“Never heard of the place,” Evan muttered.

  “Liam’s quite successful with the restaurant. He’s also a nice guy. He’d be perfect for Randi when they finally get to meet for a real date. I hope she finds someone. She deserves a nice guy in her life.”

  Over his dead body. He might not be the nice guy Hope had wished for, but it didn’t matter. “He’s not perfect for her,” Evan told his sister hurriedly, his voice sounding slightly raspy. “She needs somebody who understands her.”

  “And that would be . . . ?” Hope left Evan to fill in the blank.

  “Me,” he growled in a low voice only Hope would hear.

  “You two hate each other,” his sister answered, her tone confused.

  “I don’t hate her. I never have,” Evan admitted, following Hope as she pulled the shopping cart around the corner and went down the pet-food aisle. “I just don’t know what to say to her.”

  Hope motioned to a bag of dog food that looked big enough to feed a horse. “Can you get one of those and put it on the bottom?”

  Evan hefted up the bag and slid it onto the bottom rack. “Does she own a damn kennel full of dogs?” he grumbled as he pulled himself up to his full height again.

  Hope snickered. “No . . . just Lily, her golden retriever. But her dog runs with her, and Lily is very active. The bag isn’t that big.” She hesitated before she added, “That’s another thing . . . You don’t like dogs.” Letting out an exasperated sigh, Hope turned to face him. “You’re going to tell me what’s going on the minute we leave this store.”

  “I’ll think about it,” Evan told her evenly, not sure how much he could say. Hell, he hadn’t even been able to put everything together himself yet, or reconcile the two women as one.

  “You’ll do it or I’ll call Randi myself and find out,” Hope threatened ominously.

  “Don’t,” Evan asked hastily. “I’ll tell you.” If Hope started digging, it could mean trouble. He didn’t know if Randi had ever told his sister about her email correspondence, but it wouldn’t take much for the two intelligent women to figure everything out.

  Hope nodded and started pulling the cart toward the checkout. “Good. I was pretty sure you would.” Her voice sounded smug.

  When did his sweet baby sister get this bossy and manipulative? Evan must have missed her transition from kind younger sibling to tough negotiator somewhere over the years.

  He was silent as he followed Hope to check out the groceries, still shaking his head in shock.

  He liked M. and he always had.

  He was incredibly attracted to Randi—aka Miranda—but he didn’t exactly like her. Maybe he knew that he definitely didn’t hate her, but to say he was actually fond of her was stretching it, even though his dick definitely adored her.

  If he put the two women together as one single female . . . he knew he was completely and totally screwed, and not in a good way.

  Evan didn’t say another word until they got back to Hope’s vehicle, and then he didn’t have a choice but to spill the whole story.

  Unfortunately, once he started spilling his secrets to Hope, he couldn’t stop.

  “Oh, Evan,” Hope said softly, bringing her palm to her brother’s face. Tears were pouring down her cheeks as he finally finished his last story about his childhood. “Why did you go through so much all alone? We could have helped you, or at least been there to support you. You didn’t have to face all of your challenges alone.”

  He shrugged. “I’m the oldest. It’s my responsibility to take care of all of you.”

  Hope’s heart had broken as she’d realized that Evan had faced so many challenges when he was so young, and still did because of his issues. “We’re all grown up now, Evan. We don’t need you to take care of us anymore, but we’ll always love you and need you as our brother.”

  Evan grasped her hand and turned his blue-eyed stare her way. For once, the way he was feeling was actually revealed on his face. He looked solemn and remorseful, and Hope already knew why.

  “I failed you the worst, Hope,” he uttered hoarsely. “When you needed me the most, I wasn’t there.”

  Her tears fell harder until she could barely see his face, her vision blurred. How could he blame himself for her past? She’d been an adult, made her own decisions. From where she was now, she didn’t regret her past, because it had brought her to Jason and her beloved son. Regardless, the horror she’d suffered in the past had nothing to do with Evan. She’d intentionally covered her tracks, and she hadn’t expected him to save her from anything. She’d wanted to do things on her own.

  “I didn’t want you to know, Evan. I didn’t want anyone to know. I was free for the first time in my life, and I loved it at the time. Nothing you could have done would have made me stop, and it’s not your fault. I was an adult and it was my life.” She needed to find a way to get her lug-headed brother to understand that he wasn’t responsible for every bad thing that happened to any of them in their lives. If he could, Evan would bear the blame for every wrong in the Sinclair family, but it couldn’t continue. “It wasn’t your fault,” she repeated, hoping he’d believe it in time if she said it often enough.

  “Our father was an asshole, and our mother didn’t give a damn about any of us. Somebody needed to protect all of you,” he said defensively.

  “Who was there to protect you? You were just a child, too,” Hope said softly, keeping her hand in Evan’s as he lowered her arm, resting his hand on the leather seat of the car.

  “I don’t think I was ever a child,” Evan answered abruptly.

  Sometimes Hope wondered if he ever had been just a kid. It seemed like he’d been born in a suit and tie, ready to be an adult. But he hadn’t always been an adult, and nobody had been there for him during his childhood. Now that she understood why Evan was the way he was, she knew that she had to try to fix it. Her heart ached with sadness at the unfairness of the situation, and his insistence on always being the strong protector. He’d always been distant, but she’d felt him pulling away from his family, and he needed them. The truth was, they needed him just as much. The entire Sinclair family needed to finally heal from the wounds of their upbringing. “I think you need to tell Grady, Dante, and Jared.” All of them worried about Evan and the distance he’d put between them. She understood why, to an extent, but it needed to end. He was mistaken in thinking he wasn’t wanted anymore. Not that he’d said that, but Hope could sense it. Every one of them loved him, whether he could accept that affection or not. Yeah, sometimes Evan was a jerk. But looking back, he had been a protector to each one of them at one time or another. Right now, Hope’s heart ached that none of them had realized that Evan had experienced his own unique challenges.

  “I don’t know if I can,” Evan shared quietly. “They’re all happy now.”

  So they no longer needed or wanted their eldest brother?

  Hope’s heart clenched because Evan didn’t feel like he had a purpose anymore, now that they were all grown. He’d tried to be a surrogate father to them all for so long that he didn’t know how to be just a brother. “We still need you, Evan. We love you. You don’t need to be perfect anymore.”

  “I’m as close to perfect as any man can be,” Evan grumbled disgruntledly. “It’s impossible to be completely faultless.”

  Hope burst out laughing. Tears were still rolling down her face as she realized that some things about her eldest brother would never change, and she really didn’t want him to be someone he wasn’t. He was a product of his upbringing and his own experiences in his life. Evan was a good man, but he needed a woman who would help him laugh at himself occasionally.

  Randi would be perfect for him, but the situation was definitely precarious at the moment. After everything she’d learned about Evan today, the last thing she wanted was to see him brokenhearted. Oh, not that he’d admitted that he was anything more than strangely attracted to Randi right now, and that he’d come to like her through their correspondence when he’d thought he was talking to someone else. But Hope could see all of the signs. She had a husband she’d been in love with most of her life. It wasn’t difficult for her to recognize Evan’s attraction as a little more than what he’d described.

  “Just shut up and hug me, Evan,” she insisted, smiling through her tears.

  He turned away from the steering wheel and held his arms open for her. “Of course, if that’s what you need,” he agreed readily.

  I’m not the only one who needs it.

  Hope threw herself into his sheltering embrace, knowing he needed a hug just as badly as she did. He held her close and she rested her head on his shoulder, hopeful that someone special like Randi could help heal Evan’s hidden pain. He’d been the rock of their family, the sibling who had always been there for every one of them. As Hope squeezed him tightly, she knew it was beyond his turn to begin healing the wounds of his childhood. She planned on doing everything in her power to make that happen.

  “So do you have any suggestions?” Evan asked hesitantly.

  Hope knew he was talking about his situation with Randi. As she pulled back from his hug and swiped at her damp face, she told him firmly, “Plenty of them. We need to make another stop on the way back to the Peninsula. We have to get you to loosen up a little. You can drop me off afterward and then run out to Randi’s place with the groceries. I’ll call her so she doesn’t try to make the trip into town. Take my vehicle, and have the plow run in front of you on the way out there. It’s a small, two-lane highway going out to her place. It can get pretty bad.”

  Evan gave her a suspicious look, but he didn’t say another word. He shifted the large SUV into gear and asked her where she wanted to go. She gave him directions, and he followed them silently. For once, Hope didn’t feel awkward because of the distance he was trying to create, or his silence, because she understood that Evan was far from indifferent. So much of the Evan they saw on the surface was nothing more than a façade. There was no question he was arrogant, but he was so much more.

  “Turn right at the light,” she instructed, wondering how difficult he was going to make her effort to get him some casual clothing.

  “When did you get so bossy?” Evan asked gruffly, but he slowed the vehicle to make the turn.

  Hope smiled at his comment and answered, “I’ve always been that way. You just never noticed because you were so much bossier.”

  He didn’t answer, but she could see the corners of his lips start to turn up.

  She leaned back in the heated leather seat contentedly with a grin on her face. Evan was nearly smiling. It might not seem like much to most people, but for her, it meant a hell of a lot.

  CHAPTER 6

  Randi lost her power around two o’clock in the afternoon, just as she was getting ready to leave for town.

  Hope called her cell phone just a few minutes after to let her know she’d picked up supplies for her and they were on their way.

  “My power is out,” she told Hope unhappily as she stuffed some clothing into her backpack. “I’m going to need to come into town anyway and wait out the storm. My generator isn’t working.”

  Randi had made that unfortunate discovery soon after the power had gone off. Being rural, she lost power more often than they did in town, and it was slower to come back on. She should have checked the generator before winter, but Joan had been so sick that it had slipped her mind. “I’ll get a room at one of the inns for a day or two. The hotels and inns should have openings. It’s off-season right now.”

  “No, you will not!” Hope’s declaration came fiercely across the phone communication. “You can stay with us. We have plenty of room, and we have a whole-house generator even if the power goes out.”

  “You have a new baby—”

  “And you have friends. Lots of them,” Hope said firmly. “Get your butt over here. Tell Evan to bring you home with him. He should be there to drop off your groceries any minute.”

  “Evan?” Randi stopped short of stuffing her underwear inside her pack.

  “He’s bringing the supplies personally. He was worried about you.”

  “Evan?” Randi repeated, having a difficult time imagining one of the richest men in the world delivering groceries, much less just because he was concerned about her being caught in a storm.

  “He’s not so bad, Randi,” Hope replied softly. “Maybe he can’t always express himself well, but he does have a heart.”

  Randi could hear the fondness radiate through Hope’s voice, and she could hardly tell Evan’s sister that she thought her brother was an arrogant jackass. “It was a nice thing for him to do,” she admitted reluctantly, wondering at the same time what ulterior motive Evan had in doing her a favor. Men like Evan Sinclair didn’t just do menial jobs for anybody who needed something. He had to have a purpose. She supposed all sisters wanted to think their brothers had a heart, but Randi certainly hadn’t seen any sign of one existing in Evan yet.

  “Do me a favor?” Hope requested.

  “Of course,” Randi agreed readily. She adored Hope, and she’d do anything she asked.

  “Give Evan a chance.”

  Okay . . . she’d do anything except that. “We don’t like each other, Hope. We rub each other the wrong way. We’re too different to be friends.” It wasn’t like Randi hadn’t tried, and she still couldn’t forget the scorching-hot kiss they’d shared a few days ago. However, getting involved with a heartless billionaire like Evan would be a big mistake. In spite of having some basic and incredibly strong physical chemistry, they couldn’t be together for more than a minute without arguing or just plain ignoring each other so they didn’t fight.

  “Things aren’t always exactly what they seem,” Hope hedged.

  “Are you saying your brother isn’t an asshole?” Randi asked bluntly, wondering if Hope saw a way-different Evan than she did.

  “No,” Hope admitted with humor in her voice. “He is an asshole sometimes, but maybe he has his reasons. You know what our childhood was like.”

  Randi’s heart clenched as she heard a trace of vulnerability in Hope’s voice. She often met with the Sinclair wives, along with her friends Kristin and Tessa, and all of the women had become pretty close. They all shared most of their secrets, and Randi knew how stifling and depressing Hope’s upbringing had been. What would it have been like to be the eldest child of Hope’s alcoholic, neurotic father? Obviously, Hope’s parent had put some pretty high expectations on his eldest son. “I know,” she finally answered as she continued stuffing articles of clothing into her bag. “I’ll try to be nice to him. I promise,” she vowed, optimistic that she could hold her temper for more than a few minutes. The guy was bringing her supplies through a major blizzard. Even if he did have ulterior motives, Randi was grateful. Too bad she’d lost power and had to go into town. It would essentially be a wasted trip for Evan.

  “Good. I’ll see you soon,” Hope said, sounding satisfied.

  Randi said good-bye to Hope and clicked the “Off” button on her phone, dropping it onto the bed.

  “Looks like we’re going for a longer ride, Lily,” she informed her dog.

  Lily was lying on the bed next to Randi’s backpack, watching her mistress carefully, trying to surmise what was about to happen.

  At the mention of a ride, Lily bolted to her feet and leapt agilely and happily off the mattress to the carpeted floor, whining her doggy joy.

  “I’m glad you’re happy,” Randi told her pup as she closed the zipper on her pack. She wasn’t exactly thrilled about leaving her home, even if it was for just a day or two. She jumped as she heard somebody hammering on her front door.

  Evan?

  Her heart skipping a beat, she tried not to picture him pinning her body against her vehicle and kissing her breathless.

  “Coming,” she yelled as Lily began to bark.

  She opened the door and every bit of air left her lungs in one enormous whoosh, a sound she couldn’t conceal as she looked at the man on her doorstep. There was Evan Sinclair in his fancy wool coat, looking as handsome as ever, and she had the same breathless reaction to him that she always did. He had a cream scarf tucked into the neckline, but his head was bare. “I need to unload some stuff,” Evan said bluntly, his windblown dark hair whipping around in the brutal storm.

  Randi was mute for a moment, her gaze lost in the depths of his blue-eyed stare.

  “Um . . . no need,” she finally informed him, hating her own body for its volatile reaction to Evan. “I have to go into town. I lost power.”

  “You don’t have a generator?”

  “Not working,” Randi replied. Just like my brain right now. Sweet Jesus! The weather might be frigid, but she was suddenly roasting in her jeans, sweater, and ski jacket.

  Evan reached out and took the backpack out of her hand, an item she’d forgotten she was clutching.

  “Let’s go. The roads aren’t good, and the second storm is about to hit. I don’t think they’ll be passable for much longer,” Evan demanded. “I’ll take the groceries with us. You’ll need them.”

  Randi snapped out of her haze of lust, telling Evan quickly, “I just need to get my car out of the garage.”

  “You’re not driving. I have a vehicle twice the size of that miniature SUV of yours, and I barely made it through. Let’s go. For once, no arguing. We don’t have the time.” Evan’s eyes drilled into hers, his stern expression demanding she relent.

  I don’t have to argue with him. What he’s saying makes sense. He’s been on the roads; I haven’t.

  What Evan suggested was perfectly logical. She just wished he wouldn’t say it in such a high-handed way. It made her want to go on the defensive immediately.

  “Fine,” she answered briskly and went to get the rest of her winter gear and her laptop. She had promised Hope she would try to be nice.

  Randi scooped up only what she’d need for the next day or two and put Lily on her leash.