Page 71 of Moonlit Colorado

That was something Ireallyliked about her.

I thought about passing on what Margot had shared about Dirk Lancaster. But there wasn’t much to tell. Things would be tense enough tonight as it was without reminding Grace of the break-in at her house.

Grace was tough, but I still wanted to shield her from the bad things. To be her safe place for as long as I could.

* * *

As we walked into the restaurant, exactly on time, I resolved to focus on Grace tonight. Which was no hardship. I kept my arm around her as we waded into the fray. Acquaintances and business associates eyed Grace curiously and asked me how I had been, making small talk about the wedding. I steered her through the gauntlet as quickly as possible.

“You’re the only interesting thing here,” I murmured. “We should sneak out the back.”

“You haven’t even seen your brother yet. Is your family that scary? You don’t want me to meet them?” She sounded like she was joking, but I saw a flicker of insecurity in her pretty face, and I felt like an ass.

I spotted my brother and his fiancée across the room. “Of course I want you to meet them.”

“If Kip isn’t nice to you, I’ll put him in a headlock. I learned it from Ashford.” Grace winked at me, and I laughed so loud that some stuffy woman in pearls took a step away from me.

“You’re my hero, gorgeous.” But if anybody said a cross word toher, my good behavior was going to be out the window, and I wasn’t kidding.

We made our way toward them. Not just Kip and Bristol, but my father and the bride’s family too. The Harcourts.

“Dad,” I said.

“Dane,” my father said stiffly. “Good to see you, son.”

Translation:It’s about time you got here, you ingrate. But too many people were looking on for him to say what he was really thinking. So I forged ahead.

“Dad, everyone, this is Grace O’Neal. Grace, my father Dennis Knightly. My brother Kip. His fiancée Bristol.” I rattled off the names of the others. Grace’s mouth tightened when I introduced her to Ainsley, the maid of honor who my father had been conspiring for me to date.

“You’re from that little town in Colorado Dane’s been hiding away in?” Bristol asked, disdain dripping from her words like the diamonds she was wearing.

Every cell in my body clenched as I frowned at my brother, warning him with my eyes that his fiancée better back the hell off.

Grace interlaced her fingers with mine. “I wouldn’t say Dane’s been hiding. He’s charmed the whole place. And trust me, coming from a little town in Colorado, Idefinitelyknow charming.”

Then my father actually cracked an almost-smile. “That does sound like Dane.” The bride’s father chuckled, and Ainsley’s laugh was genuine.

It hadn’t exactly been a compliment coming from my dad, but Grace had managed to defuse the tension in a few seconds flat. She was impressive, alright.

And thank God the introductions were over. As soon as there was a break in conversation, I pulled Grace toward the bar. We both needed a drink.

“You were right,” I said softly. “You handled my family just fine.”

“Something I learned from my brothers. Never show fear. It works well on mean girls too.”

“What about bankers and businessmen? I should bring you along next time I’m closing a deal. Bet we’d make a great team.”

She laughed. “At the very least, I could check your math.”

“Another invaluable skill. You’re a woman of many talents.”

And I was dangerously close to falling under her spell. Grace had no idea what she was doing to me.

When it was time for dinner, we sat at a long table with my family and the wedding party. Because we Knightlys had to present a united front. The best man was there too, one of Kip’s buddies from college. I tried not to engage in conversation with anyone else, which left me free to flirt with my date. I slowly teased my fingers up Grace’s thigh beneath her dress until she stopped my hand with a glare.

When dessert came, I pushed back from the table. “Be right back. Bathroom break.”

“No problem. I’m going to need to focus on this beauty, anyway.” Grace dug into the dessert, some layered thing with lots of chocolate and cream.

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