Chapter 9
Nine
Peter
What the fuck am I thinking? All Miles said to do is check on them.
Make sure they are okay. Not draw a line in the sand tell them to stay with me.
It’s a bad idea. I knew as soon as the words fell from my mouth.
What is it about Callie that makes me speak without thinking?
I should have practice in this based on how many times I have to keep my mouth shut around Pierce.
Clearly, she brings all my walls down…and good sense.
I grab Alice’s bed and a couple of toys.
Callie didn’t specify which ones so who knows if these are ones the pup actually likes.
I hurry out to the truck and place the items in the backseat before turning the truck on.
It’s freezing out here and they shouldn’t have to get into a cold truck. Luckily it hasn’t cooled down too much.
Logistics of how this is going to work run through my head as I make my way back inside. When is the last time I changed the sheets in the guest room? Miles stayed here on New Year’s and I changed them after he left. At least there will be clean bedding for them.
Callie is in the living room when I enter. Her suitcase is planted beside her. The frantic look on her face softens as soon as she sees me. Did she think I bailed on her? I’m not an asshole. At least, not all the time.
“Wow. It didn’t take you long.” Honestly, if it were my baby sister, she’d still be packing. Even if it’s only for a few days. It’s one of the reasons I hate going on vacations with her. She takes forever to do anything.
“Eh, I’m low maintenance.” She shrugs her shoulders. “Some yoga pants, sweaters, and fuzzy socks are pretty much all I need. Well, undergarments, too.” Her cheeks are bright pink as soon as she adds that last tidbit.
Callie blushing might be new favorite thing. I’ll have to think of ways to make her do it more often.
Alexandra grunts as she pulls two suitcases behind her with a duffel bag slung over her shoulder. “A little help, please.”
Both of us move toward her, reaching for the same suitcase handle, our hands brush against one another. “I’ve got it.” My words are soft, and it takes her a moment to pull her hand away.
She takes a full step back when her daughter starts giggling. I will never understand teenagers.
Callie studies her daughter while I pull one suitcase, then the other, to my side. “You know we’re only going to be at Peter’s for a couple of days max, right?”
Great, she’s in mom mode now. I know the sound of that tone anywhere. It’s one I got from my mom frequently.
“Oh,” Alexandra waves her hand in front of her dismissing her mom’s question. “This isn’t all clothes. I’m assuming there’s no TV so I loaded one of the suitcases with books. I have to do something to fill up the time.”
That explains the weight of the last one I pulled over to me. How many books does she think she can read in a few days? Actually, never mind. Anything that brings her joy. If that’s spending the cold days cuddled up reading, who am I to judge?
“You have a point.” Callie agrees. She rushes over to the side of the couch and grabs something. When she comes back there’s a ball of yarn in her hand. “I’ve been meaning to start working on a project. This feels like a good time to handle that task.”
“Not to butt in on your hobby talk, but it’s starting to get cold in here.” I feel like a jerk for breaking the banter, but at the same time, I can see my breath and we’re inside.
“Right.” Callie nods and glances over at her daughter. “Since you’re no longer carrying anything besides the duffle, grab Alice’s leash and bring her out. We’ll get loaded while you lock up.”
“Fine.” Alexandra rolls her eyes and moves toward the hallway.
Callie doesn’t realize how lucky she is. I know for a fact me and my siblings would have put up a fight to do it. She probably remembers how unruly all of us could be.
“Do you need me to grab anything else?” I glance at my full hands. “I’m sure I can grab one more thing.”
She’s laughing so hard she snorts. I forgot she did that, and its actually kind of adorable.
“Sorry.” She composes herself. “But where exactly are you going to carry anything else? My child has both of your hands full with her books.”
“I’m sure I can hold something under my arm. I don’t know.” I shrug and feel dumb for even suggesting it.
“Thank you, Peter. I can carry my own stuff.” She moves toward the door and I follow after her. “You letting us stay with you is more than we expected.”
“It’s not a problem.” I don’t close the door behind me because Alexandra will be behind me to lock up. “You know your brother will want to make improvements and insist you get a generator, right?”
Callie opens the passenger side door to put her yarn project in the seat before turning toward me. “I’m aware. He thinks he has to protect me from the world after everything, but despite me taking you up on this offer, I’m capable of taking care of things without his help.”
What happened to her? And more importantly, why didn’t Miles say anything to me? The question is on the tip of my tongue, but the door slams and I know I’ve lost my chance. Maybe she’ll open up in the days ahead. It’s not like she can run away from the question when we’re trapped inside.
“Noted.” I lift the lighter suitcase into the bed of the truck, and then the heavier one. It hits the bed with a thunk.
“Be careful with my babies.” Alexandra calls as she approaches the truck. Alice is pulling ahead of her to get out of the cold. I open the back door so she can jump in and she doesn’t waste time.
“They will be fine, I promise.” I wait until Alexandra pulls herself into the seat. “We won’t be driving fast enough for them to move around.”
“Good.” She grabs the handle and pulls the door closed.
“Sorry about her.” Callie’s cheeks are pink. I don’t know if it’s from cold or embarrassment.
“No worries. Her books are important to her. I can respect that. I wish there was something I was passionate about at that age.”
I hold my hand out to help her into the truck. It’s not lifted or anything, but Callie is on the shorter side and I remember all the times I would help her in and out of her brother’s truck.
Reluctantly she grabs it and allows me to be the leverage she needs to get in. I should probably fix the handle that helps people get in.
“And you were passionate about the family business.”
A nod is the only response I can give her.
While it’s true, that shouldn’t have been the only thing that held my interest. Look where it’s gotten me.
Yes, we’re successful and growing, but it’s my entire life…
and that probably isn’t healthy. Which is why Piper is forcing me to focus on myself.
Who knew I could let my baby sister bully me?
I hurry around the truck and hit a patch of ice. My ass hits the ground and I can hear Alexandra laughing in the backseat. The passenger side door opens. “Do you need help?”
The offer from Callie is sweet, but I can tell it’s taking everything in her to not join her daughter.
“I’m good. I just need a second.” That’s what I get for running where I knew there could be ice. Fuck my life. Why did it have to happen in front of Callie and her daughter? Whatever cool points I earned from Alexandra have all but disappeared. She’s never going to take me seriously.
Grabbing the bumper, I pull myself up. This is going to hurt later. One of these days I’ll remember I’m not as young I used to be. Today was obviously not that day.
My steps are much slower as I move to the driver side. The key is to act like I didn’t just make an ass of myself. “Seatbelts.” It’s the first word out of my mouth as I get into the truck.
I wait until I hear two clicks before I put the truck in reverse and back down the driveway.
A quick glance back and Alexandra has headphones covering her ears. At least she’s not giving me crap. Not right now, anyway.
“Are you sure you’re, okay?” Callie places a hand on my arm. “I can look you over when we get to your house.”
“I’m good.” I shift into drive as soon as we’re on the road and start the slow trek to my house. “It’s not the first time I’ve busted my ass. At least my brothers weren’t around to see it.”
“They would definitely give you hell. Or, tried to get pictures while you were down. Especially Parker.”
“You’re not wrong there.” My baby brother is really annoying and would probably blast it on social media. “Thanks for the concern, though.”
“It’s been forever since I’ve been down this road.” Callie is staring out the window at the snow-covered pastures. “Nothing here ever really changes.”
Except they have. The town’s slightly bigger than it was all those years ago.
She’s not the same as when she left. The need to figure out what went wrong burns through me.
Hopefully she’ll be comfortable enough to open to me again.
I’m not sure what I did to cause the chasm between us, but I want to fix it.
“You’d be surprised at just how much changes.
” She turns toward me, clearly not believing my words.
“Okay, so some things don’t change. This road specifically.
But so much has. There are more people moving to our little town and I don’t know how much longer we’ll be able to say we are a small town.
But everyone still looks out for each other. ”
She nods in agreement. Though I don’t know which part she seems to be okay with. I’ll probably never really know because she freezes me out every time I try to make headway with her.
“How far away is your house?” She’s not subtle in her subject change.
“We’re almost there. It normally wouldn’t take this long, but…there’s ice everywhere.”
I wave my arm toward the windshield as if she can’t see the roads and fields blanketed.
“I do hope we aren’t putting you in a tough spot. We could have waited it out at home.”
“You’re fine. Besides, I’m sure one of my siblings would have shown up at some point just to annoy me. Piper has a really bad habit of that.”
“Hmm.” She doesn’t say anything else. What in the hell is she thinking. I need to know because this woman is becoming a master at doing things to get under my skin. And I’m supposed to be in a confined space with her for a couple of days.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing.” She shakes her head. “I’m just surprised all of you are still as close as you’ve always been. I mean, y’all live on the same property. That has to be annoying.”
“More than you can imagine.” I pull into the drive for Starlit Fields and keep going past the house to my piece of land.
“But Paula moved to a house in town years ago. And she doesn’t really have anything to do with the winery.
She helps from time to time, but she’s busy working at the flower shop. ”
“Wow.” Callie shakes her head as I pull up to my driveway. Almost there. Normally this drive would take a few minutes, five max, but I can feel the tires slip on the ice. “I never thought any of you would leave the family business.”
“Dad told her to do what’s best for her, and she is.
” I don’t mention the part where she had to fight to get what she wanted.
Or, my big sister going toe to toe with Pierce.
So far only my sisters have stood up to him.
Maybe I’ll be the next sibling. It’s easier to avoid him for now, though.
I don’t want any unnecessary drama in my life.
Callie doesn’t say anything else, but I can see her staring at my house. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad.
“We’re here.”
“Finally.” Alexandra calls from the backseat. I wonder if she heard the entire conversation because the headphones are still over her ears.
“Let me show y’all inside and I’ll come back to get your luggage.” Spending this much time with Callie on my own is awkward. How the hell am I going to spend the next couple of days with her?