“It’s quite something, isn’t it?” Gage asked, stepping up beside me with a duffel slung over one shoulder and a wide grin on his lips.
I laughed and slowly turned to face him, my eyebrows arching. “The van or Callum?”
“Both.” His grin softened. “I’ve always wondered why he balked at the idea of settling down. He’d make a great dad. At least this is proof that I was right. As always.”
He gave me a friendly wink, but my throat closed around the words I couldn’t say. The guilt crept in, cold and heavy as it lodged itself under my ribs. I wanted to cave into myself, preferably disappear before anyone could see the truth written all over my face.
“Maisie!” Callum’s voice cut across the noise, warm and sure. He was standing by the driver’s door, one hand lifted in a wave and his smile aimed right at me. “Let’s go! We’re burning daylight.”
My heart skipped. Despite the weight in my chest, my feet carried me toward him. I climbed into the passenger seat of the van, buckled up, and made sure all the boys had done the same.Then we were off, the van leading the convoy out of the parking lot.
Callum was so confident behind the wheel despite the amount of kids he was driving. My nerves would’ve been shot, but he tossed one-liners over his shoulder that had the boys howling with laughter. He also didn’t just drive. Weirdly, it was like he was the commander of the van, shifting seamlessly into team dad mode, reminding them to hydrate and threatening that whoever left their gear behind would have to jog to Chico.
I sneaked a glance at my son, not wanting to make it obvious that I was checking on him. Brody sat near the front and he was practically glowing. He usually kept his excitement to himself, masking it with a sarcastic jab or an eye roll when we were in public, but not today.
Today, he was beaming like the sun, soaking in every second of the trip.
Maybe telling him that we’re getting married won’t be catastrophic. Maybe when the truth comes out that Callum and I are about to become more than just friends—in a business sense—Brody won’t feel betrayed. Maybe he’ll even be happy.
Feeling a little more confident about everything, I shoved the guilt away and did my best to be in the moment. Watching Callum and Brody like this was making memories I knew I would want to hold on to. But when we pulled up to the hotel in Chico, the fun came to an abrupt end.
By the time we’d offloaded all the boys and their things, making sure they were safely inside the hotel and comfortable in the waiting area, Gage was at the front desk, his jaw set tight as he listened to the clerk.
“I’m sorry, sir, but again, there’s nothing I can do,” the woman explained. “There’s a massive Halloween festival in town and a few of the rooms have been double-booked.”
“That’s not a few,” he argued. “Half the block of rooms I reserved weeks ago are no longer available. That’s what you’re saying. How is this even possible?”
Parents gathered in the lobby, muttering with their phones out while frantically searching for other hotels within driving distance, but there was nothing. A mom I hadn’t met yet grimaced as she got off a call.
“Everything within thirty miles was packed,” she said. “I had a friend in the travel industry look into it, but he said the festival is really popular and the places get snapped up months in advance.”
Gage groaned, but with no other choice, people began pairing up and devising a plan. The clerk chimed in when she overheard them talking about splitting rooms. “We have extra beds and cots. I can have them sent to the rooms of the guests who are willing to share.”
“We’re way beyond the realm ofwilling,” Gage ground out but nodded. “Fine, do it.”
He organized the boys into some of the bigger rooms that would be turned into dormitory style spaces with all the extra beds. Brody got put in with a group of his teammates, and Gage paired up with one of the dads. Which left me standing next to Callum.
“Well, I guess we could double up,” Callum said, and my heart stuttered, but then he turned to the clerk. “Actually, if you can point me to a hotel that might be for sale. Even if the owners aren’t interested in selling, I’ll just?—”
“Callum.” I caught his arm before he could bulldoze the situation. His shirt was warm under my palm, his arm so solid that I nearly started drooling, but I glanced up into those ice blue eyes instead, ready to beg if I had to. “You’ve already done enough buying that van and organizing the tow truck. Seriously, it’s fine. We can share a room. It’s not a problem, right?”
He blinked a few times, but then the corner of his mouth slowly started rising into a wicked smirk. “Right. Of course, we can share. It’s not a problem at all.”
My stomach flipped.
Suddenly, I wasn’t sure if I was more nervous about Brody’s game tomorrow or about what sharing a room with Callum might mean, but either way, I was in it now. There was no going back, and as our gazes held, I realized that this might not be the worst thing that had ever happened.
At least it means that I’ll get to find out if he snores before I marry him, right? Because that’s all we’re going to be doing in that room tonight. Sleeping. Snoring. There is just absolutely no way I’m letting this turn into something else. No matter how much I might want it to.
CHAPTER 19
CALLUM
What I would’ve done with a hotel in Chico, I didn’t know, but if Maisie hadn’t stopped me, I really would’ve tried to buy one just to ensure her comfort. It was a strange thing, actually liking someone.
Imagine that, caring enough to want to buy a hotel just so she wouldn’t be forced to share a room with me. A week before we’re getting married, no less.
I shook my head at myself, but Gage shoved a room key into my hand and jerked his head toward the door. “We’ve got thirty minutes max before these kids start eating each other alive. Let’s go grab some food.”
