Secrets and Solace

by Jana Richards

  Maybe he was a lot stronger than Ethan gave him credit for.

  The truck pulled up to the cottage and Harper jumped out before the vehicle came to a full stop. She ran up the front steps and threw her arms around Maggie and then Scarlet. “I missed you both so much!”

  “We missed you, too. Did you have fun?”

  The happiness on Harper’s face told Scarlet everything she needed to know. “So much fun. We thoroughly absorbed Parisian culture. I even bought a beret!”

  Maggie laughed. “No way!”

  “It’s true. And I got gifts for everyone. Shopping in Paris is amazing!”

  Ethan joined them on the front porch and hugged both her and Maggie. Scarlet squeezed his hand. “I hope you didn’t worry too much.”

  “Not too much.”

  “Liar.” Harper affectionately wound her arm around his waist. “He tried not to let on, but he was concerned about Cam.”

  “Maybe I was a little concerned, but we still managed to have a nice honeymoon, didn’t we?”

  Harper’s expression was full of love. “We had a wonderful honeymoon, the best.”

  The look they shared spoke of their deep connection, and the respect and love they had for each other. Scarlet had to look away as an unexpected pang of jealousy hit her hard, her stomach burning with it.

  She hated feeling jealous of her own sister. It was stupid and petty and pathetic.

  Fortunately, Harper was too happy and excited to notice her discomfort. “Ethan, could you get the purple suitcase from the truck? That’s the one with all the gifts.”

  “Sure.”

  He gave her a kiss and headed to the truck. When he was out of earshot, Harper turned to Scarlet, her eyes serious and her voice soft. “Is Cam really okay? Your emails made it sound as if everything was fine, but we wondered if you were saying that so we wouldn’t cut our trip short. He hasn’t started drinking again?”

  “No, he hasn’t.” Ethan and Harper’s belief that Cameron would turn to alcohol again at the first sign of trouble annoyed her. “Cameron is doing great. You need to give him some credit.”

  Harper’s eyes widened. She cocked her head to one side and gave Scarlet an assessing look that made her squirm. Finally, she nodded. “Maybe you’re right.”

  Ethan hauled a large purple suitcase up the stairs to the front porch. “This thing weighs a ton. How much stuff did you cram in here?”

  “Only a few gifts.” She winked at Scarlet. “Why don’t we take it inside? I’m excited to show Scarlet and Maggie what I bought for them.”

  Maggie opened the door and Harper wheeled the suitcase inside. “You didn’t have to buy us anything.”

  “I wanted to. I can’t tell you what a pleasure it is to be able to buy things for the people I love without having to worry about how I’m going to pay for them.” She reached for Ethan’s hand. “I have a very indulgent husband.”

  “I hope you bought something for yourself, aside from the beret.” It would be so like Harper to think about others before herself.

  “Don’t worry,” Ethan said. “I made sure she bought a couple of new outfits.”

  “That silk dress is beautiful, but when am I ever going to wear it? It’s not the kind of thing you wear to overhaul an outboard motor.”

  Ethan planted a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll take you somewhere nice so you have a chance to wear it.”

  Harper smiled fondly at him, but said nothing. She opened the suitcase and began pulling out shopping bags. She pulled out two bags emblazoned with a stylized H.

  Scarlet’s breath caught in her throat. “Harper, don’t tell me you bought us something from Hermès.”

  She gave them each a bag. “Okay, I won’t tell you.”

  Scarlet pulled a silk scarf from the shopping bag. The soft, beautiful material was bursting with color. She’d never owned anything more decadent and purely unnecessary. But she loved it.

  Harper draped the scarf around Scarlet’s neck. “When I saw the blues and purples of this scarf, I thought of you. With your fair skin, it’s perfect. It’ll bring out the blue in your eyes, too.”

  Her throat closed with emotion. Trust Harper to find the most perfect, most personal gift for someone else while she was on her honeymoon. “It’s beautiful, Harper. I love it. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” She turned to Maggie. “Open yours, Maggie Cat.”

  Scarlet hadn’t heard Harper, or anyone else, use the nickname their mother had given Maggie when she was a baby in a very long time. Maggie looked momentarily stunned, but she roused herself and pulled a silk scarf from her shopping bag. This one was in a vibrant red pattern that went perfectly with Maggie’s dark hair and eyes.

  “I don’t know what to say.” Maggie’s eyes filled with tears.

  Harper smoothed her hair from her forehead. “If you like it, you don’t have to say anything.”

  “I love it,” Maggie said, her voice choked with emotion. “Thank you. It’s the most beautiful gift I’ve ever received.”

  Harper pulled her into a hug and held her. Maggie clung to her, her small shoulders shaking.

  Poor Maggie. Scarlet knew how much pressure she’d put herself under over the last few weeks and Harper’s generous gift had finally broken through her tough exterior. At one time, Scarlet would have said such pressure would never have fazed Maggie. Her sister had been confident to the point of cockiness about her talents as a chef. But something had happened in the last couple of years that had undermined her confidence. She wished Maggie would talk about it. Maybe now that Harper was home she’d open up to her.

  A knock sounded at the door and Scarlet jumped to her feet to answer it, the scarf still around her neck. Cameron stood on the other side, a cardboard tube under his arm. He appeared outwardly calm, but Scarlet detected the tension in his jaw that told her he wasn’t sure of his welcome. “Hi. Come in.”

  He hesitated. “I saw Ethan’s truck, and I thought maybe he’d like to see the completed designs we’ve come up with.” He patted the cardboard tube.

  She was surprised at his use of the word ‘we’. “I’m sure Harper and Ethan would both like to see them. We all would. Why don’t you come inside?”

  He nodded and stepped over the threshold. As soon as he entered, Ethan got to his feet and came toward him. He held out his hand, then pulled his brother into an embrace, clapping him on back. “It’s good to see you.”

  Some of the tension in Cameron’s jaw eased. “It’s good to see you, too. Did you have a good time?”

  Ethan grinned. “The best. Harper was just opening up her bag of goodies. She got the girls some gifts, and I think there’s something for you in there, too.”

  He looked genuinely surprised. “For me?”

  “Yeah, you. Come on in.”

  Harper stood and faced him. No one but those who knew her best would realize how nervous she was, but Scarlet saw the way she clutched a shopping bag in front of her as if using it as a shield.

  “Hi, Cam,” she said.

  “Hello.” Cameron cleared his throat. “Did you just get home?”

  “Yes, we pulled in a few minutes ago. We flew into Minneapolis yesterday and stayed at Ethan’s condo overnight. I’d heard about jet lag, but I had no idea it would hit me so hard. I think I slept for about fifteen hours straight.”

  “I hope you’re feeling better.”

  “Yes, much better, thank you.” She held out the shopping bag to him. “Ethan and I did a little shopping in Paris. For gifts. I’m sorry it’s in the bag like this. I didn’t have a chance to gift wrap it.”

  Cameron reluctantly accepted the bag from her, his brows knitted together in confusion. No doubt he was wondering why she would give him a gift when the last time she’d seen him, he’d accused her of marrying Ethan for his money. Scarlet wondered the same thing.

  Ethan moved beside Harper and put his arm around her shoulders. It didn’t take an expert on body language to understand he was telling Cameron that he sto
od with his wife, both figuratively and literally.

  “Harper picked out all the gifts. I’m hopeless at that kind of stuff.”

  Harper smiled at him. “I don’t know about that. You picked out my ring yourself, and you did a great job. I love it.”

  Ethan kissed her forehead. Then, he turned to his brother. “Go ahead. Open it.”

  Cameron gave a brief nod and pulled a large, flat, rectangular cardboard box from the bag. The box gave no clue as to its contents. Harper gripped Ethan’s hand, and Scarlet was pretty sure she was holding her breath.

  He set the box on the coffee table and opened the lid, revealing another box made of wood. Cameron sat on the sofa, then reached inside and pulled it out of the cardboard box. This box was really a case, with hinges on one side and a carrying handle on the other. Beneath the handle there appeared to be two drawers, each with a tiny pull. Cameron stared at the box as if he was afraid of opening it.

  Scarlet stood next to him, hoping she could ease the tension she saw on his face. “I’m dying to see what’s inside. Why don’t you open it?”

  He turned to look at her and she gave him a smile for encouragement. His mouth curved in a brief smile before he turned back to the box and unfastened the latches. When he opened the hinged box, Scarlet saw dozens of sketching pencils, straight edge tools, and what looked like erasers. Cameron opened one of the drawers to reveal colored pencils and pastel crayons. He carefully studied the box but didn’t say a word. Scarlet couldn’t tell if he was pleased with Harper’s gift or not.

  The way Harper was stepping from one foot to the other with her hands clutched together, Scarlet knew she couldn’t tell either. “You’re such a talented artist, I thought you might like this.” Her voice was hesitant.

  “I do like this. I like this very much.” Finally, he lifted his head and looked at Harper. “Thank you. It’s a very thoughtful gift.”

  Scarlet’s shoulders relaxed. She hadn’t realized how much his response mattered.

  Harper expelled a breath and her smile was one of relief. “You’re welcome. We have a few things for Tessa, too.” She dropped to her knees and began rummaging through the suitcase. “I’ll gather them together and you can give them to her. I might have gone a little overboard. It’s such fun buying things for a little girl.”

  “Maybe…” Cameron cleared his throat. “Maybe you’d like to give your gifts to her yourself. She’s going to be with me on the weekend. I can bring her to your cottage on Saturday if you like.”

  Harper looked up at him, surprise and pleasure shining on her face. “That would be wonderful. I’d like very much to spend some time with Tessa.”

  He nodded, ran his fingers over the sketch pencils one last time, and closed the lid. Scarlet noted the reverent way he placed the wooden artist’s box inside its protective cardboard covering. He may not have come right out and said so, but he was deeply touched by Harper’s gift.

  “I’m excited to see your final drawings for the cottages,” Harper said to him. “That means we’re a step closer to actually building them. Why don’t you show us?”

  He nodded and after putting his box carefully on a chair near the door, he retrieved the tube containing his sketches and opened it. The rolled-up papers slid onto the coffee table when he tipped it over. Ethan unrolled the paper and held the curling corners down with his hands. Harper knelt beside the table and ran her finger over the roofline of the A-frame cottage sketch.

  “This is beautiful,” she breathed. She turned to Ethan. “Can you imagine what this is going to look like when it’s built? It’s going to fit in perfectly.”

  “This one is set on plot number three,” Cameron said. “Those are the trees that are actually on that plot right now. That spot of land is large enough for this cottage.”

  Scarlet was as proud of the sketches as if she had drawn them herself. She snapped a picture of the sketch with her phone. “For the website,” she said when Cameron raised an eyebrow at her. “Assuming I get it up and running anytime soon.”

  Ethan shifted the papers to the architectural drawings depicting the interior. “This is nice.”

  Harper laughed. “Nice? This is freaking amazing! I want to live here!”

  “We’ll get Cam to build us a house,” Ethan said with a wink in his brother’s direction.

  “I’d love a house like this. It’s beautiful,” Harper said. Scarlet heard the longing in her voice. “Maybe someday.”

  Ethan kissed her hair. “We’ll make it happen.”

  She leaned against him. “Right now, I’m more concerned about getting these cottages up and running. When Reese is done with the event center, we’ll have the owner’s apartment to live in. It’s going to be really pretty, and there’ll be enough room for Maggie, too.”

  “I was thinking I’d find a place to rent in Minnewasta,” Maggie said. “I don’t want to cramp the newlyweds’ style.”

  “You won’t be cramping anything. There’s plenty of space for the three of us.”

  Maggie gave a noncommittal shrug. “We’ll see.”

  Scarlet understood her hesitancy. As much as she loved Harper, she wouldn’t want to live with her and her new husband. They deserved some privacy, and so did Maggie.

  Harper said nothing more, but the look she gave Maggie told Scarlet the subject wasn’t closed, only shelved for the time being. Harper turned her attention back to the drawings. “You did an amazing job, Cam. Are you sure you’re not an architect?”

  He laughed. “Very sure. I went to trade school, not university. Even if my parents had had the money to send me to a school of architecture, I wouldn’t have made the entrance requirements. I wasn’t exactly a stellar student.”

  “Then it’s all the more remarkable that you created something as beautiful and functional as this.”

  Cameron mumbled his thanks. When the conversation turned to construction start dates and deadlines, Scarlet zoned out. She watched Cameron from the chair she’d pulled over from the dining room. She wondered if he believed Harper’s praise was genuine or if he thought she was trying to flatter him. Her sister didn’t operate that way. If she said his designs were beautiful, she meant it.

  Maybe this could be the beginning of acceptance between Harper and Cameron. Scarlet vowed to do everything she could to help make it happen. Harper’s life would be so much easier if she got along with Ethan’s brother.

  And Cameron’s life would be happier if he could accept that Harper really loved his brother. Although why his happiness mattered so much to her, Scarlet had no idea.

  CHAPTER NINE

  After Cameron and Ethan left to check on the progress of construction, Scarlet and her sisters got ready for the afternoon coffee break. Harper helped Maggie pack oatmeal raisin cookies into a plastic container while Scarlet poured water in the coffee maker.

  “So, everything really went well while Ethan and I were away? Ethan’s not here, so you can be perfectly honest.”

  Scarlet ground her teeth in irritation. Harper’s inclination to think the worst of Cameron annoyed the hell out of her. “I already told you. Everything was fine. Really.”

  “Really?”

  Scarlet rolled her eyes. “Yes, of course! Do you think I’m lying to you?”

  “No, of course not, but—”

  “But nothing.” Scarlet found her purse and rummaged in it until she found a business card. She thrust it at her sister. “Here. Take this. You deal with it.”

  Harper reluctantly plucked the card from Scarlet’s fingers. “An interior decorator? What’s this for?”

  “Before you two left on your honeymoon, Ethan gave me the name of the decorator who designed his condo in Minneapolis. I’m supposed to meet with her this week to talk about the design of the new cottages, but I’m delegating that job to you. I’ve got my hands full setting up the website at the moment.”

  Harper pursed her lips. “Scarlet, I’m no good at decorating. You told me that yourself every time you came to the lodge
for a visit. Why do you want me to do this?”

  “I told you. Because I’m busy.”

  “I don’t doubt that you are. But I have a feeling you have an ulterior motive.”

  Scarlet stared at the stream of dark brew filling the coffee pot. “If you’re involved in the decorating, you’ll have to work closely with Cameron. It’ll give you a chance to get to know him better. I think Ethan worried needlessly about him.”

  “That could be, but none of us were around when Cam was drinking. Ethan was.” Harper snapped shut the lid of the plastic container. “From what he tells me, it was a bad time for the whole family.”

  “What happened, exactly?” Scarlet wished she didn’t want to know.

  “Ethan said that Cam had been drinking since he was a teenager and though he overindulged more often then he should have back then, his drinking didn’t become a serious problem until about five or six years ago. Around the time Tessa was born.”

  Scarlet shook her head in silent denial. That didn’t make sense. Cameron adored Tessa.

  Harper continued. “He was in love with Tessa’s mother Laura, and he asked her to marry him when he found out she was pregnant. But she turned him down. She told him she didn’t love him.”

  “Maybe that was better than going ahead with a marriage she didn’t want.”

  “Cam didn’t see it that way. They lived together for a while in Minneapolis, and Cam really tried to make it work. But a few months after Tessa was born, Laura had an affair with another man. Ethan said she didn’t even bother to keep it a secret. For Tessa’s sake, Cam turned a blind eye. Then, when Tessa was about a year and a half old, Laura packed her up and moved to Minnewasta. Cam was devastated to lose his little girl, and the woman he believed he loved. His drinking got out of control at that point.”

  “This Laura sounds like a piece of work,” Maggie said in disgust.

  Scarlet had to agree. Her heart ached for Cameron. The way Tessa’s mother had flaunted her affair in front of him, it was no wonder he had a hard time trusting. But there was one thing she didn’t understand. “Why would Laura move to Minnewasta, of all places? She doesn’t sound like a small-town kind of girl.”