Chapter Three
Jinx set his truck keys in the bowl on the stand near the front door of his childhood home. He loved the farm. It sickened him to think he might have to sell the place.
Unless he followed through with Sam’s request.
Marrying Justice seemed like a huge undertaking—a far reach. It wouldn’t happen.
He stepped deeper into the quiet house, and nostalgia filled him.
Nothing had changed. Not any of the furniture. The decorations. Or the family pictures that his mother had hung on every wall. He stopped to check out one photo, a portrait taken when Ilene was still a baby. Every day he missed his mother. She’d been there for him and would know exactly what Jinx needed to do to keep the farm. She’d worked hard to keep it after Jinx’s father had left them.
At first, Jinx thought the house was empty. Ilene normally had cheer practice in the evenings, and Aunt Ness worked late at the dentist's office where she’d been a receptionist for years, but the giggle from upstairs invaded his thoughts.
He took the stairs two at a time, and once he reached the landing, he took a right and marched to the end of the hallway. Ilene’s bedroom door was open. “Hey, sis, aren’t you supposed to be at cheer—” he came to a halt, feeling his gut twist.
Laying in the twin bed was his sister wrapped in a boy’s arms. Ilene was the first to notice Jinx and she gave a slight jerk. The boy, who had his hand inside Ilene’s shirt, jumped so fast that he probably pissed his pants.
“What are you doing here?” Ilene sputtered as she pushed up to her knees pulling her shirt back into place.
The boy’s eyes were as wide as saucers and appeared frozen.
“I should ask you the same question. What’s your name, kid?” Jinx settled his gaze at the boy.
“Billy,” he said in a shaky voice.
“Well, Billy, how much do you value your life?”
“Jinx, what are you doing?” Ilene groaned.
Billy jumped out of bed and awkwardly balanced as he stuffed his feet into dusty boots.
“Don’t bother coming back,” Jinx said to the boy’s back as he ran down the hallway.
“I can’t believe you did that. How embarrassing!” Ilene bounced off the bed, her long blonde hair floating about her shoulders. She had the Weathersby blue eyes, as round as a full moon and as bright as one. She’d recently had her braces removed, and now she looked older, but not old enough to be in her bed with a boy. She wore her itty-bitty cheerleading uniform that, in his opinion, showed too much leg.
She looked just like their mother, and he felt a pang inside his chest.
“What the hell are you doing, Ilene?”
With a roll of her eyes, she pranced past him and took the stairs with him following closely. “I’m late for practice.”
“This isn’t acceptable. You know the rules. No boys in the house when you’re alone.”
“Relax, bruh. We had clothes on,” she said nonchalantly as if they were discussing the weather. At the bottom of the stairs, she turned and faced him, one hand on her tilted hip. “I’m not a child any longer. I’m sixteen next month. Most girls my age have had sex. You should be proud of me.” She spun and disappeared into the kitchen.
He wasn’t sure how any part of that statement was supposed to make him feel better. Taking a slow, deep breath, he exhaled slowly, reminding himself to remain calm. “You were already grounded for not making curfew,” he said when he stepped into the kitchen.
She stuck her head in the refrigerator and came out with a can of Coke. “That’s another thing. What other teen has to be home by eleven? Eleven, Jinx. You know how humiliating it is to have a curfew? We don’t live in the Stone Age any longer. What are you afraid will happen?”
He started to open his mouth to answer when the back door came flying open, and Aunt Ness cursed a blue streak. In each arm, she juggled an overflowing grocery bag. Her hair had come loose from her ponytail, and tendrils were in her eyes. She blew the pieces away and looked at Jinx and then Ilene, squinting. “Okay, what did I miss?”
Jinx grabbed the bags from Ness’ arms and set them on the island. “My little sister thinks she’s thirty,” he muttered.
“You should have seen his face when he saw Billy in my bed. You’d think we were having sex.” Ilene sighed and popped the lid to the can. “Tell him you’re okay with Billy being here when you’re gone.”
Ness shook her head. “I never said that. What I said was, ask for permission before you have company.”
On her way to the door, Ilene grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl. “I’m late. You might not want to tell my big brother that you took me to get on birth control.” She pushed through the screen door and her laughter could be heard down the sidewalk.
Ness dug a canister of coffee out of one bag and placed it in the cabinet. “She’s enjoying ruffling your feathers. You know that, right?”
“Birth control?”
Ness leaned a hip against the edge of the counter. Turning fifty within days, his aunt still looked youthful and could easily pass for someone his age. “She’s being responsible.”
“By having her boyfriend in her bedroom?”
“I’m not saying I agree, but she expects you to be upset, and you can’t reach her that way.” Her expression softened. “We’ve all lost your mom, Jinx. Ilene is still grieving even after all these years. You’re not here a lot, and you don’t hear her cry. She’s rebelling because she can’t discuss her feelings.”
“There must be a better way than turning me gray before my time,” he groaned. He dropped down onto one of the cushioned chairs around the table.
“Cup of coffee?”
“Please.” He felt like he was a failure when communicating with his sister. Sometimes, she was a delicate flower who cried when he reprimanded her, and sometimes, she was a fiery jalape?o wrecking ball that would take down anything in her way. He never considered himself a pro with women. Hell, he'd only had two girlfriends, and at thirty, most of his friends in Catskills were already married with a couple of kids.
“Here you go,” Ness handed him a steaming cup and sat across from him. “You look like crud.”
“Thanks,” he said quietly. He didn’t even bother putting cream in his coffee. “She’s defiant.”
“She's a teenager,” Ness added.
“You have more patience than I do.” He resisted the urge to down the hot coffee. A scalded tongue might be a welcome relief from the constant bitterness he felt when he came home.
“Cut yourself some slack. You’re working hard. How’s that going?” His aunt had always been a great listener.
"Everything is fine. I'm sorry, Ness, that I’m not around more often. Ilene can be challenging."
“She is, but she’s also very kind, creative, and a compassionate young woman.” She looked down into her cup as if she had a lot on her mind.
He understood her concern. He wondered if there was something she wasn’t telling him. “What’s wrong?”
She raised her chin and offered him a bit of a weighted smile. “I’ve met someone who I care for a great deal. Technically, we haven’t met, but we’ve been talking. We have so much in common.”
“Really? That’s great. When do I get to meet him?”
“Are you planning on visiting Florida any time soon?”
He felt the invisible hit to the center of his chest. “How serious is it?” He could already read between the lines what she would say next.
“Serious enough. I want to move there to be closer to him.” Her eyes twinkled like she was a schoolgirl. “I think he might be the one. No. I know he’s the one.”
Jinx rubbed his forehead. “When are you moving?”
“Nothing is set in stone.”
“I want you to be happy.” And he meant it. “You’ve put this family above everything long enough.” And even as he said the words, he knew he’d have to make some big decisions to do what was best for his sister. He couldn’t move her to Sagebrush Rose Ranch. He spent sunrise to sunset working. She needed a solid role model, and he wasn’t the best.
“I know this is a lot to absorb. I won’t leave until you figure out what this means for Ilene.” Concern returned to her gaze. “I didn’t come to this decision lightly. I love her, and I love you. But since Izzy passed away, I’ve put my life on hold. Andi is the first person I’ve wanted an opportunity to get closer to. I didn’t mean for it to happen, it just did. Now I want to pursue my future with him. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, Ness. You don’t owe an apology to anyone. Don’t worry. I’ll figure something out.”
She nodded, but the worried lines remained. “Maybe it’ll do you two some good to spend some time together. I know she misses you.”
“Could have fooled me,” he muttered.
“You’re both alike. Stubborn as two mules. Just like your mama was, God rest her soul. She and I would argue like two squalling cats.”
“Ma talked about those times, but she loved you very much. I can't offer Ilene everything she needs.” He rubbed the ache out of his temples.
“If you think about it, you and I both have put our lives on hold since your mother’s death, but for different reasons.” She looked at him through the furling steam of her cup. “When was the last time you went on a date?”
He brought his gaze back to Ness. “I don’t have time.” His mind traveled to Justice and how he’d spent the last few months monitoring her per her father’s request. It wasn’t right that he had grown feelings for her. He drained his cup, barely feeling the sting of the burn in his esophagus.
“That’s a cop-out.” She held him in her stern gaze.
“It’s not a cop-out. I have been on a date,” he grumbled.
“Oh? Was there a second date?”
He cleared his throat. “No. The first date was a mistake.” He scratched his forehead with his thumb.
Her shoulders slumped. “I’m not giving you a hard time, honey. I’m only saying that you and Ilene both need something.” She patted his hand and then stood. “How long are you staying this time?”
“Until tomorrow.”
“Good. I’ll make you dinner because Lord knows when you last had a good home-cooked meal.”