Chapter 22

22

Archer

I don't like Callie.

I don't trust her. Neither does Maddox. Reed errs on the side of caution, keeping things civil and friendly.

Callie and Dakota got off on the wrong foot more than once, and I'm not buying that hospital apology shtick.

"What the hell is she doing here?" Maddox hisses as Callie approaches us with seductive movements, like a panther on the prowl. Reed gives her a small smile and a wave. "We're not dealing with this shrew," he says to my brother and me as he turns away from her with a disgusted look on his face.

"We have to be nice," Reed mutters but keeps his smile on and his eyes affixed to Callie. "Haven't you ever heard the expression you catch more flies with honey than vinegar?"

"I'm not trying to catch anything where that woman is concerned. She's up to something," I grumble.

"We don't know that for sure," Reed shoots back.

"She's just trying to get her paws on Dakota's inheritance," I insist, prompting a whispered "Amen" from Maddox as he turns away and climbs up the ladder, choosing to ignore Callie altogether.

"Hey, guys," she says upon reaching us. "It's so good to see you under much happier circumstances. How've you all been?"

I give her a dry smirk. "We're fine. What are you doing here?"

"Gosh, you and Dakota must read each other's minds. It's uncanny," Callie quips. "My foundation is co-organizing this charity event, and I thought I'd do more than just sign a check this time around. I'd like to help."

"Why?" I ask, proceeding to untangle another yard's worth of string lights while Reed feeds the clear line up to Maddox. "It's all taken care of, as you can see. Plenty of volunteers around."

"Plenty plus one," Callie says and takes a step closer to me.

Reed chuckles. "I'm not sure there's anything left for you to do. Perhaps Dakota may need a hand setting up the bar. It might be a good opportunity for you to bond with your sister."

"Oh no, she's got it covered," she replies quickly. "I was hoping to get to know you fellas better, instead." Looking at me, she stretches her lips into a hungry, sensual smile. "You, in particular."

"I'm a boring prick, trust me," I reply. "Cole's bouncing around here somewhere. He's wearing a red shirt. See if he's got any tasks left uncovered. He might be able to find you something to do."

"What are you handsome gentlemen doing here?" Callie insists.

"What does it look like we're doing?" Maddox scoffs from above.

That gets a nervous laugh out of Reed as he tries to keep things, as he likes to put it, civil. "We're stringing up some decorative lights."

"Okay, I can help with that," Callie says and takes another step closer to me. She's so close, in fact, that her perfume fills my nostrils and makes it hard for me to breathe. "Here, let me untangle the rest of this, Archer, and you can fetch another roll."

She's pissing me off. There's an agenda here, and I know it has something to do with Dakota's inheritance. My brothers and I have been talking about it over the past couple of days quite extensively. We've yet to address the issue with Dakota, but we're hoping we'll get to do that tonight. Time is running out, and I'm determined to make sure that everything works out for our woman. We just need to make sure she's on board, too.

"Sure, Callie, if you insist," I sigh and hand over the wire, letting her do her thing.

It's going to be a long couple of hours because she seems intent on sticking around while Dakota watches us from behind the bar. The conversation is mostly casual, dragging in places. At one point, it delves into the past, piquing my interest.

"According to my mother and grandmother, when Dad left, he cut off any contact," Callie says. "No letters, no Christmas cards, nothing. He ceased to exist for us, though I insisted on having some form of contact."

"It doesn't make sense," I say.

"I gave my grandmother every letter that I wrote to him. But he never replied."

"How do you know Katherine even sent them?" I ask.

Callie gives me a startled look. "Why wouldn't she? Anyway, even though he was her son, he never spoke to her again. He cut all of us off. So, yeah, I was mad growing up to learn he'd made a new family. Of course, Dakota was never to blame for any of it, but it took me a while to understand that." She pauses and leans forward, not-so-accidentally brushing her shoulder against mine. "Be a darling and fetch another set of lights, please, Reed?" she asks my brother. "This one's got a few broken bulbs."

Reed finally notices the dark notes that I was telling him about.

The touch of her shoulder.

The looks she keeps giving me.

He nods and smiles, then proceeds to bring a box of colored LED lights to replace the broken ones on the wire. Callie smiles and starts working on them, one piece at a time, while Reed politely and discreetly pulls me aside.

"Okay, I see it now," he whispers. "We need to do something."

"Fucking finally."

As the afternoon progresses, the sports hall is transformed into a Christmas wonderland with colored lights, American-themed pom-poms, and a slew of holiday decorations on the walls.

Callie's foundation sent out some official invitations as well, and we're expecting senators and representatives from out of state, not just from California, along with plenty of members of the press. I'll give her credit—she's got the right connections and knows how to work the phone. At least she's made herself useful.

But the way she keeps hovering around us is putting us under unnecessary pressure. Once in a while, she'll stop by the bar to check up on Dakota, but she never stays for more than a minute or two. It irks me. She irks me.

As people start streaming in for the charity event, there's no room left for managing Callie's contentious and mutedly dangerous presence. Besides, she's one of the co-organizers. As much as I'd love to just kick her out, I can't. Instead, I remain content with the fact that I've gotten my brothers on board with the next stage of our relationship with Dakota. Now, we just have to convince her.

"Things are looking really good so far," Chelsea says when I stop by to check on her and the kids. Maisie is half-asleep in a beanbag chair off to the side and partially hidden by a stack of soda boxes. "There's been a steady flow of people, and they're already about to empty the first round of donation boxes before they start moving around with them again."

"That's great; it means people are giving," I say, delighted to hear things are going so well this early in the event.

Chelsea smiles enthusiastically. "And we're not talking just five- and ten-dollar bills, either. I've seen a fair share of fifties and hundreds going in there. Cole almost fainted when the principal from Chesterton Elementary shoved five hundred bucks into his donation box."

"How many boxes do we have going around?"

"Three," Chelsea replies.

"You should get a fourth and have Callie walk around with it. She's overdressed for the occasion, anyway. It will give her the opportunity to show off her flashy ensemble."

She chuckles dryly, then worriedly looks over to Dakota, who's busy serving several drinks at once. I love watching her work. She is so calm and entirely in her element working the bar. It's as if she tunes everything and everybody else out, focusing solely on the tools and the ingredients needed to work her magic. Customers watch her with interest as she muddles limes and brown sugar, shaking and stirring, delivering one colorful mocktail after another.

"Things are not looking good for Dakota," Chelsea says, letting a heavy sigh roll from her chest. "Generally speaking, that is. I understand you're aware of what's going on with the house and the inheritance."

"Yeah, we've been brought up to speed."

"Have you talked to her about it?"

"Not yet. We're hoping tonight's the night if you'd be willing to take Trevor and Maisie home with you. I'll pay. Handsomely, I might add."

She nods once. "They're spent, anyway."

Trevor is playing a handheld video game, tired from all the decorating work. At least he'll sleep like a log tonight. It's been a while since I've seen him like this—exhausted but genuinely pleased. Maybe we can get him to do more volunteering over the holidays. It might do him some good.

Maisie's eyes are about to close completely. She's so sweet in her red and gold mini-tracksuit.

"Yeah, I'll take them as long as you sort things out with Dakota," Chelsea adds.

"We have every intention of doing precisely that, provided she lets us," I say.

"She can be pigheaded sometimes, I know."

"It comes from a good place. I mean, I get it. And I can't blame her for it, either."

Chelsea curses under her breath, looking somewhere to our left. "Oh, for fuck's sake. She just won't stop hounding you."

I follow her gaze and see Callie approaching—again. She is relentless; I'll give her that much. She's playing the friendly and repentant half-sister while consistently sticking to me like a fucking parasite. I know her game. Too bad for her I'm an even better player.

"Chelsea, thank you for keeping the kids at your place tonight. I'll handle the rest," I say. "Oh, and can you see if you can get another donation box that Callie can walk around with? She needs to get off my back before I do or say something I might regret."

"Can't I just whack her over the head and tie her down somewhere out of sight?"

"Pretty sure that's illegal."

"Damn."

I laugh lightly and move away, determined to get this show on the road. Darting past Callie, I make my way through the swelling crowd and proceed toward Dakota's bar. Reed spots me, and he and Maddox cross the hall to meet me there. Glancing back, I see Callie watching me with a mixture of indignation and curiosity. Good. Let her watch.

The band has a few more minutes to go before they start playing, and that's about how long I've got to make my play and shoot a few birds with one very expensive stone. I take the small velvet box out of my pocket and discreetly give it to Reed just as we gather next to Dakota's bar.

"Ready?" I ask him.

"As I'll ever be." He gives me a frown. "Are you sure you don't want to be the one to do this? It was your idea."

"You're the squeaky-clean and neighborhood-friendly one," I reply. "Besides, it'll throw Callie for a loop. We want that bitch as confused as she can possibly be until after Christmas if we're going to make this work."

Maddox smiles. "She will have questions."

"She can shove her questions where the sun don't shine," I reply.

Dakota comes over with a bright smile dancing across her lips. "What are you guys up to?" she asks.

"Checking up on you," Reed says. "How are you doing?"

"I'm good. Hard at work, obviously. It's starting to wind down a little. I'm not sure for how long, though," she replies, briefly looking around to make sure no customers are waiting.

"We need to talk," Reed says.

As if summoned, Callie moves closer, slipping through the crowd to get herself within earshot. We don't have much time. I want this deal sealed before Dakota's sister gets close enough to figure out the play we're cooking up.

"Is something wrong?" Dakota worriedly asks.

"What's wrong is that we can't let you struggle like this anymore," Reed says. "We're together. As unconventional as it may be, we're together, and we're making it work. Let us help you."

"Oh, Reed, it's—"

"I'm serious. You need a husband to get your inheritance. It is an opportunity that you simply can't pass up. Let me be the one to do it."

Dakota gasps. "Wait, what?"

"Marry me," he says, then takes the velvet box out of his pocket and shows it to her. "I'm serious, Dakota."

"Reed…"

"You deserve more, and you deserve better than you've had," he says. "Marry me, Dakota. Let me help you."

His words echo all around us. More and more guests turn to look at us, to witness something that wasn't supposed to happen here, but Callie's constant advances toward my brothers and me forced us to move up our timeline.

Dakota is speechless and wide-eyed. "This is a joke, right?"

"I am here, giving you a ring along with my promise that you and Maisie will always be taken care of. Let's get married before Christmas and get you that life you know you deserve," my brother says.

Looking over my shoulder, I can see that Callie is close enough to understand what's happening. Her furrowed brow speaks of confusion. I can't help but smile. Good. She thought Dakota was going to marry me, so she tried to hit on me, revealing her intentions with surprising ease. Chelsea was right. Callie thinks she's the smartest person in the room, but damn, that's just an illusion. Her ego keeps getting the better of her because she did not see this coming.

She notices my grin and nods once. "You played me," Callie hisses.

"You played yourself," I shoot back. "Did you really think I'd let you ruin this for Dakota? Maybe you have her convinced of your fake good intentions, but I'm not buying what you're selling. We will have a wedding before Christmas, and Dakota will get her inheritance."

Callie scoffs. "You might think you've won, but I won't quit. That money is mine, and you can't stop me from getting it."

"I'm not the one who needs to stop you. Reed's already done that," I reply just as Dakota nods, tears springing from her beautiful brown eyes.

"Yes!" Dakota says to Reed. "I'll marry you."

People start clapping and cheering. It's exactly what we needed. It's out in public now. Reed Faulkner and Dakota Ellis are to be married before Christmas. She will finally have what she has always wanted, what she deserves. She'll have the financial stability to give her daughter everything she wants and needs and to build her own business freely. She will get to keep her home, and she will get to thrive in this new stage of her life.

That makes me ridiculously happy, happier than I ever thought I'd be, even though I would've loved to have been the one putting the ring on Dakota's finger. I love my brothers, and we share everything. Letting Reed be the public husband is the wisest choice. Maddox doesn't like the social aspect of his entire existence, and I tend to make enemies out of the people I can't stand, regardless of their power, status, or influence. Of the three of us, Reed is the more balanced one, the safer bet. It'll make that marriage certificate ironclad, and Callie won't be able to go after him in any capacity.

She's already made a play for me, whether Dakota noticed or not. If she starts hitting on Reed next, it'll stink to high heaven, and she knows it.

I watch as Dakota hugs and kisses Reed. I wish we could share in this moment, but we've got the rest of the night all to ourselves. Soon enough, the four of us will celebrate together, back at our place, while Callie will have to regroup and say goodbye to any chance she thought she'd have at Dakota's inheritance.

For once, I feel like the good guys have won.