Chapter 20

On Wednesday evening, Brittany and I sat around the little metal table in Scott’s backyard. She had driven me over to collect my car, which had taken longer to repair than expected, and my brother had invited us to stay for dinner.

While he was at the grill barbecuing some burgers, we lounged around, getting caught up and sipping soda water with lime and mint. I inhaled deeply, almost moaning at the scent of the grilling meat as the sun started setting on the horizon.

Scott’s house was small and set a ways out of town on a hill not overlooking the lake, but he still had a pretty decent view. Even if it was obscured by his neighbors and towering pines.

“Tomorrow is going to be so tough,” Brittany complained good-naturedly. “I can’t believe we did this to ourselves. Making up for the cleans we missed and doing our usual jobs? What were we thinking? We should’ve just walked it.”

“With all our supplies in tow?” I lifted my eyebrows at her. “I doubt we’d have gotten much done walking from house to house with our mops and buckets, babe. Besides, we’ll pull it off. We always do.”

She sighed, toying with her light brown hair as she glanced at Scott before looking back at me. “Yeah, you’re right. We’ll get stuff done. All we need to do is power through.”

“Exactly.” I ignored the obvious longing in her eyes when she’d glanced at Scott, knowing she was also referring to him when she said she needed to power through.

While they’d been flirting for ages and ages, he’d never made a move and I was starting to wonder if he was just toying with her, but I was staying out of it. Besides, my brother wasn’t a player. He’d dated a lot, but I couldn’t imagine he’d be stringing her along.

Whatever his reason for not going after her, I knew it would be good. As much as I would have liked to know it, I didn’t want to pry or get involved, so I stayed in my own lane, changing the topic when he glanced at her as he took another sip of his beer.

“Why have neither of you asked me what it was like to have finally set foot inside the Manor?” I asked teasingly. “It’s only a dream come true, so you know. No biggie.”

Brittany laughed and Scott rolled his eyes at me, but at least he obliged. “What was it like setting foot inside Styles Manor after all this time, and did you steal a key so you can go back whenever you want?”

I scoffed. “No. I’m not a burglar or a trespasser.”

He chuckled. “When that place is in the mix, I wouldn’t put it past you, but go on then. I know you’re dying to tell us.”

“Bursting at the seams,” I said excitedly as I thought back to the first moment I’d walked inside. “It was amazing. Everything I ever dreamed it would be and more. On top of that, I also had a really nice evening with Landon and Colten, so it was a definite red-letter day for me.”

Scott groaned. “Let’s stick to details about the house. I don’t really want to hear about Mr. Big City.”

“Disagree,” Brittany said incredulously. “The house has been there for about a hundred years. It can wait. Tell us about your date with the hottest single dad in town.”

I smiled, giggling when Scott threw his hands up in defeat and focused on the grill again instead of listening to this part of the story. “It wasn’t a date. They asked me to stay for dinner, is all. Afterward, he put Colten to bed and I had some tea before I went home.”

“Uh huh. How much tea?” she asked with a glint of laughter in her eyes. “I bet it wasn’t just one cup.”

“It was two,” I admitted. “Drunk over about three and a half hours.”

“You spent three and a half hours with him after the kid went to bed?” Her eyes widened and a knowing grin spread her lips. “Pray tell, Jewel. What on earth were you doing with him that it took you so long to drink two cups of tea?”

I laughed. “Talking. That’s it. I promise.”

“Do you mean you were communicating with your bodies, or actually talking with your mouths?” she asked.

Scott scrunched up his face and spun around, grumbling under his breath. “I’m going to need another beer if we’re really going to be talking about this.”

“You don’t have to listen if you don’t want to,” Brittany called after him in a sing-song voice before turning back to me with a grin that was borderline evil on her lips. “Who knows? Maybe if he hears that even his sister is getting some, it’ll make him realize that I need to get some too. From him.”

I wrinkled my nose and shook my head. “Nope. I’m not touching that and I also didn’t touch Landon. We just talked. With our mouths. I promise.”

She let out a disappointed sigh and tracked my brother’s movements as he came back out with a fresh beer in his hands. “Fine. I believe you. How did you just talk to a guy that looks like him for so long? I would’ve at least tried for something more.”

“Nah. It was a really good conversation. Surprisingly good, actually.” I gave my brother a pointed look. “He’s more than just Mr. Big City. There’s real depth there, and he’s an excellent father.”

“I saw that,” Brittany said with a fond smile, all the humor and teasing now gone from her features. “That day on the boat, he was so sweet with Colten. It’s obvious he really cares about him.”

“He does, but I think there’s also a lot of guilt there.” Brittany and Scott were my people. I shared everything with them and they always helped me gain perspective. “I’m not entirely sure why, but I suspect he’s not as involved when they’re home as he is here.”

“Well, to be fair, no parent is,” Brittany said. “That’s what vacations are for, right? Getting away as a family and having your parents’ undivided attention? At home, there’s always other stuff to do and to worry about, and that’s not even mentioning work.”

“Sure,” Scott said, playing devil’s advocate. “Yet there are many working parents who still manage to make time to spend with their kids. It doesn’t matter what you do for a living. Prioritizing is a real thing. A lot of folks will tell you that they just can’t make time, but it’s just not true. Maybe there will be periods that you’re busier than others, but in general, it’s a matter of deciding what’s more important to you.”

“Nuh uh,” Brittany countered instantly. “If you can afford to prioritize, then sure. What about people who work specific shifts or whose jobs depend on the amount of hours they can put in? Most people can’t afford to say no to their bosses just so they get home in time to tuck their kids in.”

Scott shrugged. “Maybe most people can’t, but people who can afford to stay in Styles Manor for two months sure can.”

She held his gaze for a beat. “Okay, I hear you and I’m not saying you’re completely wrong, but the money has to come from somewhere. Staying in Styles Manor for a summer costs a bundle. We all know that, which means they can’t exactly be hurting, but at the same time, we don’t know how much work he has to do in a normal month to be able to stay on top of providing that kind of lifestyle.”

I put my hands up and shook my head at both of them, chuckling as I intervened. “I think you’re both right. He probably could prioritize his son a little more, but I think that’s why they’re here. That being said, Scott, you should know that I got in touch with Samantha. I called her up to ask if Brody would mind spending some time with Colten this summer.”

“That was a good idea,” he said without even needing to think about it. “Brody is a good kid and Colten definitely needs to get out a little more. What kind of ten-year-old boy doesn’t like tossing a ball around?”

I pursed my lips at him. “The kind who prefers to play chess. Not every kid needs to be a football player.”

“Sure, but even if you don’t want to play, it’s nice to just spend some time in the sunshine, running around with the ball. You never played football and yet, you’ve always enjoyed it.”

“Fair enough,” I said. “I also had you as a brother, though. Tossing a ball around wasn’t optional for me.”

He chuckled. “When are you seeing them again?”

“On Monday,” I said, excitement creeping back into the center of my being and making my heart flutter like little butterfly wings being tried out for the very first time. “I’d have liked to see them again sooner, but I guess I’ll just have to wait until I go clean again.”

Brittany suddenly scowled. “You’re abandoning me again?”

“This is going to be an all-summer thing, Britt,” I warned, frowning at her when I realized this had come as a surprise. “Did you not see the contract he signed?”

“I did, but I guess I didn’t read it properly. I thought he’d gotten us in as a one-off. I suppose it makes sense that he’d want us there weekly, though.”

“I could make some calls tomorrow,” I offered. “Maybe some of our clients will agree to us shuffling their schedules around a little bit just for the next few weeks so you don’t have to work alone?”

“We can try, but either way, being able to add the Styles Manor to our client list is going to look super impressive, so even if they don’t agree, we’ll make do. It’ll be okay. Speaking of which though, I heard Dallas was spotted in town again yesterday being his usual, douchey self.”

“I know.” I grimaced. “He catcalled me again. I don’t know what’s wrong with that guy or how a woman like Lucille Styles could’ve been related to that.”

“She didn’t raise him,” Brittany said, shrugging. “I’m sure her own kids were a lot better than that entitled prick.”

Scott carried the plate with the burgers over to us and huffed out an irritated breath as he sat down. As he slammed his toppings onto his bun, he scowled. “One day, that dick is going to get what’s coming to him.”

Once his burger was made, he took a massive bite and scowled some more, speaking around his food as he kept ranting. “I heard he tore through town like a bat out of hell again and then insisted that Verna move other customers at the cafe to a different table because he preferred the one they were at.”

Shooting out of his chair, he grumbled some more as he and his burgers marched back to the grill. “Forgot my beer.”

Brittany and I exchanged a look and chuckled, and I pumped my eyebrows at her. “How do you have the hots for him? He’s a barbarian.”

She shrugged, her eyes sparkling. She leaned in to make sure he wouldn’t overhear her. “Who doesn’t love a good barbarian? I’m willing to bet all that passion makes him an excellent lover.”

I groaned and stood up, shaking my head. I called to her over my shoulder while making my way inside with my empty glass in my hand. “Just for that, you can refill your own damn drink.”

She laughed, clearly not too worried about having to get her own drink now that my brother was sitting back down next to her. I gave them a couple minutes, looking at them out the kitchen window as I fixed another soda water.

They were a darn cute couple and we always had so much fun together that it would be a blast if they started dating. As long as they made it work forever.

For some reason, the word forever made me think of Landon and my cheeks flushed beet red even if I would never admit what I’d just thought to anyone. If I was being totally honest, I associated that word with him because I would be happy if that was how long he and Colten would be staying.

I felt something with him I’d never felt with anyone else. A connection, perhaps. An ease I couldn’t describe. It was nice. More than nice, but it already killed me to know it would only last for the summer.

Just a little less than two short months and they’d be gone, and even though I’d only known them for about a week, I was already dreading the day they were going to have to leave.