"It's okay," Callie told him."I know you're here.It's not like you're going to sneak up on us or anything."
Reaves gave her a good-natured shrug."I feel bad that I'm playing third wheel again.The least I can do is give you a warning in case I'm intruding on a private moment."
"You're fine," Callie told him as he leaned in to kiss her cheek.
"What do you say, then, guys?Want to go and pick up these glazes?"She glanced back at the plane."They're not going to be too heavy for you to fly back with, are they?"
Reaves shot Ollie a worried look."How much do they weigh?"
"I'm not really sure," she told them."I can lift them by myself, so they can't weigh all that much, but there are twelve of them."
Ollie silently thanked his friend when Reaves said, "We'll have to see, then.But weight and balance is important in small aircraft like this, so maybe we'll have to leave a couple behind."
Callie looked from him to Ollie and back again — and then burst out laughing."Oh my goodness, you two really are a team, aren't you?"
"What?"Reaves tried to look innocent.
Ollie grasped his shoulder with a smile."We are, and sometimes we can get away with it, but I don't think there's any fooling Callie."
As the words came out, his heart sank again.Reaves's expression didn't give anything away, but it was obvious that he could see the irony too.
~ ~ ~
Callie enjoyed the drive back to the cottage.It was nice to hear the two of them remarking how beautiful it was here.Even though she wasn't from the area, she still felt a sense of pride that they could see and appreciate just how beautiful this place was — even though they came from Napa.And it was always fun to listen to their banter.It was obvious that they'd been friends forever, and she kind of envied them that.
She had a lot of friends back home, friends she'd grown up with, and of course Becca was out here.She promised herself that once Becca was home from her honeymoon, she'd make more of an effort to see and spend time with her.It wasn't that she hadn't wanted to before — she'd just had that hang-up about the people in Napa.She could see now that it was a silly hang-up.Becca had been right all along.Just because they had money and big houses — she smiled to herself — and planes.It didn't mean they were any different, and it certainly didn't mean that they were bad people.
As she turned off the highway onto the road that led to the cottage, she gripped the steering wheel a little tighter.Chatting with the guys, she'd managed to distract herself from the fact that she was hiding Alara and Zia on the property.She let out a short laugh.It wasn't as though she was harboring a fugitive!
Ollie gave her a puzzled smile."Are you laughing at us over there?"
She shook her head rapidly."No, I'm laughing at myself.It's not a problem.Have you two eaten?I was thinking we could maybe load up the glazes and then go down to the coffee shop in town.They make great sandwiches.We could sit in there to eat, or if you like, we could get sandwiches to go and drive down to the beach."She gave him a sassy smile."I'm not sure how often you valley dwellers get to see the ocean.It might feel like a mini vacation to you."
Ollie narrowed his eyes at her and smiled through pursed lips.But Reaves laughed and said, "That sounds like a good idea to me.I don't remember the last time I went to the beach, and I love it."She met his gaze in the rearview mirror when he said, "Zia loves the ocean.She talks about all these magical sea creatures.I was hoping—" He cut himself off."Shit, listen to me.Sorry, guys."
"Don't apologize," Callie told him."I know exactly how you feel.Zia's a magical little creature herself."
The cab of the truck fell silent after that.Callie felt guilty as hell for what she was hiding.And Reaves was no doubt sad over what he was missing.
She was grateful when Ollie took over, saying, "And I've told you before, you have to keep hoping.You don't need to give up."
She wanted to tell Reaves herself that there might be more hope closer to hand than he realized, but of course she couldn't.
When she turned into her driveway, she was relieved that it was starting to rain — no chance of the sun glinting off the camper now.
Ollie turned to her and grinned when Reaves exclaimed, "Damn, is this your place, Callie?"
"It's awesome, isn't it?"Ollie agreed.
She shrugged."I know it's nothing like what you guys are used to."
Ollie poked her arm and said, "And I'll tell you again— that's the whole point."
She opened her door and climbed out to hide just how pleased she was, how much his words meant to her.As tempted as she was to make a run for the cabin so that they could collect the glazes and get out of here as soon as possible, she headed for the cottage instead.Yeah, she wanted to see Ollie's face again when he walked inside — it had warmed her heart, the way he'd looked around last time he was here — but she wanted to show it off to Reaves, too.There was nothing wrong with that.
"This place is amazing," Reaves exclaimed as soon as he walked through the door."I see what you mean."
Callie shot Ollie a puzzled look, and he shrugged happily."I told Reaves how much I loved your place."He met her gaze and held it."That it's so cool because it has your fingerprints all over it."
