Caleb spoke softly, but the twenty-year-old reared back as if his brother had shouted. They exchanged a look, and when Tate looked back at Piper there was shame in his eyes. She wasn’t sure if she felt sorry for him or if she was impressed at Caleb’s nonverbal abilities.
‘Do you have any idea what happened?’ Caleb asked her.
‘This is the first time I’ve seen my brother since arriving. I have no idea. But you know who does?’
She gestured to where Emma was standing. The Martin siblings’ heads collectively turned, looking in that direction, as if they’d just realised she was still there. They all moved towards her, before Caleb stretched out an arm, stopping his siblings.
‘At least one of us has to stay here.’
‘Tate will,’ Jada said.
At the same time Tate said, ‘Jada.’
Caleb lifted a brow. They both sighed.
‘Fine.’
‘I can stay,’ Piper offered, suddenly wanting to make herself useful.
The bond between the siblings was obvious, and it was making her nostalgic for something that had never been in her past. Or perhaps it had, after their mother had died and she and Liam had still sought comfort with one another.
‘No,’ Caleb said. ‘They will. Help smooth everything over here, distract people. Pretend like what Liam did and everyone saw was part of the plan.’
‘What should I do?’ she asked in a small voice, emotion hammering into her like a battering ram. It broke down the defences she’d put in place, and she couldn’t fight her instincts without them. Unfortunately, those instincts had been built and honed during her childhood. When she’d reverted to her father because he’d demanded she do so.
‘Come with me,’ Caleb said, interrupting her thoughts. ‘You’re his family. You deserve to know what happened.’
She didn’t think she agreed with that, but she was touched by the sentiment. Enough that she obeyed, ignoring the whirlwind inside her. The war, really, between the part of her wondering if she was obeying because she wanted to or if it meant she was doing it again.
She’d ignored her feelings with Brad, had obeyed. Things had snowballed during their relationship. Two years later, she was still cold from being buried under the avalanche.
She wrapped her arms around herself, hoping to hide the shudder that had gone through her body. Caleb didn’t seem to be paying attention to her though. His eyes were on Emma, her hunched-over frame keeping his focus. She glanced back at where she’d seen her brother disappear. The boat was gone, the ocean calm, as if the turmoil of the last few minutes hadn’t happened.
You’d better have a reason for running, Liam, Piper told him silently.
* * *
Emma went into his arms the moment they reached her. His heart ached and he tightened his hold before leaning back, keeping his hands on her arms.
‘We saw what happened, but a lot of the guests didn’t,’ he said, knowing his sister needed him to take control. All of his siblings needed him to, in emergencies. ‘I told Tate and Jada to pretend it was part of the evening’s festivities. If you’d prefer we tell the truth, we’ll do that. But I wanted to give you a moment to recover before you have people rushing to your side.’
Emma’s lip wobbled but she nodded, stepping out of his embrace and straightening her shoulders. Pride filled him. He folded his arms to keep from reaching out to her anyway.
‘What happened?’ he asked after he’d given her a moment.
‘He ran.’
‘Yes, we know that. But you were fighting before. What about?’
She pursed her lips, taking a shaky breath. ‘He has cold feet.’
Caleb barely kept himself from growling.
‘We made an offer on a place back in Cape Town and the estate agent called to say they accepted the offer. It freaked him out.’
‘So he ran?’ Caleb asked, incredulous. He wanted to wring Liam’s neck.
‘Well, he started freaking out. Pacing. Breathing quick.’ She dug a heel into the sand. ‘It made me freak out and...and I told him something that made him run.’
‘What?’
Her eyes met Piper’s. Piper looked back steadily. For some reason, it made Emma’s eyes fill. Before he could curse that he didn’t have a tissue for her, Piper handed Emma one.
‘Thanks,’ she said, blowing her nose. She took a deep breath. ‘He isn’t ready for marriage.’
‘What are you talking about?’ Caleb demanded. ‘He asked you to marry him. Hell, he asked me if he could marry you, which we both know takes guts.’
Piper blinked at him in surprise. He merely lifted his shoulders.
‘He loves you, Emma,’ Caleb said with a shake of his head. ‘There’s no way he doesn’t want to marry you.’
If he didn’t, Caleb would kill him. Then bring him back from the dead and force him to do right by Emma.
‘It’s true,’ Piper said softly. It was the first thing she’d said since they’d arrived. He supposed he should be happy she’d contributed at all. He was particularly happy she’d contributed with this.
Emma breathing began to sound like sobs. Caleb angled his body to keep her from the guests’ view. Piper did the same.
‘He panicked,’ Emma said. ‘About the house and—’ She broke off again.
‘It’s a big commitment,’ Piper said. ‘Especially for him.’
‘I know. But I didn’t force him to marry me. I didn’t give him an ultimatum or anything. I didn’t even tell him I wanted to buy a house.’
The more Emma spoke, the guiltier Caleb felt. He should have asked more questions. Done more than a credit check on Liam. He hadn’t protected Emma, and now she was hurt. What kind of a brother did that make him? What kind of a father figure? He could almost hear his father’s voice from the grave, asking him those questions. Hell, if his father had been here, this probably wouldn’t have happened.
He quelled the guilt with anger.
‘Did he force you to do this, Em?’
‘What? No, no. No,’ she said again. ‘I wanted to do all this.’
‘You signed the pre-nup, didn’t you?’
‘Caleb,’ Emma said sharply, her first show of emotion apart from devastation, ‘Liam wasn’t doing this for the money.’
He didn’t reply.
‘Really.’ Emma’s voice softened. ‘He ran because...because I’m pregnant, and it freaked him out. We never spoke about starting a family, and I think because of how he grew up...with your father,’ she said to Piper, ‘I think he’s scared to be one. Or he doesn’t know what kind of father he’ll be. I don’t know. I... I...’
She started crying in earnest now, and Caleb set aside his shock and admonishments—hadn’t he had the sex talk with all his siblings; what didn’t they understand about possible pregnancy and STDs?—and drew her into a hug. Her body shook in his arms. His heart shook along with it. And he got more and more upset. More determined that he should have protected her from a man who could be so careless with her heart. Guiltier that he hadn’t acted like their father would have.
‘Em,’ Caleb said softly, running a hand over her hair. ‘It’s going to be okay.’
She said something, but it was muffled since she was crying into his chest. He looked