Chapter Fifteen
“I’m sorry,” Ellington said, sounding frazzled. “Isaiah picked up this stomach bug somewhere and now my mom has it. He’s finally feeling better, but she’s worse and I can’t get away.”
“I understand,” Jenna said, keeping the disappointment from her voice. She and Ellington had been planning an evening together before she left for California.
“Do you?” he asked. “I’m sorry I won’t be able to see you.”
She smiled. “I’m sorry, too. Anything I can do?”
“No, but thanks for offering. The pediatrician said he would be okay to go to school tomorrow. Now I just have to keep my mom hydrated.”
“You take your son to a pediatrician?”
Ellington chuckled. The sound was both weary and amused. “Sure. There are a whole lot of laws about doctors treating their own family members. Plus kids aren’t my specialty.”
“But you’ve given him tree bark or whatever it is you’d prescribe.”
“Are you mocking me?”
“I’ve heard tree bark is very helpful.”
“It is, but you’re mocking me.”
“Maybe a little.”
“Nice. I like a little mocking now and then.” He paused and she heard muffled conversation. “Sorry, I gotta run. Call me while you’re gone?”
“Promise.”
“Good. Talk to you soon.”
She hung up and glanced at the clock, then wondered what she was supposed to do with the rest of her evening. She’d already packed and had been planning to spend the time with a certain handsome doctor.
She felt badly that he’d been having to deal with a sick kid and now a sick mother. If it was anything but tummy trouble, she would have taken over food. But with a stomach issue, it was best to leave the special dishes for another time. There were—
She sat up straight as she remembered Ellington saying something about a bake sale. Wasn’t that this week?
Five minutes later she’d logged on to his son’s elementary school and saw that the bake sale was tomorrow.
* * *
It was close to nine-thirty when she stopped in front of her garage. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ellington.
“Hello?”
“It’s me,” she said. “Hope I’m not disturbing you.”
“Both patients are sleeping. Isaiah’s energy is back, which is both good and bad, and my mom’s improving.”
“I’m glad. Did you remember that tomorrow is the bake sale?”
There was a second of silence, followed by a lot of swearing.
She held in a laugh. “I’ll take that as a no. It’s okay. Go look on your front porch. I’ll wait.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Go look.”
She heard him open the front door.
“You didn’t,” he said. “Jenna, I don’t know what to say.”
“Be careful when you pick it up. Then look inside.”
“I need to put the phone down.”
“I’ll wait.”
A moment later he was back. “I can’t believe you made these.”
She smiled, picturing the cupcakes she’d baked, then decorated to look like a bright gold C3PO from Star Wars. “My homage to your obsession. I hope Isaiah likes them.”
“He’s going to love them. That was very thoughtful.” He cleared his throat. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I’m going to miss you.”
She leaned back in her seat. “Then my work here is done.”
She heard him laugh.
“I’m going to miss you, too,” she admitted.
“Then we have that in common.”
“I’ll call you while I’m gone,” she promised.
“I look forward to that and seeing you when you get home.”
“Night, Ellington.”
“Good night.”
* * *
Dragon was waiting at the San Francisco airport, looking as tall and handsome as she remembered. Several women eyed him as he took Jenna’s suitcase.
“Do you get that everywhere?” she asked as they hugged. “The female attention.”
“Everyone suffers,” he said with a grin. “I bear my pain as best I can.”
She laughed. “Thanks for picking me up.”
“You’re welcome. I’m part of the entertainment for the weekend, so you’re not getting rid of me. Mom and Dad got in late last night. Rather than make them take the drive again, I said I’d bring you.”
They walked to his car—a silver BMW 550i—and she watched as he put her suitcase in the trunk.
“I’ll warn you my parents have the entire visit planned down to the second. There’s going to be plenty of eating and drinking. While I don’t object to the drinking part, I was thinking we could stop and get a burger on our way out of town.”
He looked so hopeful as he spoke that she had to laugh.
“That sounds great,” she told him.
“It won’t be up to your excellent standards. I’m still dreaming about that dinner you fixed for me.”
“Next time you’re in town, I’ll make you something else.”
“Promise?” he asked, holding open the passenger door for her.
She made an X over her left breast. “I swear.”
They stopped at a diner with big windows and comfy booths. They both asked for burgers with the works, an order of fries and an order of onion rings to share. Dragon pulled two small disposable toothbrushes out of his shirt pocket and waved them.
“For after,” he said. “Mom can smell meat on my breath from a mile away. When I was a kid, I tried chewing grass to disguise what I’d been eating, but it never worked.”
She stared at him. “You’re what? Thirty? A successful attorney who has his own life. Can’t you simply tell her this is your choice and to lay off you?”
He scrunched his face and shook his head. “I don’t think so. When was the last time you really stood up to your mother? How did that work for you?”
“Good point.”
Dragon sighed. “I’m saying it all wrong. Mom is great. I joke about her, but seriously, she couldn’t have been more supportive. Maybe I didn’t always love the food, but there was lots of freedom at our house. There were just enough rules to keep us safe, but otherwise, we got to do what we wanted. I knew whatever happened, whatever I chose, she would be there for me.”
“I’ve heard Serenity talk about you and Wolf. It’s obvious how much she loves you both.”
“We love her and Dad just as much.”
The waitress brought their sodas.
“I’m looking forward to seeing the family home,” Jenna said. “From what I’ve heard, it’s beautiful.”
“You’ll like it. It’s big and bright, with lots of windows. Nearly all the materials are recycled, which gives the place a lot of character.” He grinned. “Wolf is just like Mom and Dad. Totally organic, vegan.”
“I heard Jasmine weaves her own cloth.”
“Oh, yeah. She’s currently weaving diapers from organic, unbleached cotton. She’s sweet enough, but not my style.” His gaze sharpened slightly. “How’s Violet?”
“Still seeing Cliff.”
“Bummer. Let me know if they break up.”
While she kind of liked the idea of Violet dating her brother, it wasn’t what she would call a practical relationship. “You live a thousand miles from her.”
“For the right motivation, I could move.”
She raised her eyebrows. “That’s a long way to go to get laid.”
He fell back in the booth, his hands spread across his chest. “You wound me. I’m a good guy.”
“You’re a hound dog. You sleep with women because you can.”
“I’m looking to change. I’m older now.” He grinned. “Not as old as you, of course.”
“Of course.”
“I liked her.”
“If you tell me the universe said she was the one, I’m not sharing my onion rings with you.”
“The universe and I don’t talk much. I just liked Violet. I want to get to know her better. I could get a temporary assignment in Austin and see where things went.”
Which all sounded nice, but as much as she liked Dragon, she couldn’t help wondering if he was all flash and no substance.
“Have you ever been in a serious relationship?” she asked.
He sighed. “Once. College. She was brilliant. My age, but in a master’s program. I was crazy about her. But I was eighteen, newly freed from parental restrictions. My big plan was to finish my freshman year with decent grades. She was graduating and heading off to Europe to work for NATO. I couldn’t be what she needed. She married a Swedish prince or something.”
She stared at him. “Is any part of your story true?”
“The broken heart part is. Since then I haven’t met anyone who intrigues me. Until Violet. Mom says that there is more than one right someone for each of us and not to give up hope.”
“I hope she’s right about that,” Jenna murmured. “Although she and Tom have been together since high school.”
“Not everyone gets that lucky.” He grinned. “She’s fixed me up a few times and the relationships have gone surprisingly well.”
Something Jenna could relate to. Ellington had been Serenity’s idea. Still...
“If you’re serious about Violet, you’re putting a lot on a thirty-second conversation.”
“I’m a romantic.”
She laughed. “While I wouldn’t change a thing about my past, I have to say, it would have been fun to grow up with you as a brother.”
He winked.
* * *
After they’d finished their lunch and brushed their teeth, they got back on the road. Dragon kept Jenna entertained with stories about growing up. Tales of recycling experiments gone wrong and the cow Serenity had bought to provide milk, only to have it get loose in her spring garden and eat everything back to the dirt.
“The winery itself has some old vines, which gave my folks a place to start,” he said as he followed the signs pointing to Napa. “They didn’t have the usual downtime waiting for the vines to mature. Mom made different kinds of crafts to supplement the money coming in. We lived pretty simply.”
“No TV?”
“We had TV. They thought it was good for us to experience the world, and television brought the world to us.”
“The original house on the property is now the tasting room,” he continued. “Dad, Wolf and I built our house ourselves, with a little help from local contractors. Like I said, nearly everything is recycled, repurposed or reused. She did want new appliances, though.”
“I’ve seen a couple of great stoves from decades ago,” Jenna said, remembering a white monster with three different ovens in a friend’s house in Los Angeles. “They’re beautiful, but not always practical.”
“The kitchen is Mom’s pride and joy, so you’ll get points for noticing.” He glanced at her. “Not that you need the points.”
Jenna turned to him. “When did you know about me?”
He shrugged. “Always. I can’t remember when I didn’t. They would talk about you now and then. Our big sister. When I was little, I would ask when I would get to meet you.”
“What did they say?”
“When the time was right you would come to us.”
The information only confused her more. “Why would they talk about me, make me real to you, and do nothing about it? What if I’d never wanted to find them? I mean, you.”
He kept his eyes on the road. “If you’re looking for logic, you’ve come to the wrong place. Mom lives by her own rules. I never knew what she was waiting for and now...”
“Now, what?” Jenna asked.
“Now’s when she decided it was time for her to find you.” He flashed her a smile. “The universe doesn’t check in with me.”
“Me, either,” Jenna said, staring out the side window.
It wasn’t that she wanted her birth parents to have shown up sooner, exactly. But an explanation would be nice.
“Families are complicated,” she murmured.
“Yes, they are.”
They drove around vineyards and small towns. The sky was blue, the grape leaves a vivid green in neat rows that stretched out for miles. As Dragon signaled a right turn, she saw the sign pointing toward Butterfly Wines.
She found herself wishing she’d brought someone with her for a little moral support. Ellington, she thought wistfully. He would be fun to travel with.
Her hamburger sat heavily in her stomach, making her wonder if eating it had been the smart thing to do. Not that she had anything to be nervous about. She already knew Serenity, Tom and Dragon. She only had Wolf and his wife left to meet.
“Wolf doesn’t resent me, does he?” she asked, trying not to sound anxious.
Dragon patted the back of her hand. “No. Don’t sweat it. We’re family. Everybody here wants you here.” He flashed another smile. “Trust me.”
They drove past the beautiful old farmhouse that was now the tasting room, continuing down a road with a sign declaring it “Private.”
They dipped down into a valley. The vineyards stretched out on either side, as far as the eye could see. After a couple more curves, she could see a two-story house sitting on a slight rise.
“You didn’t say it was a log cabin,” she breathed, taking in the huge house, the wraparound porch and the flowers blooming from pots and planters.
“It’s sixty-five-hundred square feet. Hardly a cabin.”
She turned to him. “You said you built it with your dad. You can’t have built a house this big.”
“I said we had help.”
She laughed. “What exactly did you do?”
“I hung a door.”
She was still laughing when he pulled up in front of the house and parked. Before she could do much more than climb out of the car, Serenity had burst through the front door and hurried toward her.
“You’re here,” her birth mother said, rushing toward her, arms held open wide. “You’re finally here.”
As Serenity embraced her, holding on as if she would never let go, Jenna realized the “finally here” comment wasn’t about the fact that Serenity and Tom had flown in the night before. It was the relief of a mother who had been waiting thirty-two years for her child to come home.
Jenna didn’t know what to do with that information. She hugged Serenity back, hoping the contact was enough and that words weren’t required.
Tom joined them, smiling broadly. When they both stepped back, Jenna saw a tall, thin redheaded man standing next to a petite blonde with a very big belly.
Serenity wrapped her arm around Jenna’s waist and propelled her toward the stairs.
“This is Wolf and his wife, Jasmine.”
Jenna climbed the stairs. “Nice to meet you,” she said, facing another stranger who was her brother.
Wolf stared at her. He looked much more like Serenity than Tom, but he had his father’s quiet strength. His gaze appraised her with such solemnity that she started to feel guilty. Not just about the burger but on general principal. She had a momentary flash of sympathy for his yet-to-be-born child.
She braced herself for some accusation only to watch as Wolf’s eyes filled with tears. He lunged at her, wrapping both his arms around her.
“I’ve missed you so much,” he breathed.
Jenna stood stiffly, her arms trapped at her sides. She appreciated the sentiment, but how could he miss someone he’d never met?
“I knew it would be like this,” Serenity said, then joined the embrace.
“Group hug,” Dragon called.
Jenna found herself in the middle of a family moment. She could feel the love flowing around her and did her best to let it inside of her. But all she felt was a little weird and uncomfortable.
When everyone had stepped back, Wolf wrapped his arm around his wife.
“This is Jasmine.”
“Nice to meet you,” Jenna said, half holding out her hand, half pulling it back at the same time.
“Oh, Jenna.”
The very pregnant woman lunged at her, gripping her in a surprisingly strong embrace.
“I’m so happy we’re finally really sisters,” Jasmine whispered.
“Ah, me, too.”
“All right, break it up,” Dragon said. “It’s too much like girl-on-girl porn. Seeing as you’re both relatives, that’s just gross.”
Jenna stepped back. “You’re all making me feel so welcome. Thank you.”
“It’s what we’ve always wanted,” Serenity told her, then linked arms with her. “Please. Come inside.”
Jenna let herself be led into the house.
The foyer was open to the second floor, with a catwalk stretching between each side of the house. She could see all the way through to the back of the living room where floor-to-ceiling windows seemed to draw the outdoors in.
The furniture was more rustic than contemporary—big pieces framed in wood with brightly colored fabrics. To the left was a dining room with beautiful arched windows accented with stained glass.
“Dragon, you take Jenna’s bag up to her room,” Serenity said. “We’re going to go into the kitchen and have a little girl time.”
Jenna would rather have gone with her bag and freshened up, but she followed Serenity to the other end of the house.
They passed the formal dining room with a table big enough to seat twenty, then went into a huge kitchen. There was an eight-burner stove, triple ovens, two warming drawers, more cabinet space than in a showroom and a big butcher block table that easily seated ten.
“The cabinets are from an old hotel,” Serenity said, touching the one closest to her. “We had them refinished. The countertop is a mixture of materials.”
Jenna turned around and saw granite on the island, a few sections of wood, some stainless and what looked like poured concrete. What should have been a mess looked comfortable and perfectly at home in the huge space.
Windows looked out onto a massive garden. She could see a couple of goats in the distance, along with something that looked like a llama or an alpaca.
Serenity followed her gaze. “We use the goats for their milk and the alpaca fibers for knitting. In the barn, I make cheese.” She smiled. “To sell. We don’t really eat it. Well, maybe every now and then.”
“I’m shocked.”
Serenity laughed. “Everyone gets to be bad occasionally. Come on.”
They went out the back door to where a couple of golf carts were plugged into charging stations. Jenna slipped into the passenger side of the one Serenity pointed to. Serenity unplugged it, then got behind the wheel.
“I thought we’d take a quick tour of the place before we start dinner,” Serenity said as they took off down a dirt path toward the vineyards.
“Tom and I bought this place when we were still in our twenties. We had a clear vision for what we wanted. Land was still relatively cheap, so we added on when we could.” She smiled as they bounced along. “However, making wine is an art form we’ve never truly mastered. We bottle about eight or nine hundred cases a year, but most of the grapes are bought by several of the big wineries in the area. It makes what we do more profitable.”
She drove around the merlot grapes, then turned left to head past the old house that had been converted to the tasting room.
“We’ll go there tomorrow,” Serenity said. “They do a very nice lunch at the tasting room. And some of the new releases are impressive. Wolf seems to have more ability when it comes to making wine than either Tom or I do.” She sighed. “I wish Dragon had been interested in being a part of this.”
Jenna thought about all her brother had told her. “I think his course was set a while ago.”
“You’re probably right. He was his own person, even before he was born. I could tell.”
Jenna pressed her lips together to keep from asking how. She’d grown used to Serenity’s unusual ways and could even appreciate some of them. Instead she focused on the clear blue sky, the warm breeze and the beauty of the landscape around them.
“We’re working on new labels for the winery,” Serenity told her as they parked in the shade and stared out at the rolling hills covered in grapevines. “We’re going to be looking at designs while you’re here. I’d love your input.”
“It’s not for me to say,” Jenna protested automatically.
“You’re family.”
She smiled rather than answer that. Technically, she was family. A biological member—full sibling to Wolf and Dragon. But DNA aside, she didn’t exactly feel that she belonged.
“Are you all right?” her birth mother asked.
“Just a little tired from the travel.”
“I’ll take you back so you can rest before dinner.”
* * *
Jenna’s room was as beautiful as the rest of the house. Big, with high ceilings and east-facing windows with more views of vineyards. The only strange touch was the butterfly motif. There were butterflies on the bedspread and several carved butterflies on the dresser.
After showering in the attached private bath, she changed her clothes and made a brief call to Violet, who assured her all was well at the store. She’d barely hung up when someone knocked on her door.
She opened it to find Dragon lounging against the door frame.
“Are you my unofficial guide?” she asked, her voice teasing.
He grinned. “I’m the closest this family has to normal, so yes. I’m here to introduce you to all the idiosyncrasies you can imagine and some you can’t. Tonight, we’re having Mexican. Fajitas.”
“I love fajitas.”
“This is different.”
“How?”
He raised his eyebrows.
She ran through the list of traditional ingredients. “Oh.”
He guided her to the stairs. “Exactly. Tonight, the role of meat will be played by portabella mushrooms. The cheese is sadly absent. However, there are fresh ingredients, guacamole that will make you find religion, and my very sweet, one hundred percent natural sister-in-law makes a killer margarita. I suggest we get drunk and count the hours until we can eat chicken again.”
She laughed. “Deal.”
“Good. Because I’ve already planned our route back to the airport, and there’s this great little place that makes Southern fried chicken and biscuits you’re not going to believe.”
They walked into the kitchen to find everyone was already there.
“Feeling better?” Serenity asked.
“Yes, I am. Thanks.”
“Good. We saved you some peppers to chop.” Serenity turned to Jasmine and Wolf. “Your sister is a master with a knife.”
“A good reason not to piss her off,” Dragon said, grabbing at a tortilla and getting his hand slapped by his mother.
Jenna washed her hands and went to the cutting board where several red, green and yellow peppers were waiting, along with serrano chilies. Tom stood over a big pot of beans, while Serenity doctored rice.
As Dragon had promised, Jasmine took control of a professional-size blender and began making margaritas while Wolf made guacamole and Dragon set the table.
Fifties music played from hidden speakers. The sun sank lower in the sky, sending streamers of light through the windows.
As everyone worked, they talked about their day, the winery, what was happening locally. Wolf brought them up-to-date on what had been going on in the vineyards. Jenna didn’t understand all the technical terms about growing and thinning and production, but she was able to follow the main concepts.
Jasmine passed out large glasses rimmed with salt and filled with slushy light green mix. She picked up a glass of lime juice over sparkling water and held it up with everyone else.
“To Jenna,” Tom said, smiling at her. “Daughter and sister. Missing from our lives until now. Welcome home.”
Echoes of “welcome home” filled the kitchen.
Jenna smiled and accepted the toast, then took a drink. Work resumed on the dinner. She showed Jasmine how to safely cut chilies without getting the juice on her hands and tasted Tom’s famous beans. Wolf caught her in an impromptu hug, and Serenity and Dragon danced to “Rock Around the Clock.”
As the sun slowly set, someone turned on the lights. Jenna leaned against the counter and watched, not exactly sure where she fit in, but knowing being here now was starting to feel more right.