Page 3 of Fall for You
The girl was cute as a button but a powerhouse chef. She owned that culinary space and made do with only the barest of part-time help. If she ever complained about her long hours, he hadn’t heard it.
But then again…she had been acting strange. Not in an overly stressed way, but in anI’m keeping a secretway.
As the oldest of five—and yes, he was older than Bailey by a few minutes—he knew the signs.
He was used to it with Antony, who was pretty much always up to something the rest of the family would freak out about if they knew. And he’d seen it a time or two when Brandon andBailey were trying to keep their budding romances on the down-low. But Willow?
That was new. She was normally an open book, especially with him.
He eyed the text chain that hadn’t stopped—and wouldn’t for hours. His siblings were all busy, but they still found way too much time to text.
Finally, Dallas chimed in with a thumbs-up. If he hadn’t, he would have gotten a nagging call from Bailey to make sure he hadn’t dropped the ball. Although, the satisfaction of telling her that he’d already called Grandma and she’d gushed about the massive bouquet of flowers he’d sent and how his sweet note had made her morning…had almost been too tempting to resist.
But then Bailey might have wrangled out of him that he probably would have forgotten if it weren’t for the world’s most organized assistant.
Clara might need to work on being more assertive, but she kept his life in order like a champ. She’d make a good manager one day.
He was still staring at his phone and the ongoing text thread when it lit up with an incoming call from Antony.
“Hey, Antman,” Dallas said.
“Cowboy.” The one word was as good a greeting as Dallas would get. And as much as he hated the nickname his siblings refused to drop, he could accept it from Antony.
His brother was not a man of many words. Maybe that was why they got along so well.
“You coming back anytime soon?” he asked.
Antony was what their mother affectionately termed “adventurous.” The rest of them had other names for his adrenaline-seeking lifestyle.
“Nah. I’m getting certified to do solo jumps.” Dallas could picture his younger brother’s shrug as he added, “Maybe after that I’ll swing by.”
Dallas nodded. Skydiving certificate? That tracked. Dallas had jumped with him a time or two. But while he enjoyed the rush, he didn’t crave adventure so much that he’d quit his job and make a life out of chasing it.
“Wanna meet me halfway? We could do a cliff jump,” Antony suggested.
Dallas could hear his cocky smirk.
He should just say no. He’d already taken time off from work to help at the inn. There was no good reason to take off again. But instead of saying no, he heard himself ask, “Why would I do that?”
“Uh, because you’re bored?” Antony said like this was a no-brainer.
Maybe it was. He supposed no one could empathize with the restless feelings he was battling like Antony.
But he wasn’t quite ready to succumb to them, so he played it off as no big deal. “Bored or not, some of us enjoy living in the real world. And that includes holding down jobs that aren’t always exciting.”
“Uh-huh.” Antony sounded unimpressed. “You know that’s the exact response Dad would give me, right?”
Dallas flinched. Point to Antony.
It had long been a bone of contention between him and his siblings that he’d been raised to follow in their father’s footsteps, and the fact that he even looked like the patriarch didn’t help the comparisons.
He had the same dark hair and beard, and if it wasn’t for the blue eyes he shared with Willow and their mom, he’d be the spitting image.
It wasn’t like their dad was a bad guy. He was a loving father who just happened to be a tad old-school, that was all. Dallas instantly pictured Bailey’s look of irritation at the understatement.
Okay, fine. He wasveryold-school. He’d made it known from the start that the oldest boy would take over the family business.
It’d never been a question. Much to Bailey’s frustration.
