Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
JUNE
“ T his is a lot of liquor, Grandma.”
I’ve just hauled the last of the wooden cases of alcohol into her dining room, which is where the bar will be set up for the speakeasy.
“Most of it is for decoration,” she informs me, her eyes bright with excitement. “That whole wall will be shelves of liquor, and the bar will be in front of it.”
“There’s a window there,” I remind her.
“It’s getting covered up,” she says, shaking her head. “This isn’t your first Halloween party here, June. You know that the whole house will be transformed. I have a reputation to uphold.”
“Right.” I nod and smile over at her. “Did Lauren text you this morning?”
“Yes.” She doesn’t meet my eyes and busies herself with looking through the bottles. “She says she’s coming for the party.”
“I’m so excited to see her. She hasn’t been home in a couple of years, and it’ll be really good to spend some time with her.”
“Your sister could have come home at any time,” she reminds me. “She chose not to.”
I know that it hurt my grandmother’s feelings when Lauren decided that small-town life just wasn’t for her and moved to Las Vegas after college. Grandma thought we’d all stay together, especially after the shit show with my parents, but Lauren is her own person and should do what makes her happy.
“She just wanted a different life,” I say softly, but Grandma’s lips tighten. “It doesn’t mean that she doesn’t love us or that she isn’t grateful to you.”
“I don’t need anyone’s gratitude,” she insists, shaking her head. “As long as you kids turned out to be good people, that’s all that matters.”
“We did. Cullen’s a cop, for crying out loud. I own my own company, and Lauren’s one of the most sought-after architects in Vegas. I’m really proud of her.”
“She’s doing well,” Grandma agrees. “All of you are, and I’m glad.”
“But you won’t admit that it’ll be good to see Lauren for a few days.” She just moves to the next box to inspect the bottles, and I blow out a breath. “Okay. I’ll get her room ready for her.”
“I’ll handle that later. We have other work to do before the crew gets here later today to start the big transformation.”
“I have to leave in a little while,” I inform her and cringe inside when she turns to me with surprise on her sweet face. “Grandma, I’m still trying to get the chapel ready for me to move into before Christmas, and I have deliveries coming today that I have to sign for. Not to mention, I’m having the windows installed so Cullen doesn’t yell at me again for having the plastic coverings up for too long.”
“Fine.” She waves me off. “I’ll handle this myself. I’ve been doing it for years.”
“What’s wrong with you today?” I demand. “You’re being grouchy and acting like I’ve done something to hurt your feelings, but I don’t know what that could be because I’ve hardly been here lately.”
“Exactly.” She whirls around and pins me with the same stare that’s put fear in me since I can remember. “You’re never here. You’ve decided that new chapel project and whoever it is that you’re sleeping with are more important than being here.”
“I’m not?—”
“Oh, don’t even try to deny it. I may be headed for elderly status, but I’m not stupid. You haven’t slept in that bed upstairs in I don’t know how long.”
It’s going on a week since we all stayed at the inn for the weekend. I’ve been at Apollo’s place every night this week because we just can’t keep our hands off each other. I hadn’t realized my absence bothered her, but clearly, it has.
“I miss you, too. If you’ll give me ten minutes to straighten out a couple of things,” I continue, “I want to take you somewhere.”
“But the crew will be here soon.”
“And they’ve worked with you for decades, so I’m sure they already have their marching orders. A couple of hours won’t hurt anything. Go get ready to leave.”
Instead of arguing, she smiles and hurries down the hall to the coat closet to grab her things, and I pull out my phone and call Rob.
“Hey, Boss,” he says.
“Hey, Rob, I need a favor. I can’t make it to the chapel to oversee the window installation, and I was hoping you’d be able to swing over there. I might be able to make it toward the end, but I have something I need to do, and?—”
“No problem,” he says, cutting me off. “What time do I need to be there?”
“Around two. I can forward you the email with the work order in case you need it.”
“Send it over and take care of what you need to. I’ve got this handled.”
“You’re the best, Rob. Thank you.”
“No worries.”
I end the call and then shoot Cullen a quick text before joining Grandma at the door.
“Where are we going?” she asks.
“Somewhere we haven’t been in a long time. Too long, if you ask me. Should we take your car or my truck?”
“Your truck is so high off the ground,” she says. “You can drive my car.”
“Deal.”
As I drive, Grandma watches the scenery go by, her hands clasped in her lap. Annabelle Snow is infamous and well-liked in Huckleberry Bay. She’s quirky, with bright outfits and thick, red glasses that look so glossy against her white hair. She’s outspoken and loves to gossip about anyone and everyone in town.
And she knows everything.
I’m proud to be her granddaughter.
“Things sure are changing,” she says, still looking out the passenger window. “Just look at all the new houses popping up. I remember when all of this was countryside.”
“Huckleberry Bay is becoming a tourist town, Grandma.”
“I know it, and I also know that it’s good for you young people who have to make a living. But I would be lying if I said that I didn’t miss the days of my youth here in this little seaside village. It was a beautiful place to grow up.”
“It still is. Just wait until you see Luna’s inn. It’s incredible.”
“Thanks to you.” I glace over and see her smiling at me with so much pride, she might burst with it. “You’re a talented woman, June.”
“Thank you.” I don’t know if she’s ever told me that before. I know that she loves me and is proud of me, but Grandma isn’t the mushy type. “I hope you’re hungry.”
“I worked up an appetite this morning.”
“Good.” I pull her car into a parking spot in front of Gordy’s Diner and cut the engine. “I’m in the mood for a cheeseburger.”
“Now, that sounds like a treat.”
When we walk inside, I wave at Sunny, who has worked here as a waitress for more than thirty years, and then find a booth for me and Grandma. As we’re taking our seats, Cullen walks through the door, and I flag him down.
“Are you telling me that I get to have lunch with two of my favorite people today?” Grandma says with an excited smile.
“That’s right,” Cullen replies and kisses her cheek before sliding into the booth next to her.
I sit across from them and wiggle out of my jacket as Cullen helps Grandma out of hers.
“She was being a tyrant this morning, so I sprung us both from Halloween duty and decided we needed sustenance,” I inform my brother.
“The work has to get done,” Grandma says defensively. “Everyone in Huckleberry Bay expects something special from my parties, and I’ll be damned if we don’t give it to them.”
“We have a week,” Cullen reminds her, but Grandma shakes her head.
“Every second of this week will be busy, but it’s always worth it in the end.”
“Well, Miss Annabelle,” Sunny says with a smile as she comes to a stop by our booth. “You look fantastic today.”
“Oh, I’ve been working and didn’t have a chance to freshen up.” She fusses over her hair but looks pleased by the compliment. “My grandkids are treating me to lunch.”
“Isn’t that fun?” Sunny asks, still beaming as she turns to me. “Do you know what you’re having?”
“I’ll have my usual—cheeseburger with onion rings and a chocolate shake.” I grin over at Grandma. “I’ll work off the calories on this party.”
“Make that two,” Cullen says.
“Three,” Grandma echoes, and Sunny laughs.
“Well, you guys are easy. Coming right up.”
She hurries away, and I catch Grandma looking around the diner.
“Who are you looking for?”
“No one in particular. I just like to see who’s out and about. Did you know that Indigo Lovejoy is seeing a woman he sold a house to earlier this year?”
“I hadn’t heard,” I reply with a laugh.
“I always hoped you’d end up with Indigo,” Grandma admits, and Cullen smiles.
“Why is that?” I ask.
“Because then your name would be Juniper Lovejoy. Isn’t that just lovely? And he comes from a wonderful family.”
“Sounds like he’s taken,” I reply. Cullen chuckles, but the joke’s on him. “Now, who should Cullen end up with? Indigo has two sisters, doesn’t he?”
“Montana Jericho, the owner of Huckleberry Delight.”
Cullen stares at Grandma and then frowns. “Why Montana?”
“Because then she’d be Montana Snow. How fitting is that?”
“I love how Grandma just pairs people up based on their names,” I say to Cullen, who’s shaking his head. “Maybe you should ask out Montana. She’s single.”
“I’m single, too, and happy that way,” Cullen shoots back. “Let’s not ruin this awesome lunch with talk about who we’re dating, okay?”
“I’m just saying that Montana is smart as a whip, runs that ice cream shop, and she’s pretty.”
“She is pretty,” I agree, loving how uncomfortable my brother is. “You’d make gorgeous babies.”
“I want great-grandchildren,” Grandma announces, and Cullen moves to stand.
“I’m out of here.”
“Okay, okay.” I reach for his arm, laughing. “We’ll stop. No more talk about pretty girls and babies, I promise.”
“What else should we talk about?” Grandma wants to know as Sunny returns with red baskets full of food and big chocolate shakes. “Well, this will feed me for a week.”
“Don’t worry, we have to-go boxes if you need one,” Sunny says with a wink before hurrying off to help another customer.
“I bet you can put all of that away,” I say before I take a bite of my burger. “You’re a little thing, but you’ve always had a good appetite.”
“I’m going to give it a shot,” she says, rubbing her hands together. “Thanks for this, both of you. I’ve needed to spend time with you.”
“We should make it a weekly date,” I suggest. “A weekly lunch, just the three of us.”
“I’m in,” Cullen says, and it looks like Grandma might cry.
“I would love that.” Then she takes a bite of her burger.
By the time I get to the chapel, they’re putting the finishing touches on the last window, and Rob’s standing out on the sidewalk, his hands on his hips, watching.
“Wow, it looks great.” I offer him the cup of coffee I got for him from The Grind because I know it’s his favorite.
“They were idiots,” he says in that no-nonsense way he has, accepting the coffee with a nod. “Is this decaf?”
“Yes, because it’s three in the afternoon, Rob.”
“You’re as bad as my wife.”
I laugh and go to inspect the work before signing the paperwork that says the job was done to my specifications. The crew packs up to leave, so Rob and I head inside.
“Wow, it’s so much brighter in here!” I turn a circle, shocked at just how much light is coming in through the windows.
“It’s definitely much better this way,” Rob agrees. “I see you’ve started to frame in some rooms. Why don’t you have the crew come in and help you? We can bang this out pretty quickly if we all work together.”
“I can’t afford you guys.” I shrug when he just stares at me. “I can’t afford to pay you what I normally pay you for our regular jobs. Besides, I can get it done myself. It’ll just take some extra time.”
“Fuck that, June. Jesus, I’ve been with you since you started this company. You can ask for favors, you know.”
“This is a business, Rob.”
“Are you saying that we’re not friends?”
The hurt in his voice brings me up short, and I shake my head. “Of course not. I definitely consider you a friend, and I trust you implicitly, but that isn’t what this is about. I just don’t feel like it’s right to ask you to help me for free.”
“You tell me when you’re working on this place, and if I have the time, I’ll come give you a hand. I know some of the other guys would, too. We care about you, Boss. You don’t have to do this by yourself.”
Damn if that doesn’t make me emotional.
“Well, thanks.”
“Don’t start with the waterworks,” he says, but he’s smiling, and his voice is calm. “You plan on moving in by spring?”
“Christmas.”
Rob lets out a snort of disbelief. “And you weren’t going to ask for help? Are you a glutton for punishment? When did you plan to sleep?”
“I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” He doesn’t laugh, so I shrug. “I don’t know, Rob. I’ve been excited to build my own home, you know? I’d like to be in by Christmas so I can have my own tree decorations without having to wait a year for it.”
“I can understand that. Listen, we’ve just wrapped up a couple of jobs, and the few things still in the works are light enough that we can wrap up by three each day. What if we ask the guys to come here until six and put in a few hours with you? Yeah, it’s a favor, but if they’re petty enough to ask you to pay them, then they’re jerks. Besides, you’d do it for us.”
I open my mouth and then close it again. I would do it for them, and having just those few hours of help each day would be huge.
“Okay, I’ll ask them, but if they say no, I won’t hold it against them.”
“You might not, but I will.” He claps me on the shoulder as Apollo walks through the door. “Something going on there?”
“Something,” I confirm quietly as Apollo approaches. “What are you up to?”
“I heard your windows went in today. Thought I’d swing by and check them out. Hey, Rob.”
“Apollo,” Rob says with a nod. “They did a good job, once I reminded them which order June wanted them in. Then it was smooth sailing. I’m going to head home to the wife. Thought I might take her out for dinner.”
“I recommend Gordy’s,” I say. “I took Grandma and Cullen there for lunch, and the onion rings were especially crispy today.”
“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea.” Rob smiles before heading to the door. “See you tomorrow, Boss.”
“See you. Thanks again, Rob.”
“Don’t mention it.”
When the door is closed behind him, Apollo reaches out and takes my hand in his. He doesn’t kiss me or pull me closer.
He just holds my hand.
“How was your day?” he asks.
“Completely different from what I thought it would be when I woke up this morning.” I tell him about Grandma’s bad mood and our lunch with Cullen. “I feel bad that she’s been lonely. I should have known.”
“You’re not a mind reader,” he reminds me. “Now that you know, you’ll make sure she doesn’t feel that way again.”
“That’s for sure.”
“You don’t happen to have any leftover onion rings that you brought with you, do you?”
“No.” I laugh and pat him on the arm. “Sorry.”
“I’ll get some sooner or later.” He takes a deep breath and looks around. “What else do you have on tap for today?”
“I’m going to put in some hours here. Now that the exterior is finished, I can really dig into getting these walls up and the kitchen framed in. Rob—” I shake my head and pace away from Apollo, still a bit shaken by my employee’s offer. “He says he’ll help for free and that the other guys will, too.”
“Okay.” Apollo tilts his head to the side. “Does that surprise you?”
“Well, of course, it does. I can’t ask them to work here for me for nothing.”
“It sounds like he’s offering without your having to ask, June. They want to help.”
“That’s what Rob said. I just didn’t expect it. I don’t ask for help like that.”
“Why not?”
I move to where there’s still blue tape on the floor, outlining where my kitchen island will be, and I walk on it like it’s a tightrope.
“Because asking for favors sets you up for disappointment. It’s just easier to do things myself.”
“Juniper.”
I look over at him and find him frowning at me.
“It’s okay to ask your friends for help, whether it’s big or small.”
I blow out a breath and then decide, fuck it. “When I was very young, my mother made it clear to me that I was on my own for a lot of things. She was messed up, Apollo. She gave us some dude’s last name, but I would bet that he wasn’t really our father. In fact, I’d put money on the fact that all three of us siblings have a different father. Not that it matters, really.
“When she finally just dropped us off at Grandma’s house and left, I was relieved but also guarded because, what if Grandma didn’t want us either? Mostly, though, I was relieved because my mom was pretty damn shitty. Have you ever wondered why I don’t like to cuddle? It’s because no one ever cuddled with me when I was a kid. Never. Grandma would give hugs, but she wasn’t a cuddler, either. So, it’s just not a thing for me.
“I know that Sarah had it far worse with abusive parents, and my mom just ignored us, but it still left a mark on me. She didn’t hit us or yell and scream. She just kind of forgot that we were there and needed her. So, yeah, having Grandma there to actually take care of us was awesome, but I never let myself get so used to it that I assumed we’d always have that. I love her with everything in me, and I know now that she’d do anything for us, but for a long time, I didn’t trust it.
“So, yeah, I just assume that I’m on my own with most things. Luna and Sarah are my best friends, and I know I can call on them for the little things like what outfit to wear or if I want company. But for the big things? It’s all me.”
He shoves his hands into his pockets and rocks back on his heels, watching me.
“Say something.”
“Do you know where your mom is now?”
“She died.” I shrug and go back to walking my imaginary tightrope. “Grandma told us it was cancer. Whether that’s true or not, I don’t know, but I did some research a couple of years ago, which confirmed she had actually passed away, just not how.”
“Why would Annabelle lie about how her daughter died?”
“Because she didn’t want to hurt us or to avoid rumors swirling around town from getting back to us. It doesn’t really matter how she died, anyway.”
“I need you to know something,” he says, his voice calm as can be. “I know that we agreed that what this is should stay between us for now, and I’ll stick to that until you tell me otherwise, but you need to believe that it’s not just you anymore, Juniper. I’m here, and I’m sticking. You actually have a whole community of people around you who care about you and would help you at the drop of a hat, no questions asked.”
“I know?—”
“No, obviously, you don’t. Don’t insult the people who love you by shutting them out when you need them the most.”
“That’s not what I mean to do.”
“No, but that’s exactly what happens. I’ve watched you do it for years, but back then, it was none of my business. It’s my business now.”
“Why, because I’m sleeping with you?”
His eyes flash, and I immediately regret that snarky outburst.
“I’m sorry, that was uncalled for, even for me. I get what you’re trying to say. I do, and I appreciate it. I’m going to accept the help from Rob and the other guys, and that’s a big step for me, Apollo.”
“I know, and I’m proud of you for taking it.” He crosses to where I’m standing and takes my hand again. This time, he leans in and kisses my forehead. “I’m always here for you, June, no matter what.”
We’ll see.
What if I piss him off badly enough, and he simply leaves?
“Thanks.” I squeeze his hand. “Thanks for the pep talk.”
“Thanks for confiding in me about your mom. I didn’t know that story.”
“I made Sarah and Luna pinkie swear that they’d never tell anyone.” I shrug. “Cullen, Lauren, and I legally changed our last names to Snow right after Mom died because we wanted Grandma’s name. We’d been using it for years anyway. Grandma made sure our teachers used Snow for us in front of the other kids, and because she’s Annabelle Snow, and we live in such a tiny town, they complied. But we wanted it to be legally changed, so we did.”
“I’m sure that made Annabelle very happy.”
“We had a little party,” I say with a smile, remembering back to that day. “She got takeout from Gordy’s, and she put balloons and streamers in the house. We got to stay up as late as we wanted to watch movies together. She made it a lot of fun. She makes everything fun, and I love her a lot.”
“I know you do.” He drags his fingers down my cheek. “You have the biggest heart, June.”
I snort at that, but he doesn’t laugh with me.
“I don’t think anyone would describe me that way.”
“I would. I see it. I see you .”
I take a deep breath, unable to look away from his gorgeous dark eyes.
“If you break your promise and go away,” I whisper, half-afraid to admit this out loud, “it will really hurt me.”
He cups my face, and I hold on to his waist.
“I’m not going anywhere, baby. You can count on it.”