Page 59 of Something Borrowed

Grady pounded the nail into the wood trellis so hard that he cracked the wood.

“Son of a bitch.”

Wyatt glanced at him from the other end of the pole. “Everything okay there, buddy?”

Grady shot him a grouchy look. “Does it sound like it?”

“I’m just thinking maybe I should do the hammering and you should hold everything in place, from a safe distance, like the mainland. There isn’t a lot of spare wood right now for this, and we don’t have time to build a new one.”

Grady threw the hammer aside and made a loud sound of frustration. “Goddamn it.”

Matthew walked over with a couple of beers and sandwiches. “Time for a break, guys.”

Wyatt scrambled up. “Thank God. I was afraid he was going to use that hammer on me. Mmmm, roast beef.”

“We’re Texans. Would I give you anything but beef?” Matthew said, handing him a beer.

“Better not. I’d have to turn in my man card. Right, Grady?”

Grady hadn’t budged from his kneeling position next to the trellis laid out on the grass. His head was bowed, and he felt broken deep inside, sure that his heart had fractured into a hundred little pieces. Matthew laid a hand on his shoulder, strong and solid, pulling him back to reality. Grady looked up to the sympathy in his brother’s gaze.

“Come on, let’s eat. We can finish this later.”

Grady remained kneeling, hands clasped in front of him. Matthew and Wyatt sat a short distance away, eating and watching and waiting. “I shouldn’t have pushed her away.”

“You did what you had to do,” Wyatt offered.

Grady’s head shot up. “No, I just told her I could handle her job. And then, the first time she has to work, I blow up. Some understanding guy I am.”

“She didn’t have to go,” Wyatt said.

“You heard Matthew. The deal got moved up, and she had to go in.”

“She didn’t have to go,” Matthew echoed Wyatt’s words.

Grady stared at him. “What?”

Matthew shrugged. “She could have said no. That’s what’s pissing Caroline off. Brigid could have said no.”

“Did Brigid know that?” Grady narrowed his eyes, laser-focused on his brother.

Matthew sighed. “I don’t know. They don’t exactly give you a lot of options, but you were right. She could have set the boundaries, and she didn’t. Work will always come first with her. It’s better that you found it out now and not later.”

“It always comes first for you. Why should it be different because it’s Brigid?” Grady demanded.

“That’s not what I meant, Grady. She’s so focused on her career and you’re not. I think it’s better this way.” Matthew spoke soothingly, but it only irritated Grady more.

“I wasn’t threatened by her career at all.”

“Really? Then why did you demand she stay when she said she had to go?”

“I made a goddamn mistake!” he yelled.

“And I don’t think you did.” Matthew’s tone was reasonable.

Grady snarled. “You don’t think I’m good enough for her? For her world? A contractor can’t fit into law firm parties?”

Matthew raised his hands as if warding off Grady. “I never said that. You just come from two different worlds and neither of you could be happy in each other’s world.”

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