Ben let his mouth widen into a grin. “I’m sorry, but in my book, the brotherly code is to hassle you as much as possible.”
“You’ve obviously never read that book, because brothers are supposed to cover each other’s backs, not stab them.”
“So do something about it. Stop me. If you don’t want me to date Grace, call her up. Apologize for whatever stupid thing you did and patch things up.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong.” Even as he spoke the words, he knew they weren’t true. He’d known in his heart it was too soon to tell Grace about his feelings for her. Mentioning marriage after two months of dating had sent her into a panic. She’d been completely irrational after his slip-up.
“I understand you believe you’re infallible, but even the great Dr. Brad Gates can make a mistake.” Ben bowed in mock subservience. “Please forgive my audaciousness at making such an unsettling, though astute, observation, Your Greatness.”
Brad snarled his response, “I know I’m not perfect. That’s not the problem.”
“Then what is the problem?”
What was the problem? Why hadn’t he called her or texted her after she’d run away from him, claiming to be dating someone else? Why hadn’t he listened to her when she’d asked to talk to him? Pride—his pride was hurt. He’d never had a girl break up with him before. He’d always been the one to do the leaving.
Ben’s head tilted as he watched the thought process play out on Brad’s face. “Have you had an epiphany, Your Greatness?”
Brad glowered at his impudent brother. “It’s none of your business.” He stomped into his bedroom, slamming the door and sending a picture hurdling to the floor. He heard a faint voice call behind him.
“There’s one other thing you might want to know,” Ben’s smug voice rang out.
Brad pulled the door open with such force it slammed against the wall, denting the sheetrock. “Tell me!”
“She’s planning to bring Horatio to dinner at the Marshall’s tomorrow night.”
Brad grunted and shut the door on his brother’s chuckling. He tried to decipher the meaning of Grace’s actions. She’d been freaked out when he’d spoken of love and marriage after two months of dating, yet she’d worn an engagement ring from this new guy after only a week. Why would she do that? There was only one reason he could think of—she wanted to make him jealous. After seeing him with another girl, she must have been jealous and wanted him to feel the same way. This was good, wasn’t it? If she was jealous, it meant she still cared about him. The new guy was no threat—he was simply a device to get Brad’s attention. He could put an end to this pretense. All he needed to do was call Grace and arrange a meeting. He could momentarily swallow his pride and talk to her. His heart pounded as he reached for his cell phone.
*****
Grace struggled through the door with her packages. She took in the sight of Hannah and Claire lying on the floor in contorted positions as a voice on the television provoked th
em into further torturous movements. “Yoga?” she asked as the bags slipped from her hands to thud on the floor.
“It’s some new kind of Pilates.” Claire managed to squeeze out the words although her chin was wedged against her chest as her entire body curved back over her head.
“Looks comfy,” Grace remarked, with inner amusement. Her two youngest sisters regularly took up every new fitness craze.
“What did you buy?” asked Hannah, twisting her neck to eye the shopping bags.
“One pair of shoes that were too cute to pass up and a bunch of hats.”
“Good call on the hats,” said Claire. “Model them for us.”
Grace pulled out a straw hat with a white bow on one side and propped it on her head. “What do you think?”
“It’s adorable,” said Olivia, emerging from the kitchen with a bowl of ice cream.
Grace regarded the scoops piled high with whipped cream and chocolate syrup and topped with chocolate chips. “Aren’t you hitting the hard stuff a bit early?”
Olivia eased onto the couch, balancing her bowl and spooned a huge bite into her mouth. “Mmmmm.” She swallowed. “I have a six p.m. to six a.m. shift tonight. I’m stocking up energy.”
“Doesn’t that just make your blood sugar drop afterwards?” Grace replaced the straw hat with a floppy blue-jean hat.
“Yeah, that’s what we learned in nursing school, but I don’t care. It’s worth it. That’s pretty cute, too. Where did you find these hats?”
“Some from Century Twenty-One. Some from the resale store. I figure I need a big supply of hats to cover up this scarecrow hair.”
“I’m already used to it,” Hannah huffed as she stood on her head with her knees on her elbows. “It’s not so bad. It’s kind of the color of sweet potato casserole with brown sugar topping.”