“Fine. Then I’m going to pay anyway.”
His abrupt turn drew her up short on the second step.
The fire in his eyes made her hesitate, but then she squared her shoulders. This was for Gram, after all. “Then you’ll have to keep pretending.”
“I won’t.”
Her vantage point a few steps above him lent her courage. “Yes, you will. That stupid pride of yours that won’t take the money in the first place won’t let you refuse.”
His jaw was likely to break if he clenched it any tighter. His one hand on the railing was white-knuckled, and the other clenched into a fist at his side. A deep breath flared his nostrils and had her considering retreat.
She flinched backward as he raised his fist, but all he did was jab his finger toward her. “This is why I didn’t like you. Entitled. Spoiled. Using your money to get people to do your bidding.”
The confirmation of how he really felt about her stung. “That is not what—”
“Save it.” He jerked up a hand and resumed his trek down the stairs with a shake of his head. “In fact, do whatever the hell you want. I’m still done. You’ve had things so damn easy your whole life, damned if I’m going to make it easier for you.”
Easy?
After a second of shock, fury exploded, and Joy stumbled down the steps after him. Her bare feet muffled her approach, and she took him by surprise when she grabbed his arm to pull him around.
“You think my life has been easy?”
He took a half-step back before his expression hardened once more. “Sure looks that way from where I stand. All you have to do is throw some money around, and you get whatever you want.”
“Right. Now, if only Grandpa had had more, maybe my parents wouldn’t have been killed in a car accident when I was two years old. I could’ve grown up with my mom and dad instead of just a picture of them. But, you know, we got the insurance money, so life is good. Especially since it’s going to keep Grandma from forgetting her entire life piece by piece.” Despite the fuel of angry sarcasm, her voice broke, and tears burned her eyes. “And let’s not forget how it kept the man I loved from cheating on me with his secretary.” She’d made her point, but couldn’t help driving it deep. “Yeah, Logan, you’re so right. Money solves everything, and I’m living the dream.”
She whirled around to escape into the house before the tears flowed down her
cheeks. She’d gone from pissed to shattered, and if she let loose now, she might not stop. The thought of breaking down in front of him was mortifying.
Her feet tangled in the forgotten train, pitching her forward with no hope of catching her balance. Her heart lurched as she mentally braced for the fall, but strong arms caught her and set her back on her feet before she hit the ground.
When she glanced up, Logan’s face was nothing but a watery blur. An involuntary blink pushed the moisture past her lashes to splash against her cheeks. His face came into focus, and the remorse that softened his brown gaze made her chest ache.
Just great. Now he felt sorry for her. Poor Joy. Story of her life.
“What in heaven’s name is going on out here?”
Her heart dropped at the sound of her grandma’s distraught voice from up on the porch. She pulled free of Logan’s steadying hold and quickly wiped her face before turning to see Gram hovering outside the screen door, white wedding veil in hand, eyebrows knitted together in concern.
“It’s okay, Grandma. I’ll be right in.”
“It’s not okay. You’re crying, and I heard the two of you yelling at each other.”
After a glace toward the silent, immovable man at her side, she said, “We were just… discussing some things.”
Her grandmother’s frown darkened. “Joy Marie, I did not raise you to lie to me.”
She swallowed past the lump in her throat, hands clasped in front of her, fingers twisting the ring on her left hand. “No, you didn’t. And the truth is…”
Chapter 10
‡
“The truth is, Logan and I are—”
“Like any other normal couple,” Logan cut Joy off.