Page 31 of Nights at Seaside
“I can tell.” He draped an arm over her shoulder and she shrugged out from under it with a groan.
“You can’t just play nice and pretend you didn’t spy behind my back, Grayson. Why’d you do it? And did you know Blue took the blame?”
Grayson shook his head. He had a mop of dark hair, with big brown eyes that softened his imposing, thickly muscled stature. Grayson and Hunter owned Grunters Ironworks, and in addition to their main raw materials business, they also created elaborate sculptures and unique hibachis that were sold all over the Cape.
“No, I didn’t know that, but it doesn’t surprise me,” he said. “Look, Sky. After what we went through with Dad, I didn’t want you to find yourself in a bad situation.”
“Grayson…” She could hardly remain angry with that kind of reasoning. Beneath the gigantic chip on his shoulder was a heart of gold. “He’s not an alcoholic, and he’s not an abuser. He’s just a guy who sings and fights.” She had no idea how she could say that so easily, when she didn’t feel at all at ease with his fighting, but she felt the urge to protect Sawyer just the same.
“But you wouldn’t have been sure of that if we hadn’t checked him out. And by the way, it was either us checking him out, or your other big, bad protector camping out on your doorstep.”
She knew he meant Blue. Annoyance coiled like an asp inside her. She wasn’t a child, and she didn’t need an army of protectors.
“Okay, you know what? Here’s a news flash. I’m an adult. I can handle picking out my own dates and keeping myself safe. I don’t need you or Blue or anyone else taking care of me. Got it?” Once she’d found her footing again after they’d lost her mother, it had taken forever for her to convince Pete to back down from watching her every move. But once he and Jenna got married, he’d backed off. Now she had to deal with Grayson?
He arched a brow at her eye roll and draped his powerful arm around her shoulder again. When his lips curved up in a smile, his dimples became more prominent, reminding Sky of all the years when they’d come home from school to homemade cookies. He’d flash that smile, those dimples would appear, and she could practically see her mother’s heart melt every time.
“Sis, there’s not a chance in the world that we’re going to stop caring about you.”
“Geez, you’re a pain.” She laughed because the whole situation was ridiculous. She knew they’d never back off, and part of her probably didn’t really want them to, but she definitely needed a little breathing room. “I don’t want you not to care. I want you to let me make my own mistakes.”
“We did. You stopped living and stayed in bed for two weeks, remember? You didn’t answer the phone. You didn’t answer our texts. It was like you died, too.”
“Our mother had just died! And do you think I’ll ever forget? I felt incredibly guilty for Pete putting his life on hold to help me deal with losing Mom. It might have taken me two weeks, but I got out from under that grief and not only pulled myself together, but I’ve created an amazing life for myself. Besides, is two weeks really too much time to mourn the woman who was there every day of our lives?” The last few words fell off her tongue like an accusation, taking her heart with them. She’d never said it out loud, but shedidfeel guilty, and she hadn’t fallen apart forever, darn it. She’d gotten herself together, regardless of missing her mother every day of her life.
Grayson folded her into his arms. “Sky, I didn’t say it wasn’t for a good reason. But it was a wake-up call for all of us. You’re our sister. We love you. We’re going to be there even when you don’t want us to be.”
She shrugged him off. “Then don’t tell me about it. And don’t let Blue take the heat for your craziness. I got mad athimbecause ofyou.”
Grayson held his hands up in surrender. “I’m sorry about Blue, but I never asked him to take the heat. And I’m onlyslightlysorry about checking out Sawyer, because at least now I know that he’s not going to go into a steroid rage and kill my sister.”
The love in his eyes softened her resolve. “Grayson…”
Grayson shrugged. “You may not know this, but when you were hiding in your bed after Mom died, I was hanging on by a limb. The thought of you falling apart after losing Mom? That was just about as bad as actually losing her.”
Grayson had always kept his emotions close to his chest. She heard the sincerity in his voice and saw the honesty in his eyes. The fact that he was opening up to her touched her deeply, but knowing she’d caused him pain cut her to her core.
“I’m sorry, Grayson. I had no idea.”
“I know you didn’t. So if I’m a little overprotective, bear with me, okay? I’ll work on taming it. And I’ll definitely talk to Blue about taking the heat for my issues.”
He opened his arms, and she walked into his warm embrace, feeling like she was just getting to really know him for the first time in their lives. “No, don’t say anything to Blue. Just let it drop.”
“I love you, sis.”
“I love you, too.”
They headed back to join the others around the bonfire. Pete sat with his arms around Jenna, and Tony sat beside Amy, one hand on her belly, his lips pressed against her cheek. As Sawyer reached for Sky’s hand, she thought about his father. And she realized that there were far worse things in the world than being loved too much.
WATCHING SKY WITH her family and friends might just be Sawyer’s new favorite pastime. She was positively glowing under their taunts about bringing him to the bonfire and wondering what kind of tattoo she’d get next. He’d noticed ink on her shoulder, but he’d been so caught up in her that he hadn’t been able to slow his thoughts long enough to wonder about it. Sky taunted them right back, teasing Tony about a tattoo of a kitten she’d given him last summer, andwouldn’t they like to knowabout her next tattoo. She was definitely not a pushover, and he liked seeing that side of her. Actually, he liked everything about her.
Pete was busy making Jenna marshmallows, which was an event all to itself, as she apparently liked them golden brown. Not golden, not brown, but perfectly golden brown. Sawyer never knew there was a science to making the perfect marshmallow, but apparently everyone in this close-knit circle did, because when Pete produced the perfect marshmallow and Jenna popped it into her mouth, they all cheered, and then Pete pulled a plastic tiara from a bag and placed it on Jenna’s head.
“She’s the marshmallow princess,” Sky explained.
“What are you the princess of?” he asked.
She got a wicked glint in her eyes as she scooted closer and pressed her cheek to his. “I’m still waiting to figure that out.”
