Waiting for Love Read Free Page B

until after the baby arrives and see how you feel then.”
    She released a deep sigh that had Riley nudging at her hand. Patting his head, she said, “All right. You win. I’ll wait to decide anything.”
    “I don’t want you to have regrets later.”
    “The stupid website won’t let me do anything.”
    Adam put fingers to keyboard to do what he did best. “Ah,” he said a couple of minutes later. “Here’s your problem. You need an s after the http because it’s a secure site.”
    “A single letter cost me an hour of my life?”
    “Welcome to my world.” With a few more keystrokes, he had her logged into the course selection area. “There you go.”
    “You’re the best. Thank you. For this and the words of wisdom.”
    “That’s what big brothers are for.”
    “In my world, they’re usually good for little more than four huge pains in my ass.”
    The comment made him laugh for the first time in days. “It’s good to see you, brat.”
    “You, too. Mom and Dad will be thrilled to have you home. Oh, and I’m sure Mom will throw a welcome-home dinner, which means I won’t have to cook tonight. Yay.”
    “Glad I could help you out. Hey, so guess who I saw on the ferry?”
    “Who?”
    “Abby.”
    Janey’s eyes widened at the mention of her close friend. “Are she and Cal here for a visit? She never said a word to me about coming home.”
    “Not exactly. Apparently, things with Cal are kaput.”
    “Are you shitting me?”
    “Nope. She was tipsy on the ferry and telling everyone she is done with men—permanently.”
    “Oh my goodness! She hardly drinks at all, so things must be really bad if she’d drinking during the day. Where’s she staying?”
    “At the Beachcomber until she finds a place.”
    “I’d better get over there and check on her.”
    “Might be a good idea. She’s in pretty rough shape.” Adam took a minute to scratch the ears of each of Janey’s pets, which he knew his sister would appreciate. “So where are Grant and Stephanie living these days?”
    “On Shore Point Road. Number twenty-two. They bought the place from Ned. You might want to stop and see Grant on the way to Mom and Dad’s. We’re all a little worried about him. He’s not bouncing back as fast as the others from the accident.”
    “What’s going on?”
    “No one knows, not even Stephanie. He won’t talk about it.”
    “I’ll go by there.” He kissed her forehead. “And I’ll see you later at dinner.”
    She hugged him tightly. “I’m so happy you’re here.”
    As Adam left his sister’s house, he realized he was happy to be home where everyone in his life was exactly what they appeared to be—loving, comical, often exasperating and, most important of all, loyal. He’d discovered in the past week there was a lot to be said for loyalty. 
    Grant’s new place was between Janey’s and their parents’ house but required a slight detour down Shore Point Road. The two-story saltbox sat at the end of a crushed-shell driveway that crunched beneath Adam’s feet. With no cars in the driveway, it was hard to tell if anyone was home, but Adam knocked on the door anyway. When no one answered, Adam tried the door and found it unlocked. He ducked his head inside. “Hey, Grant! Are you home?”
    Still no answer.
    Figuring to see his second-oldest brother at dinner, Adam pulled the door closed and headed back to the road.
    “Adam?”
    Halfway down the driveway, Adam turned to find Grant standing on the front porch. Even from a distance, Adam could see that his brother looked like hell. His hair was standing on end, he hadn’t shaved in days, and, most alarming of all, his blue eyes seemed sunken into the face his brothers had always teasingly called pretty-boy handsome. 
    Filled with trepidation, Adam returned to the house and dropped his backpack at the foot of the stairs.
    “What’re you doing here?” Grant asked, scrubbing a hand over his sleepy-looking face. It was after one o’clock, and