Chapter Fourteen #2
Reaves chuckled. "No, I'm sure he'll do fine with her in a business sense. It's just that from what he saw of her at the wedding, she's a bit too ... assertive. That's probably what he wants to talk to us about. Probably wants us both there as a buffer to make sure she doesn't push him around."
Ollie had to laugh. "I can see why he'd worry about it.
But we can protect him between us, can't we?
She might be a bit abrasive, but everyone I've asked about her says that she's the best in the business.
I talked to Bentley this morning, and he said all the wineries around here have used her at some point over the last few years.
And that she's a major turnaround specialist. So whatever it takes, we'll do it. "
"We sure will," Reaves agreed. "Go on, get your ass out of here. Go and get those doggies." He smiled. "Maybe they can cheer you up a bit."
"Yeah, I'm fine," said Ollie. "Or I will be."
"You will. Callie will come around. It was a shock, that's all."
When he arrived at Rosa and Luigi’s place, Ollie checked his phone again, just in case. He already knew damn well that Callie hadn't messaged him. But he kept hoping and checking anyway.
He scowled when he saw that there was a new text, but it was from his dad. He was tempted not to open it. He knew his dad checked when his messages were delivered and also when they were read.
He opened it anyway.
Dad: It's been a while. How are you?
He stared at the seven words, then closed the screen again. What was he supposed to say to that?
He climbed out of his SUV and grinned when the cottage door opened. Rosa came out and Peanut and Butter followed. When she told them to wait, they sat on either side of her, ears straining toward Ollie, tails waving, sweeping back and forth behind them.
"Are you good?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm good."
"Go get him, then," she told them with a laugh.
The dogs came bounding to him, and he squatted down to greet them, hugging them and loving the feel of them licking his face. His heart sat like a heavy ball in his chest as he remembered the way they'd sniffed Callie's face, and she'd sniffed them right back.
He'd had such high hopes for what might happen between them. There were many times in the past when he'd joked with the guys that he'd never settle down because he'd never find a woman who the dogs approved of. They approved of Callie, but he might just have blown it anyway.
When he straightened up, Rosa gave him a puzzled look. "Are you okay? You look down."
"Yeah, I'm fine."
She gave him a stern look. Of course he'd told her what had happened with Callie on Sunday.
"Give her some time. You messed up, but you're not all bad."
He let out a short laugh. "Thanks."
She winked. "You know I'm only joking with you. You're one of the best boys in the world, and you're my boy, and I love you. But you messed up, Ollie. I just hope it won't cost you something special."
"Yeah, me too."
Her expression gentled as she took pity on him. "Do you want to stay for dinner? Luigi just got home."
"No, that's okay, thanks. I'm headed over to Charles's place. He invited me to dinner with Reaves this evening."
She smiled at that. "Give him my best when you see him, will you? If anyone can straighten you out, Charles can."
"Okay, will do."
"Will I see you tomorrow?"
He rolled his eyes at her. "If you mean, will I be staying home, hanging out and feeling sorry for myself, then yeah, probably."
She chuckled. "That's exactly what I meant. I'll bring you a breakfast bake."
"Thanks, Rosa." He leaned in to hug her. "I don't deserve you."
"Yes, you do. Don't go feeling sorry for yourself. This is just a bump in the road, not the end of it, okay?"
"Thanks, Rosa. I hope so. I'll see you tomorrow. Come on, guys."
He opened the back of the Cullinan, and the dogs jumped in. "Do you want to go see Charles?"
Butter barked, and Peanut whined. They both wagged their tails eagerly.
~ ~ ~
Callie looked down at her phone when it beeped, realizing once more that she was still hoping it was Ollie.
If she kept feeling that way, she should probably just get in touch with the guy, get over herself, and see how they could work things out.
She wasn't trying to make him suffer; she just knew herself.
She tended to get good and mad at first, but given a day or two to think about things, she usually calmed down and became more reasonable.
It was just that in this case, she wanted to give herself a little more time to make sure that she wasn't allowing herself to be fooled by someone who didn't think she was worth telling the truth to.
Of course, it wasn't Ollie texting. It was her mom. She loved talking to her folks, but she tried to keep their phone calls to once a week, claiming that she was busy with work most of the time.
Mom: How are things going? I had to go into the bank today. That Sidney who took over your job isn't all that good, you know. I bet if you wanted to come home, they'd fit you right back in as assistant manager. Any chance you want to come home??? :)
Callie had to smile at the three question marks and smiley face at the end of the text.
Callie: Sidney's all right. Just give her a chance. And you're biased anyway. You're not going to think anyone's as good as I was. But I'm happy here, Mom. Work's going well. How are you guys?
She shook her head as she hit send. How could she stay mad at Ollie when she was just as bad? Here she was, telling her own parents that work here in California was going well. And she'd told them that she'd moved out here for a job when she hadn't.
They didn't understand about her pottery.
They didn't believe that she could make a decent living from it, even though she'd proven that she could and did.
Back home, there was a set of expectations, and for years, Callie had followed them.
She'd taken the job at the bank as a teller, worked her way up to assistant manager, and it was only staring down the barrel of an empty future that had convinced her that she could turn her hobby of pottery into something more than that.
She'd worked her ass off, evenings and weekends, making and selling her creations.
And as she'd told Alara, she'd saved up enough for a deposit on the cottage and made enough over the last couple of tax returns to prove that she was good for a small mortgage.
Yeah, her home was small, but it was still hers.
But that hadn't been enough for her folks. Not that they would've stopped her, but they worried about her, and that was even worse. So, she'd told them that she'd come out here for a job.
And here she was, being all mad and sanctimonious that Ollie hadn't told her the truth about his family.
She stared at the screen when it lit up again.
Mom: Your dad just came in. I'm gonna have to make dinner now. I just wanted to check in with you. Love you, Callie. Be safe. More soon.
Callie: Love you, Mom. I'll call you when I can.
She set her phone down. Maybe tomorrow she'd call Ollie.
It would be totally unreasonable of her to stay mad at him — she'd outright lied to her folks to stop them from worrying.
Ollie had only kind of lied to her to make her feel more comfortable with him.
He wasn't trying to pull one over on her.
She frowned. At least she didn't think he was.
She set her phone down when she heard Zia calling, "Lady Sunshine, Lady Sunshine, where are you?"
She went to the door of the cabin and waved.
"There you are!" Zia shouted. "Look, Mommy, told you she'd be in here and not the cottage."
Alara met Callie's gaze. "Are we disturbing you?"
"Not at all. Do you want to come up to the cottage? I was thinking about stopping to eat anyway."
"We don't need to intrude."
"I've told you, you're not intruding. It's all okay, I promise. And would you stop feeling bad about this? About Ollie?"
"I can't help it," Alara said.
"What did he do wrong?" Zia asked.
"Nothing," Callie told her. "He didn't do anything wrong at all."
"So why are you mad at him?"
"I'm not mad at him, I'm just..." She didn't know how to explain it.
Alara looked down at her daughter. "He didn't do anything wrong, Zee, but he kept a secret."
Zia nodded sagely. "I knew he was the secret king."
Callie pursed her lips. It seemed that, as usual, Zia had called it.
As they walked to the cottage, Zia ran ahead.
"Have you spoken to Reaves today?" Callie asked.
"No, they're flying today. Didn't Ollie—" She stopped short. "Sorry, you haven't spoken to him, have you?"
"Nope."
"I feel so bad, Callie. This is all my fault."
"It's not your fault at all, and I don't want you feeling bad.
It just caught me off guard, that's all, but I don't want you to give it another thought.
And you have to bear in mind that I can't really be too mad at him, can I?
The only reason this all came out is because he offered you a job.
That's a pretty decent thing to do, even while he was hiding who he was from me. "
Alara inhaled sharply. "I don't even know what kind of job, though. But the thing is — would you mind if I take it?"
Callie stopped walking. "I'll be mad at you if you don't. You'd be crazy not to."
Alara relaxed. "That's how I feel, but I don't even know what he wants me to do."
Callie let out a short, bitter laugh. "Well, sorry, but you know I can't help you with that. Seems I don't know the first thing about the guy."
"Oh, Callie, that's not true."
"No, I know. Sorry. I'll get over it."
~ ~ ~
Ollie smiled as he watched Charles sneak tidbits to the dogs under the table while they ate. Reaves winked at him. Apparently, he'd spotted it too, but neither of them was going to comment. It was nice to see Charles looking more relaxed and enjoying himself.
When he'd finished eating, Charles set his napkin down and looked from Reaves to Ollie and back again. "I think you both know that I had something in mind when I asked you here for dinner."
"I think we do," Reaves agreed.
Ollie nodded.
"I've been thinking about this whole branding and vibe thing, and I believe I may have come up with a solution that will work for all of us."
Ollie exchanged a look with Reaves.
"Go on then, Dad. Fire away. Tell us what you're thinking."
Charles smiled and leaned forward eagerly.
"Well, by the sound of it, this Delaney woman is the ideas woman, and I can respect that, so perhaps we need to consult her.
But the actual aesthetic of our new brand — I don't want it to be something harsh, and that's how she seems to me.
No disrespect to the woman; I'm sure she's perfectly pleasant as well as being good at her job.
But different people give you a different feeling.
" He raised his eyebrows. "Is that what they mean by vibe? "
Ollie chuckled. "I think it is, Charles, yes."
"I shall have to ponder that. But anyway, I was thinking — as capable as Delaney may be, there's a different vibe"—he winked—"that I'd like for the House of St. James. And someone I met recently embodies it perfectly."
"Who's that?" Reaves asked.
"I think you know. I'm talking about Alara."
Reaves grinned. "Yeah, I can see that."
Ollie waited for Charles to go on. When he did, he turned to him with a smile.
"It seems to me that you put yourself in a difficult position when you offered to employ Alara so that she could access the health benefits of being an employee of yours."
Ollie shrugged. "You could say that, but it's all good."
Charles nodded thoughtfully. "And the thing is, you've offered time and time again to help Reaves and to help me, and this time, I'd like to accept your help."
Ollie sat up straighter, surprised but pleased. "Anything. Tell me what you want me to do."
Charles smiled. "I'd like to borrow your new employee. In fact, I'd like if it were a long-term, hopefully permanent arrangement. I'd like her to work here for me on the rebrand. She is an artist."
Ollie grinned. "Now that is a fine idea."
"Do you mean you want her to come and stay here?" Reaves asked.
Charles chuckled. "I do. I don't think a camper is any place for a young lady like Alara to be living, and certainly not for a young lady like Zia.
" He looked more serious as he added, "However, be warned.
Under my roof, they'll be under my protection, and you are no longer invited to spend the night here.
Or at least, not unless and until Alara invites you. "
"That's fair," said Reaves. "But if I can persuade Alara to come out for an evening with me, would you mind watching Zia?"
Charles chuckled. "I think you already know the answer to that. Although—" He turned to Ollie. "I'm going to have your number on speed dial in case I need to be rescued."
Ollie nodded. "I'll be more than happy to help out if you need me."
"Good. Well, that's that then. As I said, I thought I had a solution that would work for all of us." His smile faded. "The only matter left to resolve is whether it will work for Alara."
"I can't see her having a problem," said Reaves.
"Me neither," Ollie agreed. It really was a great idea, and he couldn't see any reason why she wouldn't go for it.
Charles turned to him and gripped his arm. "Unfortunately, it doesn't resolve your issue with the lovely Callie, does it?"
He shrugged. "I just have to wait and see what she has to say."
"I believe she'll come around; she's a sensible girl. And you know..."
Ollie raised an eyebrow, knowing damn well that Charles had something up his sleeve. "I don't yet, but I get the impression you're about to tell me."
"I was thinking I'd like to get Alara's input on what this rebrand will mean — and it sounds as though she'll need to attend to her health before she can think about working.
" Charles glanced at Reaves. "Perhaps if Ollie were to fly you up there to collect them, you could drive this camper of hers back here so we can get the ball rolling. "
Ollie pursed his lips. Of course, he'd love to have a reason to go see Callie again, but she'd said that she'd call him — even if it was to say they were done. He had to respect that and give her space.
Charles raised his eyebrows. "Or I could claim that I'm desperate to get those last few sunflower glazes here?"
Reaves met Ollie's gaze. "It's up to you. I don't want to push."
He shrugged. "Talk to Alara. If the worst comes to the worst, I can drop you off at the airport and fly away again before Callie comes to pick you up — you can load the glazes in the camper."