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Granger narrowed his eyes at her. Was she pulling out the airhead act again? Why would she do that with her own family?
“There was the Freaks show at Madison Square Garden,” she finally murmured. “We were all backstage.”
“Right. Conor was on the phone the entire time working some big deal. And you blew in for about half an hour, then a limo came and whisked you away to another party.”
Granger detected no resentment in Carly’s tone of voice, just humor.
“Lucky you, you missed all the drama after that. There was a fight, and people were crying and yelling. I swear, you have the best family karma, Bliss. You always seem to be somewhere better when the bad shit goes down.”
Bliss flinched as if from a blow; Granger could sense it even though she put on a lighthearted smile. “That’s me,” she said airily, waving her wine glass in the air. “Bliss on the run. Just one party after another.”
“My glamorous little sister.” Carly smiled at her affectionately. “Didn’t you once go to six different parties in a single night?”
“Mmm.” Bliss sipped her wine. “In three different countries. All in Europe,” she explained to Danny, who seemed to melt under the force of her smile. “The countries are weirdly small and close together there.”
Granger forced his face to stay in stern lines instead of laughing. What was she doing? She really had that airhead-with-an-ironic-edge act down.
“The Blue Drake used to have awesome parties,” Danny said eagerly. “Dad let me go sometimes, if there was a really good band. How come you never came to those?”
“Oh, who knows, I was probably on another continent or busy with some shoot or other. Schedules are not my friend.” Her lighthearted manner grated on Granger’s nerves. “I guess it’s a Gault family thing. We’re always going in different directions. I mean, I have a brand-new nephew and ta-da! You’re already mostly grown up. It’s like magic.”
“It is magic, but you’re not getting off the hook with this next one.” Carly patted her belly, a smile playing on her lips. “You’d damn well better meet this little one before she or he is Danny’s age.”
“Wait, you’re…pregnant?” Bliss’ gray eyes widened in astonishment. Finally, a genuine reaction. “When…how…I mean…”
“I wanted to tell you in person.” Carly grinned, an all-encompassing radiant smile, and for the first time, Granger caught a resemblance to Bliss. “Four months along. We were already planning to get married, but we figured we might as well move up the wedding so we don’t have to try to fit it in between feedings. Danny’s home for Christmas break, so…yeah. Here we are.”
“Oh my gosh. You’re having a baby!” Bliss looked almost dazed by the news.
“Yup. I suppose it’s no surprise what with all the—”
Thomas interrupted her with a clearing of his throat and a glance at Danny.
“Anyway, the due date is in late May, so maybe you’ll consider coming back to Lake Bittersweet this summer. Twice in one year, I know it’s a lot, and your schedule is booked, and you don’t like being pinned down, but—”
“I’ll come.”
Everyone glanced at Bliss in surprise, because she sounded so certain.
“Of course I’ll come. Why are you all looking at me like that? I’ll start knitting immediately. I adore babies.”
“You do?” Carly didn’t bother to hide her surprise. “Why didn’t I know that?”
It seemed to Granger that there was a lot Carly didn’t know about her sister. And probably vice versa.
Then again, he didn’t know who his own father was, so he wasn’t passing judgment. Just observing, like a good, completely neutral FBI agent.
Seven
Bliss let Granger drive them back to the hotel after dinner. She’d had enough wine that it seemed safer, and even though Granger had kept pace with her, glass for glass, it didn’t seem to affect him at all.
I just need to gain about a hundred pounds and then I can drink all the wine.
Dreamily, she gazed out the passenger window at the dark forest crowding close to the road. Even though several inches of snow had fallen yesterday, the wind had knocked most of it off the tree branches. The sky was clear and the moon nearly full. It cast a soft light on the snow piled along the road. In her imagination, she danced through the woods in the moonlight and whispered secrets to the sleepy forest creatures.
“What were you doing back there?” Granger interrupted her wandering thoughts. “At dinner.”
She knew exactly what he meant. She’d slipped right into that family role without even realizing it. Carly’s comment about “never there for the bad stuff” had triggered it. No one knew about her last moments with her father; she could barely even think about it.
