Page 36 of Holding Grace

We found Mercy and Levi in the kitchen, Mercy supervising while Levi pulled two huge pans of macaroni and cheese from the oven.

“Wow, that looks good.” Grace eyed the pans of bubbling cheesy goodness the way I probably eyed her when I wasn’t watching myself. “Can everyone in your family cook?”

“Not Ace,” Mercy, Levi, and I said in unison, surprising a laugh out of Grace.

“It’s true,” Levi said as he slid the oven mitts he’d used back into a drawer. “He almost burned the house down trying to hard boil eggs one time and before you ask, we have no idea.”

“And that was far from his first cooking disaster,” Mercy joined in. “Now he’s allowed to make toast, pour cold cereal, and warm things up in the microwave. It’s safest for everyone.”

We heard the front door open, then a few seconds later Ace strolled into the kitchen followed by Ry, each carrying a case of beverages.

“Here’s the man himself,” I said. “Grace, this is Asa, who everyone calls Ace. Ace, this is Grace.”

Ace set down the case he held and looked from one of us to the other. “You’re telling cooking stories about me, aren’t you?” None of us responded but he knew. “Damn, don’t even let a guy get in the room before you’re ganging up on him.” He shook his head pitifully as he crossed to Grace and held out his hand.

“Nice to meet you, Grace.”

“Nice to meet you, too.”

Still holding her hand, Ace leaned in like he had a secret to share with Grace. “I’m not as bad as they say I am.”

“Yes, you are,” we all chorused again, this time joined by Ry. Ace flipped us all off, making us laugh, then turned to shove cans of beer and other beverages into a big cooler of ice that sat on the counter.

He grumbled, mostly good naturedly, while we continued to rib him, and he gave back as good as he got. Through it all I watched Grace, curious to see her reaction to Ace.

Ace was, in the words of one of Mercy’s friends, “male perfection”. I had no idea what that meant exactly, but what it translated to was that Ace was to women what catnip is to cats.

All of us looked a lot alike. Even Ry blended in with us enough that many people assumed he was related in some way. I was the biggest by a small margin, though Levi was a close second and Ace and Ry weren’t far behind. Mercy, fortunately for her, had her mother’s frame, a little taller than average for a female, but thankfully nowhere near as broad or tall as her brothers or me.

All together, we were a pretty good-looking bunch. We’d heard it enough throughout our lives to know it was true.

But Ace – he was on a different level. A level where women tripped over themselves, walked into things, and once even almost wandered out into traffic – thank God her friend was right there to grab her – because they couldn’t take their eyes off him. He often downplayed his looks, but even when he was scruffy and a little grungy, it still happened. In fact, some women seemed to like that even better.

The weirdest thing to me was the things people assumed about him because of his looks. That he was an asshole, or conceited, or a playboy. That he dated only models, or divas, or didn’t date at all – just slept his way through an endless string of women, screwing them then walking away.

None of it was even close to true. But still, some people, especially women, took one look at him and believed it all. They were either fascinated, nearly mesmerized by him, or they pre-judged him to be a jerk.

So, yeah, I watched Grace, not out of jealousy or concern, just wondering what her take would be. When Ace first walked into the kitchen her eyes had widened a little and she’d blinked a few times like she wasn’t sure what she was seeing. She’d blushed a little as they’d shaken hands, but that was just Grace.

Now, as we all moved out of the kitchen into the great room, she seemed to be taking his presence in stride. She was laughing with Mercy over something, sipping a flavored seltzer. She wasn’t shooting glances Ace’s way or seeming affected by him at all. In fact, the only one she seemed to scan the room for was me.

When she caught me looking back at her, she gave me that little smile that lit up her eyes, then went back to her conversation with Mercy.

As the minutes passed, any concern I may have felt about the day faded away. I liked having Grace here, liked having her with me, and she seemed to like being here.

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HOURS LATER, LOADED down with leftover mac and cheese, but sadly no brownies, Grace and I said our good-byes. The light was starting to fade, and I watched for deer as we made our way out of Levi’s neighborhood and back to the main road.

“You have a wonderful family, Michael.”

I looked over at Grace slouched comfortably in the passenger seat. “Thanks, I think so, too. You seemed to enjoy yourself today.”

I should know. I’d barely taken my eyes off her. If she’d noticed, she hadn’t shown it.

“I did. I was nervous, but I didn’t need to be.”

She shifted, rubbing her hands over her arms like she was cold. I reached in the back seat, snagged a sweatshirt I knew I’d left back there, and handed it to her.