Page 32 of Something Borrowed

He stopped dead and whirled around so fast she couldn’t stop and ran into him. He steadied her with his arms. “And that’s the fundamental difference between us, Brigid. Growing up doesn’t mean stop having fun and enjoying life. It’s not all work.”

“Maybe not for you, Grady, but it is for me. I don’t have your luxury to make my own hours and decide if I want to work that day or not.”

He took a step back, stung by her words. “Is that what you think of me? That I screw around with my business?” He grabbed her by the upper arms and pulled her close. He leaned down and spoke directly into her face. “Pay close attention, Brigid. I own my business, which means I have even more responsibility for success. If I don’t work, I don’t get paid. I also have employees. If I don’t get us jobs, we don’t get paid. You’re not the only one who works their ass off every day. I just know that you can’t work all the time. I work to live, not live to work. It’s called a balanced life. You might want to try it sometime.”

He released her, and she stumbled back a few steps, stunned by his words. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, but no sound came out.

He stepped back, dropping his arms to his side, shoulders slumping. “Now, I’m going to play in the bumper cars. You can join me or not. Your choice. But I’m done with this bullshit.”

He strode away, anger riding him hard. Hopefully, there weren’t little kids in the bumper cars. He had some serious anger issues to work out, and he didn’t want to bully little kids.

* * *

Brigid stared at his rapidly retreating back, stunned at his words and, if she were honest with herself, embarrassed by her assumptions. She heard her father’s voice in her words, heard his constant pressure to work and succeed, heard his snobbish attitude toward other professions. It was the reason she never introduced Grady to her parents, never invited him to her house in Dallas for the holidays, and certainly never brought him to dinner on the rare occasions her parents came to Houston. But their relationship hadn’t been that way, or so she told herself. Looking back, it had been more than pure stress relief. She had to admit that now. He had been a staunch friend to her, more than pure sex. If it had just been sex, then they wouldn’t have shared half of what they had over the years. Yet, she still held so much back, and she hadn’t even realized it.

She was ashamed of herself for acting like she did, and for hurting Grady. How the heck could he still want a relationship with her when she was such a bitch? Despite all the nice things he had said earlier, she knew the score. He didn’t fit into her new life and he’d be miserable and she’d hate to ruin his life that way.

A kid banged into her, ricocheting into the crowd, just enough to shake her out of her thoughts and remind her of why they were there. They needed to stay together if they wanted to have a chance at winning, and he had the list. She’d be damned if she’d let anyone else win without a fight.

Grady was almost out of sight, swallowed by the crowds and distance, but she knew where he was going. She threaded her way through the throngs and got in line for the bumper cars, a couple of people behind him. Instead of calling out to him, she decided to wait and surprise him.

She got to the front of the line and they cut her off from Grady’s group, splitting the family. The father turned and gestured to her to go in front of him, and she thanked him quickly and slipped into a car just as it was starting. She angled away from the boards and looked for Grady. He was on the other side of the arena, looking fierce while battling a couple of older teens. She grinned and sped over there as fast as the tiny car would let her, which honestly wasn’t that fast at all. In fact, she could stroll faster.

Aiming directly for Grady’s car, she t-boned him full on, causing him to jerk and shout.

“Pick on someone your own size, buddy!”

The boy laughed and engaged, all of them surrounding Grady and attacking. Grady looked startled, then an intense look crossed his face. He hunched over the wheel and headed right for her, spinning her out of control into the boards. She jerked to a stop and glimpsed his gloating face as he sped by, headed after one of the kids.

Bastard. No way would she let him win.

It took her a few tries, but she finally got out of the corner and she went in search of Grady, finding him in a battle on the other side, pinned to the wall—three against one. He had a look of unholy glee on his face. She had to even out the odds.

“Need a little help there, cowboy?” She rammed one of the kids, sending him into a pole and then the wall.

Grady shot her a glance and darted out into the hole she made for him. They battled against the teens for the next several minutes until the bell sounded to return the cars. By the time Brigid had gotten out of the car, Grady was there to help her, and they were both laughing like lunatics. The kids stopped them on their way out.

“Awesome, dude. Thanks! Killer driving, lady!”

Grady wrapped an arm around Brigid casually, pulling her close to him, and she slipped her hand around his waist to steady herself. “Never insult a lady driver.”

They all laughed and broke apart. The attendant called them over. “Want your picture, man?”

“Picture?”

The kid gestured to the monitor where a picture of them in the cars showed, both of them laughing. Brigid hugged Grady. “We got our picture.”

“I told you it wasn’t a waste of time. And it was fun!”

“Fine, it was fun. You happy? But now I’m starving. Feed me.”

They grabbed the picture and headed for the food area, his arm still around her and hers around him.

ChapterFourteen

Brigid stared at the food area of the fair with growing dismay. Her stomach immediately protested both the lack of food and the choices before her. Polish sausages. Fried dough. Hot dogs. Hamburgers. Nachos. Antacid companies would have made a fortune here.

Shit. She patted her pockets. She had forgotten her purse and her antacids. Oh, this was going to truly be a night from hell. She clenched her hand, and Grady grunted in response. “Sorry. Reflex.”

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