Working It Out (12 page)

G
race looked
through
Seth’s windshield, noting that the brown cinderblock building
looked old and tired, as though it had lived its life and now wanted to move
on. Artistic graffiti covered one side of the wall, almost like a mural, and a
sign that read
Magnificent Minds
was affixed to the wall next to a red
painted steel door. A teenage boy rode his bike down the sidewalk and stopped
outside the door, where he chained his bike to a stand. He had to pull twice on
the door to get it to open then disappeared inside.

From her comfy seat in Seth’s Land Rover, with its new-car
smell, Grace felt out of place. They should have taken her more understated
Nissan. At least the silver of her car would have blended in a little better
than the deep orange of Seth’s.

“If you think the outside looks bad, wait until you see
the inside,” Seth said from the driver’s seat.

Grace glanced his way, noticing the way his brown
Quicksilver baseball hat made his eyes appear darker than usual. His face was
clean shaven today, tempting Grace to run her fingers across his jaw line.
“You’ve been here before?”

Seth nodded, studying the building. “A few times.”

When he didn’t make a move to open his door, Grace
unfastened her seat belt. “Ready?”

Seth continued to stare at the door. “Lanna hasn’t spoken
to me since the night of the auction and doesn’t know I’m here.”

Grace’s hand remained on her seatbelt. “You didn’t tell
her we were coming?” What was Seth thinking? Didn’t he know that showing up
with no warning wasn’t the best way to apologize? Would Lanna even have
anything for them to do?

Seth met Grace’s eyes. “Lanna isn’t the type to get mad,
but after the stunt I pulled, she . . .” He shook his head, his voice drifting
off as he bit his lower lip and glanced back at the building.

He looked vulnerable, nervous even, something that Grace
had never seen on him before. It caught her off guard. He’d always been so
confident, so sure of himself. He had it all. Looks, money, talent, a natural
charisma. And yet here he was, sitting in his expensive automobile, completely intimidated
by the nondescript building in front of them—or rather, by a particular girl
inside the building.

An unwanted prick of jealousy struck Grace in the heart,
which was ridiculous, since she wasn’t in the running for Seth’s affections.
Still, she couldn’t help but wonder what it would feel like to have Seth care
about her that way.

Shoving the feeling aside, Grace laid a hand on his arm.
“I met Lanna at the auction, and she seemed like the forgiving type. I bet it
will mean a lot to her that you’re here.”

Seth shook his head as though he didn’t believe her.
“She’s as stubborn as—well, you.” Under the rim of his cap, his eyes met hers
again, only this time he wore a lopsided smile.

“Me?” What was that supposed to mean? Grace was strong-willed
and determined, maybe, but stubborn?

Seth continued to hold her gaze. “Ever since I first met
you, you’ve reminded me of the girl on the other side of that door.” He
gestured toward the building. “Something tells me that you and Lanna are going
to get along really well. If nothing else, you both have a common enemy from
the auction.”

Grace smiled. For some reason, being compared to Lanna
felt good, as if she’d somehow earned some of Seth’s esteem.

“You should do that more often,” Seth said, watching her
with a look she couldn’t quite decipher.

“Do what?”

His finger reached out to touch the corner of her mouth,
sending chills up her spine. “Smile. It looks good on you.”

Grace’s heart sped up as she stared back, wondering what
he was thinking. Was he feeling this crazy, almost electric feeling that seemed
to zing through the car around them?

His hand dropped back to his lap, and his eyes left hers.
He drew in a breath and reached for the handle. “Let’s get this over with.”

They left the car behind, and Seth yanked open the steel
door, making a face as it screeched in protest. “I offered to pay for a new
door, but would she let me? No.”

Grace smiled. Any woman who could stand up to Seth
deserved to be applauded. “I like her already.”

“I figured you would.”

Grace moved forward into a small reception-type room with
an empty desk off to the side. It had that musty, old-house smell mixed with a
hint of vanilla—a plug in air freshener next to the desk. Muted and muffled
voices echoed from a back room at the end of the hall.

The door screeched open again, and a young
African-American girl walked in with long, tightly curled hair. She flashed
Grace and Seth a curious look before heading down the hall. With a quick glance
at each other, they followed.

As the girl entered the room ahead of them, a female
voice called out, “Hey, Rayna, how are you, girl? We missed you yesterday.”

“Hey, Miss Lanna. Sorry. I couldn’t come. I had to
babysit.”

“Well, we’re glad you’re here today. Your favorite chair’s
open, right over there by the window. Take a seat, and I’ll be with you in a—”
She stopped when Seth entered the room, her eyes widening. She shot a glance at
the half-dozen kids already in the room and stood, moving closer. “What are you
doing here?”

“We’re here to volunteer,” Seth said.

Grace waited for him to continue, but he didn’t. She shot
him a look. Really? After all this time, that’s all he had to say? Ignoring her
silent plea, Seth simply stood there, waiting for Lanna to fill in the awkward
silence that was getting worse by the second.

Grace shook her head.
Men
.

“Ok-ay,” Lanna finally said. Her eyes flickered to
Grace’s, crinkling slightly in confusion. “I’m sorry,” she said, extending her
hand. “I didn’t mean to be rude. I’m Lanna. Are you here with Seth? You look
familiar.”

Grace nodded and shook Lanna’s hand. “I’m Grace,” she
said. “I’m his therapist.” She left the “physical” part out on purpose.

“Therapist?” Lanna’s eyes widened. “Are you serious?”

Grace molded her expression into one of sympathy and
nodded. “After a lot—and I mean
a lot
—of therapy, Seth realizes he has
some unresolved issues, so he invited me along to make sure that you understood
how sorry he is for how things went down at the auction. Since he can’t bring
himself to say that out loud”—Grace shot Seth a meaningful look—“he’s here to volunteer
for however many hours it takes to earn your forgiveness.”

Lanna still looked confused, but a tentative smile played
on her lips. “Wow, you must be a really good therapist to finally get him to
see that.”

Seth rolled his eyes. “Grace is my
physical
therapist, not my psychologist. But she’s right about two things: I
am
sorry, and I’m here to volunteer. But only for
today
,” he said,
emphasizing the last word.

Lanna nodded. “Understood. And for what it’s worth, I’m
sorry too.” She opened her arms. “Truce?”

Seth accepted her hug with a small smile and an
expression of relief mixed with happiness—one that tugged on Grace’s
heartstrings. “Truce,” he said.

 A young boy, probably about ten, tapped Lanna on the
shoulder, breaking them apart. “Miss Lanna, I can’t figure this out.” He held
up what appeared to be his math homework.

Lanna bent to his level. “Hey, Chad. See this guy right
here?” She pointed to Seth. “He’s going to help you with your homework today.
Will that be okay?”

The boy shot a tentative look at Seth then nodded
solemnly. Taking his cue, Seth reached for the homework page. “I happen to be a
pro at math, so you’re in good hands. Let’s go have a seat and see if we can figure
these out.” He winked at Grace before following the boy back to his seat.

Lanna watched him walk away, smiling, then turned back to
Grace. “Are you really his physical therapist?”

Grace nodded.

“Is there a reason he’s seeing you?” She paused, then
rushed on to say, “I mean not
seeing
, seeing, but seeing like—” She
winced, and her brow crinkled. “Oh geez, I’m making a mess of this, aren’t I?”

Grace laughed and shook her head. “About a month ago,
Seth tore his ACL during a heli-skiing trip. I just happened to be the
therapist his doctor referred him to.”

“He did
what
?” Lanna’s voice rose to attract the
attention of a few kids nearby. She looked so distressed that Grace reached out
to touch her arm in a comforting gesture. “Nothing to worry about. As you can
see, he’s going to be fine.”

Lanna blinked, shaking her head. “I can’t believe I
didn’t know that. I feel like the worst kind of friend right now.”

 Grace smiled. “Well, considering Seth feels like the
worst kind of friend for what happened at the auction, I’d say you’re about
even. Really, though, he’s fine.”

Lanna cocked her head to the side, studying Grace with a
quizzical expression. “I’m surprised Seth told you about that. He’s not
normally that open with people.”

For whatever reason, Grace liked thinking that Seth had opened
up to her—something he wouldn’t do with just anyone. It made her feel better
about everything that had happened with Alec.

“I think I may bring out the worst in him,” Grace said,
not knowing how else to respond.

Lanna’s snicker had Seth glancing their way, as well as
some of the kids. As soon as Lanna noticed, she dropped her voice. “Forgive my
curiosity, but are you two . . . you know, dating?”

Grace couldn’t pretend to be surprised by the question
because of course Lanna would think that. After all, what kind of normal therapist/patient
relationship extended to stuff like this? None that Grace knew of. Still, Lanna
needed to be set straight. “No, we’re not dating—not even thinking about
dating. To be honest, I’m not even sure what I’m doing here. He just—” Grace
shrugged, not quite sure how to explain.

Lanna nodded in understanding. “He can be very persuasive
when he sets his mind to something.” She raised an eyebrow suggestively. “I’m
just wondering if he has his mind set on you.”

An unwanted thrill shot through Grace, followed by alarm
at the possibility. That wouldn’t be good. She didn’t want to be attracted to
Seth, charmed by him, or even indebted to him. She simply wanted to make it
through the rest of his recovery with her heart intact—something that would
never happen if he continued to drag her into his personal life and insert
himself into hers.

Lanna nudged her shoulder. “Relax. He’s actually a really
great guy.”

“I know, I just—” She just what? Didn’t want her name
appearing on his undoubtedly extensive conquest list? Didn’t want to be
that
therapist who couldn’t keep the professional barriers intact?

Grace frowned. What
was
she doing here? Was this
really about trying to help Seth and Lanna mend fences? Or did Grace agree
because deep down she
wanted
to spend more time with Seth?

An uncomfortable pit settled in her stomach.

She quickly pushed it away and squared her shoulders. Grace
was strong. And a professional. She’d gone with her brother to the basketball
game to get him on the right track, and she’d come here to help Seth. That was
it. After today there would be no reason to cross over the professional line
into personal.

More than ready to change the subject, Grace said, “Seth
wasn’t the only one who came here to work. What can I do?”

Lanna gave her a knowing smile before pointing to two
young girls nearby—both of whom were giggling and talking. “See those two girls
over there? My friend Milly usually keeps them on track. But something came up
and she couldn’t be here today. Would you mind? They’re both sweethearts who
also happen to be best friends and would rather gab than get their homework
done.”

“I’m on it.” Grace grabbed a chair and pulled it near the
girls. She introduced herself and asked if she could see what they were working
on. In no time at all, she had them a little more focused on their homework.

As she worked with the girls, every now and then her gaze
would drift across the room toward Seth. Sometimes she’d catch him looking at
her and would quickly look away; sometimes she’d watch as he tried to explain something
to the boy, and sometimes she found him leaning back in his chair, twirling a
pencil and eyeing the window with longing.

Seth hadn’t been joking when he’d said there was a reason
he didn’t go into elementary education. But at least he’d come. At least he was
trying. And at least Lanna had finally spoken to him. That counted for
something.

But what would happen after today? Would Seth ever
return? Would he find a way to get a little more involved as Grace suggested,
or would he take a step back until Lanna’s funds ran dry then try to pull out
his wallet yet again? Would Lanna start accepting his help—at least where this
program was concerned?

Why did Grace even care?

By the time all the kids had finished up and left, Grace
was ready for a brisk walk through the park—anything to get her body moving.
How did Lanna come every day to this musty-smelling room and sit here for
hours, trying to be both a parent and teacher to these kids? What motivated
her? What kept her going? She seemed to have an endless supply of patience and
kindness.

Seth yawned and stretched as he walked over to Grace. “That
was the longest two hours of my life.”

Grace and Lanna both laughed.

“Yeah.” Lanna nodded. “I figured this would be a ‘been
there, done that’ sort of thing for you. But thank you for coming just the same.
And for the money, though it kills me to admit it. Because of you, we’ll be
able to stop worrying about how to keep paying the rent on this place for a
long while.” She paused and looked away, but not before Grace saw her get a
little teary-eyed. “I just hope that one day you can come to see the value of
this place.”