“It is,” Evan answered simply. He was proud of all of his siblings, and Hope’s talent was truly astonishing. His home in Boston was filled with as many of her photos as he’d been able to acquire after he’d found out about her secret career path.
Hope was currently working on her nature shots, but Evan loved the very photos that had caused her harm: her extreme-weather photography. Some of them were very tangled and dark, breathtaking in their intense ferocity. Evan knew little about photography techniques, but he didn’t need to know much about taking pictures to recognize that the shadowy images struck a chord in him that resonated through his entire being. Hope’s creations reminded him of his own life, and the uncertainty of life itself.
Neither man spoke as they came to a rather bumpy landing on the runway of the small airport located outside Amesport, each seemingly lost in his own thoughts. Evan noted that his car and his driver, Stokes, had already arrived, the Rolls-Royce waiting just beyond the area where the plane would come to a stop.
“Do you want to stay with me?” Evan offered sincerely. Both Micah and Julian were coming for the party Hope was hosting, which she was calling The Amesport Midwinter Ball, though Evan knew it was really just a reason to get the entire town together to see her new son. It was being held in the Youth Center, and he had no doubt everyone invited would be there.
He unbuckled his seat belt as the plane came to a stop, damn glad he didn’t have to attend yet another marriage ceremony. It seemed like the only reason he usually came to this town was to be in a wedding. If he had to stand up one more time with Randi Tyler, he was likely to lose it. Luckily, he had no more brothers to marry off, his sister was already married to Jason, and he’d never again have to stand across from Randi and pretend he actually liked her as she took his arm with a false smile on her face while he led her down the aisle. Hopefully he could avoid her almost entirely on this trip. It wasn’t like he saw every resident in Amesport on each visit. The town was small, but it wasn’t that small. Unfortunately, Evan doubted that he’d be able to avoid Randi completely. She was friends with Hope now, and would inevitably show up at the party.
“Naw. I’m good. Jared is putting me and Julian up in his guesthouse. Now that Mara doesn’t need it for her business anymore, it’s empty. Julian won’t be coming in until tomorrow. He can’t stay long—now that he’s been nominated for an Academy Award, he thinks he’s busy.” Micah smirked as he stood and retrieved his suitcase from one of the spacious closets on the plane. “He’s shooting his next movie in a month, and the award ceremonies are in just a couple of weeks. I guess he’s been bombarded for interviews.”
Evan knew that Micah might be teasing but was actually really proud of Julian. Honestly, Evan was proud of him, too. Julian had tried never to use his power as a Sinclair or his inherited money in his pursuit of stardom. He’d played the small parts, worked his way up in the movie industry. When he’d finally landed a leading role in a film after years of struggling, he’d done it by the merit of his own talent. Being nominated for an Oscar was proof that he’d really made it because of his own abilities.
“I hope he wins,” Evan grumbled as he gathered the rest of the things he’d need while in Amesport. He didn’t need much. His assistant had sent all of the necessities to his home here a while ago.
“Me too,” Micah admitted as they headed closer to the door of the aircraft, pulling on his dark-blue ski jacket. Evan donned his black wool dress coat.
“How’s Xander?” Evan didn’t want to ask the question, but he felt compelled to know how his youngest cousin was doing.
Micah shrugged a little too nonchalantly as he moved toward the exit. “The same. I never know from one day to the next what to expect with him now. He’s not coming for Hope’s party.”
“Is he on or off the wagon?” Evan asked cautiously as he followed Micah’s lead.
“On for now,” Micah replied with a heavy sigh. “But I’m not certain how long it will last.”
Evan’s heart sank, and he hurt for all of his cousins. After a tragic incident several months ago, Xander had abruptly quit his successful career as a musician and had been spiraling downhill ever since. He was drinking heavily, and was addicted to the very drugs that were supposed to help him. It reminded Evan of a period in Jared’s life that he didn’t even want to think about.
“I’m sorry to hear that, Micah.” He really was sorry, because he could relate. It was hell wondering if your brother was going to make it through the challenge of facing life again, or if he was going to keep going down until he hit rock bottom and stayed there. Worse yet, would they all get the news that Xander had fallen all the way and would never be getting up again?
“I hate feeling this damn helpless to do anything else. He’s been in rehab, and he refuses any further help. I don’t know whether to give him time, or wrestle him into a safe place where he can’t hurt himself,” Micah told Evan huskily, his voice vibrating with sorrow.
“I know.” Evan followed Micah down the stairs of the plane and clapped him on the back as they reached solid ground. “You’ve done all that you can do. Xander has to want to stay clean.”
The bitter-cold Maine winter wind blasted them both mercilessly as they exited the sleek aircraft, but Micah’s expression stayed grim, as though he was thinking too much to even feel the brutally frigid air. His dark-blond hair ruffled in the breeze, but he seemed totally oblivious to his surroundings. “Have I done everything I can?” he asked quietly, almost as though he were talking to himself rather than Evan.
“You have,” Evan replied staunchly. There was no reason for Micah to feel otherwise. “Let’s get to the car. I’ll give you a lift to the Peninsula.”
“Thanks,” Micah acknowledged gratefully, nodding at Evan like he was silently thanking him for his support, even though neither one of them would voice their emotions aloud. “My car is already at Jared’s place.”
Evan watched as Micah jogged toward the Rolls, shaking his head as he thought about the mess Xander was in at the moment. Thank God those days of worrying about the sanity of a younger brother were over for him, and Jared had finally healed. But Evan couldn’t help but have sympathy pains for his eldest cousin. He’d been where Micah was now, and it had been pure hell just dealing with Jared’s alcohol binge. He couldn’t imagine adding drugs into the mix.
“Welcome to Amesport, sir,” his gray-haired chauffeur told him in a monotone voice, a sound that always greeted Evan in nearly every city he visited. His driver was dressed just as he always was: a gray suit and tie, his silver hair seemingly immaculate even though the wind was blowing. He took Evan’s small suitcase and his laptop from his hands and put both in the front seat.