him, and she felt inexorably proud that she’d amused him, even in a small way.
“I didn’t mean to rush off the other day after the ribbon cutting,” he told her as they approached the door that led to the child care center. “I think I interrupted a potential invitation for dinner, and I’ve been regretting it ever since.”
Becky blinked. In truth, she would have never had the guts to invite Callum for dinner. She’d been planning to offer to cook or bake for him and drop it off to his office as a thank-you. The idea of having him to her small house did funny things to her insides.
“Oh,” she said again.
“Maybe I misinterpreted,” Callum said quickly, looking as flummoxed as she felt. “Or imagined the whole thing. You meant to thank me with a bottle of wine or some cookies or—”
“Dinner.” She grinned at him. Somehow his discomposure gave her the confidence to say the word. He appeared so perfect and out of her league, but at the moment he simply seemed like a normal, nervous guy not sure what to say next.
She decided to make it easy for him. For both of them. “Would you come for dinner tomorrow night? The girls go to bed early so if you could be there around seven, we could have a more leisurely meal and a chance to talk.”
His shoulders visibly relaxed. “I’d like that. Dinner with a friend. Can I bring anything?”
“Just yourself,” she told him.
He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and handed it to her so she could enter her contact information. It took a few tries to get it right because her fingers trembled slightly.
He grinned at her as he took the phone again. “I’m looking forward to tomorrow, Becky.”
“Me, too,” she breathed, then gave a little wave as he said goodbye. She took a few steadying breaths before heading in to pick up the twins. Don’t turn it into something more than it is, she cautioned herself.
It was a thank-you, not a date. Her babies would be asleep in the next room. Definitely not a date.
But her stammering heart didn’t seem to get the message.
Callum stood outside the soon-to-open veterinary clinic the following afternoon, frowning at the open back of the delivery truck.
“It’s all pink,” Stephanie reported.
“I see that,” he answered, then turned to the driver. “We ordered modular cabinets in a pine finish.”
“I just deliver what they give me,” the man responded, scratching his belly. “Where do you want ’em?”
“Not here.” Callum looked toward Steven, who was on his phone, pacing back and forth in front of the building’s entrance.
His brother held up a finger and then returned to the phone call.
“This is a vet clinic.” Stephanie gave a humorless laugh. “Not an ice cream parlor.”
The cabinetry for the exam rooms and clinical areas had been ordered more than a month earlier. They needed it installed soon in order to keep the project on time and within budget. Callum and his brothers were sharing the responsibility of the vet clinic renovation, working with the staff of the local practice to design the space.
A moment later, Steven joined the group. “Take it back,” he told the delivery driver before turning to Callum and Stephanie. “It was a clerical error. They typed in the wrong color code.”
“Whatever you say, boss,” the driver answered and pulled shut the overhead door of the delivery truck.
“It would have been my dream come true when I was eight,” Stephanie said as the driver climbed into the vehicle and pulled away. “Working in a pink vet clinic.”
“Where does that put us as far as the schedule?” Callum asked.
Steven’s mouth tightened into a thin line. “I can get it done.”
“I know that.” Callum nodded, understanding that his older brother didn’t appreciate being doubted. “I’m asking because if you need me to shift resources from other projects or change subcontractor timelines, we can make it work.”
Steven’s shoulders relaxed under his Western-style button-down shirt. “It’s going to be tight. The supplier is putting a rush on the order so the cabinets should be here in two weeks. I can have the crew work on the flooring and finish the exterior. It’s not ideal, but we’ll make sure nothing falls behind.”
“Let me know if we need to change our move-in date.” Stephanie addressed them both. She not only worked at the current location of the vet center, but also acted as the liaison with the construction crew. “It’s going to be all hands on deck at Paws and Claws to make it a smooth transition for our patients.”
“Got it.” Steven chuckled, then muttered, “Pink cabinets. We’ve had some strange setbacks, but that one might be the most colorful.”
“If that’s the worst unforeseen stumbling block in this whole process,” Callum said, “I’ll take it.”
“The pediatric center opened without a hitch.” Stephanie scrunched up her nose. “Other than a woman almost giving birth in the lobby.”
Callum nodded. “I stopped by today, and the facility is already busy. Clearly there was a need for a children’s health clinic in Rambling Rose.”
“It feels like the town grows every day,” Stephanie observed. “Have you noticed the new houses being built down the road from the ranch?”
Steven rubbed his thumb and fingers together. “Lots of money coming into the community. Hopefully that will mean plenty of business for each of our new ventures.”
“Who needs a margarita?” Stephanie asked. “The pink cabinet fiasco made my head hurt, but it’s nothing a salted rim along with a big plate of enchiladas won’t cure.”
“I’m in,” Steven said.
Callum pulled out his phone and checked the time on the home screen. “I’ll have to take a rain check. I have dinner plans tonight.” He responded to a text from his foreman, then glanced up to find his brother and sister staring at him with equally curious expressions.
“Spill it,” Stephanie said.
Callum feigned confusion. “What are you talking about?”
“He’s evading answering.” Steven elbowed their sister. “My money’s on the cute nurse from the other day.”
“He bombed out with her before he even got a chance,” Stephanie said. “Tell me it’s not that barista at the coffee shop in town who always flirts with you. She has crazy eyes.”
“Enough with the inquisition.” This was the issue with coming from such a close-knit family. Since they’d moved to Rambling Rose, he and his siblings had mostly hung out together. Sure, each of them had made a few casual friends. But they stuck together. The ranch they’d purchased just outside town had a sprawling main house as well as several guesthouses on the multiacre property.
He figured if his brothers and sister ever wanted more privacy in Rambling Rose, he’d buy out their portion of the ranch. But none of them seemed inclined to move out on their own anytime soon. It worked for Callum. He’d needed space after going to school at a local college in Florida. That was part of the reason he’d started looking for projects to take on in other areas of the Southeast. Coming from such a big family and growing up with so much responsibility for Stephanie and the triplets on his shoulders, he’d needed a break.
But after the wreck of his short marriage and subsequent divorce, life had become too quiet. Now he liked being close to his siblings.