Raine knew the bait and switch when she heard it. Damn it, Liam was lucky she wasn’t hungry or she’d eat his balls for breakfast. “I don’t know. I need to think about it. I’ll be working on the nursery.”
“Good idea, love. I’ll just…um, nip out to the club so I can retrieve that picture of Hammer and me that you wanted framed. How about that?” He looked relieved that he’d thought of a plausible escape, and it would be funny if she weren’t completely pissed off. And worried.
Six sisters? And her brother was god knew where.
“While you’re out, you rack that conniving Irish brain of yours for any other secrets you might be hiding from me. I want them all.”
The sound of workmen hammering away and a saw whining down the hall greeted Liam as he entered Shadows and made his way to Macen’s office. How the man managed to get any work done with all the racket was beyond Liam, yet there Hammer sat behind his desk, signing checks, seemingly oblivious—until he looked up and spied Liam.
“If you’re here to dissect me, I’m not in the mood.”
“Bugger that. I’ve got news.” Liam sank into the chair opposite with a sigh. “River surfaced.”
“What do you mean…surfaced? Where is he? At the house?” Hammer leaned in, scowling. “You didn’t leave Raine alone with him, did you? We can’t until we know whether he’s a sick, violent bastard like their old man.”
“Don’t be daft. I wouldn’t be here if he’d knocked on our door. The probate lawyer rang this morning and spoke to Raine.” Liam filled him in on the details. “She still doesn’t know where or how to find him.”
“But she knows her long-lost brother is alive and that he hasn’t contacted her. I’m sure that upset her.”
“Yes. He’s the last of her family, so I thought she’d welcome him with open arms. But she wasn’t dancing a jig. I think she’s wary.” He cocked his head. “I have this feeling it won’t be long before we see him.”
“So we may have another Kendall male on our hands.” Hammer rose and rounded the desk, perching on the corner in front of Liam. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “This day just keeps swirling down the drain like a well-flushed toilet… I don’t like it. We don’t know much about River, except that he hasn’t seen Raine for over half her life. I hope he doesn’t think he can just show up and turn her world upside down.”
“From what Raine said, he hated Bill. Maybe that’s a good sign.”
“You don’t look as if you actually believe that.”
Liam didn’t, and he hated to say so. Something about the man niggled at him… “I don’t know what to believe.”
“He’s probably just a selfish bastard who wants half of Bill’s crap and won’t bother crossing paths with Raine. But it might be smart to ring Seth and see if he’s learned anything new about her brother.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Is Raine home alone now?”
“She is, but I set the alarm before I left. It’ll be a bit before the contractors arrive.” Liam shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “But I had to leave before she lost any more of her temper.”
Hammer grimaced. “Is she still pissed that I left? I didn’t mean to upset her, just think.”
“She has every right to be angry, but no. After she got the call about River, we talked. I wish you’d been there to lend me that shit shovel I gave you earlier because I really put my foot in my gob.”
“You did?” A smile played at Hammer’s lips. “How did that taste?”
“I’ll bet Raine likes pickles more. I swallowed my toes down so far I think they’re lodged in my gut. Oh, but you should have seen her, Macen. She was the Raine we fell in love with, all full of vinegar and sass. Magnificent. I probably shouldn’t have told her that while she was upset.”
“Yeah, never tell a woman she’s cute when she’s pissed off. What did you do that riled her up in the first place?”
“We were talking about River…and I might have spilled the news that I have six sisters.”
Macen’s eyes grew wide. “She didn’t know?”
“No, I didn’t want to bloody scare her.”
“That’s valid,” Hammer conceded. “Stupid but valid. How long did you think you could keep them a secret?”
Liam wanted to be annoyed, but now that Raine wasn’t breathing fury at him, he saw the humor.
“Honestly, I didn’t think about it at all. I certainly didn’t think she’d lose the plot when she found out. But I mentioned the nieces and nephews and that two of my sisters are twins…and her head spun like a top. I should have shut up then, but I got a case of verbal diarrhea and confessed that more than one had taken a fancy to you years ago. After she turned three shades of red, I thought I’d give her some time to cool off, so I told her I’d find that picture of the two of us. You know, the one she took the first night I arrived in LA. She wants it framed.”