“As far as I’m concerned, and I think Callie feels the same way, you could live with us forever. But you need to be out there living your life.”
She nods. “Well, I am moving out. I’m going to share with some friends. But I was worried you’d be upset so I’ve been putting off telling you for wee—”
Sean comes flying into the room, yelling with excitement. “Grandma’s here!”
I stand, placing my hand on Luke’s shoulder. “I’ll let her in while you two finish talking.”
“Thanks, baby,” he says, his eyes firmly on mine.
Sean grabs my hand and drags me to the front door. I’m surprised to find not only Estelle and George waiting, but Avery and Tyler also.
“Darling!” Estelle bustles in with a quick kiss to my cheek. Her arms are loaded with food and drink. We’re celebrating George’s birthday tonight.
After she passes me, George pulls me close for a hug. We’ve grown much closer since mine and Luke’s wedding and I adore spending time with him. “Thank you for putting up with my wife’s crazy antics tonight,” he says quietly.
I laugh as I let him go. “Well, I do love her. Nearly as much as you do. So we let her do what she needs.” Estelle has come a long way since she married George. Even Luke has admitted that.
He pats me on the arm. “We wouldn’t have her any other way.”
Before I let him pass, I kiss his cheek. “Happy birthday.”
“Thank you, Callie,” he replies before following his wife into the house.
I turn to Avery and Tyler after he leaves. Narrowing my eyes at them, I say, “What’s going on here?” The minute I saw them together, I knew there was something off. Their body language screams it. Tyler is standing way too close to her, while her body is angled away from him. And they’re not talking. After months of bickering, they finally seemed to have moved past that to a place where they communicated with some civility for their daughter. Today they seem to be back to square one.
Avery has the look in her eyes she gets when she’s trying to avoid discussing something. She doesn’t meet my gaze. “Nothing,” she mutters and pushes past me.
I watch her go for a moment before eyeing Tyler. Holding my arm to block his entry, I say, “Tell me what it is.”
He glances down at my arm and then raises a brow at me. “Really? You’re not going to let me in until I tell you?”
“Spit it out, Tyler.”
He runs his fingers through his hair. “Fuck, you’ll find out soon enough anyway. Avery tells you everything eventually.” He pauses for a moment. “We slept together again.”
My eyes widen.
Not what I was expecting.
Totally not what I was expecting.
“Jesus, Tyler. You two have just gotten to a good place after months of tension. Why did you go and fuck that all up?”
Annoyance flashes in his eyes. “Why do you assume it was me who fucked it up?”
My eyes bulge a little more. “Avery initiated this?”
“Yes. And now she’s trying to run from me again, but I’m putting my foot down this time. Seems she doesn’t like it when I do that. But, fuck, she’s mine.” He pushes past me and all I can do is stare after him.
I’ve never heard Tyler sound so bossy. I shouldn’t be surprised, though. He’s just like his brother.
I don’t think Avery knows what’s coming for her.