I looked at her face, if she say something else but I see she serious. Then I ask again. "she the other half of th 'they who departed to some mysterious destination with my brother?"
She nodded again
"Why does Noah call my brother Uncle Will?" I continued. I could see the light of truth slowly dawning on her. "Did Will mary your sister?" My voice rose on a note of pure shock and amazement.
"Well......they were only engaged when they came to Visit, she slowly explained, "but they're probably married by now."
There, she'd said it. The cat was out of the bag. The hamster was out of the cage. Elvis had left the building.
My face darkened in a slow, simmering rage. my fists clench at my sides as I faced her across the small kitchen.
"But y-you........" I sputtered, suddenly choking on my words. I jabbed the air with his forefinger."All last night, you let me believe that you and Will...... you argued with me about marrying him!"
"I never said a word about Will and me being romantically involved," she said. If you recall, I told you in no uncertain terms that I had no intentions of ever marrying your brother .I merely said he was a mature, intelligent adult who had a right to marry whomever he wished to marry,"
"Meaing your sister, I said as if struck by divine revelation.
"Well...yes," she admitted
"You tricked me , Olivia Christopher!" I roared. You and my brother and your sister, Faith. The three of you tricked me into coming out here, to the middle of God only knows where, during a flood of epic proportions, I might add. when the real action was happening somewhere else, at some mysterious location perhaps a thousand miles away, How clever of you all. How awfully clever. I'll bet you're very proud of yourself. I' bet you' ve secretly been laughing your head off at me, haven't you?"
She swallowed hard and barely dared to glance at me from lowered lids. "Not at all. I haven't been gloating, if that's what you think. I'm honestly relieved that you finally know the truth."
"That makes two of us!" I roared. Rain lashed at the big bay window in the kitchen, echoing the force of my rage. She didn't say anything because I know she don't know what to say then I continue.
"My brother must have known I had my eye on him. You two flounced around this town for weeks, acting like a couple in love. You even had an engagement announcement printed in the local paper, stating you were to marry him today!"
Since the day will told me that he'd met a wonderful woman and thought he was falling in love. But when I started asking too many questions, Will grew worried. He knew I might have him followed by a private investigalor who d also dig up all he could on the woman in question it had happened before. And each time, I had somehow found will's girlfriends unworthy of marriage to a Adams, Sometimes I'd even paid the girls money to disappear, just as my father had done to me. But Will knew the pattem and he was determined that it wouldn't happen again. Not with Faith
Therefore, the grand scheme was hatched. Including the announcement. A bit of cheese in the trap too tempting for me to resist, Will thought. And ob-mviously, he'd guessed correctly.
"Oh, the announcement, Olivia looked down at the floor and ran a hand through her hair. It had dried to a mass of floppy curls and she knew she must look a sight. "That was Will's idea actually."
"But you went along with it."
She looked back up at me. "Yes, I did."
Yes, she'd tricked me. It was all true. But I could see now that Will had been right. The scheme had been necessary to protect Will and Faith and to keep me from ruining their real wedding plans.
"Look, they came to me...begged me, actually...to help them. They wanted to get married. Without any interference. They have a right to their privacy."
"And I have a responsibility to take care of my brother,' I replied icily. You don't know Will.He's the original absentminded professor He may be a certified genius but he doesn't know the first damn thing about women. All a pretty woman has to do is smile at him and he's head over heels in love," I explained in an exasperated tone. "One date, and he proposes!
You've no idea of how many times I've had to save his neck from scheming females.'"
"My sister is no scheming female, she argued back
"Well, of course you'd defend her, I countered
"Isn't it possible that your brother may at last have met the right person? A truly good person? Your brother and my sister are very much in love. Anyone who saw them together for two seconds could see that," she stated quietly.
I swallowed hard and looked away, crossing my arms over his chest-trying to get my hot temper under control. My silence encouraged her to speak further in faith and will's defence.