“You’re amazing. Thank you.”
“Nothing is going to make what we have anything less than miraculous.” She ran her fingers along his jaw. He managed a nod, still dizzy from the jolting transition between enjoying a light moment with his fiancée, to being on the direct receiving end of the angriest he’d ever seen Patricia.
19
H-A-N-D-I-N-T-H-E-C-O-O-K-I-E-J-A-R
Claire wished she could storm downstairs in jeans and manure-encrusted boots and stomp and yell. Yeah, she could understand his mother’s bewilderment, finding the wrong son half-dressed with her future daughter-in-law. She could see how it would be distressing without knowing the details.
But, come on, what sort of future mother-in-law didn’t knock before barging in? The woman needed some serious lessons in manners. But, she supposed Patricia had led a charmed life, brilliant and beautiful and having never been toldno, even as a child, from what Ryder had told her.
Grady came out of the bathroom, his expression drawn. He’d smoothed his hair, so it was neatly styled. Claire hadn’t realized it was possible to tame that marvelously unruly surfer hair. She hated that he was so often coerced into changing himself to make others happy.
Stepping into her towering heels, she fastened the buckle before stepping up to Grady. Up on her heels, she stole a soft kiss. “I’m thinking, we give it an hour, then sneak back up here.”
“Brilliant.” He sighed against her mouth, his voice thick with a painful blend of affection and melancholy.
Sliding her hand into his, she let him set the pace. She nudged him as they neared the bottom of the stairs, needing to see him crack a smile before braving his impending scolding and said, “Bet we can mess with her, keep her guessing about which brother I’m with.”
His laugh was raw, but at least he was laughing. “I’m game.”
When they reached the foyer, Patricia was nowhere in sight. As the sun set outside, the generator-run lights glowed, illuminating a path past the parlor and down the corridor, opening to what she expected was normally a bright, decked-out ballroom. Old-style lanterns and candles lit up the center of each table instead of the flower arrangements she’d known had been planned. Above the wide-open middle of the room, a dance floor, Claire supposed, the chandelier was dimmed, and its crystals reflected the candles like stars overhead. Through the oversized windows and glass doors, the snow sparkled in a puffy blanket as far as the eye could see, the clear evening sky reflecting off each frozen flake. The music was a simple quartet of strings, the musicians beginning their song as voices from behind hinted at the arrival of the night’s first guests. A roaring fire filled the medieval fireplace across the way, keeping the cavernous room warm in temperature and ambience.
Drink in hand, Haley came gliding over in mile high heels and let out a heavy exhale, clutching her frothy IPA with a twitching gleam in her blue eyes that perfectly matched her brothers’—down to the stressed-out wildness and all. To any that didn’t know them, Patricia’s three offspring would seem as arrogant and elegant as their mother. Yet Haley’s opening line completely betrayed the flawlessly styled half updo and black velvet gown. “Fuck.”
Grady chuckled and mirrored his sister’s rabbit-in-headlights look. “Yeah,” he agreed with a slow nod. “You holding up okay?”
She nodded and handed him her beer. Grady took a long pull and handed it back. Haley smiled softly at Claire. “You?”
“Um,” Claire said dryly. “How many minutes until we can bail, do you think?”
Ryder dashed up from behind them and halted next to Claire. “I don’t know what you guys did to Patricia, but I’ve never seen her so pissed. I think there’s a hair out of place, but I didn’t dare point it out.”
Grady looked to Haley and asked, “Did you give her your news?”
She shook her head and held her shoulders back. “I have a plan.”
