Chapter 26
CHAPTER 26
PARKER
Excited voices echoed through the lobby as the group of six university students who’d rented mountain bikes first thing this morning returned from their excursion. They were covered in mud, sporting various scrapes, and wearing expressions of exhausted satisfaction that told me they’d had a blast. Callum, Finn, and Alex were all out on guided trips, so the equipment check-in fell to me. That was fine. Jade was here, so she could wheel the bikes around to the back, while I looked over everything else.
“Did y’all have a good time?”
Ryan Boyle, the de facto group leader, beamed. “The best! I had no idea there were such good trails in this area.”
“We’ll definitely be back again.” This came from… was it Melissa?
I grinned. “That’s what we like to hear. I’m just gonna need to check over your equipment to make sure we’ve got everything before you can head on to whatever is next on your agenda.”
“The pub. I’m starving,” Nick insisted.
“Then I’ll be sure to get you through as quick as I can. I hear they’ve got a really excellent trout special for lunch today.” I grabbed my clipboard.
As I inspected the gear, Falkor went from person to person, passing out licks, gathering up head scritches. Most clients seemed hugely entertained by our unofficial office mascot, and he’d even ended up in some social media posts. I was thinking of designing a velcro patch with the Out of Bounds Scotland logo for his harness.
I was halfway through the group when I heard the bell over the door chime. “Be with you in a jiff,” I called, not looking up from my clipboard. “Okay, Nick, your helmet’s good. Just wheel around to the side and hose off those pedals. My associate will show you where to store the bike from there. But before you go, if I could just get you to initial here that everything’s been returned…” I held out the clipboard, but the words died in my throat as another voice cut through the cheerful post-adventure chatter.
“Parker Anne Lawrence.”
My lungs seized. I knew that voice. Had been dreading the next time I would hear it from the time I got on the plane in Nashville.
Clipboard clutched against my chest like a shield, I pivoted to find my parents standing just inside the door. Mama was impeccably dressed, per usual, in a designer pantsuit that probably cost more than my monthly rent. Daddy, too, wore a bespoke three-piece suit that fit his rangy frame to perfection. They both looked hideously out of place among all the gear and mud—as if they’d gotten lost on the way to a board meeting. The mix of concern and temper in their expressions did absolutely nothing to allay my anxiety.
Jade materialized, positioning herself between me and them, and I’d never been more grateful to have her by my side.
“Mama, Daddy. Welcome to Scotland.” I kept my tone bright and easy, despite the way my heart had begun to gallop. “Feel free to take a seat or look around while I finish up with these folks.”
It took far too little time to finish processing the last three clients. I was hyperaware of the fact that neither of my parents moved an inch, other than to recoil in disgust from Falkor’s attempt to play ambassador. With a quiet command, I called him away, ducking down behind my computer for just a few extra moments, trying to gather my composure.
I’d known they’d do this; I just hadn’t known when. Perhaps I could have made it easier on myself, if I’d bothered to respond to their flurry of attempted communication after I’d sent The Email. I might have at least been able to arrange the schedule so one of the guys was also here. But I’d wanted more time. I realized now that no amount of time would have prepared me for this.
I was so torn between wanting to rush over to hug them and to sink through the floor to escape their obvious disappointment.
You did nothing wrong. The reminder didn’t do much to bolster my resolve as I squared my shoulders and prepared to face off with my parents.
“It’s good to see y’all. How was your flight?”
Right. As if it made any sense at all to act like this had been a planned visit, and I’d known they were coming.
“Parker.” Mama’s voice wavered with repressed emotion. “I simply cannot believe you’ve done this. Baby, what were you thinking? Do you have any idea how worried we’ve been?”
“You haven’t had but a few days to worry because you didn’t even know what was going on. And as I said in my email, there is no need to worry, because I’m absolutely fine.”
Daddy turned a fulminating glare on Jade. “I cannot believe you helped her keep this from us. We trusted you to keep her safe.”
Jade’s shoulders tightened, that deeply ingrained military bearing coming to the fore, even as remorse flashed in her eyes. Before she could fall on her metaphorical sword, I stepped forward.
“Don’t you dare blame Jade. I did this all on my own.” I sounded a lot more confident than I felt, but I sure as hell wasn’t going to let her take the brunt of their displeasure. “This is not her fault. I know you’re worried. I know this is hard for you, and I’m sure I could have gone about the whole thing better. But if I had asked, you would have said no. You would have done everything in your power to stop me.”
“Of course we would have.” Concern bled through the temper as Daddy took a step toward me. “Parker, honey, you can’t just pick up and move across an ocean. What happens when you have a flare? Who’s going to take care of you? What if you fall?”
The familiar weight of their worry settled over me like chain mail, dragging me down, urging me to give in to old scripts. To acknowledge that I was helpless. That I needed their protection. And as much as I knew that wasn’t true, I could feel the pull. Apologies trembled on my lips as my brain tried to come up with some kind of compromise that would make them both stop looking at me as if I was the world’s biggest disappointment.
A warm heavy weight butted my leg. I glanced down at Falkor, who looked up at me with a steady, soulful gaze. Instinctively, I reached down to touch his head, stroking the soft fur around his ears and feeling a little more stable. Because, contrary to their belief, I wasn’t alone.
“I’d like to introduce you to Falkor. My service dog.”
“Your what?” Daddy asked.
“A service dog?” Mama’s tone was full of shock and something that might have been bafflement. “For what?”
“For all those things y’all are concerned about. He’s a mobility aid, and he helps me manage on my own.”
The worried glances they exchanged proved they were struggling to process this latest revelation.
Mama stepped forward and reached for my hand. “Sweetheart, we understand you want independence, but this is so far away. I’m sure you can get him through whatever customs processes are necessary to take him home with you, but this is ridiculous. It has to stop. You need to come home.”
Temper I could have met with temper, but this endless, well-intentioned concern had my chest constricting.
“Respectfully, Parker’s not going anywhere unless she wants to.”
Callum’s quiet burr cut through the tension as he stepped up beside me. I hadn’t even heard him come in, but his solid presence made breathing easier. His height and build dwarfed my parents, and I saw them both start at the sight of his scarred face and the milky left eye.
Mama’s fingers tightened on my hand, and Daddy shifted forward, as if to put himself between us. Their instinctive protectiveness might have been sweet if it wasn’t so frustratingly short sighted. I hated seeing anyone react to Callum as if he were a danger. Not when I knew the truth.
“And you are?” Daddy’s tone held his particular blend of deceptively easy Southern drawl and CEO—the one he reserved for sizing up potential threats.
I could practically feel Callum bristling beside me, though his voice remained steady. “Callum Quinn. One of Parker’s employers.”
I resisted the urge to reach back and lay a hand on his arm to soothe. I didn’t think that would help the current situation.
“One of?” Mother’s gaze darted between us, no doubt noting our proximity. “Just how many jobs are you working, sweetheart? You know that’s not good for you.”
It took everything in my power not to turn straight into Callum’s arms to hide.
“Just the one job. She’s been an incredible asset to me and my partners here at Out of Bounds Scotland. She’s revolutionized our business since she started, and is just generally an incredible person, as I’m sure you’re well aware.”
His effusive praise seemed to put both of them on their back feet.
“Yes, of course,” Mama concurred, “but surely all of this is too much?”
“No, it’s not,” I insisted. “And even if it was, it’s my choice to decide how much I can handle, because it’s my life. It’s my body. I’m not going to live in a bubble anymore, just because it makes y’all more comfortable.”
Some of the bluster seemed to leave my father. His shoulders drooped a little. “Maybe we have been a little too over-protective in terms of how you live and manage your condition. But, Pumpkin, it is not safe for you to be this far across the world by yourself.”
Safe? What the hell did they think was going to happen to me? I was so over the paranoia that went along with coming from money. I wasn’t out there in the public eye. Nobody gave a crap about me or what I was doing.
The bell jangled again as someone else walked inside. A quick glance told me it was Alex.
Callum didn’t miss a beat. “That’s the thing, Mr. Lawrence. She’s no’ by herself. She has a support system here. Us and a wide array of friends who will step up as needed. Now, I understand you have concerns, and we’re happy to allay them. Perhaps under more civilized circumstances? Dinner at my home? Where we can all speak more freely than we can in the middle of our workplace.”
Dinner? At his house? Was he out of his mind?
My parents had the good grace to look a little chastened.
“This is not the way we should have gone about this,” Mama conceded. “We shouldn’t have ambushed you at work. Let’s have a nice, calm discussion about this later. Dinner sounds lovely. Is there somewhere in the area we can stay?”
I didn’t want them to stay. I wanted them gone. But I was far too polite and well-bred for that.
“Yes, there are places for you to stay.” I circled around my desk. “Here’s the number of the local B and B, and also to some cottage rentals. I’m sure someone has something available for a night or two.”
“Dinner sounds fine. Tonight?” Daddy pressed.
“Seven o’clock,” Callum concurred.
Insane. He was completely and totally insane, and he refused to meet my gaze as he reached for a pen and stack of post-its. “Here’s the address.”
Daddy nodded and turned to Jade, who’d been doing her best impression of a statue. “A word, Jade?”
She snapped to attention. “Of course, sir.”
As they stepped outside, I sent up a prayer that she wasn’t being fired on the spot.
Mama pulled me in for a gentle hug. Her embrace was light, as if I were made of spun glass. The care was familiar and appreciated, but I hated she didn’t feel free to squeeze me tight as I knew she wanted to, so I was the one who squeezed.
“It really is good to see you, Mama.”
“You, too, sweetheart. We’ll see you for dinner tonight.”
Once she, too, had stepped out of the office, Alex finally spoke. “I gather those were your parents?”
“Yep, here to tell me I’m grounded.” I turned to Callum. “Not that I don’t appreciate what you just did, but… are you actually prepared to host a dinner for my parents at your place? Tonight? I mean, not that there’s anything at all wrong with your house, but it’s?—”
He speared a hand through his hair, letting some of the frustration show. “Empty. Aye. I know. But that can be rectified.” He pulled his phone from his pocket.
“Who are you calling?”
“Isobel. If we’re going to pull this off, we’re going to need a lot of help.”
I wasn’t sure there was enough help in the entire village to pull this off. Callum must have seen my skepticism. He curled his hands gently around my shoulders. “It’ll all be all right. I promise. Trust me. I willnae let them bully you.”
I slipped my arms around him, sinking into his embrace and feeling myself steady for the first time since my parents had walked through the door. “I do trust you. I just hope you haven’t bitten off more than you can chew.”