24. Grace
TWENTY-FOUR
Grace
Dane seemed nervous as we left the apartment. Well, as close to nervous as he ever got. A wrinkle of worry between his eyes and a tight frown instead of his easy smile.
“I called the nurse while you were in the shower,” he said. “It sounds like mom is having a good day. But that’s relative, you know? Hard to tell how things will go until we’re there.”
“I get it.”
“Mind if we stop at a bakery on the way? Mom has a weakness for strawberry tarts.” A smile reappeared on his gorgeous face. “Kind of like you and your cheesecake. You moaned more eating that than when I had my mouth on you last night.”
That was so not true. But he had me grinning as I remembered how much I had enjoyed both experiences. “Never stand between a woman and her dessert.”
“Words to live by.”
He’d said his parents’ place was within walking distance. I expected I would see his father there, and I wasn’t looking forward to it.
Mr. Knightly hadn’t been rude to me last night. He had laughed at my little joke about Dane being charming. But he hadn’t been welcoming either. It didn’t matter so much what Dane’s father thought of me , though. I cared a lot more about whatever he had said to upset Dane before I found him out on the balcony.
Dane could obviously fight his own battles, but I was starting to feel protective of him. Maybe that was silly when the man was a decorated soldier and richer than I could ever dream of being. But for all his over-the-top confidence, Dane was incredibly kind and generous and intelligent too. It made me angry that his father didn’t value him.
How was it possible for anyone to get to know this man and not think the world of him?
At least it was a beautiful day. It was chillier than yesterday, and I wore a coat that Dane had bought me at one of the boutiques. It was off-white and made of wool, both warm and fashionable enough to wear with my gown to the wedding tonight. Dane looked effortlessly handsome with his dark-gray peacoat and a navy cashmere scarf.
We stopped at the bakery, where Dane greeted the woman behind the counter by name, and she grinned so wide when she saw him it was like the sun coming up. She went right to the strawberry tarts in the case. Dane bought four of them, since they were individually sized, and the woman boxed them up.
The building where his parents lived was half a block away. The doorman ushered us in, warmly greeting Dane, and then we were in the elevator and on our way up.
I started fidgeting, but Dane reached for my hand and squeezed it.
I was surprised when he didn’t use a key, knocking at the door instead, but it opened up almost that same moment. I assumed the doorman downstairs had called up.
“Morning, Dane!”
“Hey, Mary Beth. Good to see you. This is Grace.” After I greeted her, Dane tugged me along by my hand as my head swiveled, amazed that this place was called an apartment at all. It was huge. Beautifully decorated. Yet, unlike Dane’s place, it actually felt like people lived here.
When we walked into the kitchen, a woman in an apron exclaimed, “Look who it is!”
She gave him a hug, and Dane introduced her as Rhiannon, their chef.
Rhiannon gasped. “You’ve brought a young lady home? How exciting. Will you and your girlfriend stay for lunch?”
He smiled, glancing over at me, but he didn’t correct her. “Sadly, I don’t think we’ll have time for lunch. Lots to do before the wedding.”
The chef pursed her lips and dropped her voice to a murmur. “I’m just glad I’m not the caterer. Your brother’s future wife has been putting them through their paces.”
Dane barked a laugh and patted her on the shoulder. “I’m glad you were spared that as well.”
Rhiannon gave me a conspiratorial look and dropped her voice. “But if my favorite member of the Knightly family needs a wedding caterer in the future,” she said in a mock whisper, “I’d be happy to do it. Just don’t tell this one I said he was my favorite.”
Oh lordy. I felt my blush getting even worse.
But Dane just laughed again and put his arm around me. “We’ll let you know.” He asked for some plates and silverware, and Rhiannon went to grab them, along with some linen napkins.
“Shouldn’t you tell her that we’re not…” I whispered.
He shrugged. “Doesn’t do any harm. Let her think what she wants. Easier than explaining our weekend arrangement.”
“Good point.” It was getting harder for me to explain it even to myself. And the fact that it would be over in just a few days.
Dane was…wow. So much more than I’d imagined he would be.
I wasn’t the only one who saw it, either. Everyone we’d met this morning seemed to love him.
I helped carry the plates and napkins, and we went up a grand staircase to the second floor. Again, how was this called an apartment when it was the size of a mansion? I kept bracing myself to run into his father, but there was no sign of the man. Until I saw the photos on the walls upstairs. I recognized Dennis and Kip Knightly from meeting them last night. And there was a younger Dane in all his handsome glory, though his smiles didn’t look so bright.
A beautiful blond woman stood beside the Knightly men, her charisma vibrant even through the two-dimensional images.
That had to be Dane’s mom. Isadora.
Dane didn’t glance at the photos, instead ushering me along. “Mom’s wing is this way.” We went down a hall, then stepped into a room full of cabinets and shelves holding medical supplies. A woman wearing purple scrubs looked up from organizing the contents of a plastic box and smiled.
“Well, well. You’re back in town. We missed you.”
“I brought someone special with me. Grace, this is Jasmine Choi. Chief of medicine around here.”
“Oh, this man and his flattery.” Jasmine’s eyes twinkled. “But I’m assuming you know about that, Grace.”
I nodded. “Believe me, I do.”
“Izzy’s in the sitting room. She’s in fine form today. You can go on in. I see you’ve brought her favorite?”
“Yep, and extra for you.”
Jasmine shook her head. “You’re hell on my blood sugar,” she muttered. “Go on.”
Dane’s hand slid back into mine. He hesitated for a split second, a cloud passing over his features. Then we walked through the doorway into the next room. “Hey, Mom. How are you this morning?”
A woman in her sixties with thick, gray-blond hair sat on the couch. She wore light-blue pants, a turtleneck, and a cardigan draped over her shoulders. She arched one sculpted eyebrow. “I’m all right, but they insist on keeping it colder than a witch’s butthole in winter around here.”
I snorted a shocked laugh, and Dane grinned. “I’ll see about turning up the thermostat. Mom, this is Grace O’Neal. And Grace, this is Isadora Knightly. Izzy to her friends.”
She grasped my hand. “I can’t promise to remember your name. The old memory isn’t what it once was.” Her manicured finger tapped against her temple. “But I can promise to try.”
“That’s all any of us can do, right?” I sat in the chair across from her.
“I like those glasses. They make you look smart. That’s good. You’ll keep us on our toes.”
“I can promise to try,” I said, and she laughed, pointing a finger at me.
“A sense of humor too. Thank goodness. Hardly anyone else around here has one of those.”
Dane set the tarts and the plates on the coffee table, lowering himself gently onto the couch beside his mom. I mostly stayed quiet as Dane chatted with her. It was hard to tell if she recognized him exactly, but she seemed to be enjoying herself. Especially when he served the tarts.
She continued with her sharp quips too, and I could imagine how this woman had the determination to win Olympic medals and climb mountains. It wasn’t fair that a disease was causing Izzy’s mind to fail her.
Yet watching Dane with her… It was a whole new side of him that made me admire the man even more.
After an hour, Jasmine came in. “Sorry to break up the party, but Miss Izzy is probably getting tired.”
Izzy huffed. “You would think I had important places to be with the schedule they keep me on.”
Jasmine chuckled. “Two more minutes.” She left the room.
Dane sat forward, elbows on his knees. “Mom, today is Kip’s wedding. I don’t know if he had a chance to come by and see you lately, but I’m sure he wishes you could be there.”
“That sounds nice.” She did seem like she was tiring out. Her gaze had started to lose focus.
But after Dane said he loved her and kissed her cheek, she looked straight into his eyes.
“Your brother’s been having a terrible time. They’ve…they’ve been…”
“You mean Kip ? Has he been here to see you?” Izzy didn’t respond. Dane reached for her hand. “Mom, has Kip been here? Did he say something to you?”
“There’s a lady who helps me sometimes. Could you ask her to come in here? I’m tired.”
Dane sat back, emotions playing across his face before they vanished. Like he was pulling a mask into place. “Sure, Mom. I’ll go get Jasmine.” He lifted his chin at me. “We’d better head out.”