Page 7 of Lovers at Seaside
“You and Hunter are so talented,” she said.
“Thanks. So are you.”
She shot him a confused look. “You’ve seen my movies?”
“Well, only the pornographic ones, but that counts, right?”
She punched his arm, and he rubbed it, feigning a pout.
“I never did porn.”
“Now I’m confused. Are we back to the lying game?” he teased.
She punched him again, and he caught her hand and kissed the back of it. He had no idea what had made him do it, but she sighed, and it was just about the sweetest sound he’d ever heard.
“You’re—”
He cut her off. “Infuriat—”
“No,” she said with a smile. “I mean, you are that, but I was going to saydifferent.”
“Different? Is that good or bad?”
“The jury’s still out.” She slid him a look he couldn’t read.
“Okay, then.” That was better than a cold shoulder. “Tell me about this jerk you’re going to see.”
“Abe Stein. He’s Bert’s brother and only living relative.” Her tone went serious. “They hadn’t spoken for more than fifty years. And I just…They only had each other, and they let that go. I want to try to, I don’t know. Fix it.”
“Does he know you’re coming?”
She shook her head as she pulled onto Route 6 and headed toward Brewster.
“I was afraid he might not see me. He might not even know Bert passed away, so there’s that little bit of heartache I get to dole out. I mean, Bert was pretty well-known in the photography world, so there was a good amount of press when…”
“Then he probably knows.” He was glad he’d come with her. A surprise visit with Bert’s estranged brother sounded like trouble in the making. “What makes you think he wants to fix whatever it is you’re trying to fix?”
“I’m pretty sure he won’t. Bert tried to reconcile with him, and Abe never gave him the time of day. He returned every letter Bert ever sent. But that didn’t stop Bert from hoping they’d work through it one day, and that made it feel important to me. Well, that and the fact that Bert left me a key to his safe-deposit box containing the returned letters, a few pictures, and a single piece of paper with the address of the resort where his brother is living. I didn’t realize the address was for Ocean Edge Resort until later, when I searched it online, and then it took several phone calls to put the pieces together and figure out what it meant. After throwing Bert’s name around to the staff and the manager, Abe’s name finally came up, and the pieces fell into place. But Bert must have wanted me to have all that for a reason, right?”
“I don’t know about that, Parker. Maybe he just left you the letters because it sounds like you were the closest thing he had to family. Do you know anything else about Abe?”
“Just that he’s loaded, and Bert described him as a self-righteous, self-absorbed bastard who swindled their father out of his company and drove his own wife and daughter away years ago.”
“Seriously? You must be a glutton for punishment. Are you sure you want to do this?”
She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “Bert once told me that I reminded him of his niece. He trusted me with this for a reason. I have to do it.”
He wasn’t so sure he liked this Bert guy anymore. What kind of man leaves a woman a trail of meat to a hungry lion? Change of plans. Work could wait. He wasn’t about to let her see this guy alone. “Then I’ll go see him with you.”
“Grayson.” Her shoulders dropped.
He covered her hand with his. “We both know I’m infuriatingly male, so don’t even try to dissuade me. This is what friends do. They support one another, through tequila, tears, and curmudgeonly old jerks.”
Her brows knitted. “I’m not really used to friends like that. You don’t have to.”
“I want to. End of discussion.”
She opened her mouth, and he was sure she was going to make a remark about his male attitude, so he cut her off. “And you’re enticingly female. Deal with it.”
