not to lean in to the reassuring hold for too long. She didn’t need Oliver questioning her mood. Her brother and father already worried too much over her.
“All the way from Frisco? Gallery business?” he asked, referring to one of two galleries Vectra owned.
“Just went to see a friend.” She shrugged. “Needed to shop for Robb DeWitt. His birthday party’s tomorrow night, you know?”
“Yeah, yeah, I got an invite.” Oliver nodded, rubbing his jaw as he spoke.
“Who are you taking?” Vectra kicked at a loose thatch of grass and dirt, attempting faint interest.
“Not sure I’m even going.” Oliver rolled the sleeves of a black denim shirt over heavily corded forearms. “Guess you are?”
“I am.”
“Good for you.” Oliver gave her a sidelong glance. “You good?”
“Yeah...yeah, yeah.” She shifted her weight and cringed. “I just waited too long to get a date. I may have to go solo.”
“Solo.” Oliver made a face and moved past his sister to recline against the plank fence. “So all the good guys were taken, huh?”
“Not every good guy.” Vectra joined her brother, bracing her elbows against the fence and gazing up at him with an adoring smile.
Oliver grunted a laugh, his light, deep-set eyes reflecting more vibrancy in the sunlight. “The flattery, while true, will get you nowhere.”
Vectra rolled her eyes. “Tell me about it.”
“What about Qasim?”
She did a double take, put distance between her and Oliver. “Where’d that come from?”
Oliver merely shrugged off the question.
Vectra reciprocated the gesture. “I already asked him, anyway. He turned me down.”
“Seriously? He really turned you down?” Oliver looked incredulous.
Vectra’s smile reflected sympathy. “He really did, but it’s fine. I understand why he had to. He’s seeing someone.”
Oliver’s incredulous expression seemed to intensify into devastation. “He told you that?”
“He didn’t have to, Olive.” Vectra slapped her hands to her thighs and turned to take in the view beyond the fence once more. “He doesn’t want to be friends anymore—told me so himself—said he couldn’t be. Isn’t that male-speak for ‘I’m seeing someone else’?”
“I don’t know, Vecs... I think you might be way off.”
“Well...” Vectra dismissed the issue with an airy wave.
“So? Are you still gonna go even though no one asked you?”
Vectra accepted her brother’s good-natured ribbing with a laugh. “I already told Robb I’d go, and I’m having a new gallery event soon.” She shrugged, inhaled the fragrant air and sighed. “It’ll be good to get out and be seen before that.”
“New gallery thing, huh?” Oliver nodded approvingly. “That’ll be good for you. We—me and Dad—were wondering what your plans were for the place. You haven’t been spending a lot of time at either location.”
“Guess I have been a little preoccupied,” Vectra admitted. She kept quiet about the fact that it was because she’d been more interested in being available for Qasim Wilder whenever he called.
Oliver nudged her elbow.
“I suppose I could lower my standards yet again and take you since I haven’t had the time to get a better date.”
“Well, I appreciate your sacrifice!” Vectra laughed. “I’ll be sure not to depend on you for a ride home, though.”
“You offend me, Vecs.” Oliver planted a hand to the middle of his chest. “So it sounds like we have a date, but let me know if you get a better offer.”
“Doubtful.” Flashbacks of her chat with Qasim came to mind. She pulled back from the fence. “I’m heading to the house. You coming?”
Oliver gave a theatrical sigh while strolling with his sister. “Since I got nothin’ better to do.” He groaned upon receiving a shove for his honesty.
“I’ll meet you at the house.” Vectra tugged Oliver with her as she headed to her car, but her steps slowed the nearer she drew to it. “Olive? Why are you out here? Just in the area?” Her brother lived in San Francisco.
Oliver shrugged beneath the shirt he sported. “You’ve got your ex-friend to thank for that. Sim called me.”
She stilled. “Why?”
“He told me you guys had a not-so-nice conversation. Didn’t tell me what it was about, but he said you were upset and he wanted me to check on you. I was up at the marketing park,” he said, referring to the administrative offices for Carro Vineyards, “so it didn’t take long to drive over.”
It all still triggered Vectra’s curiosity. “That’s a little extreme, don’t you think?”
“He’s protective of you. I get that.”
Vectra smiled, albeit sadly, understanding her brother’s meaning. “You and Dad have reason to be protective—even if it does drive me out of my mind.”
“Qasim isn’t like that bastard who put his hands on you, Vec. I don’t profess to be able to read the man’s mind, but I don’t think he’d ever put his hands on a woman that way.”
Vectra entwined her fingers with Oliver’s. “Neither do I,” she said, feeling a slight chill as memories of an unfortunate and long-dead relationship came to mind.
“He doesn’t even want to be my friend. Why bother?”
“Maybe the friendship role isn’t the one he was aiming for.” Oliver winked, leaned in to drop a kiss to his sister’s cheek. “See you at the house.”
Vectra watched her brother sprint over to hop into the Jeep and drive away in a flurry of dust. She leaned against the hood of her ride and delved into a bit of deep thought.
He doesn’t want to be my friend, doesn’t want any of my other friends to call or even take me out. He has my brother drive over to check on me afterwards... What the hell kind of game is he playing?
She was more than familiar with the protective—well, overprotective—element, being a direct recipient of it from her father and brother. Not wanting her to go out with anyone else, though? That held traces of possessiveness that she knew could be signs of other things...
She shook her head, reaching around to massage the knotted muscles at her nape. Qasim wasn’t like that. She knew him well enough, had enough...past experience to know that wasn’t in his nature.
There was something
