Page 94 of Never Fall Again
“Later.”
Cal stepped outside and waited until Chad’s truck came intoview and parked. Chad, Naomi, Abby, and Eliza all spilled from the vehicle. The girls were their usual giggly selves. Chad and Naomi were keeping up appearances for the girls, but Cal could read their tension.
Landry came out of Meredith’s house, and Eliza ran into her arms. “Mommy!”
Cal had to dig his heels into the gravel to keep from joining their little huddle. The ache for them to be his was ridiculous. He’d been a fool to ever think he could just decide not to fall again. His heart didn’t give a flip about the danger. About the possible heartache. He just wanted them to be his.
Landry didn’t think she could live in a tiny house on a regular basis, but for tonight, it was perfect. It felt safe and cozy, and the chicken concoction she had in the oven made the entire space smell like the best parts of a Southern kitchen.
Meredith’s refrigerator was filled to the brim. She’d come by that afternoon to grab her Kindle and talked Landry through the dishes.
“This chicken—you should have it tonight. It’s amazing. The crust bubbles up from the bottom somehow. I don’t know how it works, but it’s delicious.” She pointed to a salad. “This salad and vinaigrette”—she touched a small mason jar—“are from Cassie. She makes the vinaigrette from scratch. You’ll never want any other salad dressing again.”
There were two different soups, a pot roast, and a lasagna for main courses. A fruit salad, two different green salads, garlic bread, and a jar of homemade honey butter to go with the yeast rolls that were in the freezer.
“We’ll never be able to eat all of this.”
“Don’t be so sure. Cal and Mo will smell it and come knocking.” Meredith’s phone buzzed, and her happy expression fell. “Mom wants me to pick up some ginger ale before I come home.”
“I’m sorry about your mom.” Landry didn’t know what else to say.
“Thanks. She’s a fighter. And as bad as things are right now, the doctors say her prognosis is good. We just have to get her through the treatment.”
“I can’t wait to meet her.”
Meredith’s eyes lit. “She’s excited to meet you. And Eliza. She’s heard all about you from Aunt Carol. And Granny Quinn. And Papa Quinn. Pretty much everyone.”
Landry closed her eyes and willed her face not to turn pink. Not that it worked. “I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not.”
“Oh, it is.” Meredith looked around and spotted Eliza outside playing with Maisy. “We’ve all been wondering who would finally break through Cal’s shields.”
“I—”
“I know.” There was no teasing light in Meredith’s eyes. “I was there, Landry. I know what that woman did to him. And I know he swore he’d never take that risk again. But I don’t think he took into account the fact that sometimes even though the brain acknowledges the risk, the heart realizes that playing it safe is riskier.” Meredith grinned. “I think you’re a chance worth taking. So does everyone else in the family. Cal knows it too.”
Landry had no idea what to say to that. Fortunately, Meredith didn’t seem to need an answer. She changed the subject, talked the entire way to her car, then waved and honked on her way down the driveway.
Five minutes later, Bronwyn texted and informed her that Meredith had told her about the food in the fridge, and that she would be there for supper at six.
As much as Landry wanted to sleep, she knew that sleeping now was a mistake. If she could hold on until she put Eliza in bed, then she could crash. Her head hurt, her eyes ached, and her back complained with every move she made. She hadn’t pulled an all-nighter in years, but she hadn’t expected her body to rebel this way. Surely thirty-two wasn’t too old to occasionally lose a night of sleep?
She opened the oven door to check on the casserole. It did look amazing. She closed the door and groaned. It made absolutely no sense that her hands would hurt from lack of sleep.
Eliza clattered down the stairs from her little loft. “What’s wrong, Mommy?”
“Oh, nothing, sweetheart. I’m just tired. Miss Bronwyn’s going to come over for dinner, but she won’t stay long. Then you and I are going to call it a night.”
“Okay. Should I go tell Mr. Cal and Mr. Mo what we’re having?”
Landry opened the refrigerator to give herself a few moments to think. They were both welcome, but with Bronwyn here, would Mo come? If he didn’t, how would she explain that to Eliza? And if he did, would it be awkward?
Short answer? Very.
But they couldn’t invite Cal and not Mo. And it was possible Meredith had already spoken to them and they were expecting an invitation. She pulled one of the salads out of the fridge. “Sure. Go tell them Miss Bronwyn will be here at six.”
Eliza dashed outside, and Landry watched through the window as she covered the short distance to Cal’s house. His door opened, and he knelt down so he was at eye level with Eliza. They chatted for several minutes, and it wasn’t until the oven timer beeped that Landry realized she’d been standing there watching them. She covered the casserole with foil, as she’d been directed to do, and reset the timer as fast as she could. She returned to the same spot in time to see Cal and Eliza walk to Mo’s and knock.
When Cal opened the door but neither he nor Eliza walked inside, Landry guessed that Mo had hollered for them to come in. They stood in his doorway for less than thirty seconds, then stepped away. Cal closed the door behind them and gave Eliza a fist bump before they both walked to Meredith’s.