“For me?” I grabbed the envelope and lifted the flap. “You sure it’s not something for Bronte about her bed and breakfast? It’sfrom our family’s lawyers—” My words stopped when I scanned the letter on top.
Erin’s hand touched my shoulder. “Cal?” I caught her brows knitting with worry before my gaze snapped back to the papers.
“It’s…” I flicked to another page. Another. “It’s… the succession planning documents for the farm. Updates to the family trust. The… land titles…” I flicked past more pages with red “Sign here” stickers plastered at the edges. On the very last page was a sticky note filled with Dad’s handwriting.
You earned this a long time ago. It’s a privilege to call you my son.
The sting of emotion blurred the note. I didn’t bother wiping the tears away. Erin would understand. “I… I can’t believe it,” I said. “Dad’s signing over control of the farm to me.”
“Officially?”
Speechless, I nodded.
“Cal, youdidit.” She barreled into me, her arms flinging around my shoulders to squeeze me in a hug. “I’m so proud of you. This is the best thing that could have happened.”
Erin was wrong. She wasn’t usually, but this time, she was.
The best thing happened an hour before when she told me she loved me.
24
That Shocking Discovery in Summer
Erin
The toddlers in theirmatching pink leotards were adorable, but of course, I thought my daughter was the cutest. It had taken too many fairy clips to twist her wispy curls into something close to resembling a bun, and her pink stockings were a little lumpy around her ankles, but she still looked so stinking cute.
With a giant grin on my face, I waved to her, and in true Matilda style, she scrunched her nose and flashed me a peace sign.
I turned. “Cal, isn’t she the—”
I stopped.
Callan wasn’t sitting on the chair beside me. He was lurking in the back of the church hall, his shoulder against the wall, his arms folded. He never missed Matilda’s dance class, but the tension stretched too tight for him to be around Jeremy. Thetwo of them had almost gotten into a fistfight in the parking lot. Jeremy started it. His cruel words were calculated, but Callan had walked away, and that left the spot beside me free for Jeremy to slither into.
“Okay, girls!” The teacher clapped her hands to command their attention. “Are we ready?”
Their little faces pinched with concentration as they copied pointing their toes and moving their arms through each position. There was some twirling. Matilda, of course, took it all a little too far, leaping extra high and spinning too fast. Her pink slippers skidded on the wood, and she plopped down on her bottom.
Tear-filled eyes landed on Jeremy, and her lower lip quivered. She wasn’t hurt—more embarrassed than anything. Did he notice her searching for him? Of course not. His head hung low, too engrossed in his phone to care about his daughter.
I pushed up from the seat, but Matilda’s tiny slippers scurried to Callan. He was already striding from the back of the hall.
“Matilda fell!” she wailed as he bundled her up in a hug.
Jeremy grunted beside me. The commotion must have finally been enough to earn his attention. “He’s certainly weaseled his way into my daughter’s life,” he muttered.
“What did you expect?” I replied. “You weren’t even watching her. You were too busy looking at your stupid phone.”
Jeremy’s eyes narrowed. I never used to call him out for ignoring us, and he certainly didn’t appreciate the change. “I was dealing with a patient. The challenges of being constantly on call for people in crisis isn’t something I’d expect you to understand.”
Condescending piece of…“That was the story of my life when I worked in human resources.”
“It’s hardly the same.” Shaking his head, he shoved his phone in his pocket. “Insignificant workplace disputes aboutone lawyer not saying hello to another are hardly the same as Tallulah threatening self-harm when she can’t get her own way.” He flashed me a simpering smile. “But I’ll let you know if I have any questions about how many vacation days my secretary is entitled to.”
Don’t react.
Fighting the shock, I dug my fingers into my thigh.
