Page 127 of Let Me Be the One
Wow. Okay, that was very real upset in her mother’s voice. Callie wasn’t quite sure how to deal with it. “There was no reason for Glory to be hysterical.”
Her mother flapped a hand in the air. “She sounded upset.”
Sonothysterical? Good to know. Gladly, Callie gulped down more coffee. “When I sent it to her, I explained what happened and told her I was okay.”
“Okay, as in alive,” her dad said. “Given how bad that bruising is, you had to be in a lot of pain.”
“It was never that bad.”
Tanner stood off to the side, coffee in his hand as he watched the three of them interact.
Callie wanted him to be a part of things. With her, in all ways. She smiled at him. “Luckily, Tanner makes a very attentive nurse. He and his family have been taking good care of me.”
All eyes turned to him. Didn’t faze Tanner. He moseyed over—the epitome of a man without a care—and took his seat at the table.
“It was bad,” he said. “I wanted Callie to go to the hospital for X-rays, but she insisted nothing was broken.”
“Stubborn,” her mother said. “She’s always been that way.”
“I’m not a doctor, obviously, but she was able to move her arm and leg okay, and she swore that she bruised easily.” For the next ten minutes, Tanner took over, explaining what had happened without mentioning their suspicions about Sutter. “Today, she really is much better, but yeah, she has bruises everywhere.”
That sharpened her dad’s attention. “Everywhere?”
Tanner met his gaze. “Yes, sir. Her left arm and leg took the worst of it, but her hip, waist, one shoulder—the drop from the attic left a lot of marks.”
New tears filled her mother’s eyes. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“You aren’t exactly close by, Mom.”
“I am never too far away when you need me.”
The sincere words hung in the air between them, going a long way toward softening Callie’s usual, offhand attitude. “I didn’t know,” she admitted simply. “I figured you’d be busy.”
Her mother came out of her seat, cupped Callie’s face, and then kissed her brow. “You’re my daughter and I love you. Please, please promise me that if you ever need me, you’ll call.”
“Um, okay. Thanks, Mom.”
“I mean it!”
That last sharp retort had Callie straightening. “Well, Imight,” she said, “but only if you don’t push Sutter at me.”
“Frank explained that Sutter was out.” Her gaze moved to Tanner. “Now I see why.”
“Oh no. Don’t do that. Sutter was out well before I met Tanner.”
“He said he knew us when he was a boy.”
“He knew the family name, Mom, but I hadn’t officially met him until the day I got here.”
“You moved fast,” her dad said to Tanner.
Callie jumped on that. “Actually, I’m the speedy one, Dad. I practically twisted his arm.”
Tanner ducked his face, then ran a hand over his mouth, but he was still grinning when he faced her parents. “Only true to a point. I was interested from the get-go, but I wasn’t sure if she’d actually stay.”
Her dad slowly nodded. “Callie was sure.”
“Yes, she was. She’s a woman of conviction.”
