Chapter Three
Chad could tell Britt was confused. He’d hustled her out of the house before she could protest and tell his mom “no thank you” for the job. She needed Lobster Cove. He felt that down to his toes. How, he had no idea, but he did.
He’d called his mom on the way home and brought up the possibility of hiring Britt .
.. if she and his mom hit it off, of course.
She did need help. And yes, his brothers coming home would lighten her load, but they would have their plates full just with the maintenance needed around the property.
The roofs all needed replacing, probably some of the siding as well.
The guesthouses were overdue for renovations, which would have to be done between reservations, making them tricky.
They’d have to do the larger projects in the fall and winter, but in the meantime, they could patch holes, fix broken tiles, make sure the appliances were in working order, cut down trees that were dead or dying .
.. all on top of keeping the other businesses going.
And of course, Knox also had a job lined up, and Zach was going to launch a business. So the time they could devote to Lobster Cove would be limited.
But Chad would take what he could get. He’d been overwhelmed since he’d arrived, and as far as he was concerned, his brothers couldn’t get there soon enough.
Until then, he was counting on Walt and Barry to carry the biggest load at the auto body shop, Otis to keep the books, and his mom to continue doing what she did with the guesthouses.
Britt being there would be a huge help—and a load off his mind.
His mom was pretty spry for seventy years old, but he still worried about her.
It was a perfect solution, and he was thrilled his mom had gotten along with her enough to offer her the job. Though “offer” wasn’t the right word. It was more than obvious she’d sprung the job on Britt. That she’d practically ordered the woman to move in with her and help out around the place.
So despite stealing her away so she couldn’t turn down the position, he realized he’d have to tell her more about it.
Give her some details. Reassure her that he and his mother hadn’t lost their minds.
That they didn’t usually pick up random strangers in town and drag them back to Lobster Cove and force them to accept job offers.
Hell, he was surprised she hadn’t jumped back into her car and hightailed it out of there.
He was also surprised Britt hadn’t dropped his hand. But their hands felt good, wrapped together ... so he wasn’t going to be the one to pull away first.
“So, this is the auto shop. That’s kind of a misnomer, because we work on pretty much any kind of engine. Lawn mowers, ATVs, snowmobiles, cars, trucks, boats ... if it’s got an engine, we can usually fix it,” Chad told her, gesturing to the building they were approaching with his free hand.
He walked them into one of the bays and called out to the guys.
“Under here!” Walt called out.
Looking toward the red pickup truck in the first bay, Chad saw a pair of legs sticking out from under the engine. Grinning, he pulled Britt in that direction. “Come out for a second, Walt. I want you to meet Britt.”
At that, Walt moved with more quickness than Chad had seen since he’d known the man.
Walt was around forty and had what he called a “fireman’s mustache.
” It was large and bushy and curled downward on either side of his lips.
He was a big man with a loud, booming voice, which sometimes was a bit over the top, but the guy was truly a gentle soul.
“A girl? You brought a girl home?” he asked as he stood up.
Looking over at Britt, Chad saw she was blushing. “Not in the way you’re thinking, but yes, we met in town, and she was looking for work. Mom could use some help around here with the guesthouses, and with stuff in general.”
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Walt. You need anything, feel free to ask. We’re a pretty laid-back bunch around here, and it’ll be great to have a pretty face amongst all of us ugly mugs.”
Chad noticed the way Walt’s gaze flicked to their hands. But since she didn’t seem bothered, he didn’t loosen his grip. “Is Barry here?”
Instead of responding, Walt turned his head toward the door that led into a small room they used as an office, and yelled, “Barry!”
Wincing and shaking his head at the mechanic, Chad said, “Jeez, Walt. Tone it down a bit, would ya?”
“Sorry. Just wanted to make sure he heard me.”
“They heard you up in Bangor,” Chad told him.
Walt chuckled, a hearty sound that was becoming extremely familiar. In the two weeks since Chad had moved back to Lobster Cove, he’d heard the man’s laughter echo around the property at regular intervals.
The door to the office creaked as it opened, and Barry stepped through. He was a little younger than Walt, and his opposite in almost every way. He was only about five-seven, with red hair and green eyes, and he was slender enough to look as if a stiff breeze would blow him over.
But the man was a genius with engines. He didn’t talk much, but he was a hard worker and loyal as hell.
From what Chad understood, he used to work on a lobster boat but after a scare in a bad storm, he’d decided it would be safer to change professions.
He had a wife and three kids who Evelyn loved to have over for visits, claiming that since her own sons hadn’t given her any grandbabies yet, she’d have to make do spoiling Barry’s kids.
“You bellowed?” Barry asked as he joined them.
“This here’s Britt. She’s with Chad. She’ll be helping Miss Evelyn at the house,” Walt said, taking over the introductions.
“Ma’am,” Barry said politely with a nod.
“Oh, please, it’s just Britt,” she said quickly.
“That’s her Corolla near the house. Can one of you please take a look at it? Someone loosened the nuts on the battery, making it disconnect. I fixed that, but I’d feel better if we made sure nothing else was wrong with it.”
“Keys?” Walt asked, holding out his hand.
“Oh, um ... it’s okay now,” Britt said.
“Walt will make sure of it,” Chad answered reasonably.
“I ... Chad, I can’t afford to have any work done on it right now,” she said quietly, sounding embarrassed.
He mentally kicked himself. Of course she was worried about her finances. He opened his mouth to reassure her that it wouldn’t cost anything, but Walt beat him to the punch.
“You’re one of us now,” he boomed. “A Lobsterite—that’s what I’ve dubbed us. The people who work here at Lobster Cove. And Lobsterites don’t pay for shit like tune-ups and oil changes. Hand me your keys, sweetheart, and we’ll make sure she’s purring nice and good before you head out.”
“Take your time,” Chad told him. “Mom invited her to stay at the big house for as long as she needs.”
Walt’s eyes sparkled and his grin widened.
“Did she? That’s great! Welcome to Lobster Cove then, Britt.
As I said before, you need anything, don’t hesitate to let us know.
If something breaks at any of the houses, Barry’s your man to take a look.
The washing machine, fridge, vacuum ... you name it, he can fix it.”
“Um . . . thanks.”
“Keys?” Walt asked again, holding his hand out once more and wiggling his fingers.
For a moment, Chad wondered if she’d refuse to give in.
Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a key ring with a single key.
For some reason, the sight of the lone key on the lobster-shaped key fob made him sad.
He had at least a dozen keys on his—which was a pain in the ass—but it underscored how privileged he was to need keys to so many different locks.
“Lobster. Seems as if you being here was meant to be,” Walt said with a wink as he palmed the key ring.
Britt shrugged. “I saw it when I first got here in a tourist shop and thought it was cute.”
“And now here you are at Lobster Cove. Kismet,” Walt said.
“You guys about done out there?”
Turning, Chad saw Otis Calvert standing in the doorway of the office. He hadn’t realized he was here. “Otis! Come meet Lobster Cove’s newest employee,” he called out.
The older man had met his father over twenty years ago, and they’d clicked immediately. As far back as Chad could remember, Otis had been in their lives. Joining them for lobster bakes, fishing, drinking beers on the deck. He was as much a part of Lobster Cove as the rest of his family.
Like a lot of people, Otis had endured his share of financial struggles, and Chad’s father had helped him out by giving him more and more responsibility in regard to Lobster Cove.
To hear Austin Young tell it, Otis’s long-ago divorce had been ugly, and his two kids struggled, having to split their time between parents. It affected them both deeply.
Otis’s daughter had been in a string of bad marriages and was currently in Portland, living on the streets.
He’d done everything he could to help her, but she had no desire to return to this “backwater town,” as she called Rockville.
She actually preferred the streets and living with her junkie friends over getting a job and working for a living.
Chad thought he remembered his dad telling him at one point that she suffered from mental illness, which didn’t help the situation.
Camden, meanwhile, had fallen in with a bad crowd in his teens and done more than his fair share of time in prison.
Otis had drained his savings trying to help his son through various legal issues.
For the last ten years or so, he seemed to have gotten his shit together somewhat.
He was living with his dad and staying out of trouble, working part time at Lobster Cove in the auto shop.
And Otis had long since become responsible for all the accounting for Lobster Cove, which wasn’t a small job. He did their taxes and made sure their investments were working as they should.