Within These Walls (The Walls Duet #1)(59)

“It’s all over the news,” she said.

I clicked on the link to bring up the full article. A full-color picture of my brother was included, showing him walking through the doors of Cavanaugh Investments. He looked older, and his eyes were downcast as he tried to avoid the cameras and attention.

My eyes quickly skimmed the words, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out what was going on. The phrases poor business decisions, family in turmoil, and investors not happy all popped out at me.

“My father’s and brother’s little scheme to cover up my whereabouts has finally leaked as well as their lack of business skills. How my father managed not to run the business into the ground sooner has never failed to astound me. It was my grandfather’s vision, not his.” I shook my head, shutting the laptop and setting it aside.

“Are you going to do anything?” she asked softly.

“No. They made the mess, so they can clean it up,” I answered. “My place is here now.”





I’D JUST FINISHED my lackluster lunch of lasagna and broccoli when there was a knock on my door. My heart fluttered in anticipation, wondering if it was Jude about to grace my presence, but then I realized I had no idea when or even if he was going to visit me today. When I’d asked him yesterday, he’d been especially vague, actually sidestepping the conversation altogether.

I gave my okay to enter and felt my jaw hit the floor.

Weighed down by an assortment of glittery gowns, boxes of shoes, and several other bags, my mother and Grace entered my room and nearly collapsed as they dumped things on the end of my bed.

“What the heck?” I said, looking around for some sort of clue. “Are we playing dress-up?”

Grace’s eyes lit up, and it was then that I noticed she wasn’t dressed for work. Instead, she wore a pair of slim dark jeans, pink ballet flats, and a flowery top. Her hair was pulled back into a large neat bun at the top of her head. I’d never seen her out of scrubs. She looked beautiful and exactly how I would have pictured her—girlie with a touch of class.

“We are here to get you ready,” Grace announced.

“Ready for what?” My eyes darted around the room from her to my mom, who was not nearly as excited but still showing more emotion than I usually saw out of her.

“I can’t tell you,” Grace said.

“Okay.”

“It’s another one of those crazy ideas your boyfriend thought up,” my mom added with a slight smile and a roll of her eyes.

She was warming up to Jude. It was taking a while, but slowly, she was coming around. Maybe by the time we were in our forties, she might work her way up to a hug.

“So, where do we start?”

We started with dresses. Grace had brought a huge selection, all with various styles and colors.

“Where did you get these?” I asked.

“Never you mind that,” she answered with a wave of the hand. “Jude asked me to handle the beauty side of things, and I did. Now, which one do you like best?”

I looked through all my choices. Some were sweet, and some were sexy. I chose several to try on, but my eyes kept going to one—a strapless mint green gown that reminded me of Jude’s eyes. I saved that one for last. Grace loved everything, and my mother even got teary-eyed from seeing me in something other than sweats and jeans. But when I came out in that last dress, there was silence.

It was stunning. The bodice was simple with a sweetheart shape that gave lift and shape to my otherwise straight body. The part that made it interesting was the lace overlay covering my scar just perfectly, curving around my collarbone, but it was still see-through enough that the sweetheart-style was visible. The dress hugged at the waist and then flared with wisps of fabric cascading elegantly down to the floor.

They both stared up at me.

“It’s perfect,” Grace finally said.

“It’s lovely,” my mom chimed in.

“Yay!” Grace exclaimed. “Now, let’s choose shoes!”

Those were an easy choice. I went with a flat silver sandal. The dress was long enough, so no one would see my shoes anyway, and since I’d never in my life walked in heels, I didn’t want to start now. I actually wanted to get out of this hospital sometime in the near future.

Once that decision was made, we moved on to makeup. Grace had me strip out of my dress and back into my regular clothes. She pulled out this huge toolbox-looking thing that had about fifty-thousand compartments crammed inside.

“Are you sure you don’t have an apartment in there?” I asked.

She opened yet another hidden drawer. “No, I’m just very organized when it comes to makeup.”

“Obviously.”

I was nervous when she began painting on foundation and puffing on powder. I’d never worn makeup, and even though I had no clue what was going on, I knew I didn’t want to look like a hooker for it.

“Okay, time for the reveal,” she said, holding a mirror out in front of me.

I took a deep breath and looked up at the reflection staring back at me.

“Oh my God, Grace.”

“I know,” she said.

She’d done an amazing job. It was me, only slightly improved but nothing overstated. There were no harsh black lines or daring eye shadow. I just had subtle highlights here and there to accentuate my cheekbones and eye color.