7. Amber Jaymes
Chapter 7
Amber Jaymes
“Where do we put this stuff?”
“She stocks the shelves in the storage room on Mondays. Best to match boxes?—”
“Make sure you match the product numbers, not just the boxes. They’re not always marked the same.”
“Who came up with this system?”
“She’s as bad as her daddy was.”
My uncles, god love them and their loud asses, were all talking at once. My eyes were twitching with the octaves they were hitting. Now I knew why Diesel had abandoned me for outside. I couldn’t blame him... Maybe I’d go join him. No, I couldn’t do that; I had a business to run. What I needed was to be left alone in my garage so I could get my mind and body back on one accord. This sitting around and being lazy wasn’t for me. It had already done a number on my mind as it was.
The crescendo of voices seemed to triple as they sorted through the next set of delivered boxes. Where was Aunt Betty when I needed her? She’d bust balls and get them out of my hair.
Boxes of parts hit the floor, and my heart raced. That was money they were tossing around.
“Y’all gettin’ on my last damn nerve. If you break it, you pay for it!” I knew my mutter came out a bit louder than I’d planned when silence filled the room. I looked up to see three sets of eyes looking my way. Their scowls said more than their words would. Don’t judge me!
“What? It’s the rule!” I said defensively.
It was true, and they knew it. I think—yes, they were purposely trying to make me mental or something.
“Amber Jaymes,” Uncle Keith started.
“I’m calling Aunt Betty,” I warned, reaching for the phone.
“Don’t be sassy with us. We’re all here to help you. Now, where does this stuff go?” he continued like I hadn’t just threatened to call his wife on him.
Oh yeah, mister, I got ya number. I pulled my hand back from the phone and sighed.
I was sitting behind the service counter, like a small petulant child who was misbehaving would in a time-out. I’d been relegated to this spot, when they came barging in behind me this morning. It’s been hours of watching them stumble around “cleaning” up the place and now, I was left with no choice but to sit here and watch them make a mess of my parts storage.
They were slowly killing me. It would take me hours, days, to clean all that up.
“Y’all, really. You can go back to the kennels. I’ve got this. I can put the parts away, faster and in the right spots, with one hand.”
“We’re here to help. Now, where do you want all of this? Before the next order comes in.”
A grin tugged at my lips remembering what had happened an hour ago. My uncles had swarmed outside for the boxes as soon as Jake had stepped off the truck. I’ve never seen four older white men charge a UPS truck so fast.
“Uncle Elton told you already. It all goes into the stockroom. This box goes on A. This goes on…” I ran over the storeroom layout in my head. My mental catalog of the 5 rows of shelving was coming in handy now. “C. Those last two, the smaller ones go on E, on the back section, second one from the top row. It’s got a blue label where those boxes start. Put them in order by size. These should have the same boxes, but please, check all of the numbers. There should be a checklist of everything in each box. Sometimes they miss an item.”
I didn’t bother to get up; I knew they wouldn’t let me help. Plus, with the mood I was in and being that I felt like a caged animal, I’d probably throttle one of them with a box of belts or wipers. A spark plug to the temple would serve them right. I pulled my cell out of my pocket and sent my brother a text.
AJ: I hate-love you!
AJ: You abandoned me to these people!
AJ: They’re making me nuts!
AJ: Bring me a drink…a whole bottle. I’ll numb the insanity.
With a huff I sent the last message, and yes, I know it was a little dramatic, but for fucks sake, they were all up in my business, and I didn’t like it. Trace would know by the bottle comment just how far on the edge I was. Hopefully the fucker would come rescue me.
I dropped the cell on the countertop. I did have paperwork I could be finishing up. If only I could concentrate with these overgrown toddlers making noise and a mess around me.
To say I was regretting coming in today was putting it very lightly and would be the understatement of the year.
However, after having spent the last four and a half days—yes, that half day counts so much—stuck at home, sitting on a couch with my arm in a sling, I needed a change of scenery. I had a rotating number of people in and out, trying to help me in the only ways they knew how. Everyone wanted to make sure I was taken care of. I loved them for it, but sweet baby Jesus in a manger, they were driving me mad.
Too much peopling was not good for the people. I stayed to myself for a reason.
Today I’d come in with the intention of getting something productive done, to be productive for myself, only to be overrun by old people. My luck was supposed to be better now that Tom was locked up. Guess I’d traded one pain for another one…this one though was at least tolerable. They were annoying, but at least it was out of love.
The paperwork before me made me cringe. Poor Henry had taken the news well that I had to repair a dent to his truck. The dent that Chip and Tom’s fight had caused wasn’t bad, thankfully. It was definitely bad for business, but I’d had no way of stopping Chip from smashing Tom’s head into it. I was kind of bleeding over there on the floor when it happened.
After a quick explanation of what went down, he’d seemed to roll back his anger, and we’d worked out a comfortable plan for getting the issue handled. I was paying to have the extra work done and not charging for the repairs to his engine I’d already completed.
I mean, he was going to be without his vehicle for another three days. A farm with one less truck meant more work for someone else. It sounded fair to me. I did write up a receipt with all the parts used so he would know what was done and so my inventory report would be right.
I’d just gotten his receipts ready and in the file on the desk when the bell above the door rang. Mr. Kramer came in, a grimace on his face.
“AJ, my girl, I had to come see about you. Are you feeling better, sweetheart?”
I moved around the counter to give him a one-armed hug. “I’ve had worse. Do you need anything?”
“Well—” He shook his head.
“Come on, what do you need? I can get it for you. I’m not here alone if that’s what you’re worried about. Huey, Dewey, and Louie are in the stockroom, probably making a mess of my organization that I’ll have to clean up later.”
His brows tugged inward, making his already wrinkled face smoosh together. I grinned. He wanted to chuckle, I could see it in the crinkle of skin around his eyes.
“You have no respect for your elders, Amber Jaymes,” Uncle Keith said from the doorway.
“When they’re being a pain in my backside, I’d agree.” I shrugged and grimaced at the sudden shock of fire running through my arm.
“That’s what you get,” he said to me, then looked over to Mr. Kramer. “Mr. Kramer, what can we get for you today?”
I moved back to the stool I’d been parked on all morning and huffed. The pain in my shoulder had my stomach churning. I wished I’d taken a pain pill this morning. I hadn’t because they made me sleepy, and I’d needed to be functional; I’d decided it was a good idea. Maybe I could find some Tylenol in the first aid kit when no one was looking.
“Mr. Kramer?” Uncle Keith asked again.
“Tell him, please. I beg of you. Give him something to do that doesn’t allow him to hover. He’s worse than a mother hen,” I pleaded, fighting back a sudden wave of tears.
Mr. Kramer chuckled. “Very well. I need a new set of wipers for the old Caddy.”
“See, that’s easy.” I grabbed a pen and made a note on my pad. “You have a credit from the last time you were in.” I clicked on my keyboard to bring my screen to life. I needed to look at his file. “That makes your total today,” I tapped a few more keys, “$15.80, please.”
“I shouldn’t have a credit.” He looked confused.
“You left a $20 bill on the counter the other day. Your gas was only $5.00, so you have a credit.”
“You don’t credit for tips,” he remarked.
“You also don’t need to tip me for doing absolutely nothing. I appreciate the thought, but that’s not happening on my watch, sir.”
“You’re as stubborn as your daddy was,” he commented, chuckling.
My lips tugged up into a smile. “That we can agree on.”
I looked up at the bell above the door signaling a new arrival.
“AJ, what’s with this—oh, I apologize. Uncle, Mr. Kramer. Mind if I borrow my sister for a moment?”
I scowled at my brother. That scowl left me when Chip came in the front door on his heels. He had a bottle of Dr Pepper in one hand and a bag from Mrs. Netties in the other.
“Trace, Keith, Mr. Kramer.” He nodded at the men. “AJ, care to have some lunch? I figured you’d be ready to commit murder or be starving by now.” He smirked.
“Hey. Yes, I am starving. Okay, it’s both actually. Uncle Keith will make sure you’re taken care of, Mr. Kramer. Uncle, his blades are on row B, third shelf. You want the box marked as 17 inches. It has a yellow and black label.”
“Are you going to tell me about this message?” Trace asked me, waving his cell, fighting his laughter.
“Yes. You left me with the Stooges. I’ll get you back for that, brother mine. Soon.” With that, I stood, gave Mr. Kramer another one-armed hug, and moved past the others and through the garage to the backyard. Diesel got up from his spot in the sun and followed me over to the picnic table.
“Traitor, you abandoned me too,” I said to my dog. He barked once then laid down. Well, guess he told me.
I chuckled.
“Are you okay? Your eyes are glassy. You need something for pain?” Chip asked, setting the bag and the drink down.
“I’m okay, but yes, hurting a little.” I sighed. “I’m just tired of being tethered at the hip to some overprotective man. They mean well, I know. I love them for it, I really do, but for the love of all that’s holy, they’re making me crazy. Like, I may brain them with something.”
He chuckled. “If you want to spend time with me, I’d be happy to play nurse. Let them run this place, and we can go for a drive, take Diesel to the river.”
Something inside of me melted at his offer. I sat quietly for a minute then nodded. “I’d like that, thank you. And thank you for this.” I motioned to the food.
“I told you the other night that I was in this for you. Your pace, but I’m only going to be a call away. Unless I’m on a job, but even then, you come first as far as I’m concerned.”
“Why?” I asked, feeling my heart beat hard enough to be heard down the block. I’d been too scared to ask that before.
“Because I like you. And not just as a friend, it’s more than that.” He met my gaze. “Look, you’re a beautiful, self-sufficient woman. You run your own business, one your daddy left for you and your brother. You’ve never met a stranger. You’re kind—the list could go on for days.”
“But that still doesn’t tell me why you, a man I’ve known since I was like four, now wants more than friendship.”
“Something inside of me won’t let me not pursue this. I’m not feeding you a line. I’m being honest. I’m an asshole. Can be a right bastard at times. I work too much, and I have my own demons. I’m not trying to step on toes, nor am I here to just say, ‘hey, girl, I want you.’ I want you, that’s true, but I need you too.”
I sat there, fighting back tears. If there was one thing I knew about the man sitting in front of me, it was that he didn’t sugarcoat or mince words. He said what he needed to and screw you if you didn’t like it.
“I need you, too…” My voice came out in a whisper.
He reached over and took my hand in his. “You should know, I made your brother a promise a couple of years ago. He said if I ever made a move on you, it better be for the right reasons or they’d never find my body.” He grinned.
I chuckled. “Sounds about right.”
“Yeah. I won’t promise some lavish, exciting life, but what I can promise you is my heart. I’m not a skirt chaser. I don’t have the time or the patience for that. I know what—who—I want, and that’s you. Like I said, we’ll go as slow as you need. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Your demons and mine might?—”
“Butt heads,” he said over me. “Become best friends?”
I nodded.
“They might, but we have an advantage there. You know my demons. I know yours. Or, I’m at least aware of them. You can always tell me anything. I want you to know that. Past, present, doesn’t matter. The only thing I won’t agree to, in any manner, is keeping secrets that put you in danger. If I did that, your brother would kill me for sure.”
“Not to mention the Stooges,” I agreed. “I’m just not ready for more than what’s already happened. Be patient, please. I want to be with you, but—I need to work something out within myself. I won’t hold you back from having a happy life. You go date, do whatever you need to, and we?—”
“You’re the only one I want. I’ll be here when you’re ready.” He squeezed my hand, then reluctantly, I pulled it back.
My head and heart were battling right now. I wanted him, no doubt, but I needed to make sure I was mentally okay to jump into his waiting arms.
Tom did a number on my head. I guess I wasn’t as over it as I thought I’d been. Seeing him again, reliving the memories of that night…it was really messing with me.
I had to fix myself before I could bring another person into my heart. For Chip—for myself—I’d work hard to do that.