Chapter Seven
Chad worried about his mom. He hated that she wanted to deal with going through his dad’s stuff by herself, but he also understood why she wouldn’t want her sons there when she grieved. At least lunch had been good. For her and for all of them.
He loved having his brothers home. It would make things around Lobster Cove so much easier. Even though Knox, Zach, and Lincoln would always have their own lives, he knew without a doubt if he called them and asked for help, they’d give it without a moment’s hesitation.
And no matter how hectic things got, they’d be frequent visitors to Lobster Cove. They were drawn there, just as he was. He could see in their faces how much they’d missed their mom, and he hoped they’d never regret upending their lives and moving back to Maine.
For himself, Chad felt as if moving back to Rockville had been a long time coming.
He enjoyed Virginia, but there was no place like home.
Memories flooded his brain as he led Britt along the overgrown trail that went from the bench at the water’s edge and through the trees between Lobster Cove and the next property over.
He’d spent a lot of time out here in the woods when he was growing up.
Both with his brothers and by himself. When he needed some alone time, this was where he came.
Because as much as he loved his family, they were sometimes a bit much.
He’d read books out here, climbed trees, dug holes, battled imaginary dragons, lain in the dirt for hours pretending to track enemies with guns he’d made out of sticks.
And when he got older, he brought girls out here to make out.
That last thought made him smile. He’d learned pretty fast that generally, girls didn’t like being dirty, so before bringing anyone out here, he’d made the fort more comfortable with bottles of water and a throw blanket.
He hadn’t lost his virginity out here in the woods, but he’d definitely come close.
“That looks like a good thought,” Britt said.
“Yeah,” Chad agreed. “Just thinking about how much time I used to spend out here.”
“I can see why. It’s beautiful. It feels as if we’re the only two people in the world. We could be miles and miles away from anyone, and yet the house is just through the trees.”
“Exactly. I think that’s why I liked it so much as a kid. I could pretend I was on a grand adventure, but if I scraped my leg or got hungry, I could be home in minutes.”
“You were lucky to grow up here.”
“I was.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“You just did,” Chad joked. But when he looked at Britt, she wasn’t smiling. “Sorry, yes, of course you can. I know we only recently met, but I hope that by now, you know you can trust me a little.”
“I do. I just ... I’m not sure how to approach this.”
Chad frowned, wondering what she wanted to talk about. “Is it Mom? Is something wrong?”
“No. And I would definitely come to you if I was worried about her. She’s still sad, that’s easy to see, but she’s strong. And I think you and your brothers being home is exactly what she needs.”
The relief Chad felt was almost overwhelming. “That’s good. And being here is as good for us as it is for her, I think. This place has a way of grabbing you around the heart and not letting go.”
She didn’t say anything as they walked, and Chad thought maybe she’d changed her mind about asking her question. Then she took a deep breath and stopped in the middle of the trail.
“Otis ... he’s been with your family for a while now, right?”
Chad’s brow furrowed. “Yeah. He and my dad were close friends. They hung out a lot, went fishing together all the time.”
She stared out into the trees, obviously not seeing them.
“Why? What happened? Did he say or do something inappropriate?” Chad knew she’d met with him to sign paperwork before lunch.
“He seems to think I’m here because I’m after your family’s money. He made it very clear that any money you guys have is tied up in Lobster Cove.”
Chad pressed his lips together in irritation. “I’m sorry. He had no right to say that to you.”
Britt shrugged. “I mean, I get it. I’m a stranger, and he wants to protect Evelyn and her assets. I just ... he ...” She sighed. “Never mind.”
“No, say what you’re thinking. Please.”
“He just made me uncomfortable. He obviously doesn’t like me. Considers me an outsider. Told me that you and your brothers would marry local girls and someone like me shouldn’t get any ideas.”
“Someone like you?” he asked, holding on to his temper by the skin of his teeth. Otis had no right to treat Britt that way. She’d been nothing but helpful and kind to his mom.
Britt shrugged, obviously uncomfortable discussing it further.
“I’ll talk to him.”
Britt turned to him with wide eyes and put a hand on his arm.
“Oh! Please don’t! I have a feeling that will only make things worse.
I know he’s a family friend, and I can be nice to him for the sake of my job.
I was mostly uncomfortable because he was talking about your mom’s money situation to a stranger. ”
Chad was definitely going to talk to Otis.
It had been a while since he’d done more than exchange greetings with the man.
It was time to remedy that anyway. But .
.. since it was something his brothers should be involved in, he could at least wait until they’d settled into their new homes.
Then they would all sit down with him, their mom too, and discuss the state of Lobster Cove—taxes, investments, and other financial issues.
It had already been on his to-do list, after his mom’s mention of money being tight.
And then, he’d take a moment or two alone with Otis to address his treatment of Britt.
“I appreciate you telling me,” he said, not promising her anything.
“And I want you to know that you’re one of us now, just as Walt and Barry are.
And no one’s allowed to make you feel uncomfortable in your own home.
If anyone says or does anything out of line, you tell me or one of my brothers.
That includes the guests staying in the cabins. Okay?”
She nodded.
Unease sat in Chad’s belly like a lump of coal, but he took a deep breath and did his best to ignore it.
It wouldn’t do any good to stress about Britt’s interaction with Otis right now.
He’d confront the man later and make it clear that Britt was to be treated with respect—and who he and his brothers decided to date, or possibly marry someday, was none of his business.
“You want to see this fort still?” he asked.
“Yes!” Britt said, sounding more like the woman he’d gotten to know over the last week.
“All right. But I’ll warn you, it’s been out here in the woods, neglected, for a long while now. It’s possible with the snow and windstorms, it’s nothing but a pile of rubble.”
“Oh, that would be a shame,” Britt said.
Chad set out on the trail once more, Britt right on his heels. It didn’t take much longer to get to the area where the fort had once stood.
But instead of the crude structure he and his brothers had built and played in, there stood what looked like a tiny house. It even had shingles on the sloped roof.
Chad stared at it with his mouth open in shock.
“Um, that doesn’t look like a pile of rubble,” Britt said with a laugh.
“I don’t ... how ... What the hell?” Chad said, stumbling over his words.
“Hello?” Britt called out.
He wasn’t sure who she thought she was talking to. As far as he knew, there weren’t any homeless men or women secretly living in their woods.
But to his shock, someone called out, “Who’s there?”
Chad was dumbfounded.
“It’s Britt and Chad,” she said cheerfully, taking a step toward the small hut.
But Chad grabbed her arm and held her back. “You have no idea who’s in there,” he hissed.
“I don’t, but it’s obviously a kid. It’s fine, Chad.” She shook off his hold and stepped toward the fort once more.
She’d picked up on what Chad hadn’t in his shock. The voice was that of a kid. Relief made him almost dizzy. He’d had visions of some escaped convict hiding out in their woods, which was ridiculous.
The door, made of scrap pieces of wood, opened slowly, and a boy’s head popped out.
He was on his knees, probably because the building wasn’t tall enough for him to stand in.
He had red hair that stuck out in every direction.
He was skinny ... kind of scrawny, actually.
Chad estimated he was between ten and twelve.
And he’d never seen him before in his life.
“I don’t know you,” the boy said belligerently.
“And I don’t know you. But we can change that easily enough. I’m Britt. Britt Starkweather. And yes, that’s my real name, not a nickname. I live at Lobster Cove with the Young family. I’m helping out Evelyn with the guesthouses.” She held out her hand to shake.
The boy frowned, looking confused. But someone had drilled some manners into him, because he reached out to shake her hand as if he couldn’t help himself. “I’m Kash Bates. I live over there,” he said, gesturing to the property next to Lobster Cove with his free hand.
Chad frowned. “That’s Victor Rogers’s house,” he said.
“Yeah. He’s my grandfather. Mom and I moved in with him a while ago.”
Now his brows quirked up in surprise. From what Chad remembered of Harper, Victor’s only child, she was one of the mean girls back in school.
Hearing that she’d returned to Rockville was a bit of a shock, since she’d been so determined to get out of this “hick town,” as she called it, and make something of herself in Hollywood or New York.
“Chad figured this fort was probably nothing but sticks because so much time had gone by since he’d last been here,” Britt said conversationally.
“It was,” Kash said with a shrug. “I fixed it up.”
“Well, you did an amazing job. This looks awesome. Like a tiny house.”