To Be With You

by Daphne Abbott

  My cell vibrated in my pocket. I moved toward the kitchen at the back of the house, so I didn’t get in more trouble with Fabián for ruining the shot. “Hello?”

  “Hey, boss man,” Jolene, my personal assistant, said in a bouncy tone of voice. “You got a sec to chat?”

  I could hear her typing and the indistinct sounds of an alternative rock song played in the background. Jo loved to multi-task and was probably answering emails, as she called me for a check-in. Fabián and I had hired her two years ago to keep us in line, and it had been the best decision we made. Even though Jo didn’t look like your typical personal assistant with her purple-tipped hair and multiple tattoos, she was the most scarily efficient person I’d ever met.

  “Yeah, I can talk. Fabián’s doing B-Roll before we shoot the final walk-through on the Delaware house.”

  “Oh, right, that was today. Everything looking gorgeous as usual?”

  I looked around the kitchen and grinned. “Yeah, it’s our best one yet. But don’t tell Fab I said so.”

  Jolene laughed. “I’m not getting in the middle of that argument again. We have some new submissions I’m going to send over.”

  “Okay, I’ll look them over with Fab when we’re done here. Any in the stack you particularly like?”

  “You’ll see my recommendations in the email. I don’t want to ruin the surprises. There are some good ones there.”

  “Okay,” I said with a laugh. “Fabián and I are driving back to Brooklyn this afternoon, then we’re off for the weekend, right?”

  “Right,” Jo confirmed, and I could hear her tapping on the keyboard some more. “The next thing you have scheduled is the live AMA with fans on Wednesday.”

  “That’s the longest break you’ve given me since you started working with us. Are you trying to butter me up for something?”

  “Cal, do you really think I’m that sneaky?”

  “I know you are, Jo.”

  “All right, maybe I am. But just keep an open mind, okay?”

  “You know I hate surprises,” I said, and looked up as Fabián walked into the room. “Just tell me what you’re cooking up, Jolene.”

  “Sorry, boss, time for this drone to get back to work. Talk to you later!” She ended the call before I pressed further.

  “What’s up?” Fabián said as he unhooked himself from the stabilization rig he’d created for filming the sweeping shots he was known for.

  “Our PA is up to something,” I muttered as I thumbed through my notifications. My mom had called again. I made a mental note to return the call in the morning. She’d get upset if I continued to dodge her.

  “When isn’t she up to something?” Fab asked as he sat down at the island across from me.

  “Never,” I muttered. It wasn’t like I minded Jolene’s machinations. Hell, her ability to get people to do what she wanted was half the reason I paid her the astronomical amount I did. “But this time she was shady with the details. She’s usually excited to show off that I’m worried this means I won’t like what she’s got cooking now.”

  “You like nothing that isn’t your own idea,” Fabián said. He ran a hand through his dark black hair and gave me his most devilish grin. “You like to be the visionary of the operation.”

  “You make me sound like an egotistical ass.” I refreshed the app, and Jo’s email finally popped up on the list.

  “I wouldn’t use the word egotistical,” Fabián said. His Creole accent became thicker as he said, “As Grandmere would say, you’re just wilier than a fox. And you like making sure others know it.”

  “Grandmere sure has a lot of useful sayings when you want to put me in my place. Too bad she died; otherwise, I’d love to hear some straight from the horse’s mouth.”

  Fab laughed. “Yeah, it’s too bad that grand ole’ lady isn’t around to meet you, Callum Waite. She would have had a field day with you.”

  I flipped him the bird, but didn’t take my eyes off the screen as I read through Jolene’s email. There was the usual business of my schedule and upcoming appearances, along with a note that our rep for the video hosting site had a birthday coming up, and she’d sent flowers and a gift. Buried at the very bottom of her message was a link that simply said, “Check This Out!”

  I clicked on the link, and a picture filled the screen of my phone. My heart immediately raced, and I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. But was it excitement or fear? I couldn’t be sure.

  Van Ess House.

  The grand old home had always been the source of both joy and pain. Hours of childhood memories flooded my mind, and I was helpless to stop them. The phone slipped through my lifeless fingers and clattered to the marble counter with a sound that sounded as loud as a gunshot in the quiet room.

  “Merde,” Fab cursed in French and picked up the device. “You see a ghost, Cal? You’re whiter than normal.”

  I shook my head and pointed at the phone still in his hand. “Not a ghost, but definitely a specter of my past.”

  He looked down at the screen, and his eyes widened to an almost comical size. “Is this?”

  “Yes.”

  “And she’s asking you?” His black brows winged down in a sign of concern.

  “Seems so.”

  “Are you going to?”

  I shrugged. “I’d be crazy not to, wouldn’t I?”

  Fabián put the phone face down on the counter and gave me all of his attention. Since the day we met in our sophomore year of college, that look always made me feel like a bug under the microscope. Fabián used it to ferret out information without ever having to ask a question.

  I knew he wouldn’t turn it off till I spilled everything. I just started talking. “The Van Ess House is my white whale, my Eleanor, my Everest. You know that. It’s the reason I went to the Rhode Island School of Design. It’s the reason I’m an architect. It’s the reason—”

  “It’s the reason you avoid your home. It’s the reason you push yourself harder and harder every year. It’s the reason you’re going to burn out before the age of forty,” Fabián interrupted.

  I ran my hand through my hair, tugging at the curls I now wore closely cropped to my head instead of a wild mess around my face. “It’s all of those things.”

  “It’s also now owned by the other specter in your life. The one you refuse to speak about. That’s the one I’m worried about more than the stupid house.” He flipped over the phone and shoved it in my direction.

  On the screen was a headshot of Olivia. Though her hair was longer and darker, and her face had lost the softness of youth, her hazel eyes and that confident smile were still the same. We’d remained social media friends for years, and that smile haunted my timeline like a ghost.

  I’d avoided frequent interaction with Olivia to save my sanity. Yet I hadn’t been able to avoid the major highlights of her life. Her college graduation, her marriage to Peter MacPherson, their idyllic European honeymoon, and the eventual divorce. Like an addict, I ate up the information even as I tried to move on and live my own life.

  “That means Rose is gone,” I whispered as I kept staring at the screen. “Why didn’t anyone tell me Rose died?”

  “Probably because you bite their heads off anytime they mention anyone outside of the family when y’all talk,” Fab said, and I could hear his frustration and censure in that sentence. Family was more important to him than anything else, and he’d never been able to understand why I kept my parents and brothers at arms-length.

  “She’s offering me not just the house but a chance to renovate the entire town,” I muttered.

  “That’s a massive commitment. We’d have to block off several months, push back other appearances and jobs,” Fab said.

  “It would be the largest project we’ve ever done, and it would give us a ton of exposure,” I said as I thumbed through the picture
s Olivia had attached to her email.

  “So, what’s next?”

  “What’s next?” I looked up at my best friend and partner and tried to give him a confident smile, but I knew it fell short. “I need to call my mother.”

  * * *

  “Well, I thought you were dead.”

  I laughed and leaned my head against the window of the car. “Don’t be dramatic, Ma. Besides, you know Jo would call you the second something was wrong.”

  “That’s because Jo is a good girl that respects her elders.” Mom sniffed. Since I was wise to her theatrics, I didn’t respond. “I left you a voicemail two days ago, Callum.”

  “I’m sorry. We’ve been in Delaware finishing up a job. You know how crazy it can get at the end,” I said and watched with unfocused eyes as the landscape raced past my window.

  “I know, but this is important, Callum. There are big things happening in town, and I need to talk to you about them.”

  “Ma, how many times do I have to tell you I don’t care about town gossip?”

  Mom’s sigh sounded like it came from the depths of her soul. It was the sigh only I, as the troublesome middle child, got when I was being difficult. “This isn’t gossip, Cal. Miss Rose has passed.”

  Even though this wasn’t news to me, I still felt sadness hit me like a punch in the gut. “How?”

  “How?” Mom laughed. “Callum, she was ninety years old. It was just her time.”

  “She wasn’t sick?”

  “No, honey. She passed in her sleep a few weeks ago. It was peaceful,” Mom said.

  “Why did you wait to tell me till now?”

  “I would have if you ever answered your phone.” The censure in her voice made me feel about five years old.

  “Ma, I talked to you a week ago, and you said nothing about Rose dying.” Silence. She hadn’t expected me to point that out. “Is that why you called? To tell me about Rose?”

  “No, but her death has brought up something here. She’s created an endowment of five million dollars and gave it to the town to renovate and revitalize.”

  Even though I’d read that information in Liv’s email, the number was still staggering. “That’s amazing.”

  “It is, but it comes with a catch. Rose wanted to make sure we distribute her gift as intended. A board led by Olivia will distribute the funds for approved projects.”

  Olivia had not included this caveat in her email. Creating a board to manage a large trust was not uncommon, but I had to wonder if Rose had additional reasons for structuring her gift in this manner. “Who else is on the board?”

  “Her cousin, Priscilla Kemp, the new librarian, Stella O’Hare, a lawyer, Natalie Morgan, and of course, Ida Lehman.”

  There were some unfamiliar names on that list, but also some I expected. Rose was a beloved figure in Eagle Creek, and she called almost everyone a friend. But her true confidants were limited to a small few that she kept close.

  “How’d the town react when Liv told them about this gift?”

  “There was a fight at the Ladies’ Auxiliary meeting,” Mom replied.

  “What?” My outburst was so loud that I startled Fab, and he jerked in his seat next to me. I mouthed, “sorry,” but he just flipped me the bird and turned his attention back to the highway.

  Mom laughed. “It was actually pretty entertaining. It started when Mary Beth MacPherson questioned how the board would fairly distribute the funds.”

  “What does that woman know about fair?” I grumbled.

  “Exactly!” Mom chuckled again. “So, of course, Ida told her to piss off, and it just dissolved from there. Just when I thought it was going to come to blows, Olivia walked right into the middle of the fight and calmed everyone down.”

  I could picture it. Olivia, even as a young girl, had been a peacekeeper. As the daughter of the long-time mayor, she’d mastered the ability to control a situation with a single word. I was only sad there was no video of it for me to see.

  “The board is going to need a plan for the money,” Mom said, and I realized that I’d zoned out again. “So, I told Olivia you could help.”

  “Mom, I haven’t lived in Eagle Creek in over fifteen years. Why did you think I would be interested?”

  “Callum Albert Waite. Eagle Creek is your home, even if you insist on remaining on the opposite side of the country.”

  Mom’s voice had risen to a level where I was sure Fabián could hear everything she was saying. Even though he kept his eyes on the road, I could feel his interest filling the car’s interior.

  I sighed and rubbed at the back of my neck. “Mom, I’ve never worked on an entire town. I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

  “Neither does Olivia, but she’s working on it. And I think you should help her. You two were always friendly. It would be good for her to have a friend on her side,” Mom said. “Not to mention the fact that your father and your brothers are business owners in this community and could benefit from some of this money too.”

  “Logan and Jake are doing just fine the last time I checked,” I said, suddenly feeling completely exhausted by this conversation, a common feeling when having a conversation with my mother.

  “Callum, please put aside whatever petty grievances you have for this town. Just this once. Please.”

  “I don’t have any issues with the town, Ma. I’ve told you that over and over. I just like living in Brooklyn much better than the backwoods of Wisconsin.”

  “If you don’t have any problems with the town, then you shouldn’t have any issues coming back to help,” Mom said.

  Damn, she’d backed me into a corner, and I couldn’t even be mad because her skill was just that impressive. “I don’t know what my schedule is like.”

  “Jolene cleared your weekend. Come back home and talk to Olivia, get an idea of what she’s thinking, and you can work out the details with schedules then.”

  She’d thought of everything. “Fine. I’ll check into flights tonight and update you as soon as I get a ticket.”

  “There’s a flight at nine tomorrow morning that still has seats.”

  “Enough, Ma. I’ll let you know.”

  “I can’t wait to see you, sweety. Love you!” She hung up before I could say anything more.

  I tossed the phone on the dash and covered my face with my hands as I let out a long groan. A normal conversation with my mother was exhausting. A conversation where she was manipulating me into doing her bidding was like torture.

  “How’s Mom?” Fabián’s voice was full of laughter.

  “Mom has summoned me back to Eagle Creek to help Olivia Van Ess revitalize the town.”

  “Home always has a way of calling us back,” Fab said in a soft tone. “Maybe this time you’ll want to stay.”

  Chapter 4

  Olivia

  Despite Lucy’s warnings, I’d broken down and sent a submission email to Callum’s show the morning after my confrontation with Nick. I knew it’d been a cowardly way to reach out to him, but it felt like the easiest way to face potential rejection. Half of me hoped he’d see the submission and skip it. The other half was desperate to see what he could do.

  To hedge my bets, I’d also emailed two other architects about the job, but both inquiries had come up empty. If Callum said no, I was in danger of losing Nick’s help. If I lost Nick, I’d never get to move on to phase two. I’d already given up many of my childhood dreams to fit in with the expectations of my father, the town, and my ex-husband. I would not give up on this dream, too.

  I heard nothing for two days. Then finally, the phone rang.

  “Hello?” I was breathless from a long jog.

  “Olivia?”

  It may have been fifteen years later, but I would know that voice anywhere. “Callum,” I said his name on an exhale as I collapsed into the nearest chair in
my living room. “Hi.”

  “I received your email.” Measured and firm, his tone sounded as if he was very conscious of every word he spoke.

  “Oh good. It worried me when I didn’t hear back right away, but then again, maybe this is your normal turnaround. I’ve never dealt with an internet show, so I didn’t know if I was even really contacting you or a PR firm. But I am glad it’s you that made the call since you know the house and the importance of Pine.” I was rambling. I always rambled when I was nervous.

  “I’m sorry about Rose. I–I didn’t know she’d passed. No one in my family mentioned it,” Callum said when I took a breath.

  I smiled. “She was a special lady. Thank you, Callum.”

  There were several long moments of silence and where I had to bite my inner cheek to stop from rambling. I had made the first overture by sending the application. I would not embarrass myself by continuing to fill his silences. A girl had a right to some pride. Even if I caused the thick tension that resonated between us.

  “My PA thinks your house is the best fit for our next project, but Fabian has concerns.”

  Shit, that didn’t sound good. “What doubts does he have? I know Eagle Creek isn’t exactly the most glamorous of towns, but the house is one of a kind.”

  “It’s not the town,” Callum said, and it was what he didn’t say that told me all I needed to know.

  “Cal, I’ve tried to apologize—”

  “Liv, don’t. I’ll do the job. On two conditions.”

  My heart rate spiked. I was close to getting what I wanted. “Name them.”

  “The first is that you’ll agree to us filming the entire project for the channel, not just your house, but the work for the town as well.”

  “That’s no problem. I think the other board members and I were kind of hoping you’d want to film. The channel will be good publicity for us. I’d just prefer not to be on camera too much if that’s possible.”

  “Your participation can be as nominal as you please.” Callum sighed and continued, “Actually, that ties into my second condition. You contacted me because I’m an expert in restoration and preservation. I’m also the most recognized authority on the William Pine originals.”