Page 120 of Never Fall Again

Before Cal could respond, Mo joined their huddle. “Landry, this place is amazing.”

Landry didn’t try to hide her shock. “Amazing” was high praise from Mo. “Thank you. Of course, I can’t take credit for all of it. Bronwyn did a ton of work.”

“She’s just saying that because she saw me coming.” Bronwyn laughed as she accepted hugs from all the Shaws and Meredith. Mo, however, made no effort to speak to her. Or as far as Landry could tell, even to make eye contact. But he did stay in their circle for several more minutes before Meredith said, “Mo, would you do me a favor? Mrs. Cunningham has had Gray locked down for twenty minutes. Could you rescue him?”

“How do you expect me to do that?”

“Just walk up to them. She’ll go away.” Meredith was joking, but based on the way Mo’s face hardened, Landry didn’t think Mo took it that way.

When he spoke, he confirmed her suspicions. “Why? Because I’m so scary?”

Then Eliza’s little voice broke through the moment. “You aren’t scary, Uncle Mo.” Eliza stood beside him, her face fierce. “You’re grumpy. That’s not the same thing as scary.”

Landry did her best not to laugh. Cal, however, made no such attempt. “She’s got you pegged,UncleMo.”

Mo turned a fake glare on Eliza. “If you aren’t careful, little miss smarty pants, I’ll change my mind about giving you and Abby a ride in the Jeep.”

Both girls squealed in delight. “Can we go now? Please!” They danced around him.

“We’ll go in a few minutes.” Mo turned his smirk on Meredith. “First, I have to rescueUncleGray from a little old lady.”

Meredith’s eyes flashed, and she hissed, “Watch it, Mo.”

With a satisfied grin, he pointed at the girls. “Give me five minutes. Ask your moms.”

“Mommy, please?” Eliza dragged out the wordplease. “Please?”

Landry had no idea what Mo did on these little Jeep rides that had made it a favorite activity for the girls. She suspected it involved junk food. She gave her assent, and Eliza joined Abby in her attempt to convince Chad and Naomi to allow her to go.

“Eliza’s calling him Uncle Mo now?” Bronwyn asked from just behind Cal.

“She is.” Meredith answered the question. “And Uncle Craig and Aunt Carol are now Nana and Papa.”

“Oooh!” Bronwyn squeezed Landry’s arm.

Landry tried to communicate with her eyes and every form of friend bonding they shared to drop it. It didn’t work.

Bronwyn turned her grin on Cal. “Well, Cal, I guess you’re next.”

Landry wanted to melt into the floor. “You’re dead to me, Beep.”

Bronwyn blew her a kiss. “You don’t mean it.” A server waved in Bronwyn’s direction, and the traitor left her there to deal with the fallout.

Landry knew Cal loved her, and she loved him, but since they’d officially gotten together, they hadn’t discussed their future. Everyone was assuming it was a done deal.

Everyone but her.

Thirty-Five

The next afternoon, Cal and Landry left Eliza with her nana and papa and snuck away for a few hours to themselves.

They’d hiked for twenty minutes on property that was privately owned, ironically enough, by the Pierce family. But their destination was a specific spot on Quinn land.

“Where are you taking me?” Landry asked for the tenth time.

“You’ll see.”

“Are we almost there?”

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