Margaret watches her go, then looks at Calder like he's a stranger.
"I don't understand," she says, and for the first time she sounds genuinely lost. "We gave you everything. The best education, the best connections, every opportunity?—"
"You gave me a lot," Calder agrees. "But you can't give me this. I have to choose it myself."
"And you choose..." Margaret looks at me, at Tyler, at Julian. "This."
"Them." Calder's voice is firm. "I choose them. Every day. I'll keep choosing them."
Margaret's phone buzzes. She looks at it, then at us.
"Your uncle wants to meet for coffee," she says to Calder. "He says there's a situation that needs addressing. I assume you told him about this... development."
"I texted him when you arrived," Calder admits. "I thought we might need backup."
"Backup." Margaret laughs, but it sounds broken. "Against your own parents."
"Margaret—" Robert starts.
"No, he's right." She looks at Calder, really looks. "When did you stop trusting us?"
"When you stopped asking what I wanted and started telling me what I needed."
Margaret flinches.
"Let's go see Marcus," Robert says, offering his hand to his wife.
Margaret nods slowly. She looks at me one more time, assessment turning to something that might be resignation.
"Rowan, you said? The tea shop family?"
"Herbal medicine," I correct her.
"Hmm."
They walk back to the parking lot. Calder watches them go, shoulders tight with tension. The moment they're out of sight, he exhales shakily. "That was..."
"Terrifying?" Tyler supplies.
"Awkward?" Julian adds.
"Necessary," I finish.
Calder pulls me into his arms, burying his face in my hair. "I'm sorry. I should have told you about my family. About Victoria. About all of it."
"Why didn't you?"
"Because it doesn't matter here. At Elderwood, I'm just... me. Not the Ashford heir. Not old money. Just Calder." He pulls back to look at me. "With you, I'm just Calder."
"You're notjustanything," I murmur. "But I understand."
Tyler's phone buzzes. He glances at it and winces. "Your Uncle Marcus wants us at the café in twenty minutes. Says he's doing damage control."
"Of course he does." Calder runs a hand through his hair. "Ready for round two?"
I look at Tyler, then at the phone. "You have his number?"
"Calder introduced us a few weeks ago," Tyler explains. "Just casual, getting-to-know-the-pack kind of thing."
