Chapter 20

Callie

I walked through the door, not knowing what to expect once I got inside. Luckily, no one was around. I set the house brochures on the counter and grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. As soon as I turned around, Justin was there, looking at my brochures.

His blond hair was wet and he had a towel around his bare shoulders. “Moving?” he asked, holding up one of the brochures. Judging by the way he stared at me with such disappointment, there was no doubt he knew where I was last night.

I took a sip of my water. “That’s the plan. You know this.”

Pursing his lips, he nodded. “You were with Easton last night, weren’t you?”

“What I do is my business,” I replied.

He tossed the brochure back onto the counter. “He’s using you, Callie. Don’t you see that? He got what he wanted.”

I shook my head. “That’s not true. He’s different from what I thought he was.”

“It’s because he’s playing you!” he shouted. “You’re fooling yourself if you think he cares about you.”

As calmly as I could, I walked over and fetched the brochures. Inside, I was fuming. “I’ll be the judge of that, Justin. It’s my choice.”

“Then don’t be surprised when he doesn’t call you back. It’s what he does.”

Without another word, I hurried to my room and shut the door. A part of me wanted to leave and go straight back to Dallas, but I couldn’t. I could deal with my family on my own. I’d barely had time to breathe when a knock sounded on my door.

“I don’t want to hear anymore, Justin,” I growled.

The door opened and Corey stuck his head in. “It’s not Justin.”

Sighing, I flopped down on my bed. “Did you hear that downstairs?”

He nodded and came into my room, dressed to perfection in a pair of black pants and a blue button-down shirt. “It was kind of hard not to. You okay?”

“I’m fine,” I lied. “I know Dallas has a past, but he’s different around me—”

“Says every girl he’s been with,” he interrupted. I glared at him and he held up his hands. “Sorry, it just came out.”

Memories of our night together flooded my mind. We connected in a way I’d never felt with any other man. “He spent all day helping me find a place to live. What guy’s going to do that? He could’ve easily gotten what he wanted and brought me home, but he didn’t.”

Corey squeezed my shoulder. “I already told you I’ll give him a chance, as long as he doesn’t hurt you. If you’re happy, I’m happy.”

“I am,” I said, smiling wide. “I feel different when I’m around him.”

Now it was his turn to grin. “I feel the same way about Hannah.”

“Is that who you’re going to see looking all fancy?”

Chuckling, he ran a hand down his shirt. “We’re going out to a nice dinner since I’ll be gone all week with Justin.”

“Well, I hope you two have a blast. I’ll probably get her to hang out with me some this week after work.”

He winked. “Good. Keep her out of trouble.” Taking a deep breath, he sat beside me on the bed. “There’s something you need to know.” His smile faded and I stared at him, my brows furrowed.

“What is it?”

“Brant’s not coming back. He’s going to stay in Minnesota with his fiancée, Lily.”

“Wow,” I replied, fully shocked. “What made him decide that?”

His grin came back. “She’s pregnant. Found out yesterday, but you weren’t here. Brant doesn’t want to leave her.”

Tears filled my eyes. I was going to be an aunt. “That’s fantastic. I can’t wait for Mom and Dad to find out.”

Getting up, he headed for the door. “They already know. You should be getting a call from them soon. I’ll see you in the morning before Justin and I head to the airport.”

The second he shut my door, my phone rang. I couldn’t answer it fast enough. “Hey, Mom!” I answered excitedly.

“Hey, baby. How are you?” She sounded so happy and full of life. My parents had been married for over forty years and were still going strong.

“I’m fine. What about you and Dad? Exploring lots of cool places?”

“Every day.” She laughed. “We’re going to sail around for a few more weeks and then leave the boat so we can fly back to the States for the Stanley Cup.”

“What if the Strikers don’t make it to the finals?”

She snorted. “I’ve been keeping up with the scores. I know they will.”

“I can’t wait to see you guys. Feels like it’s been forever.”

“Same here, sweetheart. But is everything okay out there? When I talked to Justin, he sounded on edge when I brought your name up.”

Huffing, I lay back on my bed. “He’s mad because I’m dating Dallas Easton. He’s the goaltender for the Strikers.”

My mother burst out laughing. “Love his heart, he’s just being protective of you. He’ll get over it.”

“I don’t know about that,” I grumbled.

“If you like this guy then that’s all that matters. You’ve always been a good judge of character.”

“Thanks, Mom. I hope you’re right.”

“A mother always is. Take care of yourself and be safe. I’ll talk to you again soon.”

“Okay. I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

I sure as hell hoped she was right.