Her brother gazed around the kitchen, then speared her with an angry glare. “Where’s pretty boy?”
Prepared to take on the two of them, if necessary, she squared her shoulders. “You started that fight, Joe.”
Her father pulled out a chair and sat down across from her. “What fight?”
“After you left, he tried to belittle Simon,” Gail explained.
“That couldn’t have been hard,” her father said wryly.
She folded her arms. “Maybe not, but he lived to regret it. Simon feels attacked on all sides. He’ll snap at anything, even if he’s the one who’d take the worst of any fight it might cause.”
“Why’d you bring him here?” Joe demanded. “You know how we feel.”
Scooting her chair away from the table, she stood. Her father and brother were so big, so…overpowering, they could be intimidating even when they weren’t teaming up against her. “What are you saying, big brother? That I should’ve come without him? Or that I should’ve stayed away, too? Because Simon and I can head over to the B and B if you don’t want us here—”
Her father raised his hand in a calming gesture. “Hold on. There’s no need for that. Simon’s here now. We’ll make the best of it.”
Joe wasn’t willing to let it go quite so easily. “You don’t expect this marriage to last, do you? Because I can tell you right now it won’t.”
For a second, Gail wished she’d be able to prove him wrong. But that was crazy. Under normal circumstances, Simon wouldn’t have given her the time of day. No doubt, once he had Ty back, he’d return to Hollywood and all the women who’d throw themselves at him—and forget about her. He was with her for Ty’s sake, and only for Ty’s sake. He’d made that clear from the beginning.
“Maybe it won’t,” she admitted. “But that’s okay.”
“No, it’s not,” her father argued. “You don’t want to go through a divorce, Gail.”
“It’s too late to worry about that! I took the risk when I married him. All I ask is that you don’t make my life or my marriage any more difficult by rejecting my husband.”
Her words met with silence. She’d made an impact, showed them no good could come out of how they were acting. She could tell by the sheepish expression on her brother’s face and the stoic one on her father’s that they suddenly understood it was too late to talk her out of being with Simon.
“He needs friendship,” she went on. “I’m asking you to offer him that and see what you get in return. If you hate him, just be sure you hate him because he’s earned it. Don’t hate him on principle.”
Joe sagged into the seat next to her father and propped his elbows on the table. “You want us to forget what we’ve heard about him and give him a clean slate.”
Intent on her appeal, she sat down again, too. “Why not? You don’t even know him! All you know is what you’ve read and heard in the media.”
“And from you,” he pointed out.
Her conscience pricked her. “I was wrong to say what I did. I was reacting to…false perceptions. Just like you’re doing now. Anyway, can you imagine going to your wife’s home and being treated the way he was treated tonight?”
Joe toyed with the sugar bowl sitting on the table. “I know what that’s like. My in-laws hated me because I wasn’t interested in their religion.”
“Exactly.”
“You always did know how to make me feel like shit,” he muttered.
She managed a halfhearted grin. “We’re siblings. That’s my job.”
Her father got up to pour himself some coffee. “So tell me this, Gail. If the two of you are so in love, why are you here in Whiskey Creek and not on some extravagant honeymoon celebrating your marriage?”
She could no longer meet his eyes. “This is about something more important than that.”
“Like what?”
The memory of finding Simon on the floor of his wood shop came into sharp focus. After that, a honeymoon hadn’t even crossed her mind. She’d just wanted to help him recover. “This home has always been my safe harbor.”
Her father’s eyes widened. “But it can’t be the only place someone who’s that famous has to go.”
“Anywhere else wouldn’t have the support he needs. This is the best place I know. The one I trust. I want him to have the peace of mind you’ve both given me. That’s why I brought him here.”
After setting his cup on the table, her father came over to crouch in front of her. “He’s not a stray dog, Gail,” he said, taking her hands. “He’s a wealthy movie star who’ll probably break your heart—”
“If he does…he does. He’s human, Dad. And he’s going through hell. Sure, he’s asked for a lot of it but everyone screws up now and then. He needs a way to break his fall. I’m trying to give him that.”
Another silence descended as he considered her words.
“Fine.” Her brother relented first. “I’ll be on my best behavior from here on out. You can get us to do anything. I think you know that.”
Tears filled her eyes, which surprised her. She hadn’t realized this meant so much to her. “Thanks, Joe. Just give him a chance. That’s all I ask.”
“Okay.” Her father squeezed her hands and stood as if that made it official. “Far as I’m concerned, he has a clean slate. But if he hurts you—”
“He can’t hurt me, Dad. I know what to expect.”
He returned to his coffee. “You just want to help him. That’s it.”
“That’s it.” She wasn’t sure when her motivation had changed, when she’d become more interested in seeing Simon get back on his feet than in saving her business, but there was no doubt she was far more emotionally committed than she’d been before.
“At least it makes sense to me now,” her father said. “But pity is a hell of a reason to marry someone.”
It was more than pity. It was sadness over his lost potential, even a little of the hero worship she’d felt for her favorite movie star. She knew that worship was what frightened her family. It frightened her, too. Maybe she’d become disenchanted with him in certain ways, but it was hard to get on an equal footing with an idol.
“Thanks, Dad.”