Falling For Gracie

“My car was never the same. I had to sell it. At auction.” He raised his glass to her. “You were hell-bent on breaking up me and Pam.” Based on what had happened, maybe he should have listened.

Gracie’s knowing expression had him thinking she would agree with his assessment. But instead of commenting on that she said, “So what happens next?”

“I find out what Zeke’s up to. I don’t need any trouble right now. Can you get your sister to back off until I have some concrete information?”

When Gracie hesitated, he stared at her. “You owe me,” he reminded her.

She shivered. “I know. Okay—I’ll do what I can with Alexis. But I can’t promise more than a couple of days. She’s a woman on a mission.”

“And we all know what happens when you Landon women set your mind to something.”

“Exactly.” She stood and looked at him. “I’m really sorry, Riley. I know the apology is about fourteen years too late, but I mean it from the bottom of my heart. I never meant to make your life hell.”

“I appreciate that.”

“Do you want me to leave my cell number so you can get in touch with me about Zeke or do you want to call Alexis directly?”

Riley decided on the devil he knew. “Your number is fine.”

He handed her a pad of paper. She quickly wrote on it and passed it back.

“My camera,” she said.

He gave it to her.

“How long are you in town for?” he asked.

“A few weeks. My younger sister, Vivian, is getting married. I’m here to help out with all the details and to make the wedding cake. I rented a house at the edge of town. I need a kitchen to complete my other orders.”

“I’ll be in touch.”

She nodded, then turned the camera over in her hands as if she wanted to say something else. He waited, but she only shrugged, then walked toward the hallway.

He followed her to the front door. She stepped out into the night, then glanced back at him.

“I wasn’t wrong about Pam,” she said.

“I should have listened.”

Her lips curved up in a smile. “Really?”

“Sure. Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn sometimes, Gracie. Good night.”

He closed the door, but didn’t step away. Sure enough he heard a thud, as if she’d just kicked the door.

“That was a low blow, Riley,” she yelled. “A real low blow.”

Despite everything that had happened and everything he had yet to do, he found himself grinning as he returned to the library.

* * *

GRACIE FUMED AS she stalked away from Riley’s house. “A blind squirrel,” she muttered. “My opinion on Pam wasn’t based on dumb luck. Talk about ungrateful. If he’d listened to me, he wouldn’t have married her in the first place. But no.”

She stomped her foot once for good measure, then stopped on the sidewalk. No sign of Alexis or the car. While Los Lobos wasn’t huge, the distance from the Whitefield manor side of town to her mother’s more middle-class neighborhood would definitely qualify as a serious workout.

She turned left and started walking. The night was pleasantly cool with a hint of brine in the air. Even though she’d been gone forever, the town felt familiar. She liked the closeness of the ocean and the quiet residential streets. She might live in a suburb back in Los Angeles, but it was a whole lot louder than this.

At the corner, she glanced back at Riley’s house. He might have grown up poor, but he fit in there now. As she walked across the street, she smiled. Man oh man, had he looked good. She supposed she could take comfort in the fact that even at thirteen she’d had fabulous taste in men. Riley had only gotten better with age. He had the brooding, dark, good looks of a fallen angel. An angel with a diamond stud earring.

Despite her shock and embarrassment at seeing him again, she’d felt something. Sparks. Attraction. No doubt as completely one-sided as it had ever been, which meant she had to make sure she didn’t even pretend to act on it. No way was she willing to be stalker girl again.

A car pulled up beside her. Gracie glanced over and saw Alexis’s Camry. Her sister rolled down the window.

“You got away,” she said quietly. “I’m glad. Get in.”

“What do you mean I got away?” Gracie asked as she opened the door and slid onto the passenger seat. “Were you seriously concerned Riley would take me prisoner and torture me for information?”

“I didn’t know what would happen. I can’t believe your flash is that bright and loud.”

Gracie glanced at her aging camera. “Me, either. Guess it’s really not what I should use for my undercover work.” She returned her attention to her sister. “You left me back there. What’s up with that?”

Alexis hunched over the steering wheel. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t risk being caught.”

“Oh, and I could? Do you have any idea what Riley thought when he found me lurking outside his windows?”

“Nothing he hasn’t thought a million times before.”

That hurt, Gracie thought. “I would like everyone to remember I’ve grown up since then.” She sighed. “It doesn’t matter. I have the information you wanted.”

Her sister looked at her. “What do you mean?”

“I asked Riley about Zeke.”

“What? No!”

Alexis slammed on the brakes, making Gracie grateful she’d fastened her seat belt securely.

Gracie braced her hands against the dashboard. “I talked to him about the problem. He has answers. Why is this a big deal?”

“Because it’s private,” Alexis shrieked. “I didn’t want anyone to know. It’s family stuff and supposed to be a secret. Not that I would expect you to understand that.”

Gracie flinched. She didn’t know if her sister meant the family part or the secret part, and she wasn’t sure it mattered.

“You dragged me into this,” she reminded her sister. “I went along to help you.”

“I know. I’m sorry. It’s just...” Alexis sighed. “What did he say?”

“That to the best of his knowledge, Zeke loves and adores you. But he wasn’t working on the campaign tonight.” She thought about mentioning that Riley was going to talk to Zeke about his extracurricular activities but wasn’t sure she wanted to hear the screeching again.