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“Nice. Glad to hear you reserve your rude behavior for your brothers.” Sarcasm laced his voice. “Just calling to check in. How’s work?”
“Challenging. You at home?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“I’m at Worlds End. Not too far from you, so I thought I might stop over.”
“I’ve been there. It’s about forty-five minutes from here and in the opposite direction of State College.”
She bit her lip. He would make her ask. She should just get a room somewhere. It’d be easier. She breathed out a sigh. “I have to be back here tomorrow, so I thought…”
“You’re more than welcome to stay at our place. But what about your cat?”
The corners of her lips lifted as she thought about her calico. “My landlady will take Penny until I get home. We have an arrangement.”
“In that case, dinner should be ready when you get here.”
“See you shortly.”
She wasn’t as far away as Gavin seemed to think. She’d make it there in thirty-five minutes. Not nearly enough time to prepare herself for the interrogation her older brother would put her through though. Dating anyone? Meet any friends? Have you thought any more about moving out this way? She could hear the rapid-fire questions before they even started. Maybe she should fish some ibuprofen out of her purse. If she’d been smart, she would’ve driven the two hours home and come back tomorrow rather than subjecting herself to Gavin. She smiled despite herself. Admitting she missed him was a bridge too far. Her brothers were over-protective and controlling, but they loved her fiercely and would do anything to keep her safe and happy.
Chapter Two
Cate pulled into her brother’s driveway. He’d moved into the home where Samantha had grown up, but they’d made more than a few upgrades, doubling the size of the original house and completely customizing the interior. From the outside, it still looked like a nineteenth-century farmhouse.
Her sister-in-law pulled her in for a hug.
A delicious savory aroma filled the air with the scent of rosemary and something else? “I’m starved. What is that I’m smelling?”
“Chlorine.”
“Not that, but come to think of it, why do I smell chlorine?” Cate asked.
“Ask your brother.” Sam chuckled. “The aroma of food is from a pot roast.”
Cate glanced around. “Where’s my niece?”
“Aha!” Sam grinned. “I knew you didn’t come to see us.”
“Trina’s with Grayson and Jenna. They took her to Disney World,” Gavin said.
Cate bit back her disappointment at having missed seeing her niece and forced herself to smile. “Isn’t three a little young for that?” Their father had sent them there a few times, but only managed to join them once. Age eight at the time, she barely remembered the visit.
He laughed. “You try telling them that.”
She flopped down on their new sofa. “Ivory? Really? You’ll be having it cleaned once a month.”
“I told him the same thing.” Sam made a tsk noise with her tongue.
He shook his head. “It was evident to me that you wanted this color and fabric because you kept going back to it.”
“Totally impractical.” Samantha sighed, but her eyes ignited in a way that Cate could tell Gavin had guessed correctly. Sam loved it. A buzzer went off. “Sounds like the garlic biscuits are ready. How about some food?”
“Yum.” Cate followed her into the large open kitchen. “Wow, this place looks amazing.”
Samantha glanced around the space. “I wish my parents could’ve seen it with all the upgrades we’ve made.”
“I’m sure they would’ve loved it.”
