Callie grinned, when she saw Byron Phelps picking up Nando from a busy Reneé in the kitchen. Reneé pressed a quick kiss on her fiancé's lips. Byron looped an arm around Reneé's waist for a moment and offered a half-smile Callie's way when he and Nando gave their goodbyes.

Smiling to herself, Renee's eyes sparkled when she spoke to Callie. "I'm going to hang back a while till the cupcakes I made get fully baked. I made them for Avó."

"You love baking, don't you?" Smiling back, Callie said.

She stared at Callie for a few seconds. A cloud of hesitation flashed in Renee's eyes. Then a simple shrug sloped in. "I used to run a culinary school with my ex husband. But yes, I love to bake. I had to stop right after Nando was born." Her fists curled into a tight ball and bitterness sunk in her next words. "Lito didn't think I could do both. Be a mother and work at the same time, just because his father made his mother do the same."

Callie watched her vent out her frustrations. She could tell Reneé wasn't telling her out of trust. Probably out of past regrets that she had kept to herself for years. Reneé continued to say. "Then he started to hit me because I wanted to work. The abuse got so much and I had had enough. I left his sorry ass and took my son to stay in this quiet off-the-grid town. Lito made me hate being married and it made it harder for me to pick a damn date for my wedding. Byron is too sweet for his own good. He's this older guy that has a great job and practically worships my feet. He loves Nando like he was his and I know I'm crazy in love with my fiancé. So why can't I just get married to him already?"

Stopping to stare back at Callie's concerned look, Reneé's cheeks flamed in embarrassment and made a quick shake of her head. "I'm sorry I said all that. It's none of your business and the person I usually talk to about stuff like this is my fiancé's mother. I just needed to—"

"To let it all out? I get that feeling sometimes. You're feeling guilty about not marrying him yet? How's that like?" Callie inquired carefully enough to not seem pushy.

Reneé mumbled, with a frown. "It's more like my last marriage experience isn't letting me feel open about the prospect of a new one."

"But Byron's not like your ex and you know it. I wish I could give you a definite answer. I've never been in love, but I have met a lot of people who love each other. That includes you and Byron. It shouldn't be this hard, but that's just how things have turned out to be." Callie told her simply. "Honestly, life's already a mess and it's better not to make it any messier. You're the only one that can make this choice for yourself."

A tired sigh slipped out. "I guess you're right. I have to open my heart and let myself make the right choice."

Callie wished she had more to say, but this was something Reneé needed to figure out on her own.

★★★
Dusky hues subdued the fading light, as the sun sank lower in the sky. Callie was ready to pack up and leave when she noticed Larkin playing with Chip, his golden furred Labrador. Long fingers trailed through the hairy dog. His caress was slow and gentle, quaking tiny muscles from his bulging arms. Callie's legs quivered at the sight. She couldn't help wondering what else he could do with those hands. Almost like he could feel her gaze, his head raised and their eyes met.

There was an unusual vulnerable look in those emerald eyes and Callie couldn't help the urge to figure out why. It was like her legs were on autopilot, ignoring the warnings her brain gave and before she knew it, she was standing opposite Larkin.

"I was just about to go home." She had said. His response was just a small nod. He seemed too distracted to pay attention to anything around him. "Is everything okay? You seem off."

He blinked at her. Unreadable green eyes had reached out to Callie, but his stiff tone said otherwise. "Do I not look okay?"

"Now you're getting defensive. Something is clearly off."

Larkin was temporarily lost for words. How could he possibly tell her everything that ached his soul, without worrying about her reaction to it? There was too much to tell. Losing this house. His cousin's attempt at ruining him. His cousin's cruel words that still haunted him. Firing his cousin. Finding out about Aunt Zoë's alcoholism. Possibly regaining his feet. So much had happened in so little time. He wished he could wriggle it out of his head.

Beats of seconds passed, without him giving a response. It had started to feel almost awkward. The silence made Callie aware of everything around the Manor. She could hear the revving engines of moving vehicles from the other streets and chirps of birds from the tree, tweeting harmonious tunes in chorus. His usual steady gaze flickered back to his dog. Callie stopped herself from saying anything Larkin could consider invasive. "Now that I think about it, I think I know why you're upset."

His back stiffened. How the hell did she find out? "I don't know what you mean."

Her voice came out solemn, brown eyes softening. "Oh come on. Mrs. Esther told me. Your doctor came. Something happened, didn't it?"

Larkin glowered. He had tried not to think about that particular one. At least compared to the others, this was easier to talk about. "Oh that. I guess that's why I'm upset." He'd rather lie and say that than to admit the hardest part of his long line of secrets. Shrugging, he added. "I'm supposed to start knee injections soon. It's to help me walk better and I may not need my walking cane if it's successful."

A glowing smile sprang up and her eyes glimmered. Seeing her look so excited burned through a part of his heart. "That's amazing, Larkin. I'm so happy for you."

She leaned over to give a hug. Larkin stiffened again. Feeling the embrace of her flesh around him pulled his brain on full alert. The magnolia scent lingering around her once again put him at a point of euphoria. She smelt so damn good, he wished he could hold her for a few more seconds. One of his hands had sloped to the base of her waist, her back arched at his touch. Larkin didn't remember the last time he had held a female in his arms. He wasn't counting the times he had hugged Reneé and Mrs. Esther. Their touch didn't have an effect on him and they surely didn't make him want to kiss them. But Callie did. She made him want to do a lot of things he hadn't let himself think about this past year and this was completely getting out of his reach.

Slowly letting go of him, Callie couldn't deny the sudden need to touch him. The lingering feeling of his warmth invaded her thoughts. She was excited for him. Something good finally happened to him, and Callie wanted to share that with Larkin. Despite how rigid he had gotten, Larkin's hand was still possessively around her waist. A firm reminder that he hadn't let go of her. Her breath hitched, when she tore her gaze to his. Callie took a moment to examine him when his head tipped down to meet her eyes. She had always assumed his eyes were just green in color, but as she stared at them, faint streaks of a light ocean blue shade had blended with his vibrant emerald color, swirling in each iris despite the intense look in them.

Larkin's voice had turned husky, without realizing it. "Callista."

There was something in the way he said her name that made her heart skip a beat. She fought back the lure to run her fingers through his hair. His soft long curls that begged for a new haircut. Loose strands ran through the side of his face, covering parts of his eyes like it always did. He was so damn handsome and it made staring at him feel so angelic. Callie examined how quickly his jaw had clenched. Was he angry? Or did she miss something?

Despite all the emotions muddling up her thoughts, Callie managed to pull away from his grip and cleared her throat. The last thing she needed was to complicate things with him. He was her boss for Christ sake. Kissing him was a big "NO". It didn't matter how tempting she found his full pink lips to be, it would be awkward for things to go back to normal if she ever let anything happen. Especially not when Larkin's too emotionally unavailable to deal with her waning personal feelings for him.

She squeaked a small "Sorry," that seemed to appease Larkin, judging by the relieved look on his face. Another beat of awkward seconds had passed, before he spoke in a surprisingly calm tone. "It's fine. You deserve to know that I'll have to move out of this house soon. For the injections to work, my doctor had advised me to avoid being around stairs. The cortisone injections are supposed to improve my joints movements and that can't happen around the Manor. I've been thinking about moving out of here probably after the party."

"What party?" Her head cocked. Callie didn't want to think about the possibility of losing her job so soon. Larkin's progress was far too important. She could convince Mrs. Monty to help get back her old job at Alpha's or she could find somewhere else less stressful. Whatever her decision, Callie knew she wouldn't get stranded. Larkin deserved this spark of hope and she was happy for it.

Larkin's eyebrow arched slightly. "The party I'm having with the board. The one I told you about last week."

Her eyes widened in an instant. "Oh shit, I remember. I'm so sorry about that. I can tell how much you love this house. It would be hard to let go."

Callie could feel the frustration rolling down his back, and dripping over his words. "I don't have a choice anymore. It sucks, you know. This house has a chunk of the memories of my parents and now I feel like it's slipping away from me before I can catch it."

She met his gaze. "My dad and I had this important talk few days ago. I actually forgot my mom's death anniversary. I felt like a total dick and my dad tried to comfort me about it. But the truth is, it made me realize something."

In a low voice, he replied. "What did you realize?"

"That we can't hold on to our grief forever or it'll tear us apart. I remember looking at my dad when he got very upset about accidentally breaking my mom's mug and it made me realize how I always behaved around everyone else. I was a wreck."

An eyebrow arched. "So you want me to just let go of the house?"

With a long sigh, Callie wore a faraway look. Reminiscing through an old memory. Her eyes trailed to the garden hedges and Larkin followed her distracted gaze. "Some months after my mom died, my dad knew we had to afresh. The truth is that, we weren't letting go of her. She's still here with us." Callie placed a hand right where her heart should be. "She's always in my heart. You're not letting go of the memories. You're just making new ones. And there's nothing wrong with doing that."

Tearing away his eyes from the field, Larkin shifted his gaze to look at her. Long walnut brown hair trickled over her face and pure innocence lustered in those eyes. Something in how she spoke, made Larkin admit the one thing he didn't let himself think about. He had feelings for her and he didn't know what to do with it. Especially when he wasn't at a place to let anyone in and he knew she deserved better than that.

★★★
Ayeeee! An almost kiss. Sorry, guys 😢😅💖.
Anyway, to my earliest readers (those who started this book in January, February or March. Not the recent readers o), it's important that you should try and reread the old or previous chapters cause I've reedited so many parts and it'll be important for my readers to enjoy the new version of my writing. Those who know me, know that I edit everyday so the chapter that you read yesterday might have some changes to it today. I always rewrite scenes till it's perfect for me. That's just how I do my thing.
Xoxo
Jasmine