Page 39 of Never Fall Again
“Okay. I’ll be outside in a few minutes. You can holler if you need anything.”
Eliza hugged her mom and Bronwyn, and after a moment of indecision, gave Mo a side hug before she ran outside to find Abby.
“Cal, I—”
“She’ll be fine. Like I said before, there are plenty of adults to keep an eye on things. Mo and I were headed back out.” Cal turned to Mo and he, thankfully, stood.
“Someone has to make sure this crowd stays in line.”
Bronwyn huffed out a hint of a laugh. “Come on, Landry. We need to go so you can get back. This place will be a three-ring circus within minutes if these two are left in charge.”
Cal and Mo walked Landry and Bronwyn to their car. When they pulled away, Cal put an arm on Mo’s shoulder. “You okay?”
Mo nodded. “Yeah. Thanks.”
Landry gave Bronwyn two minutes before she turned in her seat and demanded, “Spill. What’s the deal with you and Mo Quinn?”
Bronwyn’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. “It’s a long story.”
“And we’ve been friends a long time.” Bronwyn didn’t respond, and Landry knew. “He’s the one, isn’t he?”
“Yes.”
Landry didn’t ask any more questions. She didn’t know the whole story, and she sensed that Bronwyn had shared all she was going to. All Landry knew was that there was a boy Bronwyn grew up with who had loved her. And she’d loved him. Just not the same way. She hadn’t meant to do it, but she’d broken that boy’s heart when she left home.
That boy was now a handsome man. A man who looked at Bronwyn like she was the source of every beautiful thing...and that beauty was forever out of his reach.
The ride back to The Haven was a quiet one. They went to work immediately and within an hour had all the plans and building information prepared for their meeting with the Shaw brothers on Monday.
“I’m going to head back to the Quinns to get Eliza.” Landry pulled her keys from her purse. “Want to come with me?”
Bronwyn shook her head. “Thanks, but I think I’ve had all I can handle for today.”
Landry gave her a quick hug and made the trek to the Quinns with ease. When she first moved from Arizona, driving the mountain roads was a teeth-gritting experience. Now she smiled as she pulled into the long drive and found a spot to park. The sun was on its way down, but it didn’t look like anyone had left yet.
The house was lit and inviting, and before she went to find Eliza, she let herself inside and located the bathroom Bronwyn had shown them earlier. When she finished, she made a few wrongturns before she found the hallway she thought would take her back to the porch. Before she reached it, she heard voices coming through an open window.
“—what was her name again?” A female voice. Older. Probably one of Cal’s aunts.
“Landry. Unusual name, but I like it.” Another female voice. This one with a little rasp, like she’d had a cold recently.
“Pretty girl.”
“Very.”
Both women heaved huge sighs.
“It’s too bad.” The raspy voice held disappointment and resignation.
“If it wasn’t for the little girl, she’d be quite the catch for Cal.” The first voice again. “But he’ll never go for her. He’s made that clear.”
“Maybe we can set her up with Grayson. He needs a good woman. And I don’t think he’d mind a little girl.”
The women continued talking but they must have moved out of earshot.
Landry leaned against the wall and took three deep breaths. What was so wrong with Eliza that this family had the audacity to think she wasn’t good enough for Cal? Not that she wanted Cal. But if shedidwant him...
Stop it.