Chapter 26 Hale
TWENTY-SIX
Hale
Kady gets out of Calder’s car, dragging a cumbersome suitcase behind her with a huge cat carrier balanced on top of it.
“She does know we’re only going for the weekend, right?” Riven scratches his chin in confusion, watching from the window. “She brought a lot of luggage.”
Ezra snickers, clapping Riven’s shoulder. “You’ve got a lot to learn about women, my friend.”
Calder chuckles. “I’ll go help her.”
Since Kady agreed to join us, a lighter mood has settled over the entire pack. I even caught the usually moody Calder humming as he packed. I’m not sure what happened between him and Kady while I was treating Larry, but it sure got him in a good mood.
“She’s back, little guy.” I stroke Larry’s head. He hasn’t left me alone, so I’ve been carrying him around, giving him a tour of our apartment. From my pocket, my work phone dings, alerting me to another message. “Can you take Larry, Riven?”
Riven’s a bit warier of animals than the others, but he still holds out his arms and takes him. However, Larry doesn’t seem to be particularly keen on being held anymore, leaping from Riven’s arms onto the sofa.
“Sorry, Larry,” I mutter, checking my cell phone.
Yet another courier mix-up, resulting in a panicked message from some of my employees.
These distribution companies are quickly becoming a pain in my ass, but there’s no such thing as time off when you run a company.
“I’ll just reply to this email before we leave. ”
“I’ll finish loading up the car.” Riven grabs his duffel bag and is practically glowing as he leaves the apartment.
“I’ll leave them to it.” Ezra stretches before reclining back and putting his arms behind his head. In many ways, Ezra is similar to a cat—he likes his home comforts, doesn’t like rules, and goes wherever he wants whenever he wants.
“Are you sure you’re okay with her coming with us?” I ask him.
“If it’ll put this whole scent match thing to bed, then sure.” He shrugs. “I have work to do ahead of classes starting again on Monday, so I’ll stay out of your way.”
Although he’s often aloof, Ezra’s been acting even more distant lately, spending a lot of time away from the apartment and coming home smelling of beer more often.
“Are you sure you’re okay, Ez?” Worry swimming through me, I scrutinize his expression. “I’m worried about you.”
“I’m fine,” he dismisses my concern as my phone pings again. “But you better put whoever that is out of their misery.”
I scowl, forwarding the emails to the right people, hoping they can avert today’s crises. I know I’m doing a good job, but fuck. Helping Larry today made me realize how much I miss working with animals.
I look out of the window, watching Kady and Calder argue as she refuses to let him help her with her bags. At hearing their raised voices, even Ezra comes over to join me.
He chuckles. “She’s stubborn.”
“Just like you,” I snicker, going to grab my coat. “Time to go.”
“I’ll lock up behind you,” Ezra offers.
We haven’t packed a lot as we have everything we need at the house, which is a good thing as Kady’s belongings take up most of the trunk.
“Are you sure the truck will make the drive?” Kady eyes Janice warily as I approach them.
“Janice has made longer journeys than this.” I pat the hood proudly.
Even though she looks like a hunk of junk, this truck means a lot to me.
My dad and I built it together from the ground up.
Sure, I can afford a better one on my salary, but I love her too much.
Cars and trucks were our thing, and I’m not ready to let go of the last one we’ll ever build together. “She can make it.”
Kady’s lips purse, then she shouts, “Shotgun!”
“What—” Aghast, Calder’s mouth forms an O as she opens the passenger door with a smile. “Hey, that’s not fair! There’s hardly any leg room in the back.”
“Shotgun rules are very clear.” Riven slides into the back. “Kady gets to ride up front.”
Glowering, Calder grumbles under his breath as he scoots in next to him, leaving Kady victorious as the rest of us pile in. I honk the horn to hurry Ezra along, and he joins us a few seconds later.
“Ready?” I turn to look at Kady once we’re all inside. God, she’s stunning. Even though she’s blonde, she has long, dark eyelashes that remind me of a China doll.
“As I’ll ever be,” she replies.
I start Janice up then hit the gas.
We’re not even out of Forestville before the guys are bickering in the back about playlists. Ezra, the self-appointed DJ, selects a jazz station that has Calder groaning. It’s not a road trip if we don’t devolve into an argument about the music in some shape or form.
“Where are we heading?” Kady asks over the noise of Calder complaining about feeling like he’s been transported back to the ’20s.
“Over to Rose Harbor.” I keep my eyes fixed on the road ahead, finding it hard not to get distracted by her presence.
Even though she’s doused herself in scent blocking spray, I still catch a hint of her subtle, elegant smell underneath, and it’s driving me wild.
“Have you heard of it? It’s about four hours from here. ”
“I’ve never been, but I’ve heard of it. Sabs, one of my housemates, comes from Saltwave Bay. That’s the next town over, right?”
I grin. “That’s the one.”
“Rose Harbor is one of my favorite places on Earth,” I tell her. “It’s close enough to a big city to commute, but it feels like its own bubble. Where did you grow up?”
“We moved around a lot because of my father’s work.” She shifts to face me more. “He sent me away to boarding schools, so I spent time all over the globe at different international schools and summer camps. But Dad’s main base is New York, which I’m sure doesn’t come as a surprise.”
“You must find SVU a real change, then,” I surmise.
“I love it.” She sighs wistfully. “Everyone is always rushing in New York. They always have a place to be. It’s so much more laid-back here. I considered staying in the city to study, but I’m glad I changed my mind.”
I curse when my phone starts bleeping like crazy.
“Should you get that?”
“I’ll answer it when we take a break for some food.” Keeping my eyes on the road, I put my phone on silent. “In a car with four alphas, you’ll quickly learn that we make a lot of food stops. Work can wait.”
“Work?” When I gaze over to her, her lips are turned down in a frown. “Why are they bothering you now? Aren’t you off for the weekend?”
I haven’t been entirely honest with Kady about the nature of my work, but there’s plenty of time for that.
When I’ve dated in the past, learning that I inherited a billion-dollar company changed how women acted around me.
Kady has her own wealth, so I don’t think it would change her behavior, but I like that she doesn’t know.
I want her to like me for me, and it’s nice to feel like a normal twenty-something who doesn’t have the weight of the world on his shoulders for a change.
“I’m sure it can.” I want to get off the subject, seizing my opportunity when I spy Ezra swiping Riven’s candy. “Ezra! Hands off!”
“They’re like a bunch of kids,” Kady grumbles, but there’s mirth behind her words.
She fits in and doesn’t look at us with judgment. It feels like she could really be part of us.
As the mountains get farther and farther behind us, we spend some time playing various car games, with Kady and Calder battling it out to be the ultimate winner. I like how she isn’t put off by his competitive spirit, embracing it instead.
“I win!” she cheers, making an L with her hand. “Loser.”
“You wait until we’re out of the car,” Calder murmurs.
“Or what?”
“You’ll see,” he threatens.
She laughs. I didn’t realize how tense I was until my shoulders sag, relieved to see that there’s an air of ease to her now, her head thrown back, carefree. We’re seeing a different side to Kady, and wanting that to continue, I vow to make sure we give her the best weekend ever.
But will we be enough for her? I have a few ideas and plans, but what do you give the girl who grew up with everything?