Chapter 5 #2
She didn’t push but rather waited as the silence stretched out between them. It wasn’t uncomfortable as they stood next to one another, sharing what felt like a bubble of safety for the next few moments.
Reese stared up at the house, where Sydney—by way of Grant—knew she’d spent her childhood. It was hard to fathom growing up in such a massive compound, six or seven bedrooms along with a pool house that was at least the size of an apartment.
She wondered what Reese saw when she looked at the house. A childhood home filled with love and support? A too-big, artificially curated compound where the family lived separate lives? Something in between, good memories mingled with bad that made Reese’s return all the more complicated?
Grant had always been very focused in the present.
What was happening with the business. Where they’d go for dinner.
How Sydney’s promotional deals were coming along.
He discussed his father with regards to his management of The Devereux Group.
He ignored his mom’s seemingly well-intentioned check-ins on the sparing weekends when Sydney was with him in Boston.
“I was thinking about it on the way over,” Reese finally said, shifting her focus to meet Sydney’s.
“And where have you landed?”
Reese slipped her hand inside Sydney’s. “We’ve gotta be able to sell it. Are you okay with that?”
She liked how Reese’s slightly smaller hand felt in her own, warm and soft. She gave it a light squeeze. “United front?”
Reese nodded, an errant strand of that gorgeous hair dropping across her forehead. She quickly tucked it behind her ear before giving Sydney a surprisingly charming smile. “United front.”
And then, hand in hand, they walked into the house together.
Blessedly, they made it to the backyard without running into anyone except a member of the house staff, who opened the front door.
Once they’d passed through the French doors that led to the immaculately decorated patio area, Sydney’s limbs started buzzing.
This was getting real.
The backyard, which included the patio, pool, and a flat, meticulously manicured grassy area, was decked out in blooming flowers; linen-covered tables with a smattering of serving platters holding food that, even from afar, made Sydney’s mouth water; and, to top the ambiance off, an abundance of well-dressed, middle-aged members of the New England upper crust that Sydney spared no more than a passing glance.
She’d lived her life in the world of professional tennis. There was very little these people could do that would make them more pretentious than anything or anyone she’d seen up until this point.
Beyond the landscaping, which created a beautiful backdrop for an afternoon outdoors, the yard sloped down until it reached the ocean. At the shoreline, a wide dock that could handle at least a small yacht was set.
Reese kept their hands entangled, giving Sydney’s a quick squeeze as they approached her mother.
“Hey, Mom.” Reese leaned forward and kissed her mother’s cheek. Sydney preemptively tensed her shoulders, watching curiously to see what Sharon Devereux’s response would be.
“Darling! You made it,” Sharon said, already gesturing for a server to bring them drinks. “It’s nice to see you again, Sydney.”
And it seemed like Sharon… meant it?
Sydney wasn’t sure of the narrative Grant had hawked to his family, but she had no false ideations that she’d come out looking like the scorned party.
Sharon seemed to hold no grudges. Or else she was toeing a diplomatic party line between both of her children.
“It’s nice to see you again, too, Mrs. Devereux,” Sydney said, tipping her head down in acknowledgment. She’d give Sharon credit for Reese, at least.
The few times she’d interacted with Reese and Grant’s mom before now, Sharon had always been relatively meek, aware of the conversations in a room but generally content to let them play out around her. Sydney was sure she was an astute woman, but she gave very little away.
“Have you said hello to Grant yet?” Sharon asked Reese.
She watched as Reese scanned the crowd of about two dozen people. “We just arrived. I thought you said the party started at three? ”
“Some of your father’s associates have to leave by four p.m., so they arrived about an hour ago.”
Sydney would have killed someone if she was hosting a party and guests showed up that early. She assumed Reese felt the same way, given how her posture straightened, eyes narrowing as she scanned the party.
Though Sydney knew the party was likely to be more of an affair than Reese had let on, her date seemed genuinely surprised at the number of people already milling about, patting one another on the back as plumes of cigar smoke wafted into the sky.
“Are you ready to do this?” She felt Reese’s soft breath against the shell of her ear; an involuntary shiver worked its way down her spine.
“Now or never.” She couldn’t even manage to be embarrassed at the throaty whisper of her voice as the remnants of the unexpected touch dissipated.
Reese led her through the crowd and over to where Grant was standing with a group of a few people within their age range.
Eyes were on them immediately, the men giving them both a once-over before zeroing in on their clasped hands.
Sydney looked down at their interlocked hands once more, finding it a source of both comfort and strength.
When she took a deep breath and looked up, scanning the group, she recognized Adam Moore. He was one of Grant’s friends she’d met in Boston. They’d done dinner and drinks a few times, Adam always with a different woman on his arm.
There was only one other woman in the group, whom Sydney had seen in person once before. She wouldn’t qualify the interaction as ‘having met’ her.
“Hi, Grant,” Reese said as she stepped into the circle, the half-dozen bodies parting to make room for her and Sydney.
“Reese.” Grant offered her a minimal greeting, but it seemed like they’d all silently agreed to move on from the theatrics of yesterday. He swiped a lock of hair from his forehead before slotting his hand into the front pocket of his khaki trousers .
Then, like he’d thought better of it, he dug his hand out so that he could place it on the small of Brynn’s back.
In spite of feeling like she’d just stumbled into a meat market, Sydney liked that there’d be an audience. She hoped it would keep everyone, including herself, on their best behavior.
“And you must be Brynn,” Reese said, stepping forward again and extending her free hand. “I’m sorry it’s taken this long for us to meet, but let me officially say congratulations in person.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Reese.” Brynn was soft-spoken, far quieter than Sydney had expected.
“And this is my girlfriend, Sydney,” Reese added, like Brynn may not know.
She may not have.
But what Grant lacked in scruples, he did make up for in partners with impeccable fashion sense, at least.
Seemingly disinterested in following the status quo of wearing the traditional white, Brynn was dressed in an expertly fitted navy dress with gold buttons running down the center. Her blonde hair was tousled but loose, falling about an inch above her shoulders.
Quieter and more understated.
Was this what Grant was after? A Stepford wife who’d better fit into the WASPy New England scene?
Sydney shook the thought away. While she knew what Grant had done and the full extent of his culpability, she wasn’t going to make any assumptions about Brynn’s involvement in the affair. Not without more information.
The fateful day in Boston, when everything had changed, Sydney hadn’t actually looked at Brynn closely. She’d been too focused on Grant, on how he was touching her so intimately.
All of her brain power had gone toward trying to find any reasonable explanation for what she was looking at.
Now she was at this moment, almost exactly a year later, at her ex-boyfriend’s sister’s side, about to meet the new fiancée over canapés and obscenely overpriced champagne .
What a difference a year could make.
Truly, she wasn’t even sure if Brynn had seen her. Especially since Brynn was looking at her now, more curious than bitter, like she was wondering how Sydney fit into everything.
Brynn extended her hand, still speaking quietly when she said, “To be honest, I’m not sure what the protocol is for meeting my fiancé’s ex, but you look beautiful.”
Sydney gave Reese a moony smile before shifting her attention back to Brynn. “Thank you; so do you. And my past with Grant is water under the bridge as far as I’m concerned.”
She didn’t spare Grant a look as she spoke, knowing he’d hate that.
“It’s been a minute, Sydney,” Adam said, pulling the conversation back to the correct side of just-shy-of-awkward.
“Nice to see you again, Adam.” He wasn’t even in the top one hundred people she’d be excited to see out on the street, but at this moment, he was Jesus performing a miracle as far as she was concerned.
Adam looked between Sydney and Reese. “How’d you two link up?”
Scratch that. Clearly, he wasn’t wasting any time today ferreting out information for Grant.
She and Reese had already had this conversation, the story of how they’d fallen into one another’s lives at just the right time.
Sadly—for Hallie, at least—her best friend’s suggestions had all been vetoed, including Sydney knocking Reese out with a tennis ball and running to her rescue to revive her, Reese knocking Sydney out with a tennis ball and running to her rescue to revive her, and, Sydney’s personal favorite, Hallie knocking both of them out with tennis balls and upon them waking with amnesia, Hallie allowing them to believe that they were deeply in love.
There was a smile on Reese’s lips when she finally answered.
“I was in Indian Wells for a little R it’d been so long since we’d seen one another. ”
“Small world,” Grant deadpanned. He looked around the group to take stock of their responses, but they all seemed enraptured by the story.
Perfect.
Sydney moved a little closer and slipped her arm around Reese’s back, enjoying the softness of her shirt as her fingers toyed with the fabric.
“I lost in the first round,” Sydney said, picking up where Reese had left off like a well-oiled machine, further selling the story with a hint of self-deprecation and a winsome smile. “And I was planning on taking the red-eye back to Miami but decided to stay for the night.”
She felt how Reese’s body had melted against hers. It was one of the most enjoyable feelings she’d had in months.
“Best decision I ever made,” they said in unison. It was perfectly unscripted, and they both burst into laughter and drew closer.
Reese looked at her then, their eyes locking. Sydney felt that little spark again, like life was happening to her instead of around her.
The prying eyes of the crowd floated away as Sydney enjoyed the attention of a beautiful woman who was putting on the show of her life.
“I can’t pretend like life doesn’t work in strange ways,” Sydney said, acknowledging at least part of the truth of the situation.
Reese held her gaze for a beat longer, rewarding her with a smile before shifting her focus back to Brynn and Grant. “So, I’m dying to know, how did you two meet?”