Page 97 of Caught in the Axe
“Hey, I-95 goes both north and south, dick. You could have come to me.”
“You know I hate cities. And you’ve got your fancy life down there. I never wanted to intrude.”
“You’re my big brother. I’d be thrilled to have you. But make me a promise, okay?”
He nodded once in his gruff way.
“Before you go, come down to Boston. We’ll go to a Revs game, drink a few beers, and eat good food. Let me show you my town before you head out.”
He stood and held out his hand.
I heaved myself out of my chair too and took it.
“Done,” he said, squeezing tightly. He already looked more at peace.
A fresh wave of guilt washed over me. I’d gotten to leave, experience life elsewhere, and I’d built something for myself. Gus had spent his life waiting for his turn to run the family business, and now we were selling it off, leaving him with very little to show for a lifetime of hard work and devotion.
After he left, I sank back in my chair, feeling the weight of that conversation. We’d need to push extra hard. We only had six weeks until closing. I was due back in Boston before then, so I’d have to delay again. Enzo had been understanding, but that was because I’d still been putting in the hours and dialing into every call and meeting I could. If I had to start working out in the woods, there was no way I’d keep up the way I had been.
But I’d deal with the details later. Right now, I needed to put my head down and get back to work. My family was counting on me.
Chapter 33
Lila
“Where are we going?” I asked, gripping his arm for dear life.
Owen had insisted I meet him in the parking lot of Hebert Timber, and when I arrived, he tied a scarf around my eyes as a blindfold.
“Shh. Just a bit farther.” He led me down what felt like a dirt path. “Okay.” He stood behind me and turned me toward the light that filtered through the scarf. Then he gently slid the fabric over my head and whispered, “Surprise.”
I shook my head to get my bearings and took in my surroundings. We were in the small paved area behind the machine shop. Twinkle lights hung from the building and nearby shipping containers. A flatbed truck had been moved close, the bed set up with a big couch and ottoman and piled high with hand-knit blankets.
“What is this?” I asked as I turned slowly.
I’d just caught sight of a massive projectionscreen mounted to the side of a shipping container when he pressed a kiss on the sensitive spot behind my ear.
“This is a movie date, gorgeous.”
He stepped up beside me and offered me his elbow. Once I’d looped my arm through his, he guided me to where several folding tables were covered in a variety of gluten-free snacks and a bottle of prosecco chilled in an ice bucket.
“You did this?” I turned to him, my heart skipping.
He nodded, clutching my hands. “I wanted to have a special movie night with my girl.”
“Owen,” I pleaded. “You don’t have to go to all this trouble for me.”
He laughed and tilted my chin up, then gave me a chaste kiss. “I know I don’thaveto. And this is nothing. But since I’ve never seenSay Anything, I wanted to make this showing of it special.”
“Say Anything!” I squealed, throwing my arms around his neck. “Thank you.”
“Now get comfy. I’ll bring snacks and drinks over.”
He gave me a hand climbing up into the truck bed, and once I was settled, he loaded up on treats, then draped a blanket over us both and snuggled close.
“How did you set this all up?”
It was incredible. Who knew a couple of pole barns and old shipping containers could look like this?
