“No. Not unless you’re interested in me for something other than my money.” The words were out before Seth could stop them, but he didn’t try to take them back.

“What are you accusing us of?” Graham exploded. “Not all of us can make millions of dollars just for slapping a bunch of paint on a canvas. It’s not like you’re good at what you do. You don’t even put faces on your people!”

“Graham, he said he wasn’t feeling well. Let’s...let’s just wait until tomorrow,” Lois said, obviously not wanting to overreact in case he’d change his mind, given a little more time. But Seth knew there’d be no going back from this point. She’d only invited him over and cooked him a meal because she was hoping he’d bail them out once again.

“Too bad our daughter’s not around to see you treat us like this,” Graham spat.

“She was too good for me,” Seth admitted. “But she was too good for you, too.”

Fifteen

Tia thought she’d have the house to herself, at least for a while, so she was surprised when she heard the door slam with enough force to shake the walls. A startled Kiki squawked, and Tia turned in the atrium in time to see Seth stalk into the kitchen. He’d walked right past her, didn’t seem to realize she was there.

He must’ve caught sight of her out of the corner of his eye at the last second, however, because he suddenly backed up and froze.

Tia felt like she’d been spotted by some predatory animal—a big cat who was sizing her up and measuring...what? She couldn’t tell, but if she had her guess, Seth was upset about something.

The intensity of his gaze made her skin prickle. His face could’ve been made of stone for all the expression he allowed it. But she could read pain and confusion in his eyes. That he couldn’t hide.

Something had changed tonight. What was it?

Refusing to be the first to look away, she stared right back at him. It felt like he was challenging her, although she didn’t know how or why. Would he come in and tell her to go?

She thought he might—until he walked into the kitchen as if he hadn’t seen her to begin with.

She finished up with Kiki and let herself out. She was going back to the guesthouse. She assumed he didn’t want to be sociable, or he would’ve poked his head in and said something.