Wicked Grind (Stark World #1)(13)

She was still thinking about families as she carried the wine-soaked rag over to the bus trays. Kelsey had never known either of her grandmothers, and her own mother had passed away when she was two. She wondered what it was like for Wyatt having a famous grandparent. Hard, she supposed. Even on his first day at a new place he couldn't be anonymous. But easier, too, because at least people would talk to him, and they already found him interesting.

No one ever found Kelsey interesting. Why would they? She was a teenage girl who woke up, went to work with her dad, then went home. Three nights a week she went to dance class, but she was the only one in the class who was serious about studying dance. The other girls were just there to check themselves out in the mirror.

Kelsey couldn't understand how they could be so cavalier. She'd had to fight to go to class. To convince her father that the leotards and tights served a purpose. Even then, she'd had to promise to wear a skirt over her outfit when she practiced, since that was the only way he'd let her go. "A woman shouldn't show off her form like that," he'd insisted. "Mischief can happen."

"It's just me in a room with a bunch of girls."

"It's making a habit."

"A habit of dancing, Daddy. There's nothing wrong with dancing."

"You see there, sugar? You say I treat you like a little girl, but when you say those kinds of things it just proves that you're still too young. There are all kinds of things wrong with dancing, and you'll learn about them soon enough."

"Then why do you let me go at all?" She'd immediately regretted the question, terrified that he'd rip her beloved lessons out from under her. 

"How else will you learn what's the good, and what's the bad? You have to know. You have to be clear. You can't grow up to be like your mother. A woman like that . . . well, people get hurt. But I love you, baby girl. I love you so damn much, and I'm watching out for you. So don't you worry, sugar. Daddy will always be here to help you."

A fat tear rolled down her cheek, surprising Kelsey out of the memory. Her whole life, she'd wished she knew her real mother, but Kelsey had been two when Annie Draper died, and in a lot of ways she seemed like a mythical person. Someone faraway and imaginary.

Leonard Draper had married Tessa only two years later, bringing a baby boy into the family with her. As far as Kelsey was concerned, Tessa was her mom and Griffin was her brother. After all, she'd only been four when Tessa and Leonard had put Griffin into her arms and told her that she was now a big sister, with all the responsibility that came with it.

Griffin!

She glanced up at the clock, saw that she was late, then bit her lip to prevent the curse that wanted to fly from her mouth. Her father would have a fit if she cursed, and even though she was almost sixteen, there were some offenses that he'd probably still spank her for.

"I'm off the clock," she yelled as she ripped off her apron and handed it to a startled bus boy. "See you tomorrow!"

Her dad was working as a temporary landscaper at the club this summer, which meant she'd been able to land a job in food services. Tessa didn't work-her dad said a man should provide for his woman-but even though she was home, Leonard didn't want Griffin staying in the house all summer. "He's twelve now. Can't be some sissy-boy who spends all his time with Mommy. Not my son."

Which was why Griffin was enrolled in the club's tennis camp, even though they really couldn't afford it. And since Kelsey's shift ended twenty minutes before Griffin's camp did, she'd been charged with collecting him and getting the two of them home safe.

Work for her. Camp for him. She knew she ought to be annoyed by that, but at least she got out of the house. And at least the money she earned was hers, not that she ever spent it. She was saving it to go to a New York dance academy when she graduated. She was going to be on stage. She was going to be remarkable. And in the end her dad would see that she was creating beauty, and there was nothing wrong with that.

So how could she resent Griffin's tennis class when she was working toward her future? Besides, she adored Griff, even when he was being an annoying little brother. And seeing his excited face every day was one of the things she most looked forward to.

Now, she sprinted through the gate that surrounded the pool area, then ran the length of the recreation building. She was just rounding the corner so she could head up the path to the tennis courts when she slammed into something hard, stumbled back, then collapsed in a pile of limbs and embarrassment on the concrete sidewalk.

"Oh, man! I'm so sorry." The low, melodic voice came from somewhere above her, soothing her without touching her. "Are you okay?"

She glanced up, at first seeing only the hand stretched out in front of her. She took it, and the shock of connection would have knocked her over if she hadn't already been on the ground.