Sophia went over and scooped Lily up in her arms. “Oh, it’s nothing to worry about, sweetheart. Mommy just got some good news and G-pop was excited.” She pressed a kiss on Lily’s cheek.
“Did you win the lottery?” Lily asked, her expression serious.
Skip and Sophia chuckled.
“I guess so, in a way,” Sophia answered. “Mommy has a wonderful opportunity to work with a great lady she really admires.”
“Oooh,” Lily said. “I like that.”
“I like it too,” Sophia said, pulling Lily close to her chest for a hug.
This job working for Yukon Cider could be life-changing. She didn’t want to assume that she had the position until she met with Hattie, but it sounded like she was being offered the job. At Yukon Cider, one of the most prestigious companies in Alaska.
Things were definitely looking up.
CHAPTER FOUR
Caleb walked around the following day with thoughts of Sophia on his mind. He was wracking his brain trying to come up with a perfect way to get the Leica camera back to her. He couldn’t stop thinking about the expression on her face as she had held the camera. It had brought her such joy, and he wanted to see that beautiful look on her face again.
In the meanwhile, he, along with his brothers, was going to be spending some quality time with their mother. She would be in town for a few more days, which would give them all time to catch up on things before she headed back to Arizona.
Daisy looked around the dining room, her gaze intense as it swept across the room. “It’s so interesting how nothing has really changed, yet at the same time everything feels different.”
“You’ve been gone a long time,” Hattie said with a nod. Caleb wasn’t sure as to Hattie’s feelings about Daisy being back, even though she had engineered her surprise return. Back in the day they had been great friends, bonded by theirshared love of Red. By all accounts, Daisy had gotten along well with her mother-in-law, but things had changed after Daisy’s departure from Moose Falls. He suspected that his grandmother felt some kind of way about their mother never bringing them back to Alaska.
As they sat down over breakfast, none of them could ignore the strange dynamic humming and pulsing in the air around them. Daisy and Red Stone hadn’t been together in the same space for decades. Once upon a time they had been deliriously in love, yet their fractured marriage had resulted in Daisy’s rapid departure from Moose Falls and a divorce.
“I still can’t believe you’re here,” Landon said, sounding emotional.
For once Caleb couldn’t blame him. As the youngest brother, Landon was the one who always wore his heart on his sleeve. Caleb and Xavier harbored the same emotions, but they weren’t as effusive in expressing themselves. It was all the more impressive that Xavier had been able to open himself up to finding love with True. As much as he wanted to believe it was possible for him as well, his romantic past hung over him like a dark shadow. Not only had he been betrayed, but he had been put on blast by the media and mislabeled as a cheat and a liar. Being kicked when he had been at the lowest point in his life still stung.
It was no small wonder he felt disillusioned by the notion of love. He wasn’t going to let it stop him from doing what he did best—attracting women. Love was just off the table now. Caleb wasn’t ever going to be played for a fool again. He would settle for a fling, something light and flirty.
Sophia’s face flitted through his mind. There was nothing about this particular woman that fit that particular bill. She was the type of woman who would seep into his bloodstream. No, it was best to steer clear of her.
His mother grinned at him from across the table, yanking him out of his thoughts. “I had to come. I was having withdrawal symptoms from not seeing my boys.”
He exchanged a look with his brothers. Forever and always, they would continue to be boys in Daisy’s eyes. It was a running joke among them. For quite some time now they had all been men.
“Anything you want to do or see while you’re here?” Xavier asked.
“To be honest, I’d love to see True’s tavern,” Daisy said. “After all, it’s where you met the love of your life.”
“And nearly had my lips burned off by ghost pepper wings,” Xavier muttered.
“Ouch,” Red said, wincing. “Sounds like a painful meet cute.”
“A small price to pay for meeting True,” Caleb said, giving Xavier a nod of approval. Although it was hard for him to accept that his big brother was getting married and settling down in Moose Falls, he knew True was Xavier’s other half. She was a good woman who loved and cherished his brother. After all Xavier had been through with his ex-fiancée, Heather, he deserved a happily-ever-after. Caleb knew that a part of him worried that the closeness he’d always shared with his brothers would evaporate. He fretted that Xavier’s priorities would shift away from him and Landon.
Maybe, if he was being honest, he was a little envious as well. He had dreamed of a blissful happy ending with Abby, but it had blown up in his face. He had put himself out there and been vulnerable, only to be met with betrayal and disillusionment. No one had really understood his heartbreak other than his brothers and mother. Everyone else had believed that he was playing a role on the reality show and that he had been unable to keep his pants zipped up. Thetruth was he’d fallen in love with Abby. Yet he’d been given the moniker the Love Rat. Ugh. If he lived to be a hundred, folks would still be calling him by that awful nickname. No wonder he couldn’t land an acting gig to save his life.
Xavier grinned at him. “I would eat a bucket of those wings just to meet her for the first time all over again.” Everyone at the table reacted to his comment by letting out a chorus ofawws.
“Nice,” Landon said. “Look at you showing a mushy side. I knew it was in there somewhere.”
“That’s my sweet X man,” Daisy said, tearing up as she looked at her son. “What a blessing to see you so in love and on the cusp of settling down.” She bit back a sob. “True is such a lovely young woman. I can see how much she loves and adores you.”
“Aww. Don’t cry,” Xavier pleaded. “I’ve found my soulmate.”
