Chapter 19

Kade asked Callum to meet him for lunch at his house, which he agreed to, but was now starting to regret. He didn't feel like celebrating his birthday. I'm thirty-three... He sighed as he got ready to open the front door. It had been such a weird year. Life hadn't turned out exactly like he had hoped. Callum always thought he would have it all figured out by the time he hit his thirties, but somehow, life just kept getting messier. Although he had to admit to himself that the last few months had been a lot better than he had anticipated. He definitely hadn't planned on starting over, and most certainly hadn't planned to be completely swept off his feet. Well, at least it's just me and Kade. I'll have lunch and then go home... He thought while finally opening the door.

"Mum? Dad?" Callum blinked in disbelief as his parents stood right in front of him. "Why are you here? How are you here?" He hugged them. It had been a few months since they last saw each other in person. They chatted on the phone and video called, but it wasn't quite the same as being together.

"Faith." His mum said with a smile.

"Fate as in destiny brought you here by chance or Faith?" His parents chuckled.

"Faith. Apparently Kade put her in charge of your birthday party."

"Really?" He raised an eyebrow.

The front suddenly opened as if a gust of wind had just pushed it wide open. "Mr Grant," Faith yelled out, hidden by the enormous box she was carrying. As soon as she took the first step into the house, she felt her foot get stuck on the doormat. Please let the cake live... She thought while bracing for impact and for an embarrassing fall.

"Hi, there Rapunzel." Callum was holding the cake in one hand, and the other one was on Faith's waist.

"Happy birthday..." She muttered, still processing the fact that somehow Callum had not only saved her but also the cake. How does he do it? How is someone this coordinated? It's so freaking unfair.

"Thanks for the enthusiasm, princess." He chuckled.

"I'm sorry. Happy birthday, Callum." Faith smiled and Callum smiled back, their eyes lingering on each other's for a few seconds.

"Is this my birthday cake? Why is it so heavy?

"I think I might've gone a little overboard."

"You think?" He smirked while trying to access the weight of the cake.

"Please don't let it fall. I went to great lengths to get it."

"I won't. Thank you for putting this together for me, Faith." Flustered, she smiled while glancing at the floor, and Callum realized how much he needed to have her around. How much he needed to see her little flustered smiles and blushed cheeks. How much he appreciated her clumsiness because it gave him an excuse to touch her and having her in his arms. It wasn't a mere want anymore; it was a need. He needed her. There was just a sense of peace and relief that he felt simply by feeling her presence near him. I'm completely gone, aren't I? He sighed...

Behind them, they heard someone clearing their throat, suddenly realizing they were not alone in the hallway.

"Oh... Hi, Mr and Mrs Grant." Faith moved away from Callum and rushed to greet his parents while trying to not look too flustered after they had just witnessed one of her usual clumsy and embarrassing moments. "Wait... This is about to get a little confusing. Too many Grants in the same room. Or should it be Dr... Wait... No. That actually makes it worse, somehow."

"Hasn't Kade been asking you to call him by his first name for years?" Callum asked while still holding the box. It felt increasingly heavy, which made him wonder how big the cake actually was and what Faith meant by going to great lengths to get it.

"No. I can't." She shook her head. "I refuse to." At this point, calling him Mr Grant, was a term of endearment. Faith had been calling him that her whole life. He was Mr Grant. The Mr Grant that she could always rely on and that would come to her rescue every time she needed him. I guess uncle and nephew have that in common...

Callum's parents chuckled. "Claire and Todd is perfectly fine," Todd said.

"It's so nice to finally meet you. We've heard so much about you from Kade throughout the years," Claire said while giving Faith a quick hug.

"You have?" Faith glanced behind them and saw Kade trying to sneak into the kitchen without being noticed. "Mr Grant, what have you told them?"

"Only goods things, Faith."

"I have a hard time believing in you."

Kade cleared his throat. "If I go to the kitchen and get you one of those salted caramel brownies you like, will you let this go? Lydia made some for dessert."

"Yes! Yes, I will. Thank you. I'm starving." Faith squeezed Mr Grant's arm with excitement.

"Can I get one too?" Callum asked.

"No." Kade grumbled. "Lunch first. Dessert after."

"What's with the double standard?" Callum mocked while Kade went into the kitchen.

"I'm his favourite." Faith gloated, smiling from ear to ear.

"I'm very well aware of that."

Behind Faith, who was completely clueless, the whole family smiled at the interactions between her and Mr Grant. She was like a daughter to him, and it was endearing how much she relied on him. Kade seemed happy and at peace, and it relieved his family knowing that he had people he loved around him, people that also doted on him in return. Despite being such a closed off person, especially after his wife's death, Faith had brought a certain light and joy to his life that prevented him from drowning. Faith was a clumsy ray of sunshine. But she was, and would always be, completely unaware of it. Completely unaware of the effect she had on those around her.

As Faith and Callum walked into the living room, his brother Zack was sitting on the couch, doting on his wife, Maria, and their new baby, as their older twin daughters ran around. Maria was beautiful, with bronzed skin, dark green eyes and dark curly hair. She was still glowing from motherhood, and Zack couldn't take his eyes from her or their children. The twins looked like the perfect mix of both their parents. They looked like such a sweet family although, Faith still couldn't get over the fact that Zack and Callum looked so much alike. The resemblance was even more obvious in person than in photos. In fact, all the Grant men were absurdly good-looking and shared a lot of the same features, even Kade and Todd.

"Uncle Cal!" the twins screamed at the same time and jumped into Callum's arms.

"I missed you so much." He hugged them both, picking them up off the floor and twirling them around.

"She's pretty," said the twin with the blue ribbon on her hair. "Who's she?"

"Is she your new girlfriend?" The one with a red ribbon asked.

Callum and Faith looked at each other. She immediately blushed and he smirked.

"Faith, meet Jenna and Anne." Anne was the one with the red ribbon and Jenna the one with the blue one.

"Hi." Faith waved awkwardly at the kids.

"Do you like Uncle Cal?" Jenna asked.

"I do. We're very good friends."

"You're pretty. Like a princess," Anne said hurriedly. "Who's your favourite princess?"

Faith glanced at Callum. "Hum...Rapunzel, I think." He grinned.

"Good choice." The girls agreed.

"Girls, go outside and play a bit before lunch, okay?" Zack said. The girls held hands and ran outside. "Sorry about that. They can be a little much. It's great to finally meet you. This is my wife Maria and baby Brody."

Callum peaked through the window, and in the garden, there was a pink bouncy castle.

"You got them a pink castle?"

"Of course. Looks very fun. Do you want to go too, Doc?"

"Seems more like the place for you, princess." He smirked. "You didn't have to. Thank you."

As Maria started talking to Faith, Callum sat beside his brother. "She seems great."

"We're not dating, Zack."

"If you say so."

Mr Grant walked into the living room holding a plate of brownies, with the twins following him around like puppies. The place was full of noise and laughter and even though Kade was as quite as usual, Faith saw him smile, his face had softened, and his shoulders seemed more relax. Planning this was definitely worth it... She thought while looking around. Seeing how close and caring the Grants were.

"Thank you so much, Mr Grant." She smiled as Mr Grant handed her the plate.

"Don't I get one?" Zack asked with a smirk.

"You don't eat sugar," he grumbled. "How's Brody doing?"

"He's great. Six months already. Growing very fast."

After Jenna and Anne finished their brownies in one bite, they grabbed Faith by the arms and started dragging her outside, begging her to jump into the bouncy castle with them.

"Callum," she called out. "Some help here, please."

"I can't win against them. I'm sorry."

"Please save me," she pleaded while the girls dragged her. Callum chuckled, following behind them.

The twins forced Faith into the pink princess castle, which she was almost certain wasn't safe for adults, but the girls gave her no other choice. After jumping a few times to make the girls happy, Faith tried to sneak away, but unfortunately the girls had other plans. As Faith sat by the edge, trying to put her shoes on, the twins jumped at the same time, with enough weight to propel her into the air. As usual, Faith closed her eyes and braced herself for impact. She was used to falling all the time. This was nothing new, but this time, she was mortified that Callum's family was going to witness her clumsiness.

"Hi there, princess." Faith slowly opened her eyes, and Callum smirked at her. His arms were wrapped around her, and she was leaning against his chest. "At this point, I think you're just trying to find new ways and excuses to fall into my arms."

"Or maybe you're the one who's always looking for an opportunity to catch me." Faith felt herself blush and leaned her forehead against his chest. "I'm mortified. Why am I always such a mess...Do you think anyone else saw?" her voice trembled. Faith felt Callum tighten his grip on her, which made her feel safe and comforted.

Callum glanced over his shoulder and was positive that the whole family, and Lydia, were by the window, and had witnessed the whole thing. "No. I think they're all just talking in there."

"You sure?" Faith asked with her voice muffled by Callum's chest.

"Positive. Lunch is probably ready. Let's go inside."

"I can't. I'm too embarrassed."

"Faith, look at me." Callum gently pushed Faith away from him. "You are not a mess, okay? And no one saw it. And even if anyone had seen it, it was nothing to be embarrassed about. The girls jumped, caught you off guard, and I came to your rescue, as usual." Callum smirked. "Got it?"

Faith nodded and tried to hold back tears of embarrassment. She should be used to embarrassing situations at this point, and for the most part she was, but for some reason, that she couldn't quite figure out, having Callum's family around made her feel much more self-aware and self-conscious than usual.

"Jenna. Anne." Callum called out while still holding Faith. "Let's go back inside. The food is ready. And be more careful jumping around. Someone could've gotten hurt."

"I'm sorry, uncle Cal," they said in unison while climbing down the bouncy castle.

"I'm sorry, Faith," said Jenna, while elbowing her sister.

"Sorry Faith," said Anne while looking at them with the most angelical and innocent face they'd ever seen. "You sure you two aren't dating?"

"We're not Anne. You two go wash your hands and sit at the table."

"It must be your fault you're not dating, Uncle Cal. You haven't asked her out, have you?" Jenna asked while holding her sister's hand as they ran towards the house.

"Your nieces are quite something," Faith sighed.

"I'm very well aware of that." Callum sighed too. "Ready to go inside?" He smiled tenderly, and she smiled back.