10
It took me several seconds. The man rising from the sofa looked so like my father that, at first, I feared he had come back from the grave to haunt me.
But no. Not my dad.
“Liam,” I breathed, pressing a hand to the thud of my reviving heart. “What—w-when—how didyouget here?” I hadn’t seen a car, though I did now see the muddy boots that lay strewn beyond the cats.
“I was doing just fine”—he picked up where he might have left off had there not been four years of complete and utter silence between us—“until I started up your hill.” He approached with a scowl. “What kind of road is that anyway?”
The cats ran away. Keeping an arm around Jonah, I sank from my haunches to the floor. “Dirt.”
“Not dirt. Mud. I skidded off into the trees and couldn’t get back, so I hiked the last stretch. I’m assuming someone can tow me out in the morning. Hell, towing cars must be a way of life up here. I carried mybackpack, but the rest of my stuff’s out there… wherever.” The last word trailed. He was studying my face. “Geez, Maggie. You look awful. Bad date?”
I might have laughed, if I wasn’t still so close to heart freeze. My eyes surely showed the wreck of my life, and what Edward’s hands had done to my hair, the rain made worse. But I wasn’t sharing any of that with Liam. It was none of his business. Nothing in my life was his business. He had made his choice.
My younger brother by five years, Liam had the red hair and freckled skin that our paternal great-grandfather had brought from Ireland in the early 1900s. Though I was the first-born, Liam had been raised the royal, loyal son. That made his appearance here troubling.
Guarded, I asked, “Is Mom okay?” I had often wondered whether I would be contacted if she was ill.
“She’s fine,” he said. “Bossy as ever.”
“Is something else wrong?” I held off Jonah when he tried to lick my face.
“Why does something have to be wrong?”
“Because you’re here,” I said, wary still. “Out of the blue, Liam. You haven’t called. You haven’t written. I send you birthday cards every year, but you never acknowledged a one.”
“Well, they accomplished their goal,” he said with a grin. “They gave me your address. I sure couldn’t ask Mom for it, but she’ll be guessing where I am.” He grimaced,yikes. “Thatwon’t go over well.”
Seriously, I thought, but my sympathy was short-lived. He owed me an explanation for why he was here in my house—and yes, I was angry. With each year that had passed without any sign from him that I mattered, my hurt had deepened. Anger was what came of hurt that had simmered just a little too long.
Bracing my back against the door, I pushed myself up. Jonah sat apart from me now, regarding my brother as if he didn’t know what to make of him any more than I did.
“I like your dog,” Liam said. “He must have smelled family DNA on me, because he didn’t bark when I came in. By the way, thanks for tucking the key behind the wreath. I wasn’t sure you’d follow the custom, bad feelings for Mom and all, and I wasn’t sure you’d still have a wreath on the door so long after the holidays.”
“My friend makes seasonal ones.”
“Then thanks to her. All I could think when I was trudging up that road was that if you weren’t home, I’d be locked out. By the way, I have the best app on my phone. Your road was right there on the map.”
I don’t use apps to guide me. Ever. They come with too many reminders, none of which, apparently, registered with my brother.
I folded my arms and waited.
“It’s a relief, actually,” he went on. “There may not be many streets around here, but I wouldn’t want to get lost in the woods—like I guess I pretty much, basically, already did.” Brightening, he glanced back at my tiny kitchen. “Got anything to eat? I stopped at a taco place right before Devon, but it was crazy—no organization, people talking between tables, servers zoned out. I have to say, they were doing a good business. I just didn’t care to give them mine.”
I said nothing, simply stood with my arms folded.
He stared. “Geez. Do you ever look like Mom. If you’ve turned into her, I’m outta here. Edward can find someone else to be his chef.”
That broke my freeze. My arms dropped. “You’re here forEdward?”
“I’m his new chef.”
“At the Inn?”
“At the restaurant he’s opening in town. It’s part of the resort consortium. Didn’t he tell you?”
“Why would he? We’re divorced.”
