Chapter Twelve
Zach was pissed. Not at Marit, but at Lucas Pearson. How dare he harass Marit like he was? What was the point? What did he hope to gain? Zach had no idea, but the fact that the man was acting like a grade school bully didn’t sit well with him. Not at all.
Marit had been through hell at the hands of her brothers.
And apparently down in Portland, as well.
She didn’t talk much about Thorne Deaton, but she’d said enough for Zach to know she’d felt as if she had to leave for her own safety.
The last thing he wanted was for her to feel that same way here in Rockville because of Pearson.
He needed to do something about it, but he wasn’t sure what.
He hated that Marit hadn’t told him about the texts, but he hadn’t lied.
He really did understand. Being part of a true family was new to her.
Having people in your life who would support you no matter what, who’d have your back .
. . it wasn’t something she’d experienced before.
And he could even understand her fear that he’d find himself in trouble if he stepped into the situation with Pearson. But Zach wasn’t dumb enough to do or say anything that might get him thrown into jail.
No, there were ways of dealing with Marit’s tormentor that would guarantee the man would slide back under whatever rock he’d crawled out from under.
Zach and his family knew everyone in Rockville.
Without doing anything illegal, they could get others in town to make Pearson’s life as miserable as he was making Marit’s.
“You okay?” Linc asked, as they took a break from moving boxes from their mom’s to the rental house . . . which was no longer a rental.
“No,” Zach said honestly. He briefly explained Marit’s situation, and what had been going on for months, and the fact that he’d just learned about the text harassment when they’d pulled into the driveway earlier.
“You want me to talk to him?” Linc asked.
That right there was something Zach vowed to never take for granted. The fact that he had people who would take on his burdens with no questions asked.
“Not yet. I’m thinking I’d like first crack at him.
The man has got to understand that Marit is off limits.
I don’t even understand why he’s continuing this asinine line of harassment.
If Marit wasn’t good at what she did, no one would hire her.
But the fact that Eliot has not only kept her on, but given her more and more responsibility, and even let her take his boat out a couple of times to do pot and buoy maintenance when he couldn’t be there, tells me everything I need to know.
And it should tell all the other lobstermen around here the same thing.
She’s a damn good fisherman. Why can’t he just leave her alone? ”
“Because that’s how bullies are. But you’re right, there has to be another reason. Something more than just her gender. Does she have any idea why he hates her so much?”
“No.”
“Huh,” Linc said. “I mean, I could be wrong. Sometimes people just take an exception to others. There might not be a reason. Like how people bullied me when I was in high school, and they thought it was okay to treat me like shit just because I was different than them.”
“Speaking of which . . . how are things between you and Harper?”
Linc shrugged. “Don’t see her much. Don’t really talk to her either. Just in passing when I drop Kash off after spending some time with him.”
“You’re doing that more and more, aren’t you?” Zach asked.
“He craves male one-on-one time, and it’s not as if Victor will give that to him. The man just enjoys pointing out all his supposed weaknesses. He’s gonna lose his grandson if he continues to be such an ass to him.”
Zach didn’t disagree with his brother. But he did wonder why Linc was taking it upon himself to become Kash’s mentor. Deciding a change of topic was in order, he asked, “How are things with you? How’s your shoulder?”
“How’re your knees?” Linc countered.
Zach snorted. “About as good as they can be.”
“There’s your answer for me too then.”
Linc. He was stubborn as hell. The man’s shoulder had almost been ripped from his body in the crash behind enemy lines, but Zach supposed the very stubbornness that was driving him crazy at the moment had helped Linc put one foot in front of the other for a week as he evaded the enemy forces trying to track him down.
“She’s different,” Linc said after a moment.
For a second, Zach thought he was talking about Marit. Then he realized Linc was talking about Harper. That he’d circled back around to their previous topic.
Linc went on. “She’s struggling. Did you know she’s paying her father rent? That bastard is charging his own daughter to stay at his house. She’s working her ass off to make enough to pay her dad, while trying to give Kash the kind of Christmas she’s never been able to give him before. It sucks.”
Zach was a little surprised Linc cared so much.
Especially after the way Harper had treated him when they were teenagers.
But that had been a long time ago, and as Britt and Marit both pointed out, people changed.
It seemed as if maybe Harper had learned a hard life lesson . . . and was still learning it.
A loud peal of laughter rang out from the other room, where their mom had been storing all the baby stuff she’d been accumulating.
Something occurred to Zach. He looked over at his brother. “What about the other rental house?”
“What about it?” Linc asked.
“It’s empty. Mom isn’t planning on doing any more rentals.
You think she might be open to letting Harper and Kash move in?
Having one bedroom isn’t ideal, but we might be able to put up a curtain or something to give Harper some privacy, because we both know she’d give the room to her son.
It would give them both space away from Victor, and it’ll be up to Mom how much she wants to charge, of course .
. . but I’m guessing she’d barely charge them anything, considering how much she enjoys having Kash around. ”
Linc’s head whipped around to stare at Zach. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
Zach grinned. “See? I might be the baby, but I’ve got a good idea now and then.”
Linc chuckled and leaned sideways, knocking into Zach’s shoulder. “Naw, you’re only good for the food you can make. That’s the only reason we tolerate having you around.”
“Asshole,” Zach said.
“Pecker head,” Linc retorted.
“Lickspittle.”
“Mumpsimus.”
“Pettifogger.” Zach grinned. This was just like old times. Growing up, they’d had to look up words that were insults that didn’t sound like curses so their mom wouldn’t make them do extra chores as punishment for saying them.
Linc smiled at his little brother. “It’s good to be home. I’ll talk to Mom. Thanks for the suggestion.”
“Shouldn’t you talk to Harper first?” Linc asked.
“Nope. She’d probably refuse out of pride. Which would be stupid. And if I ask if she wants to move into the house, she’d almost certainly say no simply because it’s me asking. If Mom brings it up, and makes her think it was her idea . . .” Linc’s voice trailed off.
“Right. Smart. But won’t Harper be pissed when she learns that it was you who first brought it up? You know she’ll figure it out eventually. Love Mom to pieces, but she’s not exactly Fort Knox when it comes to keeping secrets.”
Linc shrugged. “Probably. But technically, you suggested it. Not me.” He winked. “Either way, since it’s for Kash, she’ll deal.”
Zach figured his brother was probably right.
“If you need me—or Knox or Chad—you know we’ve got your back, right? With this Pearson asshole? No one fucks with a Lobsterite,” Linc said fervently.
“I know. Thanks. I’d already decided that it might be necessary to bring in the local Rockville network . . . you know, get people to subtly do things to make Pearson’s life here . . . difficult. I’ll keep you updated as to what’s going on.”
“I’d appreciate it.”
“Hey! You guys gonna stand there holding up that wall or come and help us carry some of this stuff to the other house?” Chad called out.
“Keep your pants on, we’re coming!” Zach yelled back.
Linc clapped his hand on Zach’s shoulder, then they headed toward the room where everyone else had gathered. It would be a tight fit in the new house with everyone there, trying to help get things set up how Chad and Britt wanted them, but since everyone was family, it could never be too crowded.
Later that evening, Zach sat in his favorite recliner with Marit on his lap.
He was surprisingly exhausted after a long day out at Lobster Cove.
A lot of it was emotional exhaustion. Many people didn’t believe men could be emotional, but with the surprise of hearing about the texts Marit was getting, the excitement he felt for his brother and Britt, the talk with Linc, seeing how happy his mom was about the upcoming grandchild .
. . he was more than ready to sit and simply “be” with Marit.
Which was a new thing for Zach. In the past when he’d had girlfriends, he’d always felt as if he had to entertain them every second they were together.
Make sure they were happy. That they didn’t need or want anything.
With Marit, that was rarely the case. She didn’t need entertaining every moment of the day.
She seemed just as content to sit in a quiet room, like they were doing now, as she was to go out and do something.
The bottom line was, it felt like Marit was a perfect match for him.
It had been almost three months since they’d been dating, and he loved that she’d spent most of her nights here at his place.
She had clothes here, toiletries next to his in the bathroom, and he got such a kick out of seeing her boots and fishing gear taking up most of the room in his front closet.
He’d clear out all his drawers and closets for her stuff if it meant she spent more time here with him.