“Then I guess we better get to it.” We walk arm and arm until we reach Clairabella’s room. Lyla has her snug as a bug in a rug, in her bed, and is already reading the first book. We make our way to join in on their fun, none of us leaving until she’s fast asleep.
“God, she’s amazing,” I mumble.
“She really is. All right, let’s get out of here before we wake up the princess,” Lyla suggests.
Once we’re back in the living room, we turn on the television to catch up on what the weather will be like tomorrow until Colt comes by to take Lyla and Presley home.
6
Jamie
I sit here on Callie’s front porch; at least the furniture is comfortable. I’m deep in thought, my forearms resting on my knees, contemplating my next move when I hear the closing of a door.
“Looks like you got left out of girls night. I’m Colt. Who are you?” He doesn’t hold any punches. Maybe this is why Callie wouldn’t let me say what I really needed to.
“Looks like it. Jamie Rodriquez.” I stand, holding my hand out. At first, I’m not sure he’ll even take it, so it shocks me when he does.
“I’m here to pick up my wife, Lyla, and her friend, Presley. Do they know you’re out here?” He nods toward the front door.
“I’m not too sure, but it’s okay. I’ll wait ‘til things settle down before I try to talk to Callie again.”
“Might be a good idea. Let the girls talk to Callie. She wasn’t in a good place. Hell, I even offered her a job after you tried to make her work during Clairabella’s recital. Not that I’m saying you’re a bad guy because I don’t know you, but I’m going to give you a piece of advice. If Callie does decide to come back to work for you, you’ll have to change her hours, pay, and understand her daughter comes first.”
“I can see that now. I’ve clearly let work rule my life for entirely too long. Hell, I didn’t have any idea she had a daughter. Between Callie and mi madre, my eyes are wide open now,” I tell him truthfully.
“Callie’s a forgiving person. Give her time, though. Two years is a lot of time to heal overnight. If you’ll excuse me, I need to grab my wife before she decides to drink some more and I have to carry her to the truck.” Colt walks right into the unlocked house. Something about that churns at my gut. Why the hell wouldn’t Callie lock her front door? What if I wasn’t here, or if I was a real dick and walked right in?
I never responded to Colt when he walked away, something that’s never happened before. I always have a comeback or something to say, but that’s twice today I’ve been stunned speechless. I sit back down on the chair I vacated when Colt appeared. It has me thinking I should probably leave when I hear the door open up again and my name being called.
“Hey, Jamie, don’t give up on Callie. She can be a little hardheaded, but she’s worth it,” the blonde friend of Callie’s says to me as she saunters to Colt’s truck, hopping in the backseat.
“She’s not wrong. I mean, sure, you’ve been a dick, but I see through what Callie is saying. She wouldn’t have stayed on for two years if there wasn’t some redeeming quality about you,” Colt’s wife says to me.
“Thanks, I promise I’ll try my hardest to win her back.” She winks at me and then lets Colt’s arm go, practically skipping to the passenger side of the truck.
“You may not know everything about these girls, at least not yet, but once you do, you’ll see each of them is worth more than any amount of money could make you.”
“I appreciate that.” I shake his hand again, and with a nod of his head, he’s gone.
My hands are back in my pockets as I watch Colt and Callie’s two friends leave, debating if I should leave and try again tomorrow when I hear the creak of the storm door opening.
“I figured you would have left by now.” Callie comes out on the front porch, closing the door behind her. She’s not in the outfit she had on at the office; no, this one is something else entirely. Not revealing in a way that shows off the curves she had on display earlier.
No, tonight, she’s in a vintage-looking concert tee. I can see the curve of her breasts as she stands in front of me with her arms crossed under her chest, only amplifying the size of them. God damn, how did I never realize just how beautiful Callie is until she walked away? Her legs are on full display in a pair of shorts that look soft to the touch. I was more of an idiot than I thought all along.