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  “But I’m not in love with him.” Grace’s chest tightened until she couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t be in love with Brad. They’d only been dating for a couple of months. In fact, she’d broken up with Brad for declaring he was in love with her. The whole idea was ridiculous. She was only feeling guilty because she’d hurt his feelings. And lonely because she missed his company. And depressed because he’d rejected her apology. And despondent because she had so many regrets. That’s all it was—she couldn’t be in love with him.

  “Whatever. I guess it doesn’t matter since you two have broken up, unless you think there’s a chance you might get back together.” Olivia narrowed her eyes at Grace. “Is that why you keep checking your phone? Are you hoping to hear from him?”

  Grace fumbled the phone in her fingers, almost dropping it on the floor. “No, I’m expecting a call from a parent. You know... Problems in the home.” She realized she’d been lying a lot recently. She hoped she could keep all of her stories straight.

  Olivia nodded understanding as she embraced her sister again. “You know what you need? Chocolate!”

  Grace sniffed. “I’m listening...”

  “I’ll go buy a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Chocolate Therapy ice cream.”

  “Are you going to eat with me?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Better make it two.”

  Chapter Three

  Brad was pretending to listen to Ben’s diatribe about marketing strategies when his cell phone rang. He snatched the phone to his ear, answering in an anxious voice, “Hello?”

  “Hey Brad,” said Spencer.

  Brad’s voice fell with his heart. “Oh, it’s you. Hi Spencer.”

  “You sure know how to make a guy feel wanted,” chuckled Spencer. “Who were you expecting?”

  “Nobody,” Brad lied, attempting to lighten his tone. “What’s up?”

  “Emily and I were planning to invite you and Grace to come over and watch the baseball game Friday night. Do you have other plans? She hasn’t gotten back with us yet.”

  “I won’t be able to come over to watch the Yankees with you Friday night, because I’m actually going to be at the game.”

  “Awesome—I’m so jealous. I’ll just tell Emily you and Grace are going to be at the game.”

  “Grace isn’t going with me to the game. We broke up.” The words squeezed through his tightened lips.

  “You broke up? Are you kidding me? You and Grace? I mean... I’m sorry, Brad. What happened?”

  “I’d rather not talk about it. I’m sure Grace will still want to come over and watch the game with you.”

  “But surely it’s just a temporary thing. You guys were great together. Maybe you waited too long to give her a ring. You know I almost made that mistake with Emily.”

  “No, we only dated two months.” Brad attempted to keep the sour note from his voice. “And trust me, she didn’t want a ring from me.”

  Ben held up his hand. “Tell Spencer I’m available Friday night.”

  Brad glared at his brother as he debated passing on his request to Spencer. He didn’t want Ben spending the evening with Grace. But Spencer had heard Ben speaking. “Who’s that?”

  Brad’s breath whistled through clenched teeth. “My brother, Ben, is here. He’s inviting himself to your house Friday night, but don’t feel obligated. I’m sure you have other friends—”

  “Ben!” Spencer’s enthusiastic voice responded. “Sure, we’d love to have your brother over if he’s not going to the game with you. He kept Emily rolling with his stories the last time we got together.”

  “But it might make Grace feel awkward,” Brad objected, knowing his excuse was lame.

  “No, she loves Ben... I mean... She likes him... I mean... And anyway, she hasn’t responded to Emily’s text, so she might not be coming.”

  Brad felt his blood pounding in his temples. Why had he accepted Kara’s invitation to the baseball game? He glowered at Ben, whose smile looked exactly like The Joker in Batman.

  *****

  Emily felt like a boa constrictor was squeezing her neck. “No! Grace and Brad can’t break up!”

  Spencer pulled her into his arms and kissed her hair. “I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, but they already did. Brad said they broke up last Friday.”

  “Why?” she croaked out. “Why would he break up with her?”

  “He didn’t say what happened. But knowing Grace, I’d bet she was the one who broke it off. He just said they weren’t together anymore, and he’s going to the Yankees game without her.”

  “Why do you think it was Grace who broke up?”

  Spencer scrunched up his shoulders. “She always does that. I don’t think she’s ever dated a guy longer than two or three months.”

  “What can we do? I really thought Grace and Brad might be getting married not long after we do.” Emily couldn’t help the smile that appeared on her face as she glanced at the engagement ring gracing her finger. She’d only been wearing it for two weeks, and she still hadn’t gotten over her excitement.

  A deep furrow appeared on Spencer’s face. “Nothing—there’s nothing we can do except be there for Grace and Brad. It’s not our place to interfere.”

  Emily pulled her lips into a tight line. She certainly didn’t agree with Spencer, but she didn’t want to start a fight. “Don’t you think Grace would be interfering if you and I broke up?”

  “Yes, I know she’d be interfering—she and Olivia and Hannah and Claire would all interfere. They’ve been interfering ever since they were born, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea. Believe me. I know what it’s like to live with four meddling sisters.”

  “You know you love your sisters.”

  “Of course I love them, but that doesn’t mean they don’t drive me crazy.”

  “You’re not willing to help Grace in her time of need?”

  “I’m willing to give her all the help she needs, but only if she asks for it. So we need to stay clear and let them work it out themselves. If it doesn’t work out, it wasn’t meant to be. And you’d better not get involved, okay?”

  Emily chewed on the inside of her cheek as she contemplated Spencer’s words. As long as she didn’t make any promises, she could still find some way to help. Olivia would know what to do. “What about Friday night?” she asked.

  “Well it turns out Ben is in town, so I invited him over. Do you think that’s okay?”

  “Sure—he’s a lot of fun. But is Grace coming? She never replied to my text message. At least now I understand why.”

  “I’m hoping she’ll come for dinner since it’s just going to be Ben and us,” said Spencer. “I don’t think Ben would give her a hard time.”

  “Well I hope she comes. I bet she’s depressed,” she said, thinking this was the perfect opportunity to sort out this mess before it got any worse. Surely it wasn’t too late to salvage their relationship.

  “Emily...”

  “Huh?”

  “I can see the wheels turning in your head. You wouldn’t be planning to interfere would you? Not after we just agreed we shouldn’t?”

  “No Spencer. I promise I won’t go against our agreement.” It was certainly fortunate she’d never actually agreed.

  *****

  Grace had avoided Josh’s phone calls for two days—she simply couldn’t bear to hear about Brad’s rejection of her peace offering. She could call Brad herself, but she didn’t want to hear the pain and animosity she knew would be in his voice, especially since she was totally to blame. But she believed everything happened for a reason. So if Brad wouldn’t accept her apology, it must mean they weren’t supposed to be together. Right?

  Why did this breakup hurt so much more than the others? She knew the answer—she had broken her own dating rules and allowed herself to become attached to Brad. Well, she wouldn’t let that happen again. She was a pro at emotional detachment in dating. She’d done it before, and she could do it again. She was strong. She wo
uldn’t allow herself to be controlled by her feelings.

  Her brother’s fiancée, Emily, had been controlled by her emotions. She’d gone crazy when she thought she’d lost Spencer, and her impulsive actions had almost been disastrous. Granted, everything worked out in the end, but Grace was determined to remain in control of her emotions and her actions. She wouldn’t repeat Emily’s mistakes.

  She took a deep breath and steadied her nerves before calling Josh. “Hi Josh,” she spoke with a light, airy voice. “I’m sorry I’ve missed your calls—I’ve been really busy.”

  “Too busy to try and save your relationship with Brad?” She didn’t miss his accusing tone.

  “Look Josh. I did try. He turned me down, just like I predicted. So I have to get on with my life.”

  “When did you try? He told me on Tuesday he hadn’t heard from you at all.”

  “Then he’s lying to you. I totally apologized and really put myself out there, asking for another chance. But he never even responded.”

  “Are you telling me he didn’t speak to you? He just stood there and looked at you?”

  “Well... No... I never actually spoke to him.”

  “Grace—”

  “But I tried! I went there Tuesday morning, just like I promised. But I didn’t get to see him. I had to leave my card and flowers with one of the nurses—her name was Leanne.”

  “In the ER?”

  “Yes. But I didn’t see you either.” A nagging doubt invaded her mind. “Are you sure he was on duty Tuesday morning?”

  “We were both there, but I don’t think he ever got your flowers and card. At least I never saw them, and he didn’t tell me about them.”

  Grace had a sinking feeling. If he’d never received her card, he didn’t even know she’d apologized. He’d had almost three more days thinking she was dating someone else. To her distress, she felt tears stinging her eyes. How could she possibly have any tears left after crying every day for almost a week? A sob escaped her lips—so much for controlling her emotions.

  “Please Grace, don’t cry. I’ll figure it out. Maybe it’s lying around in the ER office somewhere. Which nurse did you say took your stuff?”

  “She said her name was Leanne. She was tall and pretty with long blond hair.”

  “Okay. I’ll see what I can do. Or you could just call him on the cell phone,” he suggested.

  Grace’s heart pounded and her eyes were suddenly dry. “Okay. I’ll call him. I’ll call him as soon as we hang up.”

  “Good. You can do this, Grace. I’m pulling for you. I’ll hang up now and let you call him.”

  The phone trembled in her fingers as she punched Brad’s speed dial for the first time since Friday night. She hadn’t even thought about what she would say to him when he answered. She would just throw herself on his mercy.

  She heard his voice in her ear, “You have reached Dr. Brad Gates. I am currently unavailable. If this is an emergency, please call—”

  Grace disconnected. What could she possibly say in a message? She had to talk to him directly.

  *****

  Brad allowed an expletive to slip between his lips as he stared at the small green symbol on his cell phone. Grace had called. Finally. After almost a week of waiting, she’d called him and hadn’t even left a message. At this point, could she possibly say anything he would want to hear? Would she tell him she’d already broken up with her new guy? Would she say the other boyfriend had never existed and admit she’d lied? Or maybe she was still with her mystery man, but she’d finally felt some compassion for Brad over her method of breaking up. No, he couldn’t imagine any words that would ease the ache in his heart. He’d really thought he was in love with Grace, but she wasn’t the girl he thought she was.

  His phone vibrated before he could put it away. He froze—Grace was calling again. Should he answer? Maybe she was truly sorry for her crazy actions. Maybe it was just a fluke. Maybe they could try again—a fresh start.

  “Dr. Gates!” called a nurse. “They need you. Car accident—two just arrived. One is critical.”

  He sighed as he turned off his phone. “I’m coming.”

  *****

  Grace hung up when Brad’s cell went to voice mail again. Immediately, her phone rang and she answered, pressing her hand to her stomach, “Hello?”

  “Hi Grace. It’s Emily.”

  She blinked against sudden tears. “Hi Emily.”

  “Are you okay? You sound upset.”

  “No, I’m fine. I was... I was watching a sad show on TV.”

  “Oh really? What are you watching?”

  Scrambling once again to cover a lie, Grace answered with the first thing that came to mind. “Big Bang Theory.”

  “Big Bang Theory? And it was sad?”

  “Well... Yes I always feel sorry for Sheldon because no one understands him.”

  “Okay... I would never have thought of that. You certainly are sensitive. Uhmm, are you coming over on Friday night.”

  Grace hesitated. “Emily, I have to tell you something.”

  “Listen Grace, we know about the breakup. Brad told Spencer about it. But Brad’s not coming Friday night, and we still want you to come.”

  “What did Brad tell Spencer?” Grace hoped Emily couldn’t detect the slight tremor in her voice.

  “Nothing, really. He didn’t give any details. Do you want to talk about it? Spencer claims you probably broke up with Brad because you don’t do long relationships. Is that true?”

  “Yes, it’s true. I don’t do long, and I don’t do serious. I broke it off, and it’s for the best.”

  “But I really thought you guys were in love, like Spencer and me.”

  “Oh no, I’m not in love with Brad. It’s only been two months—it’s way too soon. And would I break up with him if I were in love with him?” Silence greeted her on the other end of the phone. “Emily? Are you there?”

  “Uhmm, yeah. It’s just that... Oh never mind.”

  “No. What? What were you going to say?”

  “Well, I don’t want you to get mad, but Josh just called me.”

  Grace felt a sudden urge to buy a gun. She spoke in a terse voice, “What did he tell you?”

  “Don’t be upset with him—I already knew y’all had broken up. Josh just thought you might need a little encouragement to call Brad and fix things up. And he told me about Horatio.”

  Grace groaned. “Josh is worse than my sisters at keeping secrets.”

  “So did you call Brad? Are y’all going to talk?”

  “I called,” Grace admitted, “but he didn’t answer.”

  “So you really do love Brad? And you want to get back together? Because I’ll do anything to help. You know that—”

  “No—I’m not in love with Brad. I just... I feel bad for hurting him.”

  “Okay, if you say so.” Emily sounded unconvinced.

  “Really,” Grace insisted. “And like Josh said, I’m dating Horatio now.”

  “Are you bringing him over on Friday night?”

  “No. He uhmm... He has to work.”

  “Where does he work?”

  “He works...” Why did she keep backing herself into corners with these lies? “He waits tables at a restaurant—at Per Se.”

  “Isn’t that a really expensive place?”

  “Yeah, it’s really pricey. Too bad we can’t go there and meet him, but we can’t afford it.”

  “Oh, I bet Steven would take us. That would be fun—so we could all meet him.”

  Grace felt beads of perspiration on her forehead. She’d forgotten about Emily’s generous and wealthy stepfather and his penchant for taking all their friends to expensive restaurants. “But he only works part time, because he’s in school.”

  “What’s he studying?”

  “Uhmm... Meteorology.”

  “Okay, well I guess we’ll meet him eventually. Right? Unless you get back together with Brad,” said Emily.

  “I’m afraid that’s not
going to happen. I don’t think Brad even wants to talk to me.” Grace’s tongue felt thick as she spoke the words. It was as if saying it made it true.

  “So about tomorrow night... Are you still coming over to Spencer’s to watch the baseball game? I forgot to tell you, Ben’s going to be there. You don’t mind, do you? We asked you first, so we could tell him not to come.”

  “Brad’s brother, Ben?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “No, I don’t mind him being there. He’s fun.”

  “Maybe he’ll cheer you up a little.”

  “Maybe. I mean... Not that I need cheering up. I’m fine—really.”

  “Okay, we’ll see you tomorrow night. But call me if you want to talk,” said Emily.

  A voice behind Grace caused her to jump as she ended her phone call. “You look to me like you could use cheering up,” said Olivia. “Who was that on the phone? I’m guessing it wasn’t Brad, and you two haven’t patched things up.”

  “It was Emily calling about tomorrow night. I’m going to watch the baseball game with her and Spencer. And Ben is going to be there—Brad’s brother. You could come if you want.”

  Olivia scrunched up her nose. “No thanks. I’ll pass on a night of watching guys scratch and spit while occasionally throwing a ball.”

  “I can’t believe you don’t like baseball. It’s very un-American of you.”

  “Please don’t tell anyone I’m a communist because I hate watching baseball. It’s just so boring. On the other hand, seeing Ben might almost make up for it. He’s pretty cute, although he is a bit arrogant.”

  “I don’t really feel like going,” said Grace.

  “So you do need cheering up. Do you want ice cream again?”

  “Ughh! No, my stomach is too upset.”

  “Shopping therapy?”

  “No, I’m kind of short on funds right now.”

  “Beauty therapy?”

  Grace chuckled, “I could certainly use some of that. I know I look a mess right now.”

  “We could do manicures and pedicures.”

  “I’ve got a better idea,” said Grace as her spirits lifted. “Let’s color my hair.”

  “Really? What’s wrong with your hair color?”

  “I just think a change would lift my spirits. The other day I saw a really pretty girl with blond hair. I think I’d look good with blond hair instead of brown.”