It Had to Be Him(53)

“Okay, if you’re sure you’ll be all right? Do you want me to tell Grandma you know?”

“Yeah, you can tell her.” Meg sighed. “God, I hate this. It’s a little like waking up in an alternate universe. Same players, but you don’t really know anyone as well as you thought.”



Later that afternoon, after Ryan and Casey left, Meg sat at the end of her new dock. Still numb from the paternity news, she let her feet dangle over the Jet Ski tied below while she processed her new identity. The importance of setting a good example because she was an Anderson had been drilled into her from the moment she could walk. Something she’d often deliberately failed at to get a reaction from her father. To prove he knew she existed. Nothing irritated him more than breaking one of the Anderson family rules.

Andersons didn’t skip church. Andersons got good grades, paid their bills on time, volunteered for causes, and raised money for charities all because it was the right thing to do. They went to college and studied what Dad chose, resort management with a minor in computer science, not architecture like Meg had wanted. He’d only pay for a degree that would benefit their town. It was the Andersons’ duty to serve the town named after them so it could continue to thrive and be prosperous.

Well, there was evidently one more thing Andersons were damned good at. Keeping huge secrets from her—the one about her being a Grant.

She would never in a million years have seen that one coming. All those times she’d tried so hard to get her father to love her, to at least like her, were a big waste. He had little regard for Grants and it explained his lack of regard for her too.

Josh’s voice drifted out from the open kitchen window. “Anyone home?”

Her voice was croaky from crying and her eyes were probably swollen and red. She hated that he’d see her like that. But she wanted to talk to him.

She cleared her throat and called out, “I’m outside.”

After a few moments, heavy footsteps from Josh’s boots rang out as he approached from behind. “Hey there.” He sat down next to her and drew a deep breath as he gazed out over the lake. “I love the way it smells here. I’ll never get tired of it. Where’s Haley?”

“Spending the night with my sister.”

He tore his eyes from the water and inspected the wood beneath him. “The dock looks great. You and Ryan busted some butt today.”

She finally turned and faced him. “Ryan more than me.”

“You’ve been crying. What’s wrong?”

“Turns out I’ve been lied to. For a very long time.”

“Lied to?” Josh swallowed hard, suddenly looking as uncomfortable as she felt. “What do you mean?”

The concern in his eyes made her slowly turn her attention back to the lake. She didn’t want to start crying again. “Seems my brothers and sister are half siblings. I have a different father.”

After she told him about the files, he pulled her onto his lap and held her against his chest. Then he ran a big hand slowly up and down her arm in the familiar way he used to when they’d sit and watch television, or whenever they sat next to each other. “So you’re an orphan too, but one with a big family. And there are lots of people in town who think of you as their own. Zeke and Gloria, to name a few. You saw the way everyone at the bar happily missed at darts the other night.”

She nodded and laid her head against his shoulder. Josh’s embrace used to always make her feel better after a bad day. “Well, they were mostly Andersons. But that was really nice of them.”

She snuggled closer and closed her eyes. Warm memories flowed through her of the time before he’d left, when she’d felt completely happy and content being with him.

He laid a soft kiss on the top of her head. “Maybe if you talked to your father—”

“I don’t know what I’d even say to him right now. I can’t believe everyone I know has lied to me my whole life.” She sat up and turned to straddle him so she could lay a kiss on his lips. “Except for you. Thanks for that.”

She circled her arms around his waist and tucked her face into the crook of his neck. Mostly, she missed the way he used to hold her after they made love, making her feel like she was the only woman on earth. Like she mattered more than anything else to him.

He tilted her chin with his knuckle so she had to look him in the eye. “Sometimes a lie can be for someone’s own good.” He laid a gentle, lingering kiss on her lips that made her want to sigh.

When Josh ended his sweet kiss, she leaned back and forced a smile. “I know. But it still hurts.”