Chapter 25
twenty-five
. . .
piper
Three days. That’s how long it’s been since I’ve talked to anyone in my family other than Peter.
I never thought he’d be one to have my back the way he has the past few days.
Him being in my corner is much appreciated, even if he didn’t vouch for me when I initially presented the marketing plan. There’s always room for growth.
There’s a knock at my door and I pause the music I have blasting through the living room while I stress clean.
I don’t bother looking as I open it. “Peter, I’m fine. I don’t need any more food.”
Except he’s not the person on my porch. It’s my sister. “Well, I guess you’re shit out of luck because I’m here with food.”
Opening the door wider, I motion her to come inside. “At this rate, I’m going to be waddling into work when I go back.”
It’s mostly the paperwork I’ll need to get done. Despite all the drama surrounding the social media blasts, I’m still doing them. They are what is driving business and there’s no reason it should stop. If anything, I’m doing it to rub it in Pierce’s face.
“You weren’t answering my texts, or calls. I needed to come by and do a proof of life check. And to make sure you weren’t lying on the couch drowning your sorrows in sangria.”
“Please, as if I would allow myself to do that.”
Paula lifts an eyebrow. “Yes, you would, you have a habit of being dramatic when it benefits you.”
She’s not wrong. It’s the only way I could get my way on some things when I was younger because nobody would listen to me. I did storm off during the cookout, so maybe she has a point.
“What did you bring to eat?” I try to pull the bag from her hands and she shoos me away.
I’m actually glad she’s here. She hasn’t always gotten along with Pierce so she won’t judge me too harshly on anything I want to vent about. But…she’s also the only sibling in a relationship and I need to pick her brain.
“Wings. Eric also said to stop moping and come see him at the bar.” She shakes her head in exasperation. The feeling is mutual. As one of the best bartenders Out of the Ashes has, he’s always in everyone’s business. It’s kind of annoying, actually.
“How does he know I’m moping?”
“I’m not sure. He mentioned something about Beau being sad last night, and assumed since you weren’t with him, you were, too.”
“That man is way too perceptive.” I sit on the couch and lower the music. “Have you talked to Beau?”
She nods before bringing the boxes with the food to the living room. I have a perfectly good kitchen table, but eating on the couch is much more comfortable.
“He’s definitely not happy right now. And, he’s pissed at himself for not saying anything sooner.”
I grab a wing and dip it into ranch. He’s not the only one who’s miserable. I haven’t slept well since the cookout. I keep reaching for my phone to reply to his texts, but decide not to every single time.
“We’ve never gone this long without talking. Even when we go on our business building trips, we keep in touch.”
“Y’all need to fix this. I don’t know how to handle the two of you.
” I open my mouth, but she raises her hand to stop me.
“I’m not saying you have to forgive him right this second.
But give him a chance to tell his side of the story.
You can’t rely on a snippet of conversation you overheard. You may not know all the details.”
Of course she’s defending Beau. But it makes me wonder what I don’t know.
It’s bad enough he kept things a secret, but maybe it was for a good reason.
He probably thought he was protecting me from something.
It’s the same thing he used to do when we were in high school and he was worried I would hear whatever rumors the popular crowd was spreading.
“Do I need to keep that same energy for Pierce?”
“Hell no.” She laughs. “He shouldn’t have shot down your idea to begin with. All the work you and Beau have done has boosted the winery. He needs to listen to the younger siblings. You have a pulse on what people your age want.”
I never thought about it like that. There are tons of things people in town want to do, but they have to drive to the closest city to do it.
Which is making my brain turn with more ideas.
We can bring some of those things to our area.
I need to write these things down before I forget them. Well, put them in my phone.
“What are you doing?” Paula asks as I look for my phone.
“You spurred some ideas.” I find it stuck between the couch cushions. My fingers fly across the screen as I think of events we could have at the winery. “And some of them may be great to have you on board.”
“No, no, no.” She waves her hands in front of her. “You’re not completely roping me back into the winery.”
“No, nothing like that.” I shake my head and keep typing. “Similar to that party you did, but on a smaller scale. I’m thinking craft nights, and shop and sips. Things to bring the community together while also supporting small business.”
“Oh, that I can get down with. We could also do a floral arranging night.”
Yes, she’s getting on the same wavelength as me. “I love it. Then it’s promoting Starlit and Whoopsie Daisy.”
“These are the ideas Pierce needs to be listening to.” Paula bumps into me with her shoulder. “The winery can’t go wrong with you leading the marketing.” She takes a bite of her salad. “By the way, how did you avoid Pierce seeing the posts you were doing?”
“I blocked him.”
“Smart.” She taps her finger to her temple.
It was the only way I could ensure he wouldn’t figure out what I was doing. Even though apparently, he already knew. I can’t believe I let them play me like that. I can usually spot the bullshit from a mile away. It’s the whole reason all of my dates usually end before they even begin.
“So, you think I should give Beau a chance to explain himself?” I’ve never been unsure of anything. Beau has also never lied to me. This feels worse than hearing Dad is retiring now and some of the siblings knowing about it.
As bad as it sounds, I expected that. There are always things being hidden within our family despite how open we are with each other. Somehow knowing something the others don’t feels like having the upper hand. When there are six of us, it’s kind of the norm.
She rolls her eyes. “I swear sometimes you can be so dense.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I know I should be offended, but she has a point. I’m just as stubborn as Pierce once I’ve made my mind up about something. I haven’t, though…not yet.
“It means you need to talk to him. He’s your best friend, Piper. The one person you turn to for everything. Are you willing to throw away over a decade of friendship without letting him say his piece?”
Am I? The thought of never speaking to him again sends a pang of pain through my entire body.
He is my calm through the madness of dealing with my siblings.
The person I have more fun with than anyone I’ve ever known.
Beau has always had my back whether or not I was in the right.
He stands by me through everything. But he lied to me… for weeks.
“I don’t know if I can continue dating him, though. Not if he’s going to keep things from me.”
Paula wraps an arm around my shoulder, my food is all but forgotten. It’s fine. I wasn’t that hungry anyway. Not with the way Peter has been bringing all of my favorite foods the past couple of days. I didn’t even realize he knew what I liked. He’s more perceptive than I thought.
“Baby sister, that’s something you’ll have to figure out for yourself.” One last squeeze. “If I were you, I wouldn’t make any decisions until I knew the whole story. There could be a valid reason for him not saying anything.”
“I guess.”
“Well, I have to get back to work.” She picks up her food box and puts it back in the bag. Then she grabs mine and takes it to the kitchen, placing it in the fridge.
“Can I go with you?” God, I sound like a child. Now that I’ve had her here with me, I don’t want her to leave.
“Um, no. But give me just a second.” She pulls her phone out of her pocket and heads toward the hallway. I’m guessing she wants a little privacy for whatever call she’s about to make.
To keep myself occupied, I check over the ideas I put in my phone moments ago. These are solid, and I swear if Pierce doesn’t listen to me, I may hit him. My methods have proved to be profitable. This will only increase it.
“Good news,” Paula says as she comes back into the living room. “The girls gave me the rest of the day off. So, I’m all yours.” She veers off to the kitchen and grabs a bottle of wine.
“Weren’t you just making sure I wasn’t day drinking?” I shake my head as she comes back with two glasses and the bottle. “And why are you drinking? The other day you said you couldn’t. Now you need to spill the beans since we’re done with boy talk.”
“Are you sure we’re done? I’m sure there’s more we could say.”
“Yes, I’m sure. Now tell me what’s going on.”
She pours the wine into the glasses and hands me one before scooting into the corner of the couch. “I thought I might have been pregnant.”
“Oh my gosh. Are you serious?” I nod toward the glass in her hand. “I’m guessing you’re not.”
“No, I’m not. I’ve just been stressed with learning the flower arrangements and living with someone that my period was later than normal.”
“Are you disappointed?” Even though she’s been putting on a happy face for me, she seems sad.
“Yes? No?” She throws a hand up in the air.
“I don’t know. We aren’t actively trying.
But a part of me wondered how it would feel to start a family.
At the same time, he’s busy with Crooked Halo, and business at the shop is booming.
Having a kid right now would not be a good idea.
Plus, we really haven’t been together long. ”
“That’s valid.” I reach over and place my hand on her leg. “It’ll happen when it’s time. For now, enjoy the time the two of you have. Who knows, maybe you’ll have a whole bunch of kids to match Mom and Dad.”
“Oh, hell no.” She takes a big gulp of her wine. “There’s no way I’m having that many kids. I love you all, but I don’t have the patience for that. Can you imagine me trying to keep six kids in line?” She shakes her head and laughs. “I honestly don’t know how Mom did it.”
“She’s a saint. And Dad was a lot of help.”
“You’re right. It’s still a hard pass for me.” She grabs the remote off the coffee table and finds a streaming service. “Let’s watch a movie. It’s been forever since we’ve hung out like this without everyone else.”
She’s right. We haven’t. “Pick whatever you want.”
Spending time with Paula and Peter on their own has been refreshing.
I’m used to hanging out with Parker because we’re closer in age.
Even if things work out with me and Beau, I’m making a vow right now to spend one on one time with each of my siblings.
Even Pierce. Maybe we’ll all get to understand each other better.
Now I only need to decide if I’m going to reach out to Beau, or wait for him to come see me and talk to me in person.