Storm (Georgia Smoke #4)

• Eleven •

“What all was he lying about?”

Briar

Forgiving Storm was easy, simply because it was impossible to stay mad at him. It was the forgetting that was sitting heavy in my chest. A nagging feeling that I was trusting him with my heart when I couldn’t trust him with other things far less important.

Did love make you foolish? This was new to me, and maybe it was supposed to be like this. I’d just never imagined that it would be this complicated.

I’d known since the dinner he’d made for me two nights ago that I was invited to a luncheon at his parents’ house. It was other women within the family. Knowing Maeme would be there made it less intimidating. I’d only met Annette Kingston at the Shephards’ party, and she’d been nice. Friendly even. Nothing like I’d expected when I first saw her.

Dovie was much more relaxed about attending something at the Shephards’ house since she had been there several times now with Nailyah.

I normally didn’t let anyone or any situation make me feel uncomfortable. My nerves were from the fact that this was Storm’s mother. I wanted her to like me. That had to be what this unfamiliar anxiety was about—walking into a house full of rich, pampered women who had never had to steal a can of SpaghettiOs in their lives. But I could do this. I was tougher than they were.

Taking a deep breath, I smiled over at Dovie and rang the bell to the front door of the Shephards’ massive historical home. I felt as if I’d been shoved into a scene from Gone with the Wind.

The large double doors opened together, and Mrs. Beck, who I had met the evening we came swimming here, smiled at me, then at Dovie. My guess was, she was in her early sixties, and Storm had told me she’d been with them since he was a baby. Her mother had worked for his grandparents, who had lived in this house before them. Apparently, his father was the third generation of Kingstons to live here. The idea of having so much family history made me envious. I knew very little of mine, and what I knew, I wished I didn’t.

“Welcome, Ms. Landry,” she said. “And, Dovie, it is good to see you.”

“Thank you,” I replied, going inside the large foyer and taking in the sweeping staircase, stunning chandelier that hung from the high ceiling, and the ornate furnishings that seemed as if they’d been placed here two hundred years ago when the house was built and somehow stayed in mint condition.

Even though I’d already been here once before, this place still awed me.

My gaze finally made its way back to Mrs. Beck. “It’s such a lovely home.”

Mrs. Beck chuckled. “Yes, it’s one of the loveliest historical homes in Madison. Perhaps the loveliest, but I’m partial,” she said with a wink. “Come this way, ladies. The others are in the sunroom. It’s a pleasant enough temperature for it to be opened onto the patio.”

Well, wasn’t this very fancy and proper? This was not our kind of thing, and the idea of us at an uppity luncheon made me want to laugh.

I cut my eyes at Dovie and wagged my eyebrows as we followed Mrs. Beck through the wide hallways until we walked through a room that was all white and gold. I wondered if anyone sat on those white velvet sofas. The family portrait over the fireplace caught my eye, and a smile touched my lips at the sight of Storm as a young boy. I wished we could stop so I could study it closer.

After we walked from that room—I had no idea what it was called or what its purpose was—we came to another short hallway, and female voices could be heard. The sunroom was larger than most apartments that we had lived in. Three of the four walls were floor-to-ceiling windows. The one that faced the patio was completely open. I wasn’t sure how that worked.

“Briar, Dovie,” Annette said in greeting, standing up and walking toward us.

She was in a pale yellow linen sundress that was amazingly free of wrinkles. How had she managed that?

“Hello,” I replied, then glanced around the room to see a few familiar faces.

Maeme gave me a smile and nod, and I eased considerably. Mandilyn Shephard, Thatcher and Sebastian’s mother, sat to her left, looking like the elitist she had appeared to be when I met her last. Jupiter Salazar, King’s stepmother, was across from them. Storm had said that was an important thing to remember. Never to refer to Jupiter as his mother. King did not consider her his mom, but then she looked to be his age, so I couldn’t blame him. That would be weird.

“You met most everyone at Mandilyn’s,” she said. “I believe the only new faces for you are Alma Davidson and her oldest daughter, Lula Mae. They’re family from Louisiana,” she informed me.

Alma Davidson gave me a tight smile that I found interesting. What was it about me she was unpleased about? Lula Mae didn’t seem to share her feelings. She gave me a bright smile and waved a hand at the empty chair to her right.

“I’ve heard so much about you,” she told me. “Please come sit by me so I can pepper you with a million questions.”

Hadn’t expected that. Lula Mae—with her long blonde hair that hung over one of her golden-tanned shoulders, big brown eyes, wearing very little makeup, but still was what I’d consider a classical beauty—wanted to get to know me. Interesting. I’d planned on sitting beside Maeme, but I didn’t really have a choice.

“Dovie,” Annette said, “Nailyah is in the gathering room with the younger girls, if you’d like to go join them. I know she’s expecting you.”

I turned my attention to Dovie to read her expression. She nodded her head and seemed comfortable going off on her own. She gave a small wave to the room, then turned to walk out, knowing exactly where she was going. Storm had given her this. A chance to be a regular teenage girl. My chest felt lighter as I turned my head back to the room. I guessed I was sitting by Lula Mae.

“We didn’t get a chance to meet at the Shephards’,” an attractive blonde who appeared to be around Annette’s age said. “I’m Luella Jones, Roland’s wife. My oldest son, Wells, and Storm are the same age. They were thick as thieves, growing up.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I replied as I made my way over to the seat that Lula Mae had for me. “I met so many people that night; I’m afraid I’m gonna forget a name now. The champagne Storm kept placing in my hand didn’t help.”

At my quip, there was light laughter around the room, but I was serious. I hoped if anyone else was coming, I’d remember them if we had met.

Lula Mae turned her head to me as I sat, and a dimple in her left cheek appeared with her grin. “There are so many, and I grew up with them all, but I swear I get the names all mixed up sometimes.”

Crossing my legs, I felt Alma’s gaze on me, and it wasn’t a pleasant one. I felt as if she was searching for my faults. Little did she know, those weren’t visible by the eye, but I had more than she could imagine.

“That does ease my mind,” I replied to the blonde.

“I was hoping you’d get to meet Rumor,” Maeme said, and I looked over at her. “Storm didn’t take you over to her and King the other night for the short time they were there. Rumor is nursing Cosette, and she can’t stay away long. Sweet Cosette is teething, and Rumor said they got very little sleep last night, so she won’t be here today.”

That was okay with me. Meeting the woman my father had abused wasn’t something I wanted to do with an audience. King still didn’t trust me, and I knew that until he did, I would never get a chance to know Rumor.

“Teething babies,” Jupiter said with a sigh. “Lord, I love to hold and snuggle babies, but I do not miss those days. I didn’t think Birdie was ever gonna sleep through the night. That sassy mouth of hers keeps me on my toes, but at least she sleeps now.”

“Don’t you pick on my girl. She’s got spunk. She’s a Salazar,” Maeme said with pride in her voice.

Jupiter smiled as she took a drink from the glass in her hand.

“Mrs. Beck,” Annette said as the older lady entered the room. “Would you get something for Briar to drink and go ahead and bring out the appetizers? We can enjoy them while we all catch up.”

Mrs. Beck nodded, then looked toward me. “What can I get you, honey?”

I glanced around and saw what looked like sweet iced tea, lemonade, and water. “Lemonade would be great, thank you.”

“Storm didn’t tell me you were so gorgeous,” Lula Mae said beside me, turning in her seat slightly so she was facing me.

Storm had told her about me? When had she talked to Storm?

I forced a smile and relaxed against the back of my chair as if her comment hadn’t come as a surprise to me. “Well, thank you. I’ll have to scold him properly for leaving out that detail.”

She let out a delicate laugh and lifted one of her bare shoulders slightly. “Don’t scold him too bad. He did tell me that you were a singer and you played the guitar and the piano. I’m completely envious. I don’t have one musical bone in my entire body.”

She lifted her glass to her mouth, and I noticed her perfectly rounded French-tipped nails. I preferred the strawberry-margarita color I currently had on my longer, pointier nails.

“Maeme tells us Dovie is your sister,” Alma said, speaking up and making it so I had to look her way. There was clear disapproval in her gaze.

“She is,” I replied.

“You don’t look anything alike. You must each take after different parents.”

Nosy bitch.

I flashed my best smile. “We do indeed,” I agreed.

“Does she sing and play any instruments?” Alma asked.

I shook my head. “No. The music gene is mine alone.”

She lifted her eyebrows. “So, neither of your parents is musically inclined?”

How she made everything that came out of her mouth sound haughty was beyond me, but she managed it.

“Not that I know of,” I replied.

“That’s odd that you wouldn’t know something like that,” she pointed out.

“Let’s not grill the girl,” Maeme interrupted. “Why don’t you tell us about Wayon’s engagement? I know you’ve been anticipating it for some time now.”

Thank you, Maeme.

That seemed to bring a real gleam of excitement in the woman’s eye, and she began to gush about the ring.

“Wayon is my twin brother,” Lula Mae said, leaning closer to me. “He just proposed to his girlfriend of six years. Once they started dating at nineteen, I swear Momma began planning the wedding. Her momma was just as bad. It’ll be the wedding of the year in New Orleans.”

Rich people. I wanted to roll my eyes, but I just smiled. “Sounds like it.”

Mrs. Beck returned with my lemonade, and I took it, thanking her, then had a sip. All this visiting they were doing had apparently made me thirsty. Jupiter was asking about flowers the bride had chosen and went into some combination she’d seen done lately. It was all very boring.

“Aren’t the peach trees behind Storm’s house the most perfect thing ever?” Lula Mae asked me, ignoring the others talking about wedding plans.

I nodded and took another drink.

She blushed then and scrunched her nose prettily. “When we were younger, before he built his house out there, we used to go back there on his four-wheeler.” She glanced around, then tilted her head in my direction. “It’s where he gave me my first kiss.”

Kiss. Wait, just who was this woman? She lived in Louisiana. I’d thought she was family. Why would he be kissing a relative? Unless when they said family, they meant … family. Mafia family.

“So, you aren’t related?” I asked, needing clarification before my imagination took off.

She frowned. “God, no,” she replied. “Storm hasn’t told you about me?”

No, he had not. But why she thought he should have was not something I was gonna like. I was starting to piece things together now. Starting with Alma’s clear dislike of me on sight.

“We haven’t talked much about his past,” I said, trying not to sound pissed off or jealous.

“Oh,” she said and licked her lips again, looking as if maybe she had said something she shouldn’t have.

Little Miss Chatty wasn’t getting to go silent on me now. She’d sat me beside her to find out about me, but I didn’t think it was because she wanted to become friends.

“Well, it was a long time ago. First love, youth.” She rolled her eyes. “My daddy moved us here from Louisiana when I was twelve. We lived here for three years before we went back to New Orleans. Long distance and teenage romance don’t work.”

First love. Storm had had a first love? And he still talked to her? About me? Why was I just now finding out about this first love?

The burn in my chest was unfamiliar, and I wanted to reach up and rub my hand over it to ease the sensation.

“I imagine not,” I replied while my mind raced through several different scenarios. Most that made that burn worse.

“We never lost our connection. It just became friendship over time. We both had our own lives. I did used to think one day, once we were older and settled, we’d find what we once had again. But …” She gave me a small smile. No longer bright and cheery.

But what? But I was here now and in her way? Yes, I sure as hell was.

She reached over and placed her hand over mine. “Thank you for letting me have him yesterday. It was so good to catch up and see him settled. He was happy. I haven’t laughed like that in so long.”

What the actual fuck? He’d said he had business to handle yesterday. Another lie. What all was he lying about? The burn was now a heavy darkness settling over me. If foreshadowing were an actual emotion, I imagined this was what it would feel like.