Epilogue
EPILOGUE
COLE
After jumping out of my truck, I made my way to my parents' front door. I had no idea why my dad texted me to come to the house after I finished working, but considering he doesn’t ask often, I knew it was in my best interest to show up.
I pushed open the door and stepped inside but didn’t see anyone. “Dad?”
“In the living room,” he called back.
I wiped my boots on the rug until they were as clean as I could get them, then walked down the short hallway and turned the corner into the living room. My eyes met my dad’s just as I walked into the room but then immediately landed on my aunt Jessie standing next to him.
“Aunt Jessie?” My eyes skimmed the room until I saw my mom sitting on the couch next to Winnie, one of Aunt Janet’s twin girls, which only confused me further. “Winnie?”
“Hey, cuz.” She smiled wide, and I couldn’t help but return her grin. Winnie was always smiling and happy, never one who seemed like she let life get her down.
Aunt Jessie crossed the room and gave me a hug. “How are you?”
“I’m good.” I grinned, but it quickly turned into a smile when thoughts of Paige bombarded my mind.
“That’s what I hear.” She winked and made her way back to the couch to sit next to Winnie.
Aunt Jessie gestured toward Dad. “Your dad was just telling us that you're house hunting.”
“Actually, I think the hunt is over.”
“You found something?” Mom asked.
“Yeah, we just looked at it yesterday, and we’re going to walk through it again today, but we both really like it.”
“How far from the garage?”
“Only about five minutes. It’s on Monroe Street.”
“That’s a nice street.” When Dad spoke, I shifted my attention back to him. “And it’s only a couple of blocks from your sisters’ apartment.”
“Ahh, I can see things haven’t changed.” When Aunt Jessie laughed, we both turned our heads toward her, but we didn’t need to say anything before she continued. “You’re still both hovering.”
Mom laughed. “That they are.”
I couldn’t deny it so I chuckled, but when my curiosity won out, I moved on. “You here for a visit?”
I was still trying to make sense of what was going on, considering I hadn’t seen Winnie since she was about twelve years old. Doing fast math in my head, I realized she was probably twenty-three by now.
Winnie shook her head. “No, I’m moving back, or we’re moving back.” She gestured back and forth between Aunt Jessie and her. “I guess.”
I tilted my head back and groaned. “You and Harper back together doesn’t sound good. You two used to get into a lot of trouble together.”
She laughed. “I won’t get Harper into any trouble.”
Meeting her gaze again, I knew I looked doubtful. “Can you promise that?”
“Well…” She glanced at the hallway behind me. “Considering I’m a mom now, I don’t think I’ll have time to get into too much trouble or even hang out with Harper.”
“You have a kid?”
She smiled. “Yeah, she's four.”
“Where is she?”
“She’s sleeping in Harper’s old room. It was a long trip.”
“Where were you?”
“California,” she replied.
My eyes widened. “You drove here from California?” When she nodded, I continued, “How long did it take?”
“Days,” she replied, and I noticed how tired she actually looked.
“Where’s your mom?” I asked, still confused why my aunt Jessie was here with her instead of her mom, Janet.
“I’m not sure.” Winnie laughed, but it was strained. “Mom joined a missionary group years ago and went off the grid again. I haven’t seen her since.”
“And Melodie?”
This time, she smiled easier. “Mel’s coming. She’s finishing her last semester this fall at California State, and then she’s planning to be on the first flight to New Hope.”
“What’s her degree?”
“Architecture.”
“Geez.” I smirked at my dad. “What is it with this family and the construction of buildings?”
Dad shrugged, but he was grinning. “She’s already got a job lined up.”
“Really?” My eyebrows rose, and I shifted my attention back to Winnie. “Where?”
“In Riverton,” Winnie replied.
I jerked up my chin. “That’s not too far from New Hope. How did she get a job already, especially in Riverton?”
“The company she interned with has an East Coast location in Riverton. They offered her a position and told her she could choose to stay in California or transfer to their other location. That’s when we agreed it was time to move home.”
I gestured toward Aunt Jessie. “And you decided to tag along?”
She laughed. “Something like that.”
“They’re going to stay with us until we can find them something.”
I glanced back at Dad when he spoke. “Did you talk to Ben?”
Dad shook his head. “No, he’s too damn busy with the new builds. I think I might ask Kate to set up something with the real estate agent you used. I know you liked him.”
“Yeah, he’s easy to work with, and he found us something pretty quickly.” I shifted my attention back to Aunt Jessie. “I’m surprised you’re not staying with Uncle Jack. He definitely has more room.”
“He also has a lot of grandkids who are at his house all the time,” Mom answered. “Jessie and Winnie were hoping to have a little quiet while they settle in.”
That didn’t make a lot of sense to me. After my dad’s parents died, Janet and Jessie moved in with Uncle Jack since he was the oldest and had a house. They finished high school living in that house. It would only make sense that Aunt Jessie would consider that home. Not to mention that anytime Aunt Jessie came home to visit, she stayed with Uncle Jack.
“Jack and I talked about it and decided this was the best place for them,” Dad added.
My eyes flicked to Aunt Jessie. “You didn’t get a say in that conversation?”
She laughed. “I’m the youngest. I never get a say.” She flicked her wrist. “Staying here is only temporary anyway.”
I narrowed my eyes and glanced between all the adults in the room. “Okay, who wants to tell me what’s really going on because you’re all acting a little weird.”
Dad sighed and ran his hand over the back of his neck, but it was Winnie who finally spoke.
“We’re laying low.”
“Winnie...” Aunt Jessie started.
Winnie stood. “He may as well know.” She gestured toward me. “Nothing is a secret for very long in this family anyway.”
“Know what?”
Winnie sighed. “I was in a bad situation. When I figured out what the hell was really going on, I decided to cut my losses and move on.”
“What do you mean?” I glanced between Winnie and Dad, but neither of their expressions gave anything away. “What were you involved in?”
“It’s not important.” Winnie stood. “What’s important is that I fix it and start over. Coming home feels like the best place for a do-over.”
“It usually is,” I agreed, but then something occurred to me. “Does the shit you got mixed up in have anything to do with the police?”
Her lips thinned. “Potentially.”
“Which is why you can’t stay with Uncle Jack,” I surmised. “He has two kids on the police force.” I shifted my attention to Dad. “Does he know?”
“He knows,” my dad confirmed. “And he wasn’t concerned, but we felt like until things are resolved, it’s better to keep this to ourselves.”
“So we’re the only ones who know?”
Winnie nodded. “So far. But I’m sure it won’t take long until everyone does.”
“They won’t hear it from me,” I promised. “As far as I’m concerned, you came home because you wanted to raise your daughter around family.” Winnie smiled softly when I continued. “What’s her name?”
“Violet,” she answered. “And she’s a force to reckon with already.”
“Another one?” My eyebrows raised. “That family gene must be pretty damn strong.”
Winnie laughed. “It seems to be.”
“I’m happy you’re home.” I shoved my hands in my pockets. “No matter the reason. And Harper will be thrilled, even if you’re not able to hang out as much as she’ll want.”
“She’ll understand why,” Mom intervened, and I agreed. Harper loved our family and would support anyone however she could. But keeping this story from her and the rest of the family would be a challenge.
I looked around. “Why are you telling me if you’re not telling everyone else?”
“We thought you could run interference for her a little better than the rest of us,” Dad admitted. “We’re also considering telling Jax and Brody. See if Elite can help out in any way.” He lifted his hand, his palm facing Winnie when she opened her mouth to speak. “But that’s not been decided yet.” His face softened when he spoke directly to her. “We want to help you in any way we can, but you’re going to need to trust us and, more importantly, trust your cousins, who can probably help you the most.”
Winnie’s shoulders dropped. “I just don’t think it’s a good idea to involve everyone in my mess.”
Dad crossed the room and put his hands on the sides of her arms. “We’re here for the good and the bad. And trust me, sweetheart, we’ve all done things that we believe are our burden to bear, and that just isn’t true. We’re a family.” He smiled. “We’re loud, we’re intrusive, and we’re bossy, but at the end of the day, no one in the world loves you more than we do.”
She smiled softly. “I know that, Uncle Joe.”
“Good.” He squeezed her shoulders before dropping his hands and taking a few steps back.
“Well.” I walked over to stand next to Winnie and slung my arm across her shoulders. “I guess there’s only one thing left to say.”
She tilted her head back to look up at me. “What’s that?”
“Welcome home.”
She smiled and laid her head against my shoulder. She seemed more relaxed than when I first walked into the room, but I had my doubts that would last. Whatever chased her here wouldn’t stay away for very long.
* * *
Continue Reading for an excerpt from Unattainable, book three in the Game of Love Series.