Meant to Be (3 page)

Three hours after driving off the ferry, wild curls and jade-green eyes continued to haunt Joe’s mind. Scanning the cars
for Lucas’s bimbo, he’d never have spotted the brunette in the blue Civic if Dozer hadn’t climbed in with her. When she invited Joe in, he’d been feeling pretty good about his chances.

But then she wanted to talk. Not his strong suit.

If she’d really wanted a distraction, Joe could think of a dozen more distracting activities. Not that he’d have tried any of them on the ferry. Or on a total stranger. But he hoped his ferry girl wouldn’t stay a stranger for long.

He should have gotten her last name. The name Beth wasn’t exactly uncommon. But that was one good thing about the close quarters on Anchor Island. They were bound to run into each other at some point.

Though another meet-up might have been more definite had he not brought up his family shit. What the hell was his problem?

That was an easy one. His little brother was his problem. Ever since Patty announced Lucas was bringing home a fiancée, he’d been dreading the day she’d show up. Joe didn’t always agree with his brother—hell, he never agreed with his brother—but he still wanted Lucas to be happy.

If Lucas picked his fiancée the way he picked everything else, he’d shoot for expensive, sleek, and high maintenance. The type of woman who’d chew him up and leave with half his shit. If he was lucky.

Joe’s stomach growled, a reminder he was late for supper. Patty would have his ass since the big introductions were tonight. Moments when he was running late for something were the only times Joe wished cell phones worked on the island.

Parking his truck in the gravel patch between his parents’ place and his own, Joe decided to leave Dozer in the Jeep while he ran in to let Patty know he was there before heading home for a quick shower. He and Sid had made the valve lash adjustment, but they were both covered in grease for the effort. The stench of diesel was so strong on his clothes, even Joe could barely stand it.

He took the steps two at a time and followed the porch around to the kitchen. “I know I’m late,” he said as he opened the door, “but I need to take a quick shower and I’ll be back.”

The last word trailed off as he hovered in stunned disbelief. What the—

“You certainly do need a shower.” His stepmom waved a tea towel in the air in front of her. “Were you working on the boat or rolling around in a puddle of diesel fuel?”

Green eyes, pale skin, and caramel-colored curls were all Joe could see. His ferry chick loitered at the edge of the kitchen island, paring knife in hand, cutting board on the countertop before her. She had the nerve to look innocent.

Son of a bitch.

“Covered in grease is no way to meet your future sister-in-law, but I guess it’s too late for first impressions now.” Patty had no idea how late. “Joe, this is Lucas’s fiancée, Elizabeth Chandler. Elizabeth, this is Lucas’s older brother, Joe.”

“Elizabeth?” Would she admit they’d already met?

Beth crossed the space between them. “Hi, Joe. Nice to meet you.”

Fine, she wanted to play it that way. He took her pale fingers in his grease-stained hand. “Nice to meet you, too.”

As her hand slid from his, he knew she longed to wipe it off, but then it would be a shame to ruin her fancy outfit. How could he have missed the uptight Ivy League getup before?

Because you were imagining her out of the clothes, not in them, dumb shit.

“Lucas has told me a lot about you,” she said.

“Funny, we haven’t heard anything about you. Somehow, I thought you’d be blonder.”

“Nice, Joe. Way to welcome her to the family.” Patty moved up next to Beth. “Why don’t you finish slicing the tomatoes, and we’ll leave them in the fridge while the burgers are grilling.”

Beth did as ordered, giving Joe a parting smile.

Keep smiling, darling. This isn’t over by a long shot.

“Go take that shower and try to find a little charm while you’re at it. And send Dozer in. I might as well feed him while you clean up.”

“Fine, I’ll be back in ten minutes.” Pissed, Joe slammed the kitchen door harder than he should have, which meant Patty would have his ass for one more thing when she got him alone.

Lucas’s fiancée was worse than Joe expected. He’d take a bimbo over a liar any day.

If it hadn’t been for Joe’s cold welcome, Beth would have felt immediately at home in the Dempsey house. The open floor plan, with the dining room and living room occupying the same space, reflected both the Dempsey parents. Sturdy
built-in bookshelves lined the back wall, standing tall like the patriarch of the family, Tom. But the decor was all Patty: warm and inviting, full of color, and oozing charm.

When they sat down for dinner, Beth occupied the chair next to Lucas, which put her directly across from Joe. When her fiancé’s brother wasn’t pretending she didn’t exist, he was staring at her as if trying to brand a scarlet letter across her forehead.

“Lucas says you work at the law firm, Elizabeth,” Patty said. “What kind of cases do you handle?”

“I don’t—” Beth started, but Lucas cut her off.

“Elizabeth works in research and is terrific at her job.” He threw an arm around her shoulders, pulling her toward him. “But I’m working on convincing her to step out and start working directly with clients.”

“What does doing research involve?” Tom asked. “Is that where you do all the work and the other lawyers take credit for it in court?”

Lucas had described his dad as a big guy, an apt description if by
big
he meant roughly the size of a city bus. Tom towered over Beth by at least a foot, which put him around six foot five. His eyes were a lighter shade of blue than Joe’s, but the strong jaw and thick, wavy hair were the same. She had no problem seeing why Lucas’s mom had fallen for the sweet-natured giant. He winked and Beth assumed that meant he was joking, but she answered anyway.

“I don’t mind not getting the credit. It’s all for the good of the firm.”

“That explains it,” Joe said, contributing to the conversation for the first time since they’d sat down. “This is that
opposites attract thing.” He kept his eyes on his plate as if talking to his knife and fork.

“Funny, Joe,” Lucas said, but no one was laughing. “Elizabeth and I have a lot in common.”

Joe leaned back and finished chewing the bite he’d taken before speaking again. Beth felt a cloud of tension stretch thinly over the gathering. “Like what?”

No one had ever asked that before. At least not to Beth’s knowledge. Lucas looked at her, his mouth moving but nothing coming out. She longed to help him but nothing came to her mind either.

How could that be? Of course they had things in common.

“The law,” Lucas answered finally. “And the law firm. And Elizabeth likes the same music I do.” She didn’t really, but never wanted to hurt his feelings and admit the fact. “And we both prefer white wine.”

Beth preferred red. Another little fact she’d never admitted. Lucas always ordered her drinks on the rare occasions they went out. His hours didn’t provide much opportunity for date nights.

But to be fair, Lucas had never asked her preference on either topic. He’d just assumed. And she let him. Because that’s what she did. Letting him believe these things seemed like a harmless way to make him happy.

“There’s our love of the city,” he added. That one was up in the air. She didn’t want to return to her hole-in-the-wall small town, but Richmond was busy, loud, and anonymous. She didn’t have many friends there outside of Lucas and a few other coworkers. Though they were more acquaintances. She’d never
been good at making girlfriends, and always felt like the one on the fringe who couldn’t quite make it in the circle.

“And best of all, we want the same things.” Lucas flashed Beth the charming smile that always made her feel so special. Of course they wanted the same things. Lucas wanted to be a successful lawyer and make partner, and Beth wanted Lucas to be happy. Which meant she wanted those things, too.

“I see,” Joe said, returning attention to his dinner. “You’re made for each other.” The sarcasm was lost on no one. Lucas looked ready to argue but Beth quieted him with a hand on his arm. The meal proceeded in silence, animosity hanging in the air like the smell of saltwater that permeated the island.

Lucas had mentioned Joe could be difficult, and though he’d phrased it as “Joe’s an asshole,” Beth assumed he was exaggerating. Siblings were always harsh on each other, or so she’d heard; being an only child meant she had no personal experience to go on. But it turned out Lucas wasn’t exaggerating in the least.

Joe really was an asshole. Nothing like the nice guy she’d met on the ferry. Beth blamed the pheromones and her traitorous libido for missing the obvious. Too bad she hadn’t introduced herself as the gold-digging, blonde bimbo and put him in his place.

Not that she’d ever put anyone in their place before, but Joe made her long to do so.

For the rest of the meal, Patty and Tom directed their questions to Lucas, ignoring Joe and seemingly choosing not to return Beth to the line of fire. Which she appreciated, but it didn’t keep Mr. Cranky Pants from shooting her the occasional dirty look.

She’d thought they might laugh about the whole ferry debacle someday, but based on her limited time with him so far, Beth now believed Joe Dempsey never laughed about anything.

“You can’t let Joe bother you,” Patty said a short time later while she and Beth did the dishes.

“Excuse me?”

Patty rinsed another plate. “He’ll come around eventually.”

Patty Dempsey was close to Beth in size, but that didn’t seem to matter when it came to ruling the men in her family. With short auburn hair and coffee-colored eyes, she was as quick to deliver a set-down as she was to offer a hug. The latter she’d offered to Beth upon arrival; then two hours later she greeted Lucas with a whack to the back of the head for allowing his fiancée to make the long drive alone.

“He and Lucas are so…different.” Beth added the dry plate to the stack in the cupboard and picked up the next one. “It’s hard to believe they’re brothers.”

“Lucas has told you how this family came together, hasn’t he?”

Beth blushed. “Yes. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”

“No apology necessary. I just wanted to make sure my boy wasn’t keeping you in the dark about anything.” Patty leaned a hip against the counter. “Lucas was three when his father died in action. Five when I married Tom. That child settled into a new family like a duck strolls into a pond.”

Lucas had a knack for adapting to his surroundings, whether blending in with the wealthy and powerful or entertaining the locals at the corner bar. Not surprising he’d been born with such confidence. “Lucas talks about Tom a lot. I know he loves him.”

“I got lucky when I found Tom.” Patty stared out the window over the sink. “Thought I was crazy for going out with another sailor after losing Steven. But I knew by the end of that first date I’d marry Tom Dempsey.” She smiled, revealing a resemblance between mother and son. “Within a month, he proposed.”

“That fast?”

“When it’s right, it’s right.”

“And Tom had Joe?”

Patty sighed. “Joe was ten, still mourning his mother, and resentful of anyone who tried to get close. Needless to say, he was not happy about a new stepmother.”

Beth’s heart went out to the little boy missing his mother. She knew the feeling.

“But he came around.” The older woman went back to washing dishes. “The boys may not have the same blood, but they were as close as any blood brothers could be.”

“What happened? I mean, Lucas doesn’t talk about Joe much, at least not in positive terms, and the feeling seems to be mutual.” Though most of Joe’s contempt had been aimed in her direction that evening. “If I’m prying just tell me to mind my own business.”

“You’re going to be part of this family. You can ask anything you want.” Patty passed over another wet plate. “The boys made different choices. Sometimes it’s hard to understand
how something so important to you isn’t just as important to someone else. Does that make sense?”

Beth had always done what was important to everyone else, so the concept of deciding what
she
wanted felt completely foreign. Then again, she could imagine how hurt her grandparents would have been had she not followed their dreams for her.