Chapter 3
“Are you coming?” Grace held my door open as she peered in the little car. Her forehead creased then quickly disappeared when she smiled. “Caleb’s a bit dramatic.” She laughed at some private joke as I stepped out.
I frowned. “Caleb?”
“Yeah…Yeah, my adoptive father.” She gave her head a slight shake, her hair sparkling in the porch light’s reflection against the now growing darkness outside. The sun must have given up trying to get through the clouds, and called it an early night. “There’s a royal air about him. It’s hard to explain. You’ll see when you meet him.”
“Air?”
“Bad joke.” She giggled. “I meant h-e-i-r, like he pretends to be a king.” She rolled her eyes. “He designed the house.”
I didn’t get the joke, but I’d never been great with parents or any adults. Probably why part of me wanted to stay outside. Another part begged to step inside and find the peace this place had to offer.
The front steps led to large wooden doors with multi-colored stained glass insets. Grace pushed one open and ushered me in. “My room’s upstairs. Let’s check out what I’ve got to wear for Saturday.” She kicked off her ballet flats and started up the stairs, turning to wait for me.
The place screamed rich. I bet old money since everything looked antique. Grace said Caleb built it, but the house seemed from before this century. Maybe the guy dug reproductive stuff and had it all done to look ancient – like the stuff belonged in a palace somewhere. The cool windows probably made rainbows on the walls. They ran all the way to the second floor with an open concept view. A great room. I remembered studying it in an architecture class at my old high school.
Grace led the way up the winding staircase to the first door on the left. Why am I so comfortable around her? Like I’ve known her forever and yet we’ve barely just met.
Grace chattered at the top of the stairs, “I know what it’s like to be the new kid. If I’d had someone to show me around, it would’ve made things a lot easier.”
Her massive room had a king-size bed and four matching dressers, everything painted with bright and fresh colors. Stepping into her closet, I barely made it two feet. It was easily three times the size of my bedroom. Hundreds of clothes dangled on hangers, organized by color and type. Dresses hung on one side, skirts, pants, tops and blouses on the other. Massive shelves, with more shoes than I dared count, climbed to the ceiling. “Maybe you need to seek professional help.” I laughed, setting my bag on one of the shelves. “Too bad you’re so tiny, or I’d borrow a third of your clothes. You wouldn’t even notice them missing!”
Grace bounced up and down, like an elegant ballet dancer. “Tiny? That’s your polite way of saying I’m short? Ha!” She grinned. “You’re just tall. Everything’ll fit but my pants.” She twirled around the closet. “Sleep over on Saturday. We can get to know each other. It’ll be fun.”
Her face looked so hopeful. Even with the weird nagging feeling still pulling at my gut, I couldn’t say no. “Twist my ar—” I stopped mid-sentence when her door flew open.
“Gracey. You smell something? I smelled it all the way down--”
My heart stuttered a few beats before racing out of control. There, in the closet door frame, stood Michael.
His head whipped from Grace to me. Heat rose on my face. I dropped my gaze to my hands. Grace’s brother. It suddenly felt like I’d unconsciously used her to find him. They looked exactly alike. Why didn’t I put it together sooner?
Grace ran over to him. “Michael, knock before coming in. I tell you that all the time.”
“No you don’t. It’s nev—”
“This is Rouge.” She rubbed her neck. “She’s new. A senior at Port Q.”
“Hello.” His voice made me melt and freeze all over—like fire and ice.
“Ha-hello.” I cleared my throat. “It’s, uh, nice to see you again.”
“You know each other?” Grace’s head swung back and forth between the two of us.
“We ran into each other the other night – that’s all.” Michael's eyes never left my face. He inhaled, stepped out of the room and disappeared down the hall. A door slammed shut and, seconds later, loud music hit the air.
I wanted to disappear. Could his disgust be any more obvious? “I went running in the cemetery. I didn’t know he’s your brother. We just met one time…he helped me find my iPod.”
Grace came over and waved her hand. “Michael’s, like, kind of abrupt. He’s lousy with socializing. What were you doing running in a cemetery at night?” She paused then held up a finger. “On second thought, don’t answer.”
A burning between my shoulder blades reminded me I needed to relax. I took a deep breath. Screw it. Not worth the time. I’d be out of here after graduation so it wasn’t like I had to hang out with him or try to be friends. Nice try, Rouge. You still think he’s cute.
“Don’t you dare change our plans for Saturday.” Grace must have thought my silence meant I didn’t want to be here. She picked out some clothes, led me out of the closet, then flipped the light off. “I’ll tell Michael to get lost for the night. He could do with getting a life.”
“No. Don’t worry. I’m still coming.” I swallowed, glancing down the long hall as we headed for the stairs. “How old is Michael?”
“Just slightly older and trust me, he never lets me forget. I hate to admit it sometimes, but he’s actually my real brother. Sarah and Caleb adopted both of us.”
She took me through the living room, which had a huge flat screen TV and an awesome sound system. One of those wireless ones. The furniture looked antique and expensive, but very comfortable, like it was meant to be sat in. The beige and bright white accents of the room made the abstract artwork on the walls seem like they were painted right where they hung.
A woman, as stunning as Grace, sat at a desk near the window. They could almost pass as sisters. Both had similar features -- the same perfectly tanned skin and beautiful ocean blue eyes. She also had the same extremely feminine physique, but more muscular. She probably did Yoga or Pilates ten times a day.
She had to be Sarah, Grace’s adoptive mom. Sarah’s blonde hair skimmed her shoulders. She grinned and leaned against the desk, her chin fitting perfectly into her little hand. “Hello.”
“Sarah, this is Rouge.”
“Nice to meet you.” I was jealous of her perfect-sounding voice. Bold, sensual and like she feared nothing.
Grace pointed to a burnt red colored door on the other side of the living room. “That’s Caleb’s office.”
The room fell silent at the mention of his name. The butterflies in my tummy started dancing again. I’d never met the guy, so why should I be nervous about his office?
“He’s out this evening.” Sarah stared at Grace. “A meeting out of town.”
The butterflies settled a little, or maybe one managed to escape. I clenched my teeth together. Urrgghh…I hated being nervous.
“Is it okay if we watch a movie in here? If you’ve got work to do…” Grace spoke oblivious to my inner battle.
“Go ahead. I’m going to clean the kitchen then run some errands.” As she stood, a beautiful silver pendant caught my eye. I leaned slightly closer to see the detail but never got the chance. Sarah tucked it inside her blouse.
We settled in to watch the movie. I didn’t remember half of it; my mind kept wandering back to the boy upstairs.
When it finished we both stretched and headed to the hall. “I’d better get you home. Heaven forbid I get you in trouble.”
I laughed. “You won’t. Jim and Sally aren’t much bothered when I come or go.” I sighed when I realized I didn’t have my key. “Shoot! I left my purse upstairs.” I pictured it where I’d dropped it in her closest on one of the shelves. “Just let me run up and grab it.”
“I’m gonna grab a bottle of water. Want one too?” Grace turned back towards the living room and the kitchen beyond.
“Sure.” I darted u
p the stairs two at a time, counting my steps. I sneaked a quick peek down the empty, door-closed hall.
My purse lay right where I’d left it. Head down I checked for my keys as I ran out of Grace’s room. I glanced up in time to bump straight into someone’s chest. Michael’s. His hands reached for my elbows. I froze. He smelled so good – husky, masculine and something that made me want to close my eyes and inhale so deeply the scent saturated my lungs.
It took all my willpower to step back. Why he didn’t move away first skittered across my mind.
“Sorry,” I whispered. “Didn’t see you.”
“It’s fine.” His voice came out husky.
“Did you find it?” Grace called out from the bottom of the stairs.
Michael flinched and dropped his hands. He stepped aside to let me by. “Sorry.”
For bumping into me? Or for earlier? I had no idea.
“Good night, Rouge,” he spoke quietly. The way he said my name, I would have done anything he wanted. No one had ever put that much meaning into one little word.