Coincidence. Highly unlikely. There was no way that Randi was . . .
“Yes.” Hope looked at Evan suspiciously. “How did you know? Joan passed away over a month ago. Randi was completely devastated.”
“Fuck!” The expletive shot out of his mouth like a cannonball. “There’s no damn way!”
Hope reached out and grasped his arm, smiling at the people staring at Evan, as though she was trying to tell them everything was fine. “I think you’re scaring the other customers. What’s the matter?”
“Nothing,” he replied in a husky voice, looking down into Hope’s concerned expression. “Everything,” he admitted reluctantly.
He felt like he’d just taken a forceful punch in the gut by a heavyweight.
He had no doubt in his mind that Randi Tyler and his mysterious M. were the same woman. It was no coincidence. The chances of two women in Amesport losing an elderly foster mother just a short time ago were just too far of a stretch. “Let’s finish,” he told Hope in a milder voice, edging the cart forward.
Hope gave him a dubious look, but she continued putting items in the cart while Evan tried to process the information he’d just discovered. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Randi did a lot of volunteer work at the Center, and she was good friends with Emily.
“So is Randi seeing anyone?” Evan asked curiously as he watched Hope carefully place a sugar-filled cake into the basket. The entire cart was loaded now. Randi could probably survive a very long siege if she had to, even if the majority of the items weren’t all that nutritious.
Hope shot him a sideways glance and shook her head. “No serious relationship. Tessa has been trying to get her to go out with her brother, Liam. The two of them own Sullivan’s Steak and Seafood. They have the best lobster rolls in town.”
“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.”