“Still. God, Rob!” I close my eyes again. I don’t want to argue with him. I don’t want to talk to her. I don’t want to talk to anyone. But if I don’t call her now, she’ll keep stressing. “Please pass me my phone.”
Rob hands it to me, and I dial the number. It only rings once.
“Oh, baby.” My mother’s voice is too soft, too careful. “Are you okay? We were so worried. Rob told us you were sedated?”
“Yeah, but it was just a slight heat spiral. I’m okay now, Mom.”
“You know, when my suppressant schedule got thrown off during that hurricane trip, I nearly ended up in the ER. I get it… but are you sure you are okay?”
“I’m fine,” I lie.
“You don’t sound fine.”
“I’m tired.”
She sighs. “Well, your father wants to say something. Hold on.”
Of course he does.
“Wren,” his gruff voice says.
“Hi, Dad.”
“You’re twenty-four. You should have this handled.”
The shame spikes. Instant. Familiar. “I’m sorry.”
He snorts. “Anyway. We found some of your grandmother’s cookbooks while cleaning the café. Thought we’d mail them over.”
I sit up straighter. “You werecleaningthe café?”
“Oh. Didn’t your mother tell you? We’re finally letting go of it. Too much upkeep. Some buyers want to turn it into a boutique gym. Real polished concept.”
The blood drains from my face.
“You’resellingThe Fox and Fern?”
“Well, yes. We figured it was time. The roof’s a mess, and we’re planning to take that retirement cruise?—”
“No. Please,don’tsell it. Just wait. I’ll come home. I can fix it. Maybe… maybe I’ll run it.”
Silence on the line. Then, from my mother: “What about your job?”
I hesitate. There’s no way I’m explaining the Everhart debacle. “I was fired.”
“Typical,” my father mutters.
I squeeze the bridge of my nose, trying to stay calm.
“Maybe,” my mother says, brightening, “you could do something with the café. With your design background. Make the most of the space.”
My throat tightens. “Yeah. Maybe.”
The call ends soon after. When I set the phone down, I feel Rob watching me.
I glance up. “I can’t believe you called them.”
He rubs his jaw. “I didn’t know what else to do. I came back to apologize, and then I found you like… that.”
