The office was a newly constructed building fashioned to look like a log cabin. It was down at the edge of town, by where Rona’s diner used to be, a former greasy spoon that had been transformed into a series of smaller, hipper shops that were more in line with the interests of Copper Ridge’s tourists.
It was a great office space with a prime view of the ocean, but still, Joshua typically preferred to work in the privacy of his own home, secluded in the mountains.
Isaiah did too, which was why it was notable that his brother was in the office today, but he’d had a meeting of some kind, so he’d put on a decent shirt and a pair of nice jeans and gotten his ass out of his hermitage.
Faith, being the bright, sharp creature she was, always came into the office, always dressed in some variation of her personal uniform. Black pants and a black top—a sweater today because of the chilly weather.
“What are you doing here?” Faith asked, her expression scrutinizing.
“I came here to talk to you,” he said.
“I’ll make coffee.” Joshua turned and saw Poppy standing there. Strange, he hadn’t noticed. But then, Poppy usually stayed in the background. He couldn’t remember running the business without her, but like useful office supplies, you really only noticed them when they didn’t work. And Poppy always worked.
“Thanks, Poppy,” Faith said.
Isaiah folded his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair. “What’s up?”
“I’m getting married in two weeks.”
Faith made a scoffing sound. “To that child you’re dating?”
“She’s your age,” he said. “And yes. Just like I said I was.”
“Which begs the question,” Isaiah said. “Why are you telling us again?”
“Because. The first time I was lying. Dad put that ad in the paper trying to find a wife for me, and I selected Danielle in order to teach him a lesson. The joke’s on me it turns out.” Damn was it ever.
“Good God, Joshua. You’re such an ass,” Faith said, leaning against the wall, her arms folded, mirroring Isaiah’s stance. “I knew something was up, but of all the things I suspected, you tricking our mother and father was not one of them.”
“What did you suspect?”
“That you were thinking with your... Well. And now I’m back to that conclusion. Because why are you marrying her?”
“I care about her. And believe me when I say she’s had it rough.”
“You’ve slept with her?” This question came from Isaiah, and there was absolutely no tact in it. But then, Isaiah himself possessed absolutely no tact. Which was why he handled money and not people.
“Yes,” Joshua said.
“She must be good. But I’m not sure that’s going to convince either of us you’re thinking with your big brain.” His brother stood up, not unfolding his arms.
“Well, you’re an asshole,” Joshua returned. “The sex has nothing to do with it. I can get sex whenever I want.”
Faith made a hissing sound. He tossed his younger sister a glance. “You can stop hissing and settle down,” he said to her. “You were the one who brought sex into it, I’m just clarifying. You know what I went through with Shannon, what I put Shannon through. If I send Danielle and her baby back out into the world and something happens to them, I’ll never forgive myself.”
“Well, Joshua, that kind of implies you aren’t already living in a perpetual state of self-flagellation,” Faith said.
“Do you want to see if it can get worse?”
She shook her head. “No, but marrying some random woman you found through an ad seems like an extreme way to go about searching for atonement. Can’t you do some Hail Marys or something?”
“If it were that simple, I would have done it a long time ago.” He took a deep breath. “I’m not going to tell Mom and Dad the whole story. But I’m telling you because I need you to be nice about Danielle. However it looked when I brought her by to introduce her to the family...I threw her under the bus, and now I want to drag her back out from under it.”
Isaiah shook his head. “You’re a contrary son of a bitch.”
“Well, usually that’s your function. I figured it was my turn.”
The door to the office opened and in walked their business partner, Jonathan Bear, who ran the construction side of the firm. He looked around the room, clearly confused by the fact that they were all in residence. “Is there a meeting I didn’t know about?”
“Joshua is getting married,” Faith said, looking sullen.
“Congratulations,” Jonathan said, smiling, which was unusual for the other man, who was typically pretty taciturn. “I can highly recommend it.”
Jonathan had married the pastor’s daughter, Hayley Thompson, in a small ceremony recently.
In the past, Jonathan had walked around like he had his own personal storm cloud overhead, and since meeting Hayley, he had most definitely changed. Maybe there was something to that whole marriage thing. Maybe Joshua’s idea of atonement wasn’t as outrageous as it might have initially seemed.
“There,” Joshua said. “Jonathan recommends it. So you two can stop looking at me suspiciously.”
Jonathan shrugged and walked through the main area and into the back, toward his office, leaving Joshua alone with his siblings.
Faith tucked her hair behind her ear. “Honestly, whatever you need, whatever you want, I’ll help. But I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“And I appreciate that,” he said. “But the thing is, you can only get hurt if there’s love involved. I don’t love her.”
Faith looked wounded by that. “Then what’s the point? I’m not trying to argue. I just don’t understand.”
“Love is not the be-all and end-all, Faith. Sometimes just committing to taking care of somebody else is enough. I loved Shannon, but I still didn’t do the right thing for her. I’m older now. And I know what’s important. I’m going to keep Danielle safe. I’m going
