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“I’m not going to ask for details. I know she’s still in it or you’d be on your way home.”
“She is,” he said. “She left about fifteen minutes ago. I can’t give you details because I don’t know much other than some of the foods she’s prepared and where she’s placed.”
“I’ll get all that from her when she comes home,” Melanie said. “I’m more concerned about how well she is holding up.”
“Like a champ,” he said. “And she says she’s going to be one too.”
Grace’s mother laughed on the other end. The grand prize was a hundred thousand dollars. Grace didn’t need the money, but she’d said everyone else talked about what they were going to do with the winnings. She’d just kept it quiet.
It seemed no one knew that she was part of the Bond family. Or if they did, it wasn’t brought up around her. He wasn’t sure how anyone would find out anyway. Grace had said some of the contestants were hanging out and getting drinks at the end of the day, but a few others went back to their room to prepare.
He wasn’t sure what preparing meant, but she’d been on her computer and looking at recipes and ingredients and anything else that meant very little to him.
He wanted to say he didn’t need to be here, but he knew he’d want to be to ensure she was safe and in a good state of mind. He just wished most of the time wasn’t spent worrying and thinking of her because he had nothing else to do.
“I’m sure she is doing everyone proud.”
“You know it,” he said.
“We are very happy you are there with her,” Melanie said. “And we don’t want you to think ill of it.”
“I don’t,” he said. “I’m glad to be here and help in any way I can. She has it covered though.”
There had been a few moments where he thought he might be taken advantage of when he was approached and then squashed it. If Grace weren’t a member of the Bond family and in this competition, he would have wanted to be here but knew he’d never get the time off of work.
It worked out the way it should have and he’d like to think maybe her family was pushing more on a personal level than business. He was fine with that too.
“She always thinks she has it covered,” Melanie said. “She puts a front on for many and then at the worst time that curtain is lifted and all her insecurities are there for the world to see.”
Since he’d been witness to some of them in the past, he understood what was being said. “And you’d rather it not happen on TV?” he asked, grinning.
There was part of him that was upset that so much pressure was being put on Grace’s shoulders over this.
He understood how much was a stake, but it bothered him no one asked her to do this but rather told her.
He knew the family cared. They all told her to do her best and, regardless of the outcome, it was a win for the island and the publicity.
But Grace was hard on herself and he didn’t like seeing her that way.
Which was why he was here, he reminded himself. To get her to not do that and try to enjoy it for what it was rather than what could come out of it.
Maybe there was another motive behind this. Thinking back, he did think there was more going on in Steven’s mind when they had their talk last week.
Though Grace was doing what she always wanted to do in her life, she also wouldn’t risk a chance at her island and her family legacy to get a nice boost.
It went back to the Bonds not sitting on their wealth and hoping everything was handed to them in life.
But the island also could be putting some kind of life lesson in there too. It’s not as if he hadn’t seen that before. He’d never been one to think much of the lore and legend...but he could be right smack dab in the middle of it too.
He should have never held back for so long approaching Grace because he lumped her in the same category as Lara.
That was him being sucked into something that he didn’t have a lot of control over. Letting someone else play mind games with him when he’d said he was better than that.
“I think she does have it covered though,” he said. “Only a few more days. They are filming outside today. I’m going to see if I can get close by.”
“Great,” Melanie said. “I’ll keep my fingers crossed for her today.”
He hung up a minute later and then went to get some food. He ate quickly, got a coffee to go and started to walk the four blocks to the beachfront. No reason to take the car he’d rented. He wasn’t sure he’d find a parking spot anyway.
