Page 66 of Love Is Brewing

“His sister is getting married two weeks before. I don’t want to put the pressure on him he has to ask me to go there. And that is in New York. He’ll be flying there a few days before too.”

“And because it could be a last minute invitation you’re worried work could stop you from going and you don’t want him annoyed or upset, so maybe it’s best to not even bring it up and let him deal with it first?”

“That is kind of where I was going with it,” she said.

“I’m not going to get in the middle of your relationship,” her mother said. “But don’t put too much thought into it. Thenyou get hurt feelings when they don’t go the way you want. It’s why you take so long to decide on things in the first place. You overthink it.”

“I know,” she said. “But it’s new and I like where we are at. Sometimes it’s best to stay in that place.”

“Phoebe?” her mother asked.

“What?” she said. “I’m still here.”

“I wasn’t sure. Those didn’t sound like words out of my daughter’s mouth. She never stayed in one spot in life for long. I’d hate to think that was happening now.”

“Heard,” she said.

Even when she wasn’t sure of an answer or what to do, she didn’t stay put for long, as her mother said.

“Now you’re being grouchy.”

“Just a little,” she said. “And I’m going to change now. Elias texted so I’ll see what is going on.”

She hung up with her mother, looked at her text, and saw Elias had a call in a few minutes he hoped wouldn’t last long and planned to be home by six.

She replied she’d see him then unless he got held up.

Enough time for her to ponder about what her mother said.

21

CHAIN OF EVENTS

“We’ve got most of the preliminary work on the contract done,” Braylon said when Elias answered the phone.

“Don’t you even say hi anymore? That’s rude. Mom will kick your butt.”

“Ha, funny,” Braylon said. “You’ve always been the one to suck up the most. But I was talking to West. He just walked in when I hit the button to answer.”

“Oh,” he said. “I didn’t know you were joining my call.”

“I thought I’d stop in,” West said. “Then Abby and I are leaving for a fundraiser tonight.”

He knew his brother’s wife didn’t care to stay in Manhattan much, preferring to spend more of her time working remotely in the Hamptons.

“Sounds like something I wouldn’t want to do,” Elias said, laughing.

“You do that shit all the time,” Braylon said.

“My fundraisers here are nothing like what you guys do. I wear jeans and bring beer.”

“I’d rather be at yours any day,” West said. “Bring me up to date on what is going on.”

“Braylon just said the contract is almost ready. Are you going to send it to me?”

“I’ll send it over this weekend. Cade and I have been exchanging it, and I think we’re ready, but I’ll have you review the final draft and tell me if you want anything changed. Fiscal has put their stamp on it too.”

“Got it,” he said. He left a lot of those things to West.

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