3. Avery
Avery
T he trip from Virginia to North Carolina was a solid six hours. That meant six hours of shitty playlists, bickering, and more junk food and coffee than anyone should ever consume.
Yet, I hadn’t felt more like myself in years.
It was too easy to fall back to the easy sibling rivalries and teasing, and Sidney fit right into that mix.
Eventually, it was just me and Nash awake in the front, while the other three were slumped over in the backseat.
I glanced back, raising an eyebrow at Sidney tucked into Maverick’s side, his arm around her protectively.
“Is there something I don’t know about them?” I asked Nash. He looked back quickly then focused on the road again.
“Not that either of them will admit,” he said before shrugging and swiftly changing the subject. “I haven’t told Mom yet.”
“How has she been?” I asked, my voice giving away the guilt that was threatening to drown me.
My calls with her had been less and less frequent as the years passed. When I stopped coming home, she’d still ship me gifts. There were some calls and texts, even when I was always chased off the phone by my former pack.
“Hey, don’t do that. Don’t look back. It happened, things got rough, but you’re coming home. I promise you that will be all Mom focuses on.”
I nodded, unable to form words. The glass was cool as I pressed my head to it, letting it chase off the swirling thoughts and emotions I just wanted to get rid of.
Apparently, I drifted off, because I woke up as the car came to a stop and the key shut off in the ignition.
My eyes were gritty and my neck ached something fierce. I stretched out as the others stirred in the back. Daylight was coming up at this point and I looked out the window to see we were at a big gas station, not home.
“Last stop before Rockwood Valley,” Nash said. He sounded as exhausted as I did. I frowned over at him, taking in the dark circles.
“Tell me y’all aren’t working today,” I said.
“You know we work nearly every day,” he countered. “But no, we put a sign up for locals and we’ll open up after dinner time tonight.”
“I’m so-” He moved so fast that I didn’t see it coming, his hand covering my mouth to stop the words.
“If I hear one more apology from you I’m going to make you scrub toilets at the brewery for a week,” he said, his voice deadly serious.
I tried to answer but my voice was too muffled to be heard properly. He narrowed his eyes and pulled his hand away.
“Fine. I won’t say it,” I grumbled, pushing open the door and climbing out of Nash’s oversized SUV.
My body ached and I stretched again, reveling in the feel before snatching my purse and heading inside to snag another unhealthy snack for the last thirty minutes of our drive.
This was the last major highway junction before the backroads toward the tiny towns that dotted the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Sidney and Maverick were in line, both so tense it was almost comical. Rolling my eyes I veered toward the coolers to pick out a green juice or something that would invigorate me instead of bog me down.
“Hey there, sweetheart, where have you been all my life?” The scent of sweat and tobacco was strong enough I had to force my face to stay neutral as I glanced at the old alpha behind me. He licked his thin lips and ran his hand over his overalls as if that would make him more appealing.
“Don’t fucking talk to my sister,” Cameron growled, stepping between us and forcing the alpha to back up. He put his hands out and shook his head.
“Alright, message received,” he grunted out, going to the beer cooler to take out a twelve pack before heading for the register.
“Let’s give him some time,” Cam grunted, putting a hand on my shoulder to guide me over to the tourist section. A smile spread across my face at the display of random keychains, shot glasses, license plate covers, and tees.
A random charm bracelet caught my eye. It was cheaply made, but the mountain, tree, and black bear were adorable. I snagged it off the shelf, promising myself to find a stronger chain the moment I settled in.
“It’s safe,” Cameron said, playing the bodyguard as he glared around me, just daring another man to approach me.
“Come on,” I said, laughing at his intensity. It was way too early for this. He followed me up to the register, but the moment I pulled out my wallet he grunted and shoved me gently out of the way.
“Your account is probably frozen by now,” he said quietly. Bile rose in my throat as I nodded, realizing it was true. Thank god I never got around to closing my old bank account. I might even have a bit of my savings left if I had any luck at all.
He handed over the bracelet and green juice with a wrinkle of his nose, but for once didn’t give me shit.
We joined the others in the car, climbing into the back now that Maverick and Nash were in the front seats.
“You good?” Sidney asked around a yawn.
“I will be,” I said, offering a tight smile as I buckled in. My fingers fumbled with the packaging on the bracelet and Sidney eventually just reached over and secured it on my wrist for me. It was likely going to turn me green but I couldn’t find it in me to care.
It felt like the first thing I’d put on in a while that reminded me of the old Avery. Not the version my exes had carefully shaped over the last several years.
“Does Mama know?” I asked anyone who was listening.
“I told her to expect us for breakfast but kept your name out of it,” Nash admitted.
A fresh wave of nerves hit me but I couldn’t dwell on it as I took in the landscape around us. Fall in the mountains was always gorgeous, but I also loved spring. The trees were fluffy and green, coating the rocky landscape and making it seem like another world in the early morning light.
Before I knew it, the carved wooden sign that I knew well came into view.
Rockwood Valley
Artisan Capital of the South
Maybe at one time it was. From the sound of it, and what I saw happening before I left, it wasn’t anymore.
The roads were still empty as Maverick took the main road past Main Street, then wound his way through the smaller roads until we just hit the outskirts of town.
Whitaker Ranch
It wasn’t even a ranch anymore. It was when my parents bought it, but my dads founded Whitaker Family Brewery and never looked back.
The land was intended to be split between us kids the moment we found our own packs. The land had been surveyed and split five ways. One for my parents, one each for the triplets, and the last one for me.
Something I never thought I’d reclaim. In fact, Travis tried to get me to sell and bring in the money but I outright refused to entertain that and they dropped it fairly quickly.
Right now the faded yellow farmhouse with the wraparound porch and view of the mountains was the only thing there.
My mama was rocking on her porch swing, sipping her coffee with an old crocheted blanket over her lap.
She couldn’t see me yet but a smile formed on her lips as she set her mug aside and stood, ready to greet her sons.
Sidney climbed out before me and I heard mom’s sweet southern drawl call out to her. She was family as much as the rest of us.
When I stepped out and past the open door, she let out a shriek and was a blur as she raced across the yard.
“I’m beating all of your asses for not warning me my girl was home!” she shrieked before tackling me to the ground. We both fell, hitting the soft grass. I laughed as I hugged her close, the scent of peaches and sweet florals hit me square in the chest.
“Mama,” I choked out before the sobs hit. She sat me up and pulled me right into her lap like I was a child, hugging me tight and rocking me as she soothed me.
“What happened, my girl?” she asked gently, stroking my hair. I could feel the guys’ eyes on me but I heard a car door close as Sidney took her car home to give us space.
I loved her even more for that. Though, she could have stayed.
Nash filled her in quickly, giving a full detailed rundown. I never asked them to keep quiet and we all knew our mama would find out every last detail like a hound dog on a trail.
She just held me and rocked me until my tears had dried and the story cut off.
“Well, my sweet girl, I hate that it’s under these circumstances, but your mama is sure glad to have you home,” she whispered before placing a kiss on top of my head. “Now let me feed my babies.”
I laughed softly and let go. Maverick helped us both up like the gentleman he was and escorted our mama inside.
The others followed them to the kitchen and I started to, but instead I let my feet carry me around the wrap-around porch toward the back of the house. A cool breeze was blowing through the fields, bringing with it a burst of fresh mountain air and the scent of sweet-shrubs.
A smile drifted over my face as I closed my eyes. I could hear the air rustling through the trees and tall grass lining the ranch.
“Did you miss it?”
Nash’s voice made me jump. He chuckled as he parked himself in one of the rocking chairs. Deciding to join him I dropped into the one I always took, a hand-painted white rocker that my dads had picked out for me specifically. They had dreams of us all coming here for family events, letting our future kids play in the yard while we kept our family close-knit, even as it grew.
It was a life that I ran from when my world felt too small, and now I can’t believe that I ever left.
“It’s good to be home, Nash,” I admitted in a small voice. “I didn’t realize how much I didn’t feel like myself anymore.”
“You know we still have the inheritance. You probably have time to figure out what you want to do,” he said gently. “Until then you could always help out at the brewery. Times have been tough in Rockwood Valley the last few years.”
That had me sitting up straighter.
“How bad is business?”
His lips formed a thin line. Even if he didn’t say anything else, that was answer enough. They never really let me get involved in the finer details of the business, but I was older now, and I had a business degree.
“Maybe I can help turn things around.”
He offered me what I assume was supposed to be a reassuring smile, instead he looked a little hopeless.
My entire life had just fallen apart, but avoidance was just the thing to get me through. Maybe I could put all that extra energy into figuring out how to bring life back to the brewery.
Focusing on the guilt of leaving my brothers to try and keep the business afloat wasn’t going to get us anywhere.
I was home now, and maybe it was just blind optimism, but I had a feeling I wouldn’t be leaving Rockwood Valley anytime soon.