After 28 Lockouts, I Finally Locked Him Out Chapter 18

After 28 Lockouts, I Finally Locked Him Out Chapter 18

I took Maya back to California.

After the plane landed in San Francisco, the family car took us straight to our winery in Napa.

Sunlight poured through the windows, and Maya’s tense little face finally began to relax.

When the car door opened, my mother saw me first.

Her eyes immediately reddened, but she didn’t ask a single question. She just pulled both me and Maya into her arms.

“It’s good to have you home.”

My father emerged from the wine cellar, smelling of oak and cabernet, a bottle in his hand.

“You’re back?” He glanced at me, then at Maya. “Good timing. The kitchen made you roasted lamb chops.”

Maya ran to him at once.

“Grandpa, I smelled mushroom soup, too.”

My father laughed.

“Your nose is sharper than the hounds’. Eat as much as you want.”

At dinner that night, my mother put salad on my plate while my father busied himself cutting lamb chops for Maya.

Neither of them mentioned Boston.

We talked about how the grapes were growing this year, which part of the vineyard had the best sunlight, and whether Maya’s riding lessons should be moved to a gentler pony.

There was no trust here. No access. No Eleanor and Leo.