“God knew we can't cook to save our lives," Ezra sipped his coke.
Andrew nodded. He considered himself the best cook in the Buchanan family, along with his dad. “God is faithful, indeed.”
“What’s up with that grin?” Renee asked, “You’re as bad a cook as any of us.”
“I can run the grill like no one’s business.”
“Grilling burgers and steaks, you mean.” Renee dabbed a napkin to her lips. “That doesn't count.”
“Does, too.”
A moment passed in silence except for the clanking of silverware on the plates. Ezra yawned and talked about the few hours of sleep he’d gotten the night before. “Even if Leila wakes up with Adalee most of the time, I can still hear everything.”
“Good thing you live across the street, you can stay here and nap as long as you want,” Renee said. “Your wife can just cross over to get you if she needs you.”
The three traded stories about work for a while, and then the conversation shifted to soccer.
“Speaking of soccer,” Ezra gave a knowing smirk. “D says you’ve been losing like crazy!”
“Coaching kids is the hardest job ever!” Andrew set his fork down and leaned back. “I think I’ve finally figured out the right plays.”
“Just make them run around.” Renee lifted her glass of water from the table. “What seven year old doesn’t like to run?”
Andrew told them about the kid who hogged the ball during games, and the boy who thought the center of the field was the best place to get caught up on his artwork.
Renee laughed. Ezra chuckled, leaned his head back, and ran a hand over his face.
After the laughter subsided, Andrew teased his brother, “Yeah, in case you didn't know, you’re coaching the next game.”
Ezra shook off the laughter, and his face fell flat. “You can’t just quit on Daisy!”
Andrew had enough parents who stepped in to coach, but he enjoyed seeing his brothers’ reaction. “What happened to taking coaching turns?”
“I thought you’d forget about it. I don’t have a single clue about soccer.”
“Trust me,” Renee said. “He’s not quitting when he gets free dinner invites from parents as perks.”
Andrew had wondered when his siblings would bring his dinner at Bianca’s up. “I just had one invitation, and it was Daisy who invited me, not her mom.”
“Carmen is quite a character, isn’t she?” Ezra asked, his face filled with curiosity, and by his look, he was digging for more information.
“She sure is,” Andrew said, instead of indulging Ezra's unspoken question. As he told them about the list of projects Carmen had for him to work on, he smiled at the thought of her bluntness. “Definitely a character.”
Even though they were talking about Carmen, she was not the one on Andrew’s mind. It was Carmen’s daughter, the complete opposite of blunt. He had no idea how he’d conjured the words to ask her out.
Was that even the way men asked out girls these days? I want to see you again sometime? He hoped he’d made himself clear that he wanted to hang out with her. Asking girls out had always seemed easier before Callie. Was it getting warm in here?
“You just did that mind thing again.” Ezra rested his hands on the table. “Where your mind goes in a zone.”
He needed to get a grip on things before his sister suspected something. It seemed a little late, if her arched eyebrow meant anything.
“Oh, my gosh!” Renee’s eyes widened as she leaned back. “You just went at least five seconds of Bianca in your mind.”
“That’s not true...” he lied, but judging from Renee’s quizzical brow, Andrew knew that she didn’t believe him. He glanced at his sister, and spoke defensively. “Seriously?”
“She’s right!” Ezra remarked with a grin.
“Hope you’re not considering her as your rebound,” Renee said.
Andrew felt a stab at his sister’s sharp accusation. He stared at her, questioning, “Where did all that come from?”
Renee stacked the dirty plates on top of each other. “She’s vulnerable around you. She’s also my friend.”
He might assume Bianca’s vulnerability to be true, but what he didn’t understand was why Renee was defending Bianca as if Andrew was a tyrant. He pushed back the chair to rise, then carried the stacked plates from the table,
“Hello? The last I remember, I was your brother!” He turned to place the plates in the sink.
“I just don’t want our friendship to be awkward once you get past the rebound thing.” Renee strode toward him and set her water glass in the sink. “You could also get hurt. It's just... I don’t want this to be an irrational decision. My friendship’s at stake here.”
“Like you came between me and Jake?” Ezra teased, “If things worked out for you, why not for Drew?”
“Jake and I are different...”
That was ridiculous. “Who makes decisions on impulse?” His tone was more sharp than he intended.
“That would be Renee,” Ezra said.
Renee let out a slow breath, “What I meant is...it’s not like you to ever rush into anything...”
“Which is why he knows exactly what he’s doing,” Ezra said.
Andrew wondered how he’d become the topic of interest all of a sudden. He sauntered back to the table, ready to be done with this conversation. “I thought we were here to discuss the parents’ anniversary party.” He slapped his hand on the table. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
“Woah...woah.” Ezra held a hand up. “Not so fast, I still need some details here. I take it that she’s not afraid of you anymore? Otherwise, how did she invite you?”
“Daisy invited me,” he reminded.
“Bianca does all the preparations, not Daisy,” Renee said.
“She probably agreed just because she didn’t want to say no to her daughter.”
“Don't you think she could have denied her daughter’s request?”
Ezra cleared his throat. “D told me about the walks you three take at the park.”
Andrew crossed his arms. “It was just one time, and that was because I needed to talk to her about not talking to me.” Andrew paused, feeling like he was defending himself. There was no need to explain further when both his siblings wore amusement on their faces.
“By the way,” Ezra said, “despite your losses at soccer, D thinks you’re the best coach.”
Andrew was warmed to hear the compliment, yet he’d done a terrible job of coaching. “That’s sweet of her. I think kids just say stuff.”
“Nobody is as honest as a child,” Renee said.
Andrew remembered some of Daisy’s spontaneous comments, mainly what she’d said at the restaurant. ‘My mom eats a lot when she gets nervous.’
“Ignore Renee’s warning about rebound,” Ezra said, pulling him out of his thoughts. “You have my full support to date her, which should be easy for you, because you're a practical kind of guy.”
The thought of asking Bianca on a date felt anything but easy. She surprisingly made him nervous, to say the least.
It was easy for Ezra to assume otherwise. Even if his good looks had turned the ladies’ heads, he’d only ever had eyes for Leila.
“I support you, if you’ve moved on from Callie,” Renee emphasized.
“You're not getting any younger.” Ezra leaned forward on his elbows, his blue-gray eyes intent. “If you're gonna ask her out, better do it soon.”
“Okay, dad.” Andrew slapped Ezra’s shoulder. “You're both forgetting that I just walked out of a serious relationship.”
“It didn't work out,” Renee said.
What did he want from Bianca, then? A relationship or friendship? Would she ever let him hold her hand so they could walk as a couple someday, or would she have a nervous breakdown?
“Bianca and I are very...different.”
“Which makes her exactly your type.” Renee rested her hands forward. “Can you imagine being in
a relationship with someone who had the exact personality as you?” She scrunched her face, “Total definition of boring!”
“Since when did the conversation shift to me again?” Andrew stared between the two of them. “Let’s get back to party planning, shall we?”
He was grateful when Ezra nodded, crunched his can in his hand, and said, “Let's do it.”
“Okay, I made a list of all their friends.” Renee pulled out a drawer from underneath the counter and retrieved her iPad. “The retreat center hosts over three hundred people, but do we want all of them to stay the night?”
“Would it hurt someone’s feelings if they found out that some of Dad and Mom’s friends were staying the night and others weren't?” Andrew asked.
“That could end up ruining the entire weekend!” Ezra suggested, shrugging, “Just invite everyone. I doubt that everyone will be able to come. If they all do, we can have them bring their tents or campers.”
His parents owned two Retreat Centers, one in Buenavista and one in Estes park. “Are we thinking of Estes park?”
“Yep!” Renee said. “I reserved the second weekend in July.”
“Why don’t we see how many people you came up with.” Ezra leaned forward, his accounting mind going to work. “We have to calculate in terms of cost, starting with food...” He listed all the expenses they would incur. “We could just have a day trip.”
Renee pushed her chair forward, and both brothers sat on either side of her, leaning forward into the Ipad,their heads almost touching as they looked at the long list of names.
“Two hundred and fifty? That’s a lot of people!” Andrew said.
“There’s family,” Renee explained. “Friends from church, neighbors, work, and you name it.”
Ezra stared at the Ipad, perhaps at the time more than the list of names. “I need to get in a nap before Leila’s parents show up tonight,” Ezra spoke totally off subject. “Now that I have the numbers, can I let you two get this planning thing down?”
“No way!” Renee said.
Ezra groaned and threw his head back, yawning. “Let's hurry up, then. The tax deadline is next week, and I need to get work done for my last minute clients.”
Ezra did taxes for people, and Andrew assumed his brother would run an accounting firm someday.
Andrew scanned the list, wondering if they could narrow it down. He blinked when a familiar name caught his attention, bringing panic to his heart. He frowned as he turned to Renee. “You're inviting Tori and John? I didn’t think you stayed in touch with Callie.”
“Callie?” Renee brushed Andrew’s concern away with a wave of her hand. “Our friendship was contingent upon your relationship. The moment you broke up, that was the end of our friendship.”
He didn’t care if his sister stayed in touch with his ex, but that didn’t explain the invitation. “Why did you invite her parents, then?”
Renee winced. “She and Mom are still good friends.”
He didn’t expect his mom’s friends to change just because of his break-up with Callie. This was about his parents' anniversary, plus, Callie was in Florida. The mountain property was expansive enough for him to avoid running into his ex’s parents. He let out a slow breath. “I guess it’s not a big deal.”
Then why was he afraid to run into Callie’s parents? He let his eyes wander to the backyard blooming with tulips, and the green grass. “We’ve both moved on, anyway.” His voice was barely audible this time.
Had he moved on? He was trying to, and he had no idea if he would run right back into Callie’s arms should she come to her senses and return to Colorado—to him.
No, he wouldn’t... he shook the thought off. She’d flushed four years of their time together down the drain the moment she decided to move to another state.
If only he had waited a little longer to propose, then he wouldn’t have made a fool of himself.
Three months after he’d proposed, she’d suggested it was time to plan their lives somewhere else. Should he have gone with her?
He returned to the present and found all eyes were pinned on him.
“Leave Bianca alone,” Renee ordered. Such a little mind reader.
“I’ve moved on.” The fact that he was drawn to Bianca and fascinated by her calm demeanor should say something, so maybe her calm hadn’t been reflective as much, lately, but he had everything to do with her sudden panic episodes.
Bianca was different from any of the women he’d dated in the past—different in a unique way, which was probably one of the reasons he felt drawn to her.
Andrew and his siblings finalized what kind of games to play, how much food would be needed for three days, and who would be cooking.
He pulled his phone from the sweatshirt he had draped over the chair, and checked the screen. It was almost 1:30 p.m.
“I need to go and fix Bianca’s sink.” After watching a few YouTube videos, he’d learned that if the leak was on the reset button, it meant he needed to get a new garbage disposal. “I have to get a few things at Home Depot before showing up there.” He could stretch out the time and show up after Bianca got home from work, but he might not have the chance to talk to her while working underneath her sink.
He said goodbye to his siblings.
“Think about what I said about Bianca!” Renee reminded him for the upteenth time.
All the talk about Bianca with his siblings only stirred up thoughts of her. The logical thing to do was to leave her alone, at least until he had his mind clear from his ex. However, he didn’t plan on leaving Bianca alone.
He climbed up in his F150 and fired the engine, then retrieved his cellphone from his sweatshirt and looked up Bianca’s number. His thumb danced on the screen of his keyboard as he contemplated texting her, to clarify what he’d meant when he said he wanted to see her again. He set the phone down in his console when he realized he had no idea what to type. I can thank her for the burritos, instead.
He picked it up again and smiled as he typed: Enjoyed the burritos this morning.
He didn't expect an immediate response, because she was probably busy serving food to the cafe’s customers.
Despite all the reasons he should not dive into a new relationship, he had one good reason to do the opposite. Bounce back, the same way he did with all the valleys in his life. One relationship gone bad didn’t mean that he was set for the same fall again.
CHAPTER 12
Andrew panted as he and Mateo tried to wiggle the heavy oak dresser through the door of Bianca’s room. “Let’s take a break,” he suggested, and they eased the dresser to the floor.
“My back is going to break,” Mateo wheezed as he rested his hand on his lower back before staggering to sink onto the bed.
It was a good thing that they didn’t have any stairs to climb. “You’re doing great!”
Standing in Bianca’s bedroom gave Andrew a glimpse into her personality. Everything was simple, just like Bianca herself. A small bed the size of his childhood bed was neatly made, a black comforter tucked over it. Beside the bed stood a full size chest of drawers topped with a mirror. A framed picture of two teenagers caught his attention—a girl in a wedding gown and a blonde boy in a dark suit with a bow tie.
If it weren’t for Mateo, Andrew would be picking up the frame to study the picture. The fact that it was the only thing on the dresser meant the couple in the photo was Bianca and Daisy’s dad.
His eyes wandered to the stained and peeling paint on the walls. He could easily paint the entire house in one day, but he had no idea how Bianca would react if he offered to help. Would she feel offended?
He could go through Carmen and show up on a weekday like today when Bianca was at work. Something else on the wall caught his attention—the two firefighter calendars right across from her bed.
He understood why she had Ezra’s firehouse calendar. She was like family to Ezra and Leila. What he didn’t understand was why the other calendar was still turned to January, which feature
d a picture of Andrew with Rocky standing at his side. Ezra’s calendar was opened to April where it should be.
A smile curved the corners of his lips, and he shook his head in amusement at the thought of what place he held in Bianca’s heart.
“She like you!” Mateo’s voice pulled him back. When he turned to look at Bianca’s brother, he was staring at the calendars, too. “You have a big dog?”
Pretending not to have heard the statement about Bianca liking him, Andrew chose to respond to the last part, instead. “Yeah! Rocky. You’ll get to meet him soon.”
During one of his visits to get work done at Bianca’s house, he would bring Rocky along.
To keep Mateo from discussing Bianca any further, Andrew shifted the conversation. “So, I spoke to the owner of Carnota’s Restaurant, and he said they have a job for you.”
Mateo rose from the bed, a wide grin spread across his face. “You tell him I don’t speak well English?”
“You will not need English. They have musicians five days a week, but he might need you to do bussing on the days they don’t play.” He wasn’t sure if Mateo went to church or not. From the way Carmen spoke of church, he got the impression she went to Catholic mass on Easter and at Christmas time.
“He will give you Sundays off, if you want to go to Church.”
“I don’t go to church,” Mateo said, then outstretched his hand. “Muchas gracias!”
Andrew shook it, assuming he was saying Thank you! The only word he knew in Spanish was the greeting, ‘Hola!’
“You’re welcome,” he said. “He wants to meet with you next week.” The location was a bit far from Mateo’s neighborhood, but Andrew had looked up the bus route for him.
“I will be glad to drive you to the interview, or find some way to get you there.” If Andrew had to work, he’d ask his dad, since dad’s job was flexible and he wouldn't mind helping. As a last resort, he would call an Uber for Mateo.
When he glanced back at Mateo, the young man was raking his hand through his hair, then shook his hands in the air.
“Don’t be nervous, it will be fine,” Andrew assured him.
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