The tone of her voice means she’s not going to. I can’t help but wonder when she last went out and enjoyed herself. Not that I can judge. My idea of a good time is hanging out at home playing video games or working at the winery. Very rarely do I venture outside of that routine. Except…last night. Maybe I should be glad I went out. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known Callie moved in practically next door until Miles deemed it important enough to mention. Not that it matters.
“Thanks, Eric.” I give him a small wave. “I’ll come by for lunch this week.”
“I’m holding you to that.” He lifts his hand as he turns to his car. Within seconds he’s backing out and on his way.
“He’s not as scary as you made him seem.” Callie frowns at me and carries her bag inside.
That’s not even what I said. He’s nosy, not scary. I honestly don’t know if he has a mean bone in his body. He’s more like a golden retriever that likes to know everyone’s business. Maybe that’s how I should have described him to her.
“Just wait until he gets all in your business.” I mutter under my breath.
“Which is why I don’t plan on going to the bar. Not for a long while.”
What the hell? I could barely hear myself.
“How did you know what I said?”
She taps her finger against the side of her head. “Mom ears. We hear everything.”
Huh, I always thought that was a myth. It must be some superpower people get when they have kids. “You realize that’s creepy, right?”
“Alexandra thinks the same thing.” She shrugs and motions for me to put the bags on the coffee table in the living room. “I’ll grab the other two if you want to start pulling things out of the bags.”
“Sure.” I watch her leave the room and do as she requested. She already has to parent one person, I don’t need to give her another one.
Callie being back is odd. We’ve gone so many years without her here and now she shows up. Based on our interactions so far, we’re going back to the same relationship we had when we were kids. This whole thing is about to get interesting.
Six
Callie
Asheville seems the same as it did when I lived here all those years ago. It does seem like the community has gotten younger. Or maybe I’m at an age now where I fit in with the older folks who ran the town when I was a kid.
The one thing that hasn’t changed is the willingness of the community to offer support. They welcomed me back with open arms. Job offers have been rolling in. I’m not even sure if some of the positions exist, but it’s the thought that counts. I will need to find something soon. My savings account will only get us so far.
“Lexi, are you ready?”
It’s her first day at Asheville High School, and she’s in for a major change. Even with population growth for the town, it’s still much smaller than what she’s used to. I only hope she doesn’t hate me for moving her here. She may be old enough to understand the reason, but she won’t hear it from me. I refuse to talk badly about her dad, and his side of the family, no matter how horrible they are.
“Almost.” She yells from her room.
It’s probably a good thing I’m taking her to school. At least, until I see what kind of job I find. She’ll never be able to get up early enough to take the bus. She likes her sleep way too much. Things will be easier once she gets her license. Which reminds me, I need to see about enrolling her in a driving school. I open up my phone and add it to the ever-growing to-do list.
“You’re going to be late.” It’s a gentle reminder, but I’m sure I’ll get some type of mood with her response.
She walks from the hallway with her backpack hanging over her shoulder. “Sorry, I couldn’t find my jeans and my hair is doing weird things. Can I just not go and try again tomorrow?”
The pleading in her eyes is almost laughable. It’s even funnier she thinks I’ll let that fly. “Nice try, kid. Let’s go.”
“Fine,” she grumbles and follows me out the front door. “Hold on.”
She runs back to her room and I continue on my way. I should have gotten the car started earlier, but I didn’t want to waste gas.
As I turn on the car, I watch Alexandra close the door and press the button to lock it. I’m not entirely sure that’s needed out here. We lived in town growing up and we never locked the doors. She grew up in more heavily populated area and it’s a habit at this point.
She runs to the car, opens the door and jumps into the passenger seat. “It’s freezing out here.”
“That’s typically what happens in Winter. What did you forget?”
