Chapter 12 Zandra
TWELVE
Zandra
“I cannot believe you just asked me that.” I pressed my back against the rough brick of Hearthstone’s exterior, my phone clutched to my ear. The parking lot behind the brewery was quiet, despite the police activity going on out front.
Of all the days for Ian to call with a guilt trip, why did it have to be today?
And why had I even picked up? It was like this man could sniff out my most vulnerable moments.
“Your parents are loaded, Zan,” Ian whined. “I just need a short-term loan to cover things until my next payout from my trust fund. You know I can’t touch the principal.”
“What about your new job? The one your fancy contacts got you, even though I couldn’t get a single employer in Chicago to take my calls?”
“It fell through.”
“Wow.” I gripped the bridge of my nose. How had I ever been so foolish as to believe any of this man’s lies?
“Don’t forget, I let you keep living at my place rent free. Even after you stopped sharing my bed.”
“That’s why I paid for the groceries and cleaned like I was your maid, all while still trying my damnedest to fix things with our investors.
” Meanwhile, Ian had continued to spend money on things like his obscenely expensive car.
I’d known he had some debt, like me, but I’d had no clue it was this bad.
“I put years into our relationship and our company, Zan. You still owe me.”
I rubbed my chest, feeling the familiar knot of anxiety tighten there. “You and I are over. I owe you nothing.”
He changed tactics. “These people I borrowed money from… They don’t play around. Please. If you ever loved me—”
“I have to go.” I hung up before he could finish, immediately switching my phone to silent.
My hands were trembling as I shoved it into my back pocket.
The sight of the spider-webbed hole in the window, the shards of tempered glass littering the concrete, appeared in my memory. Only becoming more vivid when I closed my eyes.
It was a coincidence. A random act of vandalism that had nothing to do with me. Or Jessa.
But it was yet another reminder that I still wasn’t over the things that had happened years ago. I’d been back in Silver Ridge for weeks, and I still hadn’t worked up the courage to visit Jessa’s mother.
Why couldn’t I just put all the heartache behind me?
“Get it together,” I murmured to myself. “Someone’s going to see you like this.”
Of course, the universe had a sick sense of humor. Because, as I pulled the door open, I walked straight into a solid wall of muscle and woodsy cologne. The guy who’d already seen me sad and pathetic more times than I ever would’ve wanted.
Callum’s warm hands came up to steady me. “There you are. I just got here. Russ said you were upset.”
“I’m fine,” I insisted.
He seemed to get a better look at me. And it must’ve been obvious I was very much not fine. “Nope. Back outside.”
“Callum, I—”
But he was already nudging me out the back door, shoving it closed again with his foot. “What’s going on? Was it the broken window? Or the phone call you were just having?”
Embarrassment soured my stomach. “You heard.”
“A little. Didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it sounded unpleasant.”
“Just my ex being his usual self.”
“Your ex, the dick?”
“That’s the one.” I sighed.
My head fell back against the brick wall for another moment as I tried to collect myself. The rough texture bit into my shoulders through my top, pulling me toward the present.
But the memories still had a hold on me.
Jessa. Not just her death, but everything that happened after. That broken window…
Callum was waiting, and I had to tell him something.
“I only got here about a half hour ago. After Russ saw the broken glass, he called the police and my grandpa, and then Grandpa called me.”
“And?” Callum prompted.
And then, when I got here and saw the glass, I might’ve…crashed out. Just a little. But I wasn’t going to confess that bit of truth aloud.
“It’s upsetting to see someone throw a brick through Hearthstone’s window,” I finished saying. “This place means a lot to my family.”
Callum’s dark eyes were studying me way too closely. “But you’re all right?”
“Yep.”
“Good. Next time, I’d appreciate a call when things go wrong. It’s still the trial period, and we’re supposed to be in this together. I was down the street at Silver Linings with no clue what was happening here.”
I groaned. “Crap, I meant to call you. I told Russ I would, but then…” I gestured vaguely at my phone, feeling heat creep up my neck.
“The ex called?”
“Yes. Ian. I’m sorry. I didn’t leave you out on purpose, I swear.”
“All forgiven,” Callum said easily.
“Really? That fast?”
He winked. “People do accuse me of being fast.”
And we were back to the flirting. The baseline Callum always seemed to return to.
Over the last couple of weeks, things had been pretty good between us. We’d worked together most days with hardly any arguing. Well, only necessary arguing. Because Callum loved to poke at me, and when he did, I couldn’t hold my tongue.
Winnie had also caught me checking out Callum at work. I’d denied it, but yeah, I’d been obvious. The man had an ass made for ogling. So sue me.
The truth was, I liked Callum. A lot. Just like everyone else in town did, and it was disconcerting. I felt like I was in one of those old sci-fi movies where an alien slug takes over someone’s brain. You’re one of us now.
But at the moment, his ridiculousness was just what I needed for a reset.
Okay. My freakout was over. Ready for business.
“We should go talk to the police,” I said. “Then call a handyman about putting plywood over the window.”
“On it.” Callum opened the back door and steered me inside. “But first, breakfast. I assume you haven’t had your coffee yet?”
“Coffee. That is exactly what I need.”
His long fingers ghosted over the small of my back.
In the kitchen, the staff was getting started on prep work after the unexpected drama of the broken window. Instead of going for the coffeemaker, Callum grabbed a couple of to-go cups marked with the Silver Linings logo.
“Pistachio latte for you,” he said, looking pleased with himself. “And a cinnamon-sugar muffin. All confirmed to be allergy free.”
“You are…”
“Jaw-dropping? Gorgeous?”
“I was going to go with…awesome.” Because the guy did deserve some credit. He was turning my bad day around fast.
He beamed. “I’ll take awesome.”
Chuckling, I took a sip of the latte. Then closed my eyes as the warm, nutty flavor hit my tongue. For the first time all morning, something felt right. “Oh, that’s really yummy.”
“Piper knows her coffee.”
“Thank her for me. Also, thanks to you too. This was really nice.”
“My pleasure.” He stuck a hand in his pocket, the other lifting his coffee to his lips. “I do owe you a hundred bucks. It’s just my start to paying it back.”
I snorted, coughing on a mouthful of my drink. That first night I’d seen him at the bar felt like a lifetime ago. “I forgot about the hundred bucks.”
“I didn’t.” He flashed his grin. “Now we’re caffeinated. Let’s go talk to the police.”
The Silver Ridge PD officer had already taken a statement from Russ, and he promised to check around with our neighboring businesses to see if they had camera footage.
“No cameras here?” the officer asked, glancing at the eaves of the building.
“Manny was against it,” Callum said. “He claimed he’s, quote, morally opposed to the modern surveillance state.”
Totally sounded like something Grandpa would say. “We’ll get a security system and cameras installed soon,” I added, glancing at Callum, who nodded. “Was there a note attached to the brick or anything?”
My stomach twisted as I asked the question.
But the officer just shook his head, eyes on his notepad.
“Nope. There was a music festival over in Pine Creek. Drew in more than the usual crowd of out-of-towners. Hart County Sheriff has been dealing with issues all week. Probably just more of that. Doesn’t seem like the culprit tried to get inside, so I doubt they were even interested in stealing beer. ”
I nodded, my anxiety fading. It had been random, and I’d been upset over nothing more than a minor case of vandalism. Which made perfect sense.
It had nothing to do with me.
Within a couple hours, we had plywood over the window and the mess cleaned up. Everything was back to normal, the dining room ready for another day of serving customers. In the kitchen, the familiar sounds of chopping and sizzling filled the air.
Callum and I headed to the office to deal with some other tasks, but soon he was stretching his arms over his head. “Lunch? Cobb salad again, hold the cheese?”
“Uh, yeah.” But before he could put in our lunch request with the kitchen, I said, “Hey, Callum. Can I ask a favor?”
I’d been thinking about this all morning after the pistachio latte. If I didn’t ask him now, I was going to lose my nerve.
The thing was, Callum had been great lately.
Like bringing me breakfast today. Also, starting up a conversation with Manny and the head chef about updating their cross-contamination procedures.
Now I had several tasty options for meals here, like the Cobb salad sans blue cheese and croutons. I always got extra avocado. Yum.
And he’d been so reassuring after the broken window and that awful phone call with Ian.
Either Callum was genuinely a sweetheart, or he was trying to lull me into a false sense of security before an evil about-face. But I didn’t think so.
Callum stood, readjusting his cap over his waves. “Sure. Ask, and it shall be done, my liege.”
His goofiness gave me the last bit of courage I needed.
“I’ve been meaning to go see Mrs. Mackenzie.
Jessa’s mom. Winnie said she’s not doing well, and I felt like I should go spend some time with her.
It’s the right thing to do, but I’m honestly kind of dreading it.
Which probably makes me a terrible person. ”
I was rambling. But Callum smiled softly. “Pretty sure it just makes you human.”
I forged ahead. “So I was wondering…”
“Yeah?”
“If you might come with me.”
He shrugged, as if this was a simple request and not a subject that had been plaguing me for weeks. “Yeah. Yeah, of course. I should’ve gone to see Mrs. Mackenzie a long time ago too.”
“You weren’t close with Jessa or her family. No one would’ve expected you to.”
“But as you said, it’s the right thing to do. Name the date and time, and I’m there.”
I exhaled. “Thanks, Callum. This really means a lot.”
“You got it.” He plopped back down in his seat. “But you have to order lunch. And serve it to me and call me Mr. Charming, as in Prince Charming, because I really fucking am.”
“No.”
He leaned back in the chair. “That’s the deal.”
I made a frustrated noise. “But you realize ‘Prince’ is the title, right? So it should just be Prince Charming, no mister.”
“I don’t think so. Prince is his first name in those old movies.”
I blinked at Callum. He was serious.
This. Man.
There really was no use fighting it. “Fine. What can I get you for lunch, Mr. Charming?”
“Don’t say it like that. Sounds like in your head, you’re calling me Mr. Asshat or something.”
A smirk teased my lips. “Gee, I wonder why.”
“You know you love me.”
My cheeks heated as blood rushed to my face. Love was seriously overstating it. But I was quite possibly in like with him.
So help me, I really was.