Chapter 14 #2
She got all packed up and drove up toward Flynn’s house, but took the turn that would take her to Austin’s instead.
The parking spaces in front of the house were filled with cars, and she wondered who was here tonight. Probably just his family. And he had invited her.
She swallowed hard, the realization making her throat scratchy.
It was … nice. That he had invited her. And she had to wonder if it was just about sex or the mayoral race or … She wasn’t sure.
When she walked into the house, the women were seated in the living room: Perry, Millie, and Cassidy. She could hear the sounds of the men talking from the kitchen.
“Hi,” Jessie said.
“Jessie!” Millie said. “Sit down.”
“Oh, I …”
“The men are cooking,” Perry said.
“Fuck the patriarchy,” said Cassidy.
Well. Jessie was certainly doing that lately.
“Right on,” she said.
“Did Flynn tell you that I was …”
“He actually did. He was such a grown-up.”
Perry had a wicked little grin on her face. “It was nice to see the two of you this morning.”
“Oh. It was nice to see you too.”
Austin came in, with baby Emma strapped to his chest. “Can I get you something to drink, Jessie?”
“Oh that’s … that’s very nice. Just a beer.”
“Coming right up.”
She had the sense that this wasn’t at all the way Flynn’s home life had been when he was a kid. That this was an entirely different version of this house. Of their family life.
He had talked about his father being disorganized.
It was difficult to imagine Austin being anything of the kind.
The house was incredibly neat, always well ordered.
A simple, meticulously kept cabin with enough room to host family gatherings like this.
Nothing fancy, which was funny, because she knew that Austin could afford whatever he wanted now.
He could’ve added on or done all kinds of things after the success of his best-selling book, but he hadn’t done that.
The house was still the same homey, welcoming space.
Austin disappeared, then returned a moment later with a bottle of beer in his hand and Flynn behind him. “Hi,” Flynn said.
She waved at him, and she could feel herself blushing.
“I still need him,” Austin said.
They disappeared back into the kitchen again, and all of the women fixed Jessie with a look. “Yes?” Jessie asked.
“You wouldn’t happen to be for-real dating my brother now, would you?” Cassidy asked.
She laughed, a nervous sound. “I … No. I don’t think so. I …”
“You like him,” Perry said.
Well, Jessie could hardly deny that.
“What’s not to like?”
“I didn’t think that you and Flynn would ever say such nice things about each other. But he’s been saying a lot of nice things about you,” Millie said.
She was being ambushed in a very soft, loving manner, and she didn’t quite know what to do about it.
She realized that this was one thing her life had been absolutely missing for a very long time.
She didn’t have many woman friends. That was the problem with her bravado and the facade she kept up.
She could slip behind that facade. She could push them away with it.
She could absolutely tell them and herself that nothing was going on with Flynn.
Or it was just sex, or something shocking.
She decided to try honesty.
“Well, he’s … I’ve gotten to know him. So of course I like him more now than I did.”
“Well, we like you for him,” Millie said, smiling broadly.
“You … like me for him?”
“Yes. Flynn is hard to pin down,” Perry said.
“Very,” said Cassidy. “But he’s also the best. Like absolutely, really the best. Just the greatest older brother. He has always taken care of me and picked on me in equal measure. And I really like that he’s finally … found someone.”
That made Jessie’s heart flutter in a sort of panicky way. Had he found someone? Had she? She had honestly never thought about the concept. Finding someone.
Falling in love or whatever else.
She’d never even had sex. Why would she have entertained the idea of a lasting romantic relationship? It would simply be beyond her. It always had seemed that way.
“We also love you for the town,” Millie said. “And we’re very excited about the possibility of your being our next mayor. We’ll do any canvassing you want.”
“Well. I’m probably going to need a lot of canvassing.
” This was slightly more comfortable territory.
But still it was foreign to her. Sitting with a group of people who actually seemed to want her around?
Usually that happened in a bar or at the Wild West Show.
But the sense of camaraderie she felt here was something else.
“You should come to the holiday bazaar,” Perry said. “I’m going to have a booth with dried flowers. Actually, if you want to set up in my booth, that would be great. I have a really big space, and I don’t need it all.”
The holiday bazaar was held every year on the main street of town. Traffic was blocked off so people could walk between booths and see all the Christmas decorations for the upcoming season. “It’s after the debate. It’ll be the final push before the election.”
“Well … thank you. I would love that. It’s a great idea. I …” It sounded so … festive. And warm. And exactly like the kind of thing she actually wanted to be at.
“Yay,” said Perry. “It’s settled. You can canvass at the holiday bazaar. And in the meantime, feel free to put a sign up in my flower shop.”
“What about … If I lose, do you think Danielle is going to retaliate?”
“We’re all guilty by association.” Perry smiled happily. “We are all associated with Flynn. There’s absolutely nothing we can do to escape her evil eye if she decides that she’s going to be big mad about it.”
“Well, I really appreciate the offer. Even if you do incur her wrath.”
“I’m not afraid of her,” Perry said. “I could absolutely take her in a fight.”
Millie, who was small but rather ferocious, looked at Perry with glittering eyes. “I already cursed her. Effectively. She’s stuck with Michael.”
Everybody laughed at that.
Then the men came into the room, promising a glorious feast. They all trooped into the kitchen to find the table laden with a feast: corn on the cob and fluffy rolls, baby back ribs and potato salad.
“You Wilder men don’t mess around,” she said.
“We never do anything by halves,” Flynn said. And immediately her mind was in the gutter. Unavoidable.
He didn’t do anything by half.
She was appreciative of that.
They ate dinner, and the easy conversation washed over her. She even found herself participating in it. Not dominating it. Not feeling the need to do her Wild West Show bit.
After dinner, there was pie—which Austin confessed to buying from the store.
They ate it happily, and chatted, and then when it was time for her and Flynn to drive back to his house, she followed him closely on the road.
Her suitcase ended up being left by his front door, and he grabbed her and ravished her almost immediately. And when they were naked, lying in his bed, she traced shapes on his bicep. “I was thinking how different your house probably is now compared to when you grew up there.”
“That’s a loaded topic,” he said.
“I know. But … your family really is so lovely and functional.”
“It was a fight to get there. Austin … Millie definitely tamed him. But so did resolving some of those issues with our family’s reputation.
The feeling that he was just going to repeat history, that he was an outlaw, no different from any of our predecessors, no different from our dad, that was hard on him.
And then there’s Carson. He lost his first wife.
And then he and Perry practically broke every bone in each other’s body trying to sort out how to be in love.
So yeah, now they look functional. But Austin has always kept the place clean. ”
“They seem to really … You all care for each other. Cassidy says that you’re the best big brother in the world.”
He got a faraway look in his eye. “Well, that’s nice of her.
Honestly. She’s a good kid, and I … Her mom just left her, you know.
Left her on the doorstep and didn’t even bother to check what was going on with us.
Our dad had just died the month before. She didn’t even know that.
When Austin called to tell her, she didn’t care.
She was on to greener pastures. She wanted to date some new guy who didn’t want anything to do with kids.
Cassidy had to acclimate to Oregon ranch life after living in Florida. ”
“Really? I didn’t realize she came all the way from Florida.”
“Yep. Apparently, her mom was willing to go to a lot of trouble to abandon her. I feel for her. I really do. Because I know all that stuff is sharp.”
“Didn’t Austin and Carson lose their mom too?”
“Yeah. She left. But they don’t remember her. I know what it’s like to remember a mom who doesn’t especially want you around.”
“No wonder Cassidy feels so close to you.”
“I wish she didn’t. Not for that reason.”
“It’s all so complicated. But you guys make it look easy. You make it look like family.”
“Well, so does yours.”
That they appreciated each other’s version of family felt special in a way she couldn’t quite articulate. But tonight had been about the closest thing she’d ever had to a sleepover. One where she felt included and welcome.
A strong, terrible thought hit her. When all of this was over, she wouldn’t only lose Flynn, but the closeness she had built up with his family.
That made it almost impossible to sleep.