Chapter 77
Seventy-Seven
SEBA
Sweat. Creamy petals. Sticky cotton candy fingers. Sunburnt cheeks. If I could, I’d bottle today up in a jar like the fireflies I caught as a kid behind our old trailer.
“Need. AC.” Cade pants, blowing past me to the passenger side of my truck. A wave of heat gusts out when he rips the door open. He stumbles back. “UGH! It’s a fucking oven!”
Andrea sucks on the dregs of her slushie. “Told you.”
He gives her the middle finger.
She snickers, veering toward her bike. I catch her arm.
“Ride with us.”
“I’m not leaving Lillith out here all night.”
“We’ll swing by here for her on the way back.”
Dark brows crash together. She tilts her head. “What are you up to?”
“You’ll have to come with me to find out.”
Her smile. I’ll bottle it up, too.
“Smooth talker,” she mutters, circling to the passenger side, the two of them arguing over who gets the front seat this time. (Andrea ends up on his lap.) Thankfully, we’re right down the road from our destination. I climb behind the wheel and rub the center of my chest.
I’ve never had big dreams. That’s not to say that I don’t have them. They’re just… simpler. Quieter.
A job I like.
A home I own.
A family.
I’m not fulfilled by titles or status. I don’t need a hotshot career or to travel the world. I crave the stability of roots. The peace of providing. The comfort of routine. Give me slow mornings and rainy nights in. More than anything, I ache to share it all with the people that matter.
Andrea leans forward as we pass rows of orange trees.
I drum my fingers on the dash to hide my jitters.
“Forget something at work?” Cade asks.
“Something like that.”
The setting sun’s rays pierce through leaves and fruit, scattering light across our path. A minute later, we’re parking in front of the grove’s humble office.
“Come on.”
“Can’t we just wait in the car? It’s too hot,” Cade whines.
Andrea slaps his thigh. “Out, out.”
He groans, waiting for her to slide off before clamoring out, bitching the whole way. Even my smile is shaky as I lead them inside.
“Oh, thank fuck,” Cade sighs as he pauses under the oscillating fan hung in the corner, while Andrea’s curious gaze travels around the simple interior.
Wood paneled walls, linen curtains framing the window overlooking rows of orange trees, a modest desk and a few filing cabinets that haven’t been opened in decades.
“Hello there.”
They whip around as Carl shuffles out of the back kitchenette, dusting his palms on his dirt-stained jeans.
I clear my throat. “Carl, this is my boyfriend, Cade, and my girlfriend Andrea.”
Andrea shakes Carl’s hand first, flashing a conspiratorial grin. “You’ll have to give me the secrets to bossing this stubborn blockhead around. He’s always pushing back.”
“That’s not true,” I balk.
She raises her brows as if I just proved her point.
Carl’s raspy laugh fills the room. He claps my shoulder and squeezes affectionately. “He’s a good kid. Strong-willed, but a good kid. The grove is in good hands.”
Her eyes dart between us.
“Carl wanted to retire so… I made him an offer.”
She blinks. “You bought the grove?”
My face is on fire. The hornets have escaped their nest. They’ve gone rogue, stinging and buzzing in my bloodstream. Maybe it’s too soon. Maybe I should’ve waited…
Then Cade smiles. His real smile. And all of the tension in me dissipates.
He launches at me with a shriek. “What the fuck, Sebastian! This is huge! How did you hide this?” Before I can answer, he steamrolls on. “Are we moving here? Can we? Please? The three of us?”
“Yes,” I choke. “Yes, we can— we are moving here.”
Andrea squeezes into our embrace and kisses my jaw. “Our orange grove,” she whispers. I nod. Through tears, she smiles. “Do I even wanna know how much debt you’re in now?”
“Nope.”
She throws her head back on a laugh. “The price of peace is steep.”
“You’re telling me,” I chuckle.
Cade squirms like a puppy with too much energy. “I’m so fucking ready. We’re gonna have our own place.” His hands grip my waist as he pulls back to look in my eyes. “Tell me I’m not making this up.”
I kiss his forehead. “You’re not making this up.”
Another shriek and he’s throwing Andrea over his shoulder, her legs kicking as he spins in delirious circles.
“I’m happy for you, kid,” Carl murmurs. “Your parents better not be giving you three any trouble.”
I shrug. “Declan was a bit stunned at first but he’s warming up to it. He’s not as close-minded as Mom.”
The old man sighs and shakes his head. “You can’t let them get to you. I know better than anyone, blood don’t mean shit. These two? They’re the ones that matter. You ain’t need to worry about anyone else.”
“I know,” I murmur. And I mean it.
Andrea and Cade are my world.
They’re all I need.