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I was being dismissed. And even though it made my heart ache to realize it, maybe it was for the best. I made a promise to Juliet. And I needed to keep it. Spending too much time with her sister, no matter what my soul seemed to be telling me, would only complicate things.
“Okay,” I said. “Okay, sure.”
I turned and left the kitchen, heading back upstairs to try to get my head on straight.
I couldn’t let my heart move closer to Tess Manchester and still honor my contract with Juliet.
Chapter Eight
Tess
Ifinished baking the cakes myself, feeling the quiet and emptiness around me—it almost felt as if things had gone back to normal. Just me here on my own, Gran screeching intermittently at her computer, and Chessy flapping around here and there. Though Chessy had been distracted since Juliet’s entourage had arrived. But even with four guards and two movie stars in the house, it was easy to feel at this moment that I was just as alone as usual.
I let my mind trace over the events of the day so far. I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that the moments in the barn and tent were the most exciting I’d had in years. Maybe ever. But Ryan’s words, about both Manchester sisters being irresistible, kept coming back to me too. And I kept reminding myself what a shitty thing that was for him to say—or at least how shitty it was to act on it, to assume that just because he was Ryan-fucking-McDonnell, he could almost-kiss whomever he liked.
What bothered me most was that some part of what he’d said didn’t feel entirely true. And he didn’t really seem like an asshole.
I couldn’t explain it, but something in my gut had clenched at his words, had signaled that something might be off. But I doubted I could trust my gut where hot movie stars were concerned, and besides, it was unlikely that anyone interested in my sister would look twice at me. In fact, I’d had plenty of experience with guys who’d seemed interested in me at first then suddenly became interested in my sister after meeting her.
I’d even had a guy I was dating fall in love with my sister after she’d moved away. He’d fallen for her when she wasn’t even here—when there was no real possibility of him even meeting her. He’d found out my sister was the famous Juliet Manchester, and become convinced that if he could just hang around long enough to meet her, she’d fall for him too. Gran had taken care of that guy for me, ushering him directly back out the front door with the gun in her hand after I’d told her what was up.
“You deserve better, Tessy,” she’d said, waving the barrel around over our heads as if to make her point.
I’d taken the gun from her and tried to smile, wishing my heart could believe her words as much as she seemed to. I didn’t know what I deserved exactly. But maybe years of being jealous of my sister had poisoned karma against me. Maybe I deserved to be alone.
I hoped that wasn’t true. And I was tired of being alone. Being with Ryan today had been strange—but nice. I was wildly attracted to him, sure. But even as the initial shock of hanging out with the actual human version of my movie star fantasy had begun to wear off, there was something really nice about being with him, if I just overlooked the way it ended.
Nice wasn’t really the word I wanted to use. It was so much more than that. It was heady and powerful, basic and simple. It was like I was supposed to be with him, but I knew that didn’t make any sense.
Because Ryan was Juliet’s boyfriend.
I could hear them talking in the front room with Gran as I pulled the final layer of cake from the oven. I’d frost and decorate it tomorrow.
Dinner was going to be simple. I grilled some fish, made a green salad and put a pitcher of lemonade and one of iced tea in the center of the table, and then wandered the house, calling out that it was dinner time. Two of the guards came in the front door, and Chessy’s favorite, Jack, was already out on the back porch.
“Shoo, chicken,” he said waving his hands down at Chessy. But when I poked my head out there to see if anyone else had come down yet, Chessy was running at him, butting her head into his shins, a sign of chicken affection. I called up the stairs, and heard doors open and feet moving. After stepping through Gran’s new gaming room and having a small argument about her being in the midst of a quest, she came outside. It was early enough in the summer that it wasn’t stifling hot, and when the breeze picked up off the river, the mosquitos weren’t too bad.
The meal was quiet. Juliet mostly stared off into the distance, looking haunted and sad, while Ryan didn’t say much either. Gran shoveled her food down and then stood.
“I’m missing a raid tonight,” she said, sounding grumpy. “I thought y’all would be more fun than this. It’s like everyone’s practicing for starring in some shitty soap opera. Is “Life Sucks and Then You Die” filming here tomorrow? It’s supposed to be my birthday this weekend!”
“Gran!” I said, wishing sometimes I could slip something into her Manhattans to make her more polite.
Juliet stood and went around to wrap Gran in a hug. “I’m sorry Gran. I’m distracted.”
“What’s his excuse?” She asked, pointing at Ryan. “Or theirs?”
The four big men at the table looked embarrassed and muttered apologies before turning back to their food.
Ryan actually blushed, and shook his head lightly. “I apologize, ma’am. I’ve been a terrible guest.” He looked between Gran and me as he said it, as if part of that apology was meant for me. My earlier anger had already softened, and now I found it hard to locate at all.
“Hmph.” Gran wasn’t letting this go easily. Evidently she’d expected quite a bit more entertainment from our famous guests than she was getting.
“Maybe I could mix you up a drink, Gran?” I offered, which earned me a dirty look from Juliet. I didn’t like Juliet being annoyed with me, but she wasn’t here most of the time. I’d learned how to mollify my grandmother to keep things peaceful around the house.
“We should play Monopoly,” Juliet suggested.
“You call that a game?” Gran sniffed. “I’ll take my drink, Tessy, and I’m going online. Y’all better be a lot more fun for the party. I didn’t live this long to have to try to figure out what everyone around me is moping about.”
