My mouth fell open. “What the heck is going on?”
Callum turned toward me, completely unbothered by my shock as that same infuriating smile ghosted across his face. “What does it look like? Your car’s going to the shop. It should be good as new by the time we’re back from Chico.”
I blinked at him, trying to piece together how he’d pulled all this off without me even knowing about. “You… you arranged this? When?”
“Yesterday.” He shrugged, like calling in a tow and reserving a luxury van were as about as big a deal as ordering pizza. “I told you not to worry, didn’t I?”
My brain scrambled for a comeback. I wanted to tell him that he was overstepping. That I didn’t need him swooping in with all his confidence, money, and charm like he was saving some damsel in distress.
That was the story I’d been telling myself for at least the past year—that I didn’t need anyone.
But the truth was, standing here in the early morning sunshine with Brody bouncing on his toes, thrilled by the van, and the tow truck already hauling my car down the street, I felt something I hadn’t really felt in a long time—relief.
Real, bone-deep relief.
“You can’t just—” I started again, but my protest lacked any real fire and I knew it, so I just stopped talking.
Callum’s smirk deepened. He stepped closer to me, lowering his voice like he was sharing a secret as those sparkling blue eyes locked on mine. When he looked at me like that, he made me feel like the only girl in the world, and as much as it slayed me to admit it, I really liked it.
“I can, Maisie. More importantly, I did, so go grab your coffee because we’re leaving in ten.”
I opened my mouth, ready to argue, but Brody shouted from the passenger side of the van, “Mom, this thing has reclining seats!”
He was grinning from ear to ear, and just like that, any protest I might’ve cooked up fizzed out and died before it had even reached my brain. I shot Callum one last glare, but my pulse betrayed me, fluttering with both annoyance and something else.
Something I absolutely refused to name—even to myself.Relief. That was all it is.At least, that’s what I’m going to keep telling myself.
I tugged my jacket tighter around me, still trying to process the fact that a fancy van was parked in my driveway. Brody was buzzing with excitement, zipping in and out of the van like he’d just discovered Disneyland on wheels.
After I went to grab two thermoses of coffee, I cleared my throat and handed one over to Callum. “Let me at least write a check for half the rent on this thing. It couldn’t have been cheap.”
He frowned. “Rent?”
“Yes. Rent.” I gestured at the van. “Unless you stole it from a rock band who happens to be in town.”
His mouth quirked into that smirk again, and it made my blood heat even if I also really just wanted to shove him. “I don’t rent anything. Ever. I certainly didn’t rent this.”
It took me a second to process that he was completely serious. “So what, then? Youboughtit? Or is there really a rock band in town who is going to wake up to find out that they’ve misplaced one of their vans?”
“No rock bands were harmed in the making of this road trip,” he said solemnly, then winked. “I bought it, Maisie. Jeez. Why would I steal it?”
He said it so casually, like he really thought it should’ve been obvious. Like he just acquired luxury vans as lightly as I bought groceries. “It makes more sense than throwing money away on a rental every time I need one.”
Of course, it made sense to him. He was a billionaire. He didn’t think in terms of saving pennies, stretching paychecks, or deciding whether to buy Brody new skates this month or push it another few weeks.
To him, this was nothing. “Just how often have you needed a van?”
He smiled. “Not so often, actually. Otherwise, this one wouldn’t have been brand new, but hey. I’m about to be a stepdad, right? This isn’t going to be the only away game and I don’t plan on missing any if I can help it.”
I swallowed hard, fighting the emotion rising like a sob in my throat. Brody, thankfully, hadn’t heard what Callum had said and was completely unaware that anything had happened at all. He bounded out of the van with his cheeks flushed and his eyes bright.
“Mom! There’s cupholders everywhere in this thing. That means we can drink in it! Can we keep it?”
Callum ruffled his hair, grinning like the cat who had gotten the cream. “We are keeping it, buddy. This is going to be the first road trip of many we’ll do with it.”
When we got to the rink, the van became the star of the show. Brody’s teammates crowded around it, jostling and shoving to see inside. Voices overlapped, everyone calling dibs on seats, practically begging to ride with Callum.
I stood away from the hullabaloo, absolutely astounded as I watched the scene unfolding in front of me. Callum thrived on it, clearly feeding off the boys’ energy and using it to rile them up like he’d been doing this for years.
