that I’d had a nap. I’d spent the afternoon with my dad at the family bar then conked out as soon as I got back. My night in the truck was catching up with me. Running my hands through my hair, I tried to decide if I should change out of my old white t-shirt and jeans. I shrugged. Who the hell cares? I’ll change later when I go search out my wannabe bad girl from last night. I just had to make it through dinner, then I could head back to Hank’s bar to look for her. Hank obviously knew her, so if she wasn’t there, I hoped he’d tell me where I could find her.

  I picked up my phone to check the time, telling myself two hours tops, then I’d be out of there. I put my phone back down next to my keys on the nightstand and headed downstairs barefoot, the smell of Nana’s pot roast calling me. My plan was to keep my mouth stuffed with food so I didn’t pick a fight over dinner. I took a deep breath, reminding myself I could do this. It was just dinner. I peered through the doorway, seeing my parents, Rob, Ellie, and Jack already around the table, which was set with Nana’s Christmas china over a white tablecloth. I swear only people in McAdenville have china just for Christmas.

  “Drew!” Nana said merrily, spotting me lurking outside the dining room door. “You remember Mr. Nelson, right?”

  “Of course,” I said, shaking his hand. Mr. Nelson and his wife were my grandparents’ closest friends. He’d lost his wife about a year ago, but Nana and Mr. Nelson had stayed close. He was one of the last friends she had left, so it wasn’t uncommon for Nana to include him in family dinners. He didn’t have any family left in town, and it was nice that they stayed close and watched out for each other.

  Mr. Nelson adjusted his glasses and squinted his eyes. “I’ve got some of your furniture. It’s good work, quality—like they used to make in my day.”

  “Thank you, sir. Pop would haunt me from the grave if. . . .”

  “Where should I put the. . . .” Out of nowhere, it’s my wannabe bad girl’s voice! The plate of cornbread she carried clattered to the pine wood floor, the loud clank freezing everyone in the room. Her blue eyes stared at me for a second before she bent down to clean up the crumbled cornbread. “I’m such a klutz. I’m so sorry.”

  “Let me get that,” my mom said, bending down to help her.

  “No, no, Gwyneth. I’ve got it,” she said, glancing up at me again.

  I was sure everyone in the room was staring at me, but I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Her blonde hair flowed loosely around her shoulders and her warm-honey skin glowed brightly. I can’t believe she’s in my Nana’s house. What the hell was she doing here?

  “Drew, you must remember my granddaughter, Piper?” Mr. Nelson said as Nana took Piper by the arm, helping her up.

  Our eyes locked on each other’s again. “It’s been a while, but yes, sir.”

  “Piper, you remember Drew?” Nana asked. “You two were inseparable as kids.”

  “Of course,” Piper said, her voice soft and small, her eyes cast down as she straightened her blue dress.

  Piper? I hadn’t seen Piper since I was fourteen. She’d moved away, and I had no idea she’d come back to McAdenville. I knew she was familiar last night, but it was dark, and I was drinking. God, she was beautiful at thirteen, but now she was devastating, the kind of woman that made your dick come to attention with one glance.

  “Why don’t you two sit next to each other?” my grandmother suggested, taking each of our hands. “You can catch up.”

  I felt like I was in a movie, and they were doing the scene in slow motion. We both moved to the end of the table and gingerly sat next to each other as everyone else took their seats, too. Heads were lowered as Nana started to say the blessing. I kept my head down, but my eyes were on Piper. Her eyes were closed, but I could tell she was just as surprised as I was. Her chest was rising and falling a little too quickly, her skin a little pink. I was struggling to get over what a beautiful woman she’d turned into when her blue eyes opened, catching me staring.

  *

  PIPER

  “Stop it,” I mouthed to him, but I knew I was smiling. Drew flashed me a naughty grin. I couldn’t believe this was happening. The one time I flirt shamelessly with a man, he turns out to be the boy I used to make mud pies with. The dating Gods must hate me!

  “Amen,” everyone said and lifted their heads.

  Chatter started around the table as everyone reached for their napkins and poured drinks. I felt his fingers graze my thigh gently as he placed his napkin in his lap. Did he do that on purpose? I chewed my bottom lip, trying to decide.

  “What’re you drinking tonight?” he whispered.

  Yep, he totally did that on purpose. “Shut up,” I whispered back through my smile. “I’m never drinking again.”

  Bowls and platters of food were passed around, and each time Drew handed me something, he made sure his fingers brushed mine. He was grinning like a fool, delighting in watching my body react to his. I was trying to have a couldn’t-care-less attitude, but I was failing miserably. Luckily, everyone else was too busy stuffing themselves and making small talk to notice. Despite the friendly chatter, there was a heaviness to the room that I couldn’t put my finger on. The Landons were never a tense bunch. My granddaddy and I had been here a number of times, and it never felt like this before. But then again, maybe it was just me and the thick sexual tension in my body.

  “How long have you been back in town?” Drew asked, pouring some gravy over his mashed potatoes.

  I didn’t look at him. I couldn’t look at him. I’d led him on before almost puking in his lap. “About a year. I moved back in with Granddaddy after Grandma passed.”

  “What do you do?”

  “I teach art at the elementary school,” I answered, staring down at my plate, my appetite suddenly gone.

  “Miss Piper is the best teacher,” Jack chimed in, his mouth full of food. “She lets us paint upside down like Michael Angel.”

  The entire room laughed, and I gently corrected him. “Michelangelo.” Then I shifted my body slightly towards Drew. I didn’t want to look him in the eye, so that meant I was staring down at his tan, muscular arms. Sigh. I’d been wrapped in those just a few hours ago. “I tape paper to the underside of a table to show the children how Michelangelo had to paint the Sistine Chapel upside down.”

  Drew smiled at me again. He really had to stop smiling at me. “Did you go to art school?”

  “Yeah, Virginia Commonwealth.”

  “My little Piper has her work in galleries in Charlotte, Raleigh, and even Atlanta,” my granddaddy said, beaming proudly.

  “Granddaddy likes to brag,” I said, looking down and moving my food around on my plate. “I’ve only sold a few.”

  “You should show Drew your work,” his grandmother said.

  “Oh, I’m sure he. . . .”

  “That’s a great idea,” Drew interrupted. “I’d love to see your work.”

  He couldn’t possibly be serious. I knew he was very
successful. He was McAdenville’s claim to fame, other than the Christmas lights, and there was no way he’d care about my sketches. I was a nobody in the art world, while he was taking the furniture world by storm. He’d even been commissioned to do a piece for the Governor’s mansion. I was teaching kids how to paint with brushes instead of their fingers—hardly the same caliber.

  “You two always were such a great team.” Granddaddy winked at us, then he started reminiscing about our childhood days when Drew and I were best friends, how we played outside together for hours, making mud pies and catching fireflies, how we rode our bikes all over town and played on the same baseball team.

  I glanced over at Drew, who was smiling. It seemed he had fond memories of our carefree childhood days growing up together—before our night of binge drinking and sexual tension. He wiped his face with his napkin before lowering it to his lap and slowly placed his hand down on my thigh. I knew I jumped just slightly. What the hell was he doing? I tried to push his hand away, but couldn’t without the entire table noticing.

  I felt like everyone could see how hot I was, and I knew my face was flushed. He wasn’t letting up, either, not that I really wanted him to. I couldn’t remember ever having a stronger physical reaction to a man, but this was Drew, my childhood friend. It was different in the broad, sober daylight, now that names and over a decade of history were involved. I glanced his way, seeing him smirking at my predicament. I smirked back, deciding to beat him at his own game. If he wanted to play, then I was going to play. And I planned on winning.

  I slid off my shoe and moved my foot to his leg. His knee jerked up at the contact, and I placed my hand firmly on his thigh to stop him from hitting the table. I ran my toes around his ankle and the bare skin of his foot. He tried again to kick me away, but I lifted his jeans slightly with my toe and ran my foot up his calf. He shifted in his chair, and I smiled broadly, pretending to be interested in my granddaddy’s storytelling. But Drew wasn’t backing down. His hand slid higher, pulling my dress up, and his fingers gently tickled the bare skin of my thigh. I could tell he wasn’t going to give in first. He was having too much fun, but so was I.

  “How bad do you want to be?” he whispered, leaning into my ear.

  I responded by sliding my hand up his thigh, but he only smiled at me. I was losing our little chess match. The way I saw it, I had two choices – allow him to tease me until I was even more sexually frustrated, or go big and beat him at his own game. The latter sounded better, so I moved my hand higher, grazing the bulge in his jeans. Holy hell, he was hard and huge.

  He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath before taking my hand in his and holding it tightly beneath the table. “You win.”

  “Mommy, can we do the cupcakes now?” Jack asked, bouncing up and down in his chair.

  Ellie looked at Drew for some reason. “Um. . . . I think maybe we’ll do that later.”

  “Oh, come on, babe,” Rob said. “We’ve been waiting all day.”

  “Must be some special cupcakes,” I said, winking at Jack.

  “They are,” he said, and his face lit up. “The cupcake is going to tell me if I’m getting a baby brother or a baby sister. I’ve been waiting forever.”

  “I just found out today,” Ellie said, throwing another glance at Drew.

  Now everyone’s eyes were on Drew. I wasn’t sure why all the looks were getting thrown around. “I think maybe your mommy’s right,” Gwyneth said.

  “Really?” Rob barked. “I’ve got to wait to find out if I’m having a son or daughter because. . . .”

  “I could use a cupcake,” Drew said, smiling at Jack, but his nails were digging into my hand. I wasn’t sure why he wouldn’t be excited to find out if he was having a niece or nephew. That wasn’t like the Drew I remember. The Drew I grew up with loved his family, especially his big brother. I wasn’t sure what had changed. “Can you grab me one, Jack?”

  Gwyneth mouthed, “Thank you,” to Drew, and he gave her a little nod, but he had a death grip on my hand under the table, away from prying eyes.

  Ellie and Jack got up and disappeared into the kitchen. I reached under the table, placing my other hand on top of Drew’s hand gripping mine. He looked down at our joined hands, relaxing his hold on me. “Hey,” I whispered and his blue eyes shifted to mine. “You all right?” His head shook just slightly as we watched Jack come back in wobbling a plate full of cupcakes, no icing on top.

  Jack walked around the table, handing one to everyone, then returned to his seat between his parents. “Where’s the icing, Mommy?” Jack asked.

  “On the inside,” she said. “If you bite into it and it’s blue, then. . . .”

  “I’m getting a baby brother,” Jack said. “I hope it’s not pink.” Everyone chuckled slightly as Jack took a huge bite of his cupcake before anyone else even got the wrappers off. I noticed Drew didn’t touch his. “What does purple mean?” Jack asked. Ellie smiled and raised her eyebrows to Rob. “Mommy, what does purple mean?”

  “You’re kidding me, right?” Rob asked, looking white as a ghost, and Ellie shook her head that she wasn’t.

  “Of course,” Drew mumbled under his breath.

  Nana and Gwyneth hopped up screaming, “Twins, one boy and one girl!”

  Everyone was out of their seats in two seconds, engulfing Rob and Ellie in hugs. Everyone, that is, but Drew, who remained firmly planted in his seat, his untouched cupcake before him. I started to get up, but Drew held my hand tighter.

  “Stay, please,” he whispered.

  “Then get up,” I said firmly and released his hand. He did what I asked and got to his feet as Ellie and Rob hugged everyone. I started making my way over, and Drew whispered my name. I glanced over at him, noticing he looked like he could be sick. I had no idea what was going on, why he wasn’t happy. Rob and Drew were always close, but they hadn’t said a word to each other all evening. Still, Drew looked like he could use some support, so I stayed by his side, letting Rob and Ellie come our way.

  I offered my congratulations, giving Ellie a friendly hug. She and I weren’t particularly close, but our families were, so it was the polite thing to do. Now, Rob was a different story. I’d known him my whole life, and he’d been like a big brother to me once upon a time. “Twins,” I cried out as he approached me with his arms wide open. Drew captured my elbow before Rob could wrap his arms around me, pulling me back slightly.

  “Congratulations,” Drew said half-heartedly as he pulled my chair back out, indicating he wanted me to sit down. I looked at Rob, who simply shook his head. No one else seemed to notice, everyone so excited by the news. I took my seat, and Drew returned to his beside me.

  “What the hell was that?” I whispered to him.

  “Rob and I don’t get along anymore,” he said, scooting his chair in.

  “So? That has nothing to do with me.” I angled my chair away from him.

  He leaned forward and bit out, “I didn’t like the idea of his hands on you.”

  I was sure my jaw was on the floor. I wasn’t sure what to think. Drew had no claim to me, no right at all. And Rob was his brother, his married brother—no big threat there.

  His hand slid to my thigh again. “I only want my hands on you.”

  Ok, so I was trying to be pissed at him for being rude, possessive and jealous, but I wasn’t succeeding. I only wanted his hands on me, too. Feminists everywhere were rolling over in their graves, I was so weak.

  “Uncle Drew,” Jack said, holding up his little fingers. “I’m going to be a big brother two times.”

  Drew smiled, and I could tell it was real. “Yep, I heard. I know you’ll be a great big brother.”

  “I will. Just like Daddy and you.”

  The entire room fell silent, and Drew cleared his throat, intertwining our fingers under the table. “When we were young like you, your daddy was the best brother a guy could ever want.”

  Drew’s father, Carl, reached over and patted his son on the back. “You two used
to get into so much trouble. Remember that, Gwennie?”

  She nodded, smiling. “Remember how much you used to love it here?” Gwyneth asked.

  “I remember, Mom,” Drew said, but I could tell his smile was forced this time. “It was a great place to grow up.”

  “You used to say you were never going to leave,” Gwyneth said. “Said you wanted to live around the corner. It was so sweet.”

  Unlike my mother, Gwyneth Landon was as close to June Cleaver as any mom could be, but I knew maternal guilt when I heard it. This was definitely it, and it all seemed to be directed at Drew. His hand tightened around mine, and I knew he needed me. I lightly stroked his knuckles with my thumb.

  “Wish things would’ve turned out that way, too,” Drew said.

  Rob’s fork hit his plate hard, startling everyone. “Must be terrible to get to live anywhere you want, travel, have your own business and make your first million by age twenty-five.”

  “Rob!” Ellie said, touching his arm.

  “What?” Rob barked. “I’m just wondering how long he’s going to keep up this woe is me crap. It’s getting old.”

  “Daddy?’ Jack said quietly. “Why’re you so mad?”

  Drew released my hand. “That’s a real good question, Jack,” he said as he stood up and forced his chair back before turning for the door.

  “Drew?” his mother, father, and Nana called out in unison, but he simply walked out the door.

  I stared at the empty space where he used to be. I had no idea what just happened. Drew and Rob had always been so close. “Should someone go after him?” I asked.

  “No, honey,” his Nana said. “He’s got to come back to us. He’s got to find his own way home.”

  *

  The rest of dinner was solemn. Everyone tried to put on their best masks, but I could tell it was all for Jack’s sake. I’d obviously missed out on some big drama while I was gone. Aside from me, Rob had been Drew’s best friend, but not anymore. Something had changed—big time.

  Granddaddy and I said our goodbyes fairly quickly after dinner. No one likes their family’s dirty laundry hung out for someone else to see. We hugged everyone, thanked them for dinner, and started down the front porch steps.