His Proposal, Their Forever. Melissa McClone

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СКАЧАТЬ didn’t get one.

      “I eat here once a week. Have since I was a kid. They add seasonal shake flavors like pumpkin in the fall, and occasionally change up the Catch of the Day burger, but pretty much the menu has stayed the same for as long as I remember, a lot like Haley’s Bay until they put in new shops on Bay Street.”

      “You don’t like the changes.”

      This time she shrugged. “They are tourist spots, necessary for a service-oriented town, but not practical shops for those who call this place home. I miss the old places like the hardware store and pharmacy.”

      “The familiarity?”

      “Consistency.”

      “To balance the not-always-stable life of an artist?”

      “I guess. Maybe I’m just stuck in my ways.”

      The minivan pulled away from the window. Justin released the brake and drove forward.

      “I’ll have a dinghy burger, fries and root beer.” She dug through her yellow shopping bag and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill. “Lunch is on me. I appreciate the ride home and not having to wait for my family.”

      Justin had two choices. Accept her offer or say no, thanks. He weighed both options. One would piss her off. Both might. But she was tired, and they were hungry. No sense aggravating the situation more. And she had ruined his day. A free lunch wouldn’t make up for the mess she caused.

      He took the money.

      Loose strands of hair curled around her face and caught the light. The color looked coppery like a shiny new penny. His stomach tightened. That had nothing to do with being hungry.

      She wasn’t sweet or nice. She was a pain in the ass.

      Still, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.

      The fast-food place’s drive-through window slid open.

      “Ahoy, matey. Welcome to the Burger Boat.” A man in his early twenties with a chipped front tooth and a sailor cap grinned. “What can we reel in for you today?”

      Justin gave their order and paid with Bailey’s twenty.

      A foghorn blared inside the restaurant, the nautical sound effects matching the place’s boat theme.

      “Here’s your change. I’ll bag up your catch.” The window slid closed.

      “Did you ever work here?” Justin asked her, trying to fill the silence in her car.

      “No, I thought being under a chef would teach me more than how to grill burgers and blend milk shakes.”

      “Smart thinking for a teenager.”

      “I like learning as much as I can about what I do.”

      She had more going on in her head than what subject to paint next. She hadn’t known what she’d faced this morning, but she’d arrived prepared with files and paperwork.

      Unlike him.

      The window opened again. The man passed over the drinks. “Here’s your order.”

      Justin put the drinks in the cup holders between their seats, then handed her the bag of food. She gave him directions to her house. He pulled forward and turned out of the parking lot.

      The scent of burger and fries made his stomach grumble. “Smells good.”

      “Tastes better.” Bailey opened the bag, removed a couple of fries and lifted them to his mouth. “Here.”

      “Thanks—”

      He hit the brake to let pedestrians cross the street.

      Her fingers bumped into his chin, then slipped away, leaving a trail of heat.

      A blush rose up her neck. Sexy.

      Easy, guy. Justin needed to add “fingers” to the list of her lethal body parts, along with her breasts and her brain.

      “Sorry,” she said.

      He reminded himself to swallow. The spice hit the back of his throat. “Eat. We’re down to the final thirty seconds until you lose it.”

      Bailey ate French fries, then a bite of her burger. “I feel better already.”

      On her street, a man dressed in cargo shorts and a stained T-shirt stood next to Officer Grady Cole in front of a blue-painted cottage. Colorful flowers filled every space that wasn’t covered by grass, including the basket of a rusted bicycle leaning against the outside of a white picket fence.

      The house looked surprisingly normal, though Justin hadn’t known what to expect. A run-down shack? A padded room? “That looks like your brother.”

      “Two brothers. Grady and Ellis.” Bailey leaned forward. “Both should be at work.”

      What now? Justin gripped the steering wheel. “How many brothers do you have?”

      “Five, and one sister.”

      “Where should I park?”

      “The driveway is right past the police car.” She dragged her upper teeth across her lower lip. “I hope nothing’s wrong.”

      He reached out, touched her forearm. A gesture of comfort, except he wasn’t 100 percent certain that was all. “Hey. I’m sure everything’s okay. Grady knew you injured your foot. They’re probably checking up on you.”

      She nodded, but doubt remained in her gaze.

      Justin switched on the blinker, turned into the driveway. Her brothers glared like wolves protecting their pack. His fight instinct kicked into high gear. He parked the car. Two against one. He’d faced worse odds and come out ahead.

      “My brothers don’t look happy,” she said in an understated voice.

      Justin recognized their don’t-mess-with-my-sister expression. He pulled the key out of the ignition. “Let’s find out why.”

      * * *

      Seated in her car, Bailey sipped her root beer. She needed one more fortifying drink of sugar to face her brothers. Ellis and Grady’s body language suggested they wanted to take someone out. They’d looked the same way when they found out she’d lied about going to a sleepover and snuck down to Seaside during spring break to hang out with college boys from the University of Washington.

      No worries. She needed to stay calm and settle her brothers down. Fast. Or someone—namely, Justin—was going to get hurt.

      Ellis, the second-oldest and married with kids, opened her car door. “Where have you been? We’ve been calling.”

      “The inn.” She unbuckled her seat belt. “Grady knew where I was. Grandma, too.”

      “Grady told me you were at the inn, СКАЧАТЬ