Parker by Maddie James Page B

and a couple of the ranch hands, Parker headed
for the house. Ready for another cup of coffee and some breakfast,
he didn’t linger long at the barn. For the first time in days, he
was hungry, and maybe that was a sign he was beginning to deal from
the reality of his father’s death.
    It would take time. Getting over losing a
family member is never a quick process, but he was more at peace
today than a few days ago.
    It could also be Reba—and the fact the two of
them had shared an incredible night together. He smiled. Yes, it
could be that.
    Pushing through the back door, he halted,
seeing Callie sitting at his kitchen table, her laptop open and
papers spread out.
    She glanced up. “I hope you don’t mind.
Murphy’s apartment is so small. I barely have room to spread out on
the bar where we eat. Your table is bigger, plus the Wi-Fi is
faster over here. Do you care?”
    “Of course not. Make yourself at home.” Then
he peeked over her shoulder. “What are you working on?”
    “Oh, some stuff for Reba. Just helping her
catch up a bit.”
    “For her work?” He was curious. He’d made
love with the woman and still had no clue what she did for a
living.
    Callie nodded. “Yes. I’ve temporarily taken
over her social media accounts until her arm is better.” She nudged
him. “Oh, that’s right. You don’t do social media.”
    Parker shook his head. “Nope. And I can’t say
that I ever will.”
    Callie smiled. “Well, she has great
followings on Twitter and Facebook, and she’s growing her base on
Google+. Her blog is the most fantastic thing ever though—she has
hundreds of thousands of followers. She e-mailed a few things to me
this morning, and I’m working up her blog post and then will be
sharing it around.”
    Parker listened to his sister rattle on while
he pulled a skillet from the cabinet and retrieved bacon and eggs
from the refrigerator. There was still a half pot of coffee left,
so he poured himself a cup while the skillet was heating up. He
struggled with the plastic bacon package. “Why does Reba do all of
this twittering and posting and stuff?”
    There. The zipper on the package opened. He
pulled out four slices of bacon and arranged them in the pan.
Callie still hadn’t answered.
    He turned. “Callie?”
    She was typing, staring at her computer
screen, where all kinds of messages were flying by.
    Parker stepped forward. “What the hell is
that?”
    “Twitter.” She glanced up. “Or rather, it’s
my twitter management system. I can manage several clients’
accounts with a quick glance.”
    The rows kept spinning by.
    “I don’t get this.”
    She grinned. “I know. You just stick with
cows. It’s better that way.”
    “Agreed.” He went back to the bacon, now
beginning to sizzle. “You didn’t answer me. Why does Reba do all of
this? What is her job?”
    Silence.
    He turned. “Callie, are you avoiding me?”
    Another pause. Finally, she said, “Yes. I’m
avoiding answering that question.”
    Parker turned the heat off under the skillet,
walked to the table, and sat down. “Why?”
    “Because, well…” She bit her lip.
    “Spill it, Callie.” Her hesitancy was
starting to get to him. Was there something she didn’t want to tell
him?”
    “You like her, don’t you?”
    He cocked his head. Where was this going?
“I’ll give you the short answer. Yes. I like her. A lot.”
    “How much do you know about her, Parker?”
    How much did he know? She was pretty and
spunky. She was tough when she needed to be and it took a lot for
her to cry, but when she did, watch out. She could handle him when
he got out of line. And, she was soft in all of the right places
and firm in the others. He glared at Callie. “I know enough.”
    “There is a lot you don’t know though,
Parker. Do you want to know? Because maybe Reba has her reasons for
not telling you yet—”
    “Then let Reba worry about telling me. It’s
not your place.”
    “But you are my brother, and I don’t want