Season of Love

by Jill Sanders

  The next morning, he climbed into his car with Carter and they headed out before sunrise. They had been driving for over an hour before the light rose to their right.

  Carter had packed a mug of coffee and they had downed a box of donuts they had gotten along the road. They stopped in a small town called Castle Rock for gas and some real food. Sitting at Peper’s 49er Diner made him think of Pride. How it appeared that everyone knew everyone else. The small-town feeling and the familiarity of it all made him realize how much he appreciated what they had found.

  Glancing across the booth, he asked Carter, “So, you’re serious about sticking around Pride?”

  Carter’s eyebrows shot up. “Yeah, you?”

  Corey shrugged over his steak and eggs. “It’s where Baked is.”

  “Still…” Carter hinted. “Do you think you would want to move on?”

  Corey thought about it. “At the moment, my answer is no, but I can’t guarantee in the future that won’t change.”

  Carter nodded. “I feel the same. But let’s take things one day at a time.” He sighed. “If things change, let me know.”

  “Same,” he added and glanced at his watch. “We only have a few more hours before the meeting. We’d better get going.” He pushed his empty plate away as the waitress came to drop off the check.

  Three hours later, after fighting Seattle traffic, they pulled into the lawyer’s office.

  “One thing is for sure,” Carter said, stepping out of the car, “I’m never moving back to the city.”

  Corey chuckled. “Yeah, traffic is a bitch.”

  “Not to mention trying to find a parking spot, then paying forty dollars for five hours.” He shook his head at the sign as they walked by the attendant.

  “Lawyers’ offices,” he joked as they stepped in the lobby.

  Their smiles fell away when they noticed the couple standing in front of the elevators. They had both aged. Their father was still rail thin with construction worker muscles and dark circles under his eyes that told everyone who looked that when he wasn’t working, he was strung out.

  Their mother had lost weight, as she had started to do the last time they had seen her almost eight years ago. Now, she was barely pushing a hundred pounds, and Corey knew that her choice of drug was sleeping pills.

  They turned and spotted them at the same time and the sneers on their faces were expected.

  Instead of having a warm family reunion, the brothers stood next to their parents in silence. When the elevator doors opened, the four of them stepped in. The second the doors shut, their father spoke.

  “It figures you two would come sniffing around. No doubt hoping to get something you’re not due.”

  Carter turned and opened his mouth, but Corey set his hand on his brother’s shoulder and he turned back and shut it.

  They had agreed to not speak to their parents. It would be better not to engage. Or so they both thought.

  “Still not talking to us, eh?” Their old man laughed. Just the sound of it had so many memories flooding his mind that he swayed as the elevator came to a stop on the twentieth floor. “No matter just don’t expect a handout from us. You two were always no good. Now that the old man is finally gone, we’ll get what we’re due.” He smiled as he stepped out. “Come on, honey, let’s go get my old man’s inheritance.”

  “Think the old man left them anything?” Carter asked under his breath as they followed their parents down the long hallway.

  “Not a chance in hell,” Corey answered back.

  A little over an hour later, the raised voices could probably be heard on every floor in the high-rise.

  When the police showed up, Carter and Corey stood back and watched a cop slap handcuffs on their father. Corey sported a fat lip and a black eye. After the medics confirmed that his nose wasn’t broken, he filled out the paperwork to press charges against his father.

  “I can file a restraining order,” the lawyer, Earl Triggs, suggested.

  “No, it’s not necessary,” he answered. “I’m sure once he cools off…” He let the statement drop, knowing full well it wasn’t the last they’d hear from their old man now that they had inherited everything from their grandfather. The business, the massive house on Puget Sound, the cars, the jet, everything had been left to the brothers. Not one dime had gone to either of their parents.

  “What the fuck?” Carter said the moment the lawyer stepped outside to talk to the police.

  Corey took a deep breath and shook his head.

  “Yeah, what was the old man thinking?” he asked, rubbing his sore jaw.

  “Why did you step in front of me? I could have taken the hit from him,” Carter added, nodding to his face.

  “Why have both of our faces screwed up?” he added. “Besides, I’m your big brother…”

  Carter’s laugh stopped him. “Bullsh—” The door opened, and a young, attractive, very busty brunette woman stepped in. Her eyes ran over the pair of them and her smile grew. “Mr. Triggs wants me to see if either of you need anything. He’s finishing up with the police, then he has more papers for you to sign before you can go.”

  “Water,” Carter said quickly, “and maybe a steak for my brother’s face.” He was joking, but less than ten minutes later, she was back with a chilled slab of beef.

  “Shit.” Carter sighed. “How far do you think she had to run to grab that?” he added after she left the room.

  “Probably not far. I think there was a steak house on the main floor of the building.” He set the cold steak on his left eye and sighed as he leaned his head back.

  The lawyer stepped back into the room. “Sorry about that wait. As I mentioned before, I’m not sure how they found out about the reading of the will.” The large man sat behind his desk as if there hadn’t just been a full-out brawl in his office. He took a deep breath. “There is a letter, one for each of you.” He opened a file and pulled out two thick envelopes and slid them across the large cherry desk.

  Corey tucked his in his jacket pocket and watched Carter do the same.

  “I’ll need you both to sign a few documents.” He turned the folder and a stack of papers sat there, ready. What the hell were they doing? Taking on all of this? They didn’t want it.

  “What happens if we—just as a thought—don’t want all of it? Any of it?” he asked.

  The lawyer’s thick gray brows drew up. “Your grandfather states clearly that if either of you reject your inheritance, that the entire fortune would fall to your father.”

  Corey glanced over at Carter.

  “Well, shit,” Carter said. “Where do we sign?”

  The older man nodded and smiled, then reached over and pressed a button. “Reece, can you send in Mrs. Stine.” He glanced up at them. “She’s our notary.” While they waited, the man tapped his fingers on the desk. “I know you boys probably don’t remember me, but I met you once, back when your father dropped you off at Cecil’s office. I was there for a meeting.” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, I was really impressed with how grown-up you two were back then. Your grandfather has followed your careers for years. He was very proud of you both. Especially when you opened your pizzeria.” The man’s smile grew. “He called me up that day, beaming at the report that came to him to tell him the place had been packed.”

  “He…” Corey felt his stomach roll. “Spied on us?”

  The lawyer’s face dropped. “No, not spied. More like checked up.” Just then an older woman knocked and stepped into the office.

  For the next hour, Corey and Carter signed what felt like a full ream of legal-sized papers.

  “The business pretty much is run by the board, has been for a few years now, but your grandfather checked in once a month and was there for important meetings. I’m sure the board will be in contact with you soon.” He pulled open the top desk drawer. “The keys.” He held up a large ring and pointed out the different keys. “The house, both cars—a BMW and a Corvette.” The brothers glanced at one anothe
r.

  Corey’s mind screamed multiple times. He had the uncanny urge to rush from the room, to run as far as he could. Still, there was no way in hell either of them would let their old man get a dime of the money. Not after what he’d put them through.

  As they drove away from the building, following the directions to their grandfather’s house less than half an hour away from downtown, they remained silent for the first ten minutes.

  Then Carter broke the tranquility.

  “Holy fuck!” he blurted out.

  “What did we just do?”

  “Became millionaires,” he answered. His stomach rolled, and he had to pull over.

  When he was done being sick, Carter took over driving.

  “It’s probably that bump on your head,” he nodded. “You should have gone to the hospital like they suggested.”

  “It’s not the bump.” Although his head was throbbing.

  “From here we have to ride the ferry.” Carter pulled the car up to the docks. “Looks like the house is just across the sound.”

  “What are we going to do?” Corey asked as they waited for the boat.

  “Hell if I know.”

  “Sell it all?” he suggested.

  Carter glanced over at him. “I’m good with that.” He nodded. “It’s not like I want to live in some stuffy old mansion that our grandfather lived in.” His eyebrows shot up. “You?”

  Corey laughed, then groaned and held his head. “Hell, no.”

  “Good. I might check out that Vette though.”

  Corey sighed and nodded. “Yeah, rock-paper-scissors you for it?”

  They played three games and Carter won. “BMW it is for me.” Corey smiled. “Shit, that sounds weird.”

  “Tell me about it.” Carter pulled forward and loaded the car onto the ferry. “What the hell are we going to do with a jet?”

  “Learn to fly,” Corey suggested.

  “Yeah, I guess so. Or we can sell it. We could even franchise Baked with the money.”

  “Now you’re talking.” Corey nodded. “Yeah, that would work.”

  Carter laughed. “Listen to us.” He shook his head. “Plotting a takeover of the pizza world.”

  Corey laughed again, then groaned. “Shit, stop making me laugh.”

  Carter touched his shoulder. “You know, I don’t know what I would have done without you. All the shit we went through.” He shook his head.

  “There are kids that aren’t as lucky as we were to have one another.”

  They remained silent as the ferry moved slowly across the calm waters of the sound.

  “What would you say to donating a chunk of it to a charity?”

  Carter turned to him and smiled. “Great minds…”

  “I’ll see if Triggs can find a good one. One where the money will go to help kids who are going through what we did.” He nodded, suddenly seeing the first benefit of having money.

  “We can do good with it,” Carter added.

  “Yeah, plus, it’ll totally piss off our old man, knowing we’d rather give it away to help strangers’ kids than give him a dime.” He smiled.

  9

  “You what?” Lilly held the phone closer to her ear, so she could hear better. She had been out walking her family’s dog, Ruth, on the beach. The wind was blowing pretty hard as the sun sank lower in the sky. Thankfully, the rain had stopped about an hour earlier and the sky had cleared so that the sunset was one of the best she’d seen in a while.

  “I might be late for our dinner tomorrow,” he said a little louder. This time the wind cooperated, and she heard him clearly.

  “Is everything okay?” she asked, plugging her free ear with her finger so the sound of the wind was stifled a little.

  “Yes, it’s just… there’s a lot of loose ends we have to tie up here, more than we thought. Carter’s on his way back into town, but I have…”

  “Loose ends,” she added and snapped her fingers for the older yellow lab to steer clear of the water’s edge. She didn’t want to have to bathe the dog when they returned home. Of course, Ruth ignored her and dove into the water headfirst. Lilly chuckled as the girl chased the fish in the surf.

  “Yeah.” He sighed. “Instead of cooking, how about we hit your uncle’s restaurant?” he suggested.

  “Sounds good.” She started walking back towards the trail. “How did it go?”

  “Not as smooth as it should have. I’ll tell you all about it when I get there tomorrow.”

  She heard someone talking to him and he covered the phone for a moment. When he came back, he sounded tired.

  “I better go, there’s still so much to do.”

  “If you need any help…” she offered.

  “Thanks.” He was silent for a while. “I’ll let you know. For now, it’s just a lot of paperwork.” She heard him shift the phone again and when he came back he said, “I really have to go.”

  “Corey,” she stopped him before he hung up. “Why don’t I deal with the dinner, instead? And we can meet at my shop.” She didn’t know what caused her to throw out the idea, but now that she had, she liked it.

  “Are you sure?” he asked.

  “Yeah, how does eight sound? That should give you enough time to get back.”

  “Eight is perfect. I’ll see you there.” He paused. “I’ll make it up to you,” he said softly. “I promise.”

  She smiled. “I’ll hold you to it.”

  For the next hour she walked around the beach with Ruth, tossing large driftwood sticks around for the old dog to fetch.

  By the time they headed back up to the house, they were both in need of a bath. She hosed the dog off in the doggie cleaning station on the back patio and dried her as much as she could before stepping inside.

  Her parents were standing at the stove, kissing. It wasn’t the first time, nor would it be the last, that she’d walked in on a tender moment between them.

  Clearing her throat loudly, she chuckled when her father waved her to go away.

  “The noodles are boiling over,” she mentioned. Her mother gasped and pushed her father away to tend to the food on the stove.

  “You are the reason my noodles are always overcooked.” Her mother narrowed her eyes towards Lilly’s father. “Go away, set the table, and don’t distract me anymore.” Her mother waved him away. “You can help him.” She turned her eyes towards Lilly.

  “Can’t, I have to…” When her mother’s eyes narrowed, she stopped. “Yes, ma’am.” She turned towards the dining room instead of her own bedroom, wondering why she was feeling the need to move away. She loved evenings like this, sitting around the dinner table with the entire family and eating overcooked food. Her mother tried, but the chef genes had skipped her mother. Not that she couldn’t cook at all, but most the time, she failed. Still, she’d had plenty of great meals in her life.

  The feeling she got sitting around the table with the people she loved, while Ruth lay at her feet, snoring, was one of the best feelings she could knew.

  The room was always filled with laughter and voices and the smell of good food.

  That evening, her brother talked about getting a new job or maybe going away to college. He had been indecisive since the day he’d been born.

  Her mother filled everyone in on the new proposal for the city center. There was a small fountain with an anchor in the middle that needed major repair. The budget didn’t allow for much work, and her father suggested doing a fundraiser. That earned him a glare from her mother because she’d already thought of the idea, and the city council had shot it down.

  “That has never stopped you before,” her dad reminded her.

  “What about getting the fire station involved? Doesn’t that fountain sit directly across from it?” Lilly asked. “I’m sure they’d love to see it improved. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have one of those splash pad things for kids to play in on hot summer days?”

  Her mother turned to her. “Oh, that’s a great idea.” She clapped her hands
and woke the sleeping dog at Lilly’s feet. “We can have it between the fountain and the playground. There are park benches there…” Her mother leaned back and pulled out the large binder that she kept notes in. She started jotting things down as her father rolled his eyes and took her plate before she spilled it.

  While Lilly and her mother chatted about ideas, her father and brother disappeared into the kitchen.

  Lilly heard dishes being done, then two beers being opened. Even though George wasn’t twenty yet, at home he was allowed a beer with his father once in a while.

  She knew the two of them would be sitting on the back patio talking sports or George’s future.

  By the time she crawled into bed that night, she felt emotionally full. Having this time with her family was a blessing. She would miss nights like this if George went away and she moved into the apartment above Patty’s place with Riley. It wasn’t as if she couldn’t drive home every night, but she knew it wasn’t going to be the same.

  When her phone buzzed, she realized she had been drifting off. Seeing Corey’s number on the screen caused her heartbeat to flutter.

  “Hi,” she said a little breathless as she turned over and held the phone to her ear, looking out her window into the darkness.

  “Hi.” He sighed softly. “Did I wake you?” Just hearing his voice had her body wanting.

  “No,” she lied, blinking slightly.

  “Liar.” He chuckled. “I shouldn’t have called.”

  “I’m glad you did. You sounded stressed earlier.” She’d worried about him all evening and hoped he’d call her again.

  “I was.” She could hear his voice soften. “How was your walk on the beach?”

  “Peaceful,” she added. “Where are you?”

  He took a moment before answering. “Our grandfather’s place. He had a house across the bay from Seattle.”

  “What happened?” she asked, shifting slightly so she sat up.

  “He left everything to us.”

  “Everything?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What about your parents?” she asked.

  He sighed heavily. “Nothing.”

  She was thankful it was dark in the room and they weren’t on a video call. She doubted she could have hidden her shock. “Nothing?”