Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
The highway stretched before her like a pale ribbon, unraveling through the muted morning landscape. Jewel gripped the steering wheel, her fingers tracing the familiar leather where countless miles had worn smooth patches. In the passenger seat, Chase was folded awkwardly against the window, his long legs cramped, mouth slightly open in deep sleep.
Her mind drifted to the night before. Destini had been different—softer, more open. They'd talked for hours, the kind of late-night conversation she'd almost forgotten was possible between them. It reminded her of thunderstorm nights from years ago, when Destini would burrow into her bed, small and scared, seeking comfort in her mother's arms.
The memory was bittersweet. Those moments had been rare even then, Destini always more independent, more guarded than most children. But last night had felt like a breakthrough. Something had shifted between them, a delicate understanding forming like morning dew.
She smiled slightly, watching the first hints of sunrise paint the Texas landscape in watercolor hues of pink and gold. One conversation didn't fix everything with Destini, but it was a start.
She'd not felt such hope in months, not even when she'd moved back to Crimson Creek months ago. Then, her hope had been clouded with worry about Chase and Hunter and the whose daughter is she anyway question.
Chase let out a soft grunt, readjusting his position. The couch at Liz and Joe's hadn't been kind to him—she had seen the imprint of the decorative throw pillow pressed into his cheek, his neck bent at an uncomfortable angle, when she'd woken him up that morning to get on the road. Despite the awkward sleeping arrangement, he looked peaceful.
The gas station appeared like a mirage, its fluorescent lights cutting through the soft morning light. Jewel pulled in, the truck's tires crunching over gravel.
Chase stirred, blinking groggily. "Coffee," he mumbled, more statement than request.
She chuckled. "Absolutely."
Inside, while pouring two large black coffees, Chase stretched and rubbed his eyes. "I had a dream about NASA. I was trapped in a spaceship, but Destini wouldn't open the door."
Jewel snorted as she grabbed water. "That's putting a lot of pressure on her to save you from whatever. She's just a kid, Chase."
His shoulders hunched and he winced. "I know. Do you think she's seriously considering moving into the house? Are you?"
She'd wondered how long it'd take him to bring it up. She found the more natural snacks—cheese, grapes, an apple, and a banana—while he stirred sugar into his coffees.
"I think she's considering it."
"Is that what y'all talked about last night? What did she say?"
They paid for their gas and breakfast and walked out to the brisk, windy morning. "It's more what she didn't say. Take the sustainable farming for instance. Last fall, Destini asked Gemma about her father. Thinking it was Hunter, Gemma told her about how he loved the stars, constellations, and the myths behind them. As a result, she basically transformed her entire academic interest to align with something he cares about."
"Thus the NASA focus," Chase said matter-of-factly. She nodded and put up the gas as she continued.
"Exactly. But now that she knows you're her dad…" She went around the truck, leaving her words unsaid until they were both in the truck, buckled, with the engine running.
The implication hung between them. Would this NASA fascination even continue now? Would Destini shift her passions again, now that the initial motivation—connecting with Hunter—was essentially nullified?
"You think she's going to change her academic interest to something else now?"
Jewel hummed a yes as she pulled back onto the road, glancing at Chase. She recognized the careful curiosity in his expression, the subtle way he was trying to understand their daughter.
The look on his face broke her heart, as if he felt unworthy of why Destini would do something just to get closer to him.
He shook his head and sighed. "Maybe she'll go back to her first love of plants. What made her fall in love with sustainable farming in the first place?"
"It started with ranch visits," Jewel began, her voice soft but steady. "I'd take her along when I was working, and some were experimenting with sustainable methods."
Chase leaned against the leather seat, coffee warming his hands. "So she saw it firsthand, could ask questions of those who were doing the job. That's good, helpful for finding something a kid wants to be when they grow up."
"If I remember correctly, you always wanted to go into finance because money is power and stability. Money makes the world go round. "
He laughed at her teasing reminder of prior conversations from that last year of their teenage past. "And it's still true, isn't it?"
"How did you even get a degree while in prison, anyway? And in accounting?"
He shrugged and finished his first cup of coffee. "The first prison I was in was rough. Then once I turned eighteen, I was thrown in with gen pop and had no idea how to survive. After a few beatings and broken bones, I found a group to join, fellow nerds who had made mistakes and didn't really belong to any gang or other group. We looked out for each other."
Jewel breathed a sigh of relief, a piece of her chest loosening. She didn't realize how worried she'd been about his prison experience until now but hearing that he'd not been alone made her feel so relieved, she grew dizzy.
She blinked and took a bite of her apple as he continued his story.
"We had a makeshift role-playing game going. While rival groups were getting into fights, our group was minding ourselves and pretending to save the world with magic. In our world, we were the good guys, and the good guys always won…"
The silence between them stretched, and she glanced over at him, her chest tight. "You are a good guy, Chase. I hope you know that."
He sighed and rubbed his hands down his jean clad thighs. "I know. It was just hard to remember in prison when everyone there's made mistakes and gotten caught."
The silence lengthened, and she wondered if the memories were pulling at him. "Your gaming group—they had your back in there?"
He perked up, a smile hovering on his lips as he nodded. "Yeah, so many times I've lost count. I still write them letters a few times a month. The ones I know where they are, anyway. I've lost track of Raul and Sammy."
"Where do you think they are?" she asked, hoping he didn't say dead. She would hate that for him.
He shrugged though. "Got out, I think. But you asked about the degree. One officer was a regular who got invested in our role-playing games. He was the nephew of the warden, who was having trouble with the books. Warden knew someone on staff was embezzling but couldn't prove it. The officer told his uncle how I kept track of our role-playing game information. I guess he overheard a few phone calls I made with Landry too, where we talked money and investments. I've always had a way with patterns and numbers."
She rolled down her window and threw the apple core out, rolling it back up.
"I found the culprit—three officers, actually, and the secretary. Once the warden cleaned house, I was thanked with a transfer to a low-security facility where I was then enrolled in a degree program."
He shrugged and reached for the second cup of coffee, growing quieter.
"I'm proud of you for helping them, for getting your degree. You made things happen despite the obstacles in your path."
He chuckled and sipped his coffee. "Didn't really have a choice in helping them. Wish I hadn't lost touch with my DnD inmate friends, but life goes on. I'm grateful to the low security place not just for the degree but for all the therapy and shit they gave us too."
"Like what?"
He shrugged. "Access to computers, movies, books. The warden of that place was female, and that influenced a lot of our options. Lots of romance novels and romcom movies. She was like that lady in pink in the Harry Pothead movies, but if that lady actually cared and wasn't evil."
Jewel burst out laughing and slipped her sunglasses on as the sun shone brighter. "Harry Pothead?"
Chase grinned and reached for his breakfast. "Sorry, force of habit. That's what we called him in prison."
Jewel shook her head. "Fascinating."
Chase hunched his shoulders and peered out the window. "I don't know about that. Tell me more about Destini and plants. After she talked with the farmers, what happened?"
Jewel let the subject change occur, knowing she couldn't push him for too much information all at once. The memories had to be painful, and she didn't want him to hurt. She… cared about him.
Her heart raced, and her mind shied away from analyzing that more. Instead, she launched into the new topic.
"She did a presentation at school on hydroponics. Then she used that to convince me to start a small hydroponics experiment at home. Just herbs at first—lettuce, spinach, peppers. Destini was fascinated by how precise yet unpredictable it all was."
"Because the pH has to be right, but plants don't always yield the same results time after time?" Chase asked.
Jewel's brows rose in surprise. "That's almost exactly what she used to complain about. How did you know that?"
He shrugged. "I was really into science in middle school. The teachers challenged me with extra projects, and I looked into water once."
She shook her head. Before having Destini, that sentence would've sounded weird, but now, she understood exactly what he meant. "Destini used to do that too. She's in the Gifted and Talented program, so there were always projects. With the hydroponics project, she said it was like solving a puzzle where the pieces constantly changed shape."
"Plants don't follow rules," Chase murmured, more to himself than to her. His eyes grew distant, reflecting something deeper than just agricultural theory as he stared out the window at the rising sun.
Jewel agreed with him. "No rules, no perfect formula. Sometimes seeds didn't sprout. Sometimes they'd flourish in the most unexpected conditions. She so wanted to control the outcome of every plant, would religiously chart the results and tweak her processes."
Chase's laugh was short, almost bitter. "Learning that you can't control everything is one of the hardest lessons in life, especially when you're young." The weight of his own unspoken experiences hung in the air between them.
The highway stretched out before them, rolling like a ribbon of asphalt cutting through the Texas landscape. Chase shifted in the passenger seat, stretching his legs as the topic shifted again.
"Thanks for getting me back in time for church," he said, breaking the silence. "I didn't want to leave Destini today, but with Hunter's engagement to Taylor, I think it's best to show up at church."
Jewel shrugged and winced. "I didn't exactly tell Dad and Gemma that I'd miss church today, so it's fine. After you told me about their engagement last night, I figured we both need to show our support of them."
Jewel glanced over, calculating the time and the GPS, catching his profile against the passing scenery.
"So you're happy for them?" he asked, carefully neutral.
"Of course," she said, her fingers relaxing on the steering wheel. "They're good together, but how is your mom handling the news? I saw how stressed Taylor was with your mom's recovery and helping cook at the ranch."
Chase went still, the kind of stillness that suggested discomfort. "Not sure, since I've been avoiding my mom the past few days. The way she responded…"
Since she read the letter at the house saying Chase was Destini's dad.
The statement hung between them, unsaid but powerful as they both thought back on it. Had it really only been a few days ago? The morning sunlight slanted across the dashboard, casting long shadows.
Chase cleared his throat and rubbed his hands on his pants as they drew closer to Crimson Creek. "Church today is a strategic move to help break the ice with Mom. With lots of people around, family and friends will be celebrating Hunter and Taylor's engagement. It'll take the spotlight off me being a disappointing screwup yet again. Everyone will be looking at Hunter instead."
The self-deprecation was raw, unfiltered. Jewel heard the mix of pain and protection in his voice.
"You're not a screwup, Chase, but I can understand where you're coming from." Jewel's grip tightened on the steering wheel. "Honestly? I've been dodging Dad and Gemma like the plague the past few days too. But in small towns like ours, rumors spread faster than wildfire. Hell, they've probably already talked to your mom. I'm sure there's a shit storm brewing."
Chase let out a surprised chuckle, a sound both weary and amused. "Two peas in a pod, huh? Both of us avoiding clearing the air with our families."
She nodded, a wry smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. The tension in the truck softened slightly, a shared understanding passing between them.
The church parking lot was already half-full when they arrived. Pickup trucks and SUVs lined the neat rows, their gleaming surfaces reflecting the late morning sunlight. Chase tensed visibly as they walked toward the white clapboard building, its steeple pointing skyward like an accusatory finger.
"Ready?" she asked, her voice deliberately light.
"About as ready as I'll ever be," he muttered.
"Remember," Jewel murmured, her hand brushing his arm, "We're here to support Hunter and Taylor. But don't be surprised if we get interrogated too."
Chase nodded, but she could see the muscle jumping in his jaw. Small towns had long memories, and this congregation knew every chapter of his complicated history.
His hazel eyes sought hers, and he paused in front of the stairs. "We're on the same team, right?"
She frowned. "What do you mean?"
He hesitated, searching her soul for the answer to some hidden equation. Finally, he licked his lips nervously and said, "Whatever they might say about Destini, we're in this together. Right? Or do you want me to be the bad guy and tell people I seduced you?"
She winced and squeezed his hand. "We're not going to lie. You're not a bad guy and you didn't seduce me. We'll keep it vague, but yes. I—I'd like to be on the same team here, for Destini's sake."
The last words hung in the air between them, and he straightened with a frown.
"For Destini's sake," he said, his voice low and husky with emotion. Then he dropped her hand and went up the stairs to the front door where people stood staring at them.
She swallowed hard, pushing past the questions his words brought up and focusing on calming the gossip mill.