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I watched as some of the men at other tables rolled their eyes or watched with dull, uninterested gazes. A quick peek at Marv told me that while he was focused on Mr. Carrigan, he was still taking every opportunity to peer around at the couples surrounding us. I straightened the cream-lace edges of my floral dress and folded my hands in my lap once more after placing my water glass back in its originalposition.
“This garden party is simply a thank you from us to you. Please enjoy.” Mr. Carrigan finished his speech, prompting several audience members to applaudpolitely.
“Would you like todance?”
I jerked my gaze back toMarv.
“Now?” I asked, glancing out at the barren dancefloor.
His lips quirked with humor. “Now is as good as any time,” he replied, standing and holding out hishand.
“It’s a good idea,” Texas said in my ear. “It will give you guys a chance to scan thearea.”
Hesitantly, I took Marv’s hand and stood. I wasn’t scared to dance with him as much as I was scared to dance in the ridiculously tall, pastel-blue heels I had on. But Marv, ever the gentleman, put his hand around my waist and guided me gently onto the empty dance floor. The string quartet struck up a new song just as Marv pulled me into the length of his body and we began to move. I thought dancing in heels would have been harder, but with Marv it was as easy as breathing. I didn’t even have to think, though I could count on one hand the number of times I had danced with a guy in a fancydress.
Marv leaned down and whispered in my free ear. “What do yousee?”
That’s when I remembered, I wasn’t there to play dress up. I was there to catch a thief. I took a breath and allowed my gaze to scan the crowd. Several more couples stepped onto the dance floor and began to sway alongside us. As Marv turned me in a circle, I caught sight of a shockingly familiar face. My eyes widened and I felt my mouth dropopen.
“What?” he asked. “What isit?”
“Turn me back around,” I ordered. “Slowly.” If I was right, I didn’t want to alert the man I had seen to ourpresence.
Marv did as I requested and stopped, allowing me to face the tables on the far side of the garden. Sitting next to an older blonde with graying roots, a young man, not much older than Marv, curled his fingers around the stem of a wine glass and grimaced as he took a drink. The man’s face was lean and sallow like he had been sick recently or might be getting sick. His blue eyes and facial features were so familiar, I stared trying to place where I knewhim.
It wasn’t until a second man approached from somewhere behind a large rosebush that I realized why I felt I knew him. While I didn’t know the man sitting down, I certainly did know the man at his side. Shock faded to irritation. It seemed no matter where I went, Grayson was always around. We had managed to avoid him at the party in Charleston, but now he was here on Sweratt Island. It made sense. His father was an executive director for the company afterall.
“Marv,” I said, throat working. “Grayson’shere.”
“What?!” The sharp question hadn’t come from Marv’s lips, rather from the earbud in my ear. I flinched as I heard a squealing of interference in the background and Knix’s voice came across theline.
“Grayson Caruso?” Knix demanded. “What is hedoing?”
“He’s standing over that man – his brother – the one that was with him at the party,” I replied quietly, leaning towards Marv’s chest so that the other dancers around us wouldn’t notice. “It just looks like they’retalking.”
I watched Grayson for several moments as Marv turned us and we swayed so that he, too, could observe. Dressed in light-khaki dress pants and a purple button-down dress shirt rolled up at his forearms, Grayson looked just like every other personthere.
“Their fatherdoeswork for the company,” Texas muttered in my earagain.
I smiled because he had repeated my exact thoughts. Grayson frowned down at the man sitting at the table, obviously attempting to speak with him about something serious. His brother, on the other hand, didn’t seem interested in conversation. His expression was impassive as he waved his hand in Grayson’s face, dismissing him outright and stood. He offered the woman with him his palm. The woman vaguely resembled both brothers and, I thought, must have been either their mother or a close older femalerelative.
Grayson frowned at his brother, his lips curving down in frustration before his face turned and his eyes landed on me. I froze for a moment, and Marv cursed under his breath. Grayson didn’t even glance at Marv. His eyes stayed on mine. I watched as he tilted his head backwards, nodding towards the gardens. Without thinking, I noddedback.
“Guys,” I said as Grayson disappeared behind the rosebush once more. “I’m going to go talk tohim.”
Marv’s hands tightened on mine. “No.” Texas and Knix disagreed as well and I was sure, had Bellamy been there, his answer would have been just as immediate if notharsher.
I looked up at Marv’s worried gaze. “I’ll be fine,” I assured him. “I just think he wants to know why I’m here – as much as we want to know why he’shere.”
Grayson wasn’t exactly known for being a selfless person, but I didn’t think he would hurt me. Marv’s expression could have been cut straight from stone. He walked me back to our table and pulled out my chair. When I remained standing he shook hishead.
“It’s not a good idea.” Marv’s eyebrows drew together in concern, lessening the rigidity of hisexpression.
“He’s not going to hurt me,” Ireplied.
Marv frowned. “I still don’t trusthim.”
“Why?” None of the guys liked him. It made me wonder if there wasn’t a deeper reason, if maybe they had ahistory.
