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Then she turned and caught Tucker Rawlings’s eye. Grady’s father gave her a quiet nod, his eyes full of all sorts of messages. She froze, suddenly remembering their “arrangement.”
He’d already cornered her at her house earlier in the week with his lengthy prenuptial agreement. Having no problem letting Grady keep all his money and possessions in case of a divorce, she’d signed Tucker Rawlings paperwork. Thinking they’d get into specifics about child custody and her plane next, she’d been shocked when he’d merely nodded and left, leaving behind her own copy of the prenup.
She spent the rest of the evening reading what she’d just signed. And to her horror, the deed and child custody issues were all mentioned in the document. If she and Grady ever split, full custody of their baby would go to him, and in return her plane would be signed over in her name.
A cold chill washed over her. Swallowing, she set her hand protectively over her stomach. In the past few days, she’d come to realize she wanted her baby. . .she wanted it very much. And she wasn’t about to give it up either. Not for anything.
Somehow, someway, she was going to have to make her husband keep her around for a good long while. Because she also wanted to be his wife just as much as she wanted to keep her baby.
It was the biggest gamble she’d ever taken.
Chapter Sixteen
The wedding was over five minutes after it started. It took longer to get everyone packed into the judge’s chamber than it did to say all their vows and sign their names to the certificate. Rudy stepped forward and relieved her of her wedding presents and puked-on blouse. Then he backed her even more by being a second witness to sign the license.
“Does this make me your maid of honor?” he asked teasingly.
B.J. rolled her eyes. “Just sign.”
Grady had his brother Caine stand in as his witness. And then it was all over and done. She was married. Feeling queasy, B.J. pressed a hand to her stomach and prayed she didn’t have to race to a bathroom.
After all the legal paperwork was taken care of, Tara Rose declared they’d celebrate her son’s wedding at the country club, all tabs paid by the Rawlings family. Her brothers eagerly stepped forward, salivating at the thought of a free meal. Rudy and Leroy headed straight for the bar as soon as they arrived. But B.J. pulled to a frozen stop in the doorway, feeling transported back in time.
The last time she’d stepped foot inside Tommy Creek’s Country Club, the whole place had been rented out and decorated with blue and cream-colored balloons and crepe paper for a Rawlings wedding. . .for Grady’s wedding. Realizing she was here again for the same exact reason, B.J. sent her groom a worried look.
But he’d obviously been here numerous times since then. Because when he caught her gaze, he didn’t looked sickened with nostalgia. He merely puckered his brow and took her elbow, looking concerned. “Are you still feeling queasy?”
B.J. stared at him a moment longer. He honestly didn’t look overcome with misery, like this was the worst day of his life, so she shook her head. “No. I’m fine. Just hungry.”
****
As marriages went, she couldn’t say hers and Grady’s was by any means normal. But she couldn’t say she minded it either. It was nearly midnight when they broke away from both their families and finally arrived at his big house on the hill. Feeling self-conscious about going inside, B.J. lagged behind as Grady led the way to the entrance.
This was Amy’s home. Grady had built it for her. Though dozens of people had been hired to construct it, no one had labored as hard as Grady had. B.J. still remembered driving by when it was being erected. Every time she’d looked out her window, there he was, shirtless and sweating, helping out and making sure every detail was just the way his wife wanted it.
Amy had been so excited to see it finished. B.J. remembered bumping into her at the grocery store one time. The woman gushed on for a good half hour about its progress, not even noticing how B.J. had nearly gone cross-eyed and started to drool from boredom.
Seven years later, the place was still in great condition. The brick siding had weathered well, and the trim looked as freshly painted as the first time B.J. had seen it finished. The dried wilting weeds in the flowerbed, however, about broke her heart. She stared at them as Grady unlocked the front door.
There was a swing at the far end of the porch, and she had a sudden vision of him, at sunset, sitting there, watching the sky turn all shades of the rainbow. He was the quiet type who would do a thing like that. He’d feel content, living out here by himself with nothing but a house full of ghosts and memories to keep him company.
Tension gnawing at her stomach, B.J. glanced once more at the decaying flowerbed. When she saw a green flowering plant in the depths of those brown weeds, despite the fact it was being choked out, she caught her breath, not sure whether it was a good omen or bad. She could either take it as a sign for new growth and hope, or as a haunting reminder that there would always be a part of Amy alive here, no matter how dead she was.
B.J. shivered. She was about to step over the threshold into Amy’s life with Amy
’s husband. It felt almost wrong. . .forbidden.
She glanced toward Grady to see how all this affected him, but he’d already opened the door and disappeared inside. “Remind me to get you a key made,” he called over his shoulder.
Wondering briefly if he’d carried Amy through the doorway of their first home after they married, she shook her head and forced the thought away. “Okay.”
She didn’t want Grady picking her up. She definitely didn’t want him treating her the same way he’d treated Amy. She was nowhere near that important to him, so she’d better just forget any ideas otherwise.
****
After pointing out the kitchen and bathrooms, Grady showed B.J. the second floor.
“This is our room.” He opened the first entrance on the right in a long hall full of closed doors.
