"The house belongs to me."
"To you?" Arabella seemed startled. "I thought you lived here."
"I do. But I built the beach house"-he cleared his throat-"a while ago. And then when Mom died, I just couldn't let the family home go, so I moved here after I started the foundation. But I still stay at the beach house sometimes. I like the ocean view."
"Oh. Well, it's lovely." She seemed to digest the answer, and he hoped she didn't ask any more questions. "Do you have a problem with me staying there?"
Yeah, lots of them. "No," Grady replied calmly, even though he was being bombarded by emotional torpedoes from every angle.
"Thank you." Arabella nodded, but something in her eyes conveyed that she wasn't convinced by his nonchalance.
"Of course, I'll grant you your privacy. I won't show up unannounced."
"Are there things you need from there? I only stopped by briefly. I explored but didn't open all the drawers or anything."
"No. I mean, of course there's some of my personal stuff there, but nothing I need," he replied, but part of him wanted to go over there just to watch her reaction to the house he'd built for her. . . . God, the thought turned him inside out.
"Are you sure about me staying there? I can always go somewhere else," she said, but he could tell she really wanted to stay there.
"No . . . no." He pursed his lips to try to mask his feelings, but then realized he was making a silly duck face. "That's not necessary." He reined his lips in and then shrugged. "Plus, this is the end of the summer season. Finding a vacant house would be nearly impossible, not to mention that paying rent would mean less money for the foundation."
"That makes sense." Arabella hesitated. "Look, I know you must be livid that Oliver hired me without your say-so. But his intentions were well-meant."
"I know that." Grady nodded in agreement. "I was the one who talked them into doing this concert in the first place. I guess I thought we could jump back into the routines like it was yesterday." He managed a slight chuckle. "I was so, so wrong."
"Well, like I said, I've modified the trickier moves. We'll still do some body rolls and shoulder shuffles." She smiled. "And of course, Heartbeat should do the classic sideways arm presentation and hip-hop stance, things like that. But I envision a more mature Heartbeat . . . smoother, a bit more mellow, but with the same energy, if that makes any sense."
"Perfect sense."
"I mean, I have to say that I think it's going to be amazing," she said brightly, reminding him how much she had enjoyed choreography. "And I've got some super-sweet ideas for your wardrobe."
"You mean we don't have to wear the brightly colored baggy suits? Although I think Oliver sleeps in his."
"I've got something more refined in mind."
"Thank God."
Arabella chuckled. "I want everyone to remember the boy-band excitement, but I also think we should hone in on showcasing the talent that was overshadowed by screaming fans back then," she said soberly, reminding him that those days hadn't been easy for her.
"We sure as hell can't hit the high notes anymore," he admitted, and when she laughed again he wanted to have her back in his damned arms. She needed to go before he said something stupid. "I need to give Oliver a call," he said, returning to a businesslike tone. When her smile faded, Grady felt a dark pang of sadness. "I'm sure he's hovering over the phone," he added, his tone a little bit lighter. Navigating through their rocky past was going to pose a problem. And keeping his hands off her was going to be an even bigger challenge.
"Oh, sure, well, I'll see you in the morning, then," she said warily. This wasn't easy for her either. While part of him wanted to voice reassurance, he didn't want to soften. She bent over and finally scooped up the items that had fallen from her purse before turning away. She didn't look back as she hurried to the car and drove away.
Grady stood motionless, trying to sort through what had just happened.
"Arabella." Just saying her name was difficult, but seeing her? Touching her?
Grady finally shook his head, not quite believing she'd been standing on his doorstep just a few minutes ago. "Ah, little brother, you've got some explaining to do." Shoving his fingers through his hair, he turned to open the front door but paused when he looked down and spotted a lone peppermint disc on the welcome mat. With a sad smile, he bent over and picked up the candy, thinking that Arabella's stomach would most likely be giving her fits right about now.
Grady closed his fingers over the wrapper and opened the front door. He entered the cool interior of the family room and made a beeline for the fridge. Finding a cold beer, he cracked it open and took a healthy swig. After a few minutes it seemed like the walls were closing in on him, so he headed outside and sat down on the edge of the pool.