“While you two were in the spa. We popped over to his apartment so he could grab a few things. His bag is in the car,” Philly answered.
The sisters looked at Lovell. He had nothing to say so shrugged.
“And you decided this without asking her?” Callie said.
“Harder to say no when he’s here with his bag and no car,” Philly replied.
“And yet she’s saying no,” Daphne interjected.
“Way to back someone into a corner,” Callie muttered.
Philly remained silent. A beat passed, then Daphne’s eyes narrowed on Philly. “Don’t you fucking dare,” she said. Lovell stilled; there was obviously some kind of family/old friend communication going on he wasn’t privy to.
Philly grinned, then tipped his head and flashed what Lovell could only call puppy eyes at her. “You wouldn’t want your sister to worry about you, would you? Out there, all alone.”
“Oh my god,” Callie said, looking heavenward. Lovell loved his brother, but Callie did put up with a lot.
“You did not just pull that card,” Daphne shot back.
“I did,” Philly said more gleefully than he should. Especially since Lovell would be the one suffering her wrath.
“You don’t have to do this, Daph,” Callie said. “No offense, Lovell,” she added, her eyes flickering to him before landing back on her sister. “The cabin is wired to the teeth and connected directly to HICC. It has a safe room. I’m not worried.”
But even Lovell heard the lie in her voice. Just because Daphne was protected didn’t mean Callie wouldn’t worry about her being on her own. Philly had filled him in on the cabin, everything except who owned it, and he trusted HICC had it locked down like Fort Knox. Still, there was such a thing as safety in numbers. Not always, but in this case, the cliché held true.
Daphne opened her mouth, closed it, then glared at her brother-in-law. “Did I tell you it’s a one-bedroom cabin?”
“He has an air mattress,” Philly responded. “And a sleeping bag.”
She turned to look at him. Lovell wished he could say her gaze was assessing or furious or curious or any kind of emotion, but it was completely and utterly blank.
“Daph, you don’t have to do this,” Callie repeated.
Daphne’s gaze slid back to Philly. “Fine, I’ll agree to it, so long as you put him through hell on my behalf, Cal.” She nodded to Philly.
For the first time, Philly blinked.
“Oh, you can be sure I’d do that regardless of whether you agreed,” Callie replied.
“Then we have a deal, Gabe,” Daphne said with all the warmth of a deal with the devil. “You can follow me,” she said, flickering her gaze to Lovell. “Wait, Gabe said you don’t have a car.”
“I have an electric car. It’s good in the snow, but if there’s no outlet to recharge, it’s not worth bringing. Philly told me to leave it at home.” He braced himself for an explosion. What happened was even worse.
She heaved a sigh, as if he and Philly were little more than errant children needing tending. “The valet is pulling my car up now. You better get your things.”
Since Weeks and Beeks were out of the picture, they’d agreed there was no reason Daphne shouldn’t drive her Bentley. The fender needed fixing, but the damage didn’t impact its driving.
“Go with him, Gabe,” Callie said. Philly didn’t argue, and the two hustled out of the lodge. Philly’s truck wasn’t far, but the icy air hit his lungs and froze his legs as his jeans pressed against his skin.
“Well, that went well,” Philly said, his breath fogging in the cold.
“You aren’t the one staying with Daphne,” Lovell countered. “Did you have to be so…”
“Blunt? Dictatorial? Despotic? Tyrannical? High-handed? Yes, I did. Trust me, it was easier this way. Or at least faster.”
“Again, says the man who isn’t staying in close quarters with the woman he dictated to.” They reached Philly’s truck, and he pulled the back door open, then grabbed his bags. “At least I can comfort myself knowing Callie is going to give you hell.”
Philly leaned against the driver’s door as Lovell hitched his duffel over his shoulder before grabbing the air mattress container.
