Callum

by Holly C. Webb

  Each night, when it happened, Georgie would rush to her room, but Callum would always be there first, almost like he was living on edge, waiting for her to cry out. Some nights Macy would want Georgie, and some nights she would want Callum. It was truly heart breaking.

  “Are you tired, Sweetie?” Georgie asked, watching the little girl closely.

  “No,” Macy insisted, as she yawned once more, as Georgie smiled again.

  “Okay,” Georgie laughed as the elevator came to a stop.

  “PING!” Macy mimicked the sound of the elevator before the doors opened.

  Stepping off the elevator, Georgie pulled her key from her pocket as she led Macy to the door. Suddenly her phone started to ring in her pocket. Pulling it from her pocket, she sighed when she saw Shane’s name flashing on the screen. It was the second time he had called her that day. Georgie hit decline, then quickly shoved her phone back into her pocket.

  “Are you sad, Georgie?” Macy asked as she gave Georgie a curious look, pulling her back from her thoughts.

  “No, Sweetie,” Georgie assured the little girl, giving her a bright smile. “But I am hungry. I wonder what Annie is making for dinner today?”

  Macy smiled, but she didn’t reply.

  Georgie opened the door before Macy quickly ran into the apartment ahead of her.

  “HENRY!” Macy exclaimed suddenly, though Georgie had no idea who or what she was talking about. When she reached the living room, she found a young woman sitting there, holding a baby in her arms, while Macy was kissing him, and making funny faces at him.

  “Hi,” Georgie said as she gave the woman a curious look.

  “Hey,” Amelia said, looking up at her, greeting her with a bright smile. “You must be Georgie.”

  “I am,” Georgie replied as she walked closer to the sofa,

  “I’m Amelia,” Amelia explained, giving Georgie another smile. “I’m married to Landen…”

  “Callum’s brother,” Georgie replied, this time she gave her a bright smile. “He has mentioned you both. This must be Henry.”

  Georgie sat down next to Amelia, smiling down at the baby in her arms. He was the cutest little boy ever, and there was definitely a resemblance to Macy in him.

  “He is a cutie,” Georgie said, looking up at Amelia and smiling once more.

  “I guess you’re wondering why I’m here,” Amelia asked, as Georgie couldn’t help but smile once more. “I just thought I would drop by and introduce myself.”

  “It’s lovely to meet you,” Georgie said, giving her another smile.

  “Ms. Taylor,” Annie said as she came out of the kitchen, carrying a cup of tea for Amelia. “I’m sorry, I mean Georgie; I didn’t know you were back. Can I get you something?”

  “No thanks, Annie,” Georgie replied as she stood up, and slipped off her jacket before she sat it back down next to Amelia. “I’m all set.”

  Annie set the tea down in front of Amelia before she excused herself, and returned to the kitchen.

  Just then, Henry started to fuss in Amelia’s arms.

  “Why doesn’t that surprise me,” Amelia said, with a sigh. “Every time I sit down for a cup of tea, Henry decides he wants his bottle too.”

  “Are you breastfeeding?” Georgie asked, giving Amelia a questioning look.

  “Yes,” she replied, unsure why she wanted to know. “But I pump. I figured with Macy being here…”

  “Cool,” Georgie said, as she held out her arms to Amelia. “Then I will feed him, and you…you can enjoy your tea.”

  “Well, I won’t say no,” Amelia said as she handed Henry to Georgie, then reached for his baby bag, to get his bottle of milk.

  Henry settled into Georgie's arms and latched onto his bottle instantly.

  “He’s hungry,” Georgie said, glancing up at Amelia.

  “He’s a Murphy,” Amelia replied with a laugh. “Being hungry is definitely a family trait.”

  “Well, he is certainly enjoying this,” Georgie said, turning her attention back to the little boy, as Macy climbed up next to her. “Hey, Macy, would you like to help me feed Henry.”

  “Yep,” Macy said, reaching out, putting her hand over Georgie’s. She looked up at Georgie and smiled. “I’m giving him his bottle too!”

  “Yes, you are,” Georgie said, giving the little girl a big smile.

  “You’re really good with her,” Amelia said, before taking a sip of her tea. “Callum is lucky to have you.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Georgie sighed without even thinking. She looked up at Amelia and smiled. “What I mean is, sometimes I wonder if he thinks me being here is a bad idea.”

  “Georgie,” Amelia said, giving her a warm smile. “This is all very new to Callum. Just give him a chance to find his comfort zone.”

  “Okay,” Georgie replied with a nod. “Thanks, Amelia.”

  Georgie had just finished feeding Henry when the doorbell sounded. Before she had time to take a breath, Annie appeared from the kitchen, hurrying towards the front door.

  “Annie, Sweetheart!” A voice came from the doorway, and Georgie was surprised to see Macy’s face light up.

  “LIAM!” Macy said as she climbed up from the floor. Georgie could see Macy wanted to go and greet him; it was clear that whoever Liam was, she liked him. Still, she was unsure of herself, so she stood there, rooted to the spot, waiting patiently for him to come into the living room.

  “Liam is Callum’s brother, too,” Amelia explained as if reading Georgie’s thoughts.

  “Hey Macy Cakes,” Liam said as he walked into the living room, the biggest smile on his face the moment he saw Macy. “What does a guy gotta do around here to get a kiss?” He crouched down to her level, as Macy quickly closed the distance between her and Liam.

  Once she reached him, Liam scooped her up in his arms, blowing the biggest raspberry on her face, making Macy squeal with laughter.

  “What have you been eating?” He asked as he gave her a curious look. “You’ve got so heavy.”

  “Ice-cream,” she replied with a giggle.

  “ICE-CREAM!” He exclaimed, looking down into her eyes. “Did you keep some for me?”

  Macy shook her head and giggled again before Liam blew another raspberry on her cheek.

  “Hey,” he said, as he attention finally turned to the two ladies sitting on the sofa, still holding Macy in his arms. He looked down at Henry, now sleeping in Georgie’s arms. “My favourite little man is here too.”

  He walked to Amelia, kissing her on the cheek before he let his eyes meet Georgie’s.

  “Liam,” Amelia said before she looked at Georgie. “This is Georgie Taylor; she is Macy’s new nanny. Georgie, this is Liam Murphy.”

  “A pleasure to meet you, Georgie,” Liam said, giving her a killer smile. “My brothers certainly do know how to pick beautiful women to have in their lives.”

  Georgie instantly blushed.

  “Oh, behave you,” Amelia scolded Liam, but she smiled as she turned to Georgie. “You’ll have to excuse Liam, he has a heart of gold, it’s just sometimes his mouth forgets its place.”

  “Nice, Sis,” Liam said, flopping down on the other sofa, still holding on to Macy. The little girl happily sat on his lap and watched him with the biggest smile on her face. “I’m wounded, deeply.”

  “Of course you are,” Amelia laughed, as did Georgie. “So, what has you here in the middle of the day?”

  “The same thing as you, I expect,” Liam replied, giving Georgie a bright smile.

  Georgie liked Liam, He was funny and charming, but there was something sweet about him. The fact that he was the first person she had met that Macy appeared to be at ease with told her all she needed to know about him.

  “Callum asked you to stop by?” Amelia asked, giving him a surprised look, but her words unsettled Georgie. Even though she kind of knew that’s why she was here, actually having it confirmed that Callum had asked Amelia to check up on her made her doubt herself even more. Ge
orgie suddenly felt less than comfortable.

  “Oh, no, I was just dying to meet the girl that has saved Callum’s ass,” Liam replied with a laugh. “And freaked Mom out completely. So not the same reason, I suppose.”

  “Really, Liam,” Amelia sighed before she looked at Georgie once more. “Pay no attention to him. Like I said, Liam’s mouth forgets its place.”

  “Callum asked you to check up on me?” Georgie had the words out before she even thought about it.

  “Not check up on you,” Amelia assured her, clearly sensing the girl was more than a little upset by the fact Callum didn’t trust her. “He just thought that you might like some company.”

  Georgie smiled, but she didn’t reply.

  “I guess he is still finding his feet,” Amelia offered her some reassurance. “He mentioned he had upset you last week, and he just wanted to be sure you were okay now.”

  “It was nothing really,” Georgie replied, giving her another smile. “I’m made of tougher stuff than that. I do worry about Macy though. She gets so upset if anyone raises their voice. It’s like she is so unsure of herself.”

  “Callum told me about the incident last week,” Amelia replied, giving Georgie a look that said she was concerned too. “About how upset she got….”

  “Why was Macy upset?” Liam cut in, his smiling demeanour changed to one of concern as he looked at Georgie.

  “There was some lady here,” Georgie replied, unsure if she should have even mentioned her.

  “The mean lady said bad words,” Macy said, looking up into Liam’s eyes.

  “She said bad words?” Liam asked, giving Macy a shocked look before he kissed her forehead. “Maybe Uncle Liam needs to arrest this mean lady.”

  Macy giggled once more before Liam returned his gaze to Georgie.

  “Does this mean lady have a name?” He asked, giving Georgie a questioning look.

  “It’s not my place to say,” Georgie said, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable with the whole conversation.

  “It was probably Camilla,” Liam said, looking from Georgie to Amelia. “That chick is one crazy bitch.”

  “OH!” Macy gasped, looking up at Liam. “Uncle Liam said a bad word.”

  “Liam!” Amelia scolded him. “Not in front of Macy.”

  “I’m sorry,” Liam said, tickling the little girl on his lap. “I still forget little kids have big ears. I’ll be good.”

  He stood up from the sofa, throwing Macy over his shoulder making her squeal with delight, before turning towards the kitchen.

  “What do you say Macy Cakes,” he called out to the little girl as he made his way across the living room. “How about we go and see if Annie has anything yummy to eat.”

  He disappeared in through the door to the kitchen, leaving Amelia and Georgie sitting in an uncomfortable silence.

  “You’ll get used to Liam,” Amelia said, being the first to break the silence. “He speaks before he thinks, but deep down, he is a good man. All the Murphy boys are.”

  “Macy seems to love him,” Georgie replied, still feeling a little uneasy, unable to shake the fact that Callum had sent Amelia around to check up on her.

  “She does,” Amelia replied with a smile before she added. “Georgie, try not read too much into the fact Callum asked me to drop by. Callum is a sweetheart, but he also finds it difficult to let go sometimes. Landen said that he could be a bit of a control freak, but I think it’s just that so much responsibility has been put on his shoulders, he worries about letting people down. Now, this thing with Macy had come so far out of left field, sometimes he doesn’t know if he’s coming or going. He is trying his best; you just need to give him a little time.”

  “I just want him to know that there is nothing I would ever do to hurt Macy,” Georgie replied, not knowing why she felt so comfortable talking to this girl she hardly knew. “She is such a sweet little girl; I really like her. I like them both.”

  “He knows,” Amelia assured her. “Believe me, if Callum had even the smallest doubt about you, he would have never left you with Macy. But sometimes a little extra reassurance makes all the difference. Besides, I’m glad he asked me to drop by, I have enjoyed our time together. Sometimes having just a baby to talk to can get a little boring, and I don’t really know many other moms, so it nice to hang out with someone who isn’t bored listening to baby crap after two seconds.”

  “I enjoyed it too,” Georgie replied, giving Amelia a bright smile.

  “Then we will have to do this again,” Amelia suggested. Georgie responded with a nod, and a bright smile.

  “Sorry, I’m late!” Callum exclaimed as he came hurrying into the living room a little after dinner. Macy was cuddled up next to Georgie on the big sofa watching Frozen for the second time. Callum hurried to the sofa, leaning down he kissed the top of Macy’s head before he stood up and smiled at Georgie. “How was she today?”

  “Great!” Georgie replied, trying not to dwell too much on the fact that she knew Callum didn’t completely trust her.

  “WE GOT ICE-CREAM!” Macy exclaimed excitedly, looking up at her father. “And I played with Liam and Henry.”

  “Liam was here?” Callum asked, looking at Georgie.

  “Yep,” she confirmed with a smile, then added, unable to resist. “So was Amelia.”

  Callum froze for a moment, the look on his face confirming that he realised that Georgie knew he had sent Amelia around to check on them.

  He opened his mouth to reply, but before he could say anything, Annie appeared from the kitchen, and Callum looked almost grateful for the distraction.

  “Mr. Murphy, will you be having some dinner, Sir?” Annie asked, giving him a questioning look. Callum leaned down, kissing Macy once more, before he turned, heading towards the stairs.

  “No thanks, Annie,” he said giving the woman a grateful smile. “I’m going out to dinner tonight. I’m meeting Camilla in an hour.”

  “That chick is a crazy bitch,” Macy’s little voice echoed across the sitting room, stopping Callum in his tracks.

  Georgie’s heart almost stopped. She couldn’t believe what Macy said. She held her breath, waiting for Callum to freak out over Macy’s comment. She knew he would realise that they had discussed him earlier, and Georgie was beyond mortified.

  “Did she just say…” Callum asked as he turned, walking back slowly towards Georgie and Macy.

  “Uncle Liam said the bad lady is a crazy bitch,” Macy repeated, this time looking up at Callum, once more making Georgie pray for the ground to open up and swallow her.

  “Did he now?” Callum asked, giving Georgie a look that she couldn’t read. “And what else did Uncle Liam say?”

  “He said I have big ears,” she shrugged as she returned her attention back to the movie on the TV.

  “Did my brother say anything else I should know about,” Callum asked, looking directly at Georgie.

  “No,” Georgie replied, feeling almost sick. “Amelia told him not to be talking in front of Macy, so he changed the subject.”

  “How did he know about Camilla?” Callum asked, and Georgie thought she was going to be sick.

  “He asked why Macy had been upset,” Georgie replied, knowing there was no point in lying now. “And I mentioned that you had a visitor.”

  “I see,” Callum replied, still the expression on his face was unreadable. Georgie stared at him for a moment, her heart thumping so fast in her chest, she could barely hear anything over the sound in her ear. “I should go get ready; I don’t want to be late for Cam…Ms. Gibson.”

  “Okay,” Georgie replied, before Callum turned, hurrying across the living room, and up the stairs.

  “Have I gotten Liam into trouble?” Georgie asked Annie who was still standing by the kitchen door.

  “If Liam is in trouble,” Annie replied, giving her a reassuring look. “Then Liam only has himself to blame.”

  “Damn,” Georgie sighed, glancing down at Macy. “He’s probably mad at me too. I sho
uld have said nothing.”

  “Try not to worry about it,” Annie said, offering her some kind of assurance. “The Murphy boys often say or do things that make the other’s mad, but in the end, these five men love each other unconditionally. They will laugh about it in a day or two.”

  “Thanks, Annie,” Georgie replied, but in the pit of her stomach, she could feel the knot of fear tighten. She knew she’d only known this family a short time, but she already liked them so much. The last thing she wanted was for them to fall out because she had said something she wasn’t supposed to.

  By the time Callum returned back down the stairs twenty minutes later, Georgie had almost convinced herself he was going to tell her to pack her things, that things weren’t going to work out.

  When he walked down the stairs, Georgie held her breath, trying her hardest to focus on the movie she and Macy were watching.

  “Bedtime when the movie’s over, Sweetheart,” Callum said as he kissed the top of Macy’s head. He stood for a moment, and Georgie could tell he was reluctant to leave his little girl once more. She couldn’t help but wonder if his reluctance had anything to do with her.

  Finally, he released a long sigh, taking a step back.

  “Be a good girl for, Georgie,” Callum said, his eyes finally meeting Georgie’s. “I will see you both in the morning.”

  Georgie smiled at him before he turned, heading for the door of the apartment.

  Georgie sighed once he was gone. The last thing she wanted was to make him mad at her. Hopefully, they could clear the air in the morning, and start over again.

  Chapter 10

  Callum slipped his key into the lock, glad to be finally home. Dinner with Camilla had been stressful, to say the least. She was still completely freaked out that Callum now had a child. Even when he explained to her that until he got the call three weeks earlier, he didn’t even know Macy existed.

  He had finally managed to calm her down, but when he dropped her home and informed her he wasn’t spending the night, she freaked out again. Callum knew then that he and Camilla were never going to work now. Still, when he kissed her goodnight, he promised to call her later in the week.