"What do you mean?" Paige squared her shoulders and met the other woman's gaze.
This time Grace's eye roll was accompanied by a sigh of impatience. "What doyouget out of this whole thing?" She motioned to Paige with the knife.
Paige would be all too happy to confide in Grace, but not while she held a knife and kept glaring at her like she was an intruder. She didn't want to betray Gabe's trust, but she had a feeling Grace wouldn’t let it go.
"I'm just returning a favor." Paige shrugged like it was no big deal.
"What kind of favor?"
Grace was relentless. She'd make a great interrogator.
"Gabe pretended to be my boyfriend when my ex showed up, begging me to take him back."
Her eyebrows arched. "That's it?"
"That's it."
"You're not after him for money?" Grace finally pushed the knife into the cake. "Because I'll be honest with you, he doesn't have much. Despite his title of doctor, physical therapists don't make the kind of money medical doctors do. Besides, he has a bunch of student loan debt."
"I'm not after his money."
Grace didn't look entirely convinced. "And you don't have a hidden agenda?"
"Like what?" Paige gave her a confused look.
What was Grace getting at? Gabe's sister obviously didn't like her, but she couldn't understand why. Well, other than the fact that Paige was lying to their mom.
The other woman stared at her for another long moment before speaking again. "My brother has been hurt enough to last a lifetime. I won't let it happen again." Her words were clipped and hard. "He's dealing with too much right now to have to worry about someone manipulating him or taking advantage of his compassionate nature."
Paige jerked back. "I would never."
Was Grace referring to their father walking out on them or the break-up that left Gabe gun-shy when it came to dating? Or maybe both? Paige agreed with Grace; Gabe had had more than his share of heartache. But what was he dealing with right now? And why did she get the feeling there was something Gabe and his sister weren't telling her?
"I'm glad to hear it." Grace's expression suddenly softened, and she dropped the knife and reached across the counter to cover Paige's hand with hers. "Thank you for pretending to be his girlfriend." The sheen of tears filled her eyes.
Paige was so surprised by Grace's one-eighty, she almost jerked her hand away. Why was she thanking Paige for deceiving her mother?
Before Paige could ask the question, Gabe and his mother walked into the kitchen. "What's taking you ladies so long? I can't wait to try Paige's baking." He winked at her, but Paige was too confused by her conversation with Grace to enjoy his flirting.
"Surely Paige has baked for you before," Marisol said, a questioning look on her face.
Gabe tensed, his shoulders stiffening to the point it looked like he was flexing. "Well, yeah…of course." His words were stilted. "But she's never…made this cake for me before."
"I'm not much of a chef." Paige grimaced then chuckled. "Thank goodness Gabe's a good sport." She forced a smile she hoped didn't look as stiff as it felt as she patted Gabe's shoulder. "Sorry, honey, I didn't make this cake foryou. I made it for your mom and sister."
"I see where I rank." Gabe pressed a hand to his chest, feigning offense.
Their words, meant to sound flirty, came across stiff and stilted. Cringing inwardly, Paige glanced around the room.
Marisol wore a smile as she took a saucer with a slice of cake on it.
Grace's gaze jumped back and forth between Gabe and Paige. Her brow furrowed again, but instead of the disapproval she wore earlier, her look said they were idiots.
And she was right. Pretending would be easier if Paige understood why Gabe was so adamant about lying to his mom. Even then, she was certain she'd still feel guilty.
"Do you cook often, Paige?" Marisol asked as they settled around the table.
"Not really. I don't mind cooking, but I don’t enjoy being in the kitchen all the time, like some people. When I do cook, it's usually simple stuff."
