Grace Anne

chapter 7



“Your brother is worried I’m some sort of monster,” Michael told her softly. “He was upset that I was in your bedroom. How did he know where I was?”

“This phone only rings in here. Cain has always been overly protective of us girls.” She reached down, pulled off the one sock, and tossed the pair of them on the bed. “You need to go. I don’t…I don’t want you here anymore.”

He didn’t move, but she could see his body stiffening. His cell phone going off made her wish whoever it was would leave them alone and take him away at the same time. He didn’t move to answer it.

“That might be important. Shouldn’t you answer it?” She waited for an answer and, when none came, she walked to her dresser and started pulling her brush through her hair. “I’ll follow you out and lock up. If you could have the contract changes to my attorney as soon as—”

“Who was the person who threatened my son?”

The question was so quiet that she almost thought she’d not heard him, but when she looked over her shoulder at him she could see that he had asked. She should have expected the question. She had been thinking about an answer to give him when he did. But nothing came to mind. Nothing, that was, but the truth and, that, she wasn’t really willing to share with a man she’d only had sex with.

“I don’t know, not really. I’ve been…” Could she tell him? Should she? “Once I leave, then you won’t have anything to worry about with Trace. He’ll be fine. They’re just trying to get me to be afraid.”

“And are you?”

She felt the tears at his question, but tried to blink them away.

“Grace, are you afraid of the person who calls you? And I’ve listened to the messages on your phone in the kitchen. They’re getting progressively worse and you know it.”

She thought about telling him it was none of his business, but she knew that the two of them having sex and whoever it was threatening Trace made it his. She didn’t like it, but he had a right to know some of what she had going on.

“I left home when I was seventeen. It was…my family life wasn’t all that easy. Had it not been for my brother and sisters I’m not sure how things would have ended. My parents were more into each other and how badly they could hurt us than they were at providing for us as a family. My father was killed by the police when he tried to kill my sister for ransom.”

“Roscoe Waite. Matt just told me you’re related to him. And Alyssa Howard is your sister-in-law.” He moved up behind her, took the brush, and began moving it through her hair. “I also know your brother-in-law, Payton. We went to school together.”

She nodded. Of course. Payton’s family had money, as did Alyssa. She was just a daughter of a dead ex-con who happened to be related to them all. She turned and took the brush from him. “I think you should go now. I have some things to finish up around here before I sell and, if you don’t mind, I want to be alone.”

“I don’t think so, Grace. I’ll purchase the building because I need it, but you’re not going anywhere. I don’t know what it is about you, but I can’t seem to get enough of you.” He took the brush from her and set it on the dresser. “Finish getting dressed and we’ll meet my family. They’re waiting dinner on us.”

She supposed as they were getting into his limo again that she could have refused. But short of throwing him out, which she was reasonably sure she couldn’t do anyway, she wasn’t sure what to do. She wasn’t even sure she wanted him to leave her alone. It had been so long since she’d…she’d had anyone in her life that she was a little starved for the feeling again. Neither of them spoke on the short drive over.

Trace meeting her at the door of the restaurant made her hug him a little tighter than was probably necessary. He held her hand, talking a mile a minute as he led them to the table overflowing with people. She stopped and felt Michael bump into her from behind.

“This is my family, you know them,” he said in her ear when she didn’t move. “Come on and sit down. They won’t bite.” But he did.

“Grace, honey, come on,” his mother said as she waved at the only two empty chairs next to her. “Michael, go and find that lovely little waitress and tell her what you and Grace are drinking. Then we’ll order as soon as you’re served.”

Michael pulled out her chair and kissed her on the mouth before he moved to do what his mother said. Grace felt her face flame when Joey laughed. She wanted to hunt the stupid man down and smack the shit out of him.

“I guess you two worked out your differences.” Grace flushed again at Joey’s statement. “I’m glad. You two fighting was getting to be annoying.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Mrs. Cunningham. Your son and I are simply coming to terms on the Washington Building, nothing more.” Grace continued, though she was sure she was only making it worse. “He just kissed me because he knew it would irritate me. He’s forever doing stupid things like that to get on my last nerve.”

“He can be like that, yes. But he usually only gets on a woman’s last nerve at the end of a relationship, not at the beginning,” Mr. Cunningham said with a smile. “And they usually are so besotted with him they will let him break it off without much fuss. Women like our Michael.”

Grace knew that Lucas Cunningham wasn’t really Michael’s father. He’d adopted him when Joey and Lucas had gotten married twenty-five years ago. Michael had been around five and he and Joey had been living in a smallish apartment when the then millionaire Lucas had bought the building they’d lived in. Instead of tossing the young mother and boy out into the street he’d set them up in a nice place and began courting Joey.

When Michael returned she was gathering up her things to leave. He would just have to explain what was not going on between them on his own. She stood up just as he pulled her into his lap. She squealed as he clamped his hand around her middle.

“Sit,” he growled in her ear, “or I’ll tell them about the beautiful tattoo you have over your lovely ass. And I’ll tell them how I happened to know that your nipples get really dark when you’re aroused.”

She glared at him as he laughed. She knew in that moment he’d do it too. She moved to the other chair again, vowing that she wasn’t going to speak to him. Turning in her chair to face his mother she heard him laugh. She closed her eyes on the sudden urge to pick up her fork and stab him in the cock with it.

“If you do to him whatever is going on in your head, know that he’ll get you back. He’s never been one to let go of a challenge.”

Grace looked at Joey when she smiled.

“He’s got it bad for you, doesn’t he?”

“I don’t think it’s any more than just sex. And he wants something from me. I’ve already told him I’ll sell him the building. He’s just doing this because, for some reason, he wants to prolong the inevitable. I am leaving, Mrs. Cunningham. I have to.” Grace had to get away before the temptation to lean on him became more than she could bear.

“Hummm. I suppose, but I don’t think you believe that any more than he does.” Joey patted her hand. “As for the sex part, I’m reasonably sure you and he will come to some understanding on that as well.”

~~~

Thomas watched the girl with his mother. He didn’t know why, but he didn’t like her. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t have her. Just for the simple fact that she belonged to Michael, he’d have her under him. He liked having and taking things that belonged to his stepbrother. But good Christ, this one was beautiful.

Her dark hair and darker eyes made him think of hard sex. Her body looked like something he’d only seen in magazines and he knew those girls had been touched up. But this one, Grace, looked like she’d never had any work done and he was willing to bet his brother knew it. Thomas reached under the table to adjust his cock again.

He turned to look at Michael when he said something to his dad. They were talking about money again like it was all there was to talk about. His brother had this fine-looking woman next to him and all he was doing was putting his arm around her chair and practically ignoring her. He leaned over the table to speak to Grace.

“How about you move over to this side and I’ll talk to you. When Mike and my dad get to talking about spread sheets, there could be a bomb going off and they’d not hear it.”

She smiled at him.

“Come on, you know you want to.”

“Thanks, but this is fine.” She smiled at him again and he felt some of his anger fade. “You’re Thomas, aren’t you? I remember you from the party.”

“Yes. I’m the baby. My mother has these things where we’re all required to come at least once a week. It’s mostly at her house, but she’s having the house done up for my sister’s baby shower tomorrow.” He tried not to sneer at his sister who looked like a giant frog in her green maternity dress. “This is her first one and my other sister thought it would be fun to get a bunch of her friends together and have a girl’s day.” Thomas didn’t understand the need for a pregnant woman to show herself. He neither thought they were beautiful nor glowing. They looked bloated, fat, and clumsy. He tried his best to steer clear of all of them, especially when they got as obese as his sister seemed to be.

“That’ll be nice for her. I understand her husband is fighting overseas. She must get fairly lonely without him.”

Thomas looked at his sister and tried to remember if he’d been told that Jake had been transferred. He remembered someone saying something about him leaving, but he’d thought he was going to the mall or some other shit.

“Yeah, I suppose she does.” Like he cared. “But she has all those servants in the house, so I doubt she gets all that lonely.”

Thomas noticed that Michael moved his hand down under the table. He wondered if his brother was copping a feel from Grace. When she closed her eyes he could just imagine his own hand sliding up under her dress and feeling her wet p-ssy. She’d be very wet for him, he decided, and he’d make her come with everyone around.

Michael laughed at something and leaned over and whispered in Grace’s ear. He didn’t doubt that they were talking about him, and Thomas decided that he would find a way to take her from his stepbrother and f*ck her in front of him as soon as possible.

When Grace got up a few minutes later and said she’d be back, Michael stood with her. He thought maybe the two of them were going together when, after she left the room, he sat down. But he watched her like he was going to make sure she went to the bathroom. It wasn’t a minute later when he decided he was going to see if he could persuade her to have a little fun with him when Michael stood and followed Grace. Thomas wanted to scream out his frustrations and was about to go after them both when his dad put his hand on his shoulder.

“Stay here and leave them alone. You’ve no business sniffing around that woman when she came here with your brother.”

Thomas glared at his dad.

“I don’t want to have to tell you again to leave her alone.”

“I wasn’t going to touch her. And besides, she didn’t look all that thrilled about being with Mike anyway. Maybe she’d like to have a real man with her and not some bastard you adopted.”

Thomas knew he’d gone too far the moment the words left his mouth. He’d said that before to his father, not those exact words, but close enough. He and Michael had been fighting over a car then. The fact that Thomas hadn’t wanted the dark blue Mustang until his dad had sold it to Michael was beside the point. He didn’t think that Michael should have anything that belonged to his dad. He’d told his dad that a bastard shouldn’t be allowed to sully the car that had been his father’s, much less his name. His father had slapped him right across the mouth and told him to never say anything like that again. To this day Thomas had never forgiven Mike for turning his father against him.

His father turned away from him, but not before Thomas could see the disappointed look in his eyes. He just had one more reason to hate his brother. For giving him a reason to disappoint his father.

Thomas decided that he was going to get back at Michael. He wasn’t sure how, but he knew it was going to have to be big. He glanced over at Trace when he felt someone staring at him, and he glared at the kid. That brat saw way too much and, when he did, he ran to his daddy every time. He thought maybe he’d just found a way to hurt Michael. Trace was going to suffer where the father could not.

When Grace and Michael retuned Trace got up and walked to his father. He didn’t say anything, though Thomas knew he would tell on him later, but the kid did lean over and hug Grace. Thomas was surprised when she hugged the kid back and pulled him onto her chair to sit next to her. Thomas thought maybe it was time for him to get out of here before he hurt someone.