Page 76 of Call It Home

It took a minute for those words to sink in. “An early parole hearing,” I parroted. After so many months of not hearing anything, I’d assumed it wasn’t going to happen. I’d even done my research and learned that over 95 percent of requests for having a case heard were rejected. But I hadn’t wanted to ask in case it upset him in any way.

“Oh, my god, Trey. That’s incredible. Christian must have worked a miracle.” I wanted to reach across the table and hug him, but that would have to wait until he was on the other side of these bars.

He held up a hand. “We both know that doesn’t mean it will be granted. I’m not going to get too excited, but Christian is optimistic. I’ve got a good track record here, so hopefully that works in my favor.”

“It should. Has a date been set?”

“Not yet, but it should be soon. I’ll email it to you.”

“Maybe things are finally turning around for us.”

“Speaking of,” he said, “how’s everything with you?”

“It’s going well, actually. The town is excited about the show. They’ve been really supportive.” I couldn’t bring myself to tell him about Cam. He’d only tell me to stay in Sterling Mill and forget about him. That was his MO—to put me and my wants and needs ahead of his. Until I had a new plan in place, I’d just keep my relationship with Cam to myself.

“What were you going to tell me? Any news on the property? Did they come down in price yet?”

I shook my head no. “I was just going to tell you my friend Reid got married. They even had Mayor Sterling as the ring bearer. I swear there’s nothing that bird can’t do.”

Trey’s nose wrinkled. “Isn’t he the cop?”

“The sheriff, actually. He’s a good guy.”

Trey grimaced. He didn’t have a high opinion of most who were in law enforcement. “If you say so. Funny about the bird, though. Sounds like a crazy town, if you ask me. Guess you’ll be ready to leave when the time comes. Be your own boss.”

My stomach turned. “Yeah. Sure.”

“You okay? You seem a little off.”

I waved my hand. “Yeah. The finale is coming up soon for the show. Winning that kind of money would make things a lot easier, you know?”

He nodded, still watching me carefully. “We’ve been watching the show here. It’s funny, no one ever wanted to watch a home improvement show before. Now, it’s the only thing everyone can agree on. Everyone is cheering for you.”

“Glad the guys are finding it entertaining.”

We chatted idly about a few more things, but our allowed thirty minutes went by fast.

When I got back to my truck, I grabbed my cell that I’d had to leave behind to let Cam know I was on my way back. I didn’t give my number out to many people, so it surprised me to see a voicemail from an unknown number. I figured it was spam and started to ignore it, but something pushed me to check the message.

“Mac, this is Jared Carson from Grandview Lodge. Hope you don’t mind. I pulled your number from the records we have on file from the taping. Anyway, I have a proposition I want to run by you. Give me a call at your earliest chance, please. This is my personal number. Thanks. Talk soon.”

I couldn’t imagine what Jared had to offer me that I would be interested in, other than maybe wanting to poach me to come work for him. But if I was finding it hard to keep my job in Sterling Mill, there was no way he would lure me to Colorado. I decided to call him back later. If I had to leave the one person I cared about most behind, at least I was traveling toward the only other person I had the same feelings for.

Chapter30

Cam

“Ms. Allen?This is Keeley Wilde, Connor Dunham’s assistant at Halcyon Hotels.”

I pushed aside the paperwork I was reviewing. Her voice sounded sweet. “Keeley, hi. Connor said you’d be calling. Right before he hung up on me,” I added dryly.

An amused laugh chimed through the phone. “That sounds like him. I apologize on his behalf. But if it helps any, he rarely makes calls himself, so he must think highly of you.”

I coughed to cover a snort. Either she was being honest, or she was one hell of an assistant to think that fast to make her boss look good. I hoped he was paying her well. “I’ll take your word for it.”

“I apologize for taking so much time to call you and set up an appointment. Mr. Dunham’s schedule has been so full while he finishes negotiations for The Laurel Ridge Hotel. But that’s finally been resolved, and he asked that I make setting up an appointment with you a priority so he can put the proper teams in place to move forward.”

“Wow, that’s great. He knows I haven’t said yes yet, right?”

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