Chapter 8
JINX
I may not go to church every week—or even once a month—but I do make a point to join the family for Sunday lunch as often as possible. It keeps Ma off my back, keeps Dad from hiding all the shit he’s not supposed to be doing at his age, and keeps my belly full, too.
Now that Hayden and Jesse are back together and she’s living in Cole Creek and keeping him fed, the majority of Ma’s leftovers come home with me. Amelia is too picky, and Aiden almost never shows up, so I’ve become the chosen one. And given my lack of culinary skills as well as my lack of time, I do not complain.
With lunch cleaned up and those precious leftovers all packed up and waiting for me in the fridge, Ma takes a seat at the dining room table across from Hayden and my nephew, Jett. He’s working on a bulldozer puzzle and stuffing grapes into his mouth.
“So, Hayden,” Ma says as she gets comfortable. “I ran into Rachel Kaczmarek… er, Rachel Perry, the other day. I’m not sure if you’ve met her yet.”
“Craig’s wife. Uh, soon-to-be ex-wife,” Jesse interjects, cringing just a little.
Hayden nods. “Ah, okay. No, we haven’t officially met, but I saw her when we were at the ice cream shop a couple weeks ago. Mason’s mom, right?”
“Yes, that’s her. Such a sweet girl.” Mom gives her a small smile. “Anyway, several years ago, she asked me to teach her to make sernik, because she’s never been able to make it like her mother used to. Her mother died going on twenty years ago, I think, but regardless, I invited Rachel over for a baking lesson. I was thinking you might want to join us.”
Whoa, whoa, whoa. My heart does a flip in my chest. Ma’s been talking to Rachel?
“And if she has the kids, I thought Jett could come, too, and they could play.”
“Her kids are kinda old for Jett, aren’t they?” I point out.
And when the hell did my mother befriend Rachel?
Ma waves me off. “Not in the least. They’re good kids. Jett will love them.”
No doubt. But I don’t know how I feel about Ma spending time with Rachel when I’m trying to do that same thing myself.
“I would love that.” Hayden gives my mom a warm smile. “But I’ve never heard of sernik before. What is it?”
“It’s cheesecake,” Jesse grumbles, planting his hands on the island and shaking his head. “Just cheesecake.”
“G?upie gadanie!” Ma raises her fist. “Polish cheesecake is not like other cheesecake, Jesse Alexander.”
“Yeah, Jesse,” I goad him, which I realize belatedly was a mistake.
“What was that?” he asks, sidestepping and hooking an arm around my neck for a headlock and noogie.
“Daddy!” Jett hollers. “Don’t be mean to Uncle Jinx.”
Everyone laughs, including me, even though the fucker messed up my hair and gave me a kink in my neck.
“Asshole,” my brother mutters as he shoves me away. “Going and getting me in trouble with my own kid.”
“Then get your fucking cheesecake right, man.”
He narrows his eyes and watches me, like he’s waiting for me to take off the way I used to when we were kids so he can chase me down and beat my ass.
I’m tempted for old time’s sake, but Ma would kill us both.
“Anyway…” Jesse sighs and splays his hands on the island in front of us. “What’s up with the bucket truck?”
Shit. I think I’d rather take a few punches.
“Uh, yeah. About that…” I scrub a hand around the back of my neck. “Let’s go outside.”
He cocks a suspicious brow but follows me out onto the back patio without a word.
I take a seat at the patio table, and he claims a chair by the railing.
“Like I said the other day, Connor thinks the motor is on its way out. It gave us grief last fall, but I figured it just needed a tune-up. We got that done over the winter, but then it started locking up last week. Had to get Connor down with a friggin’ ladder.”
Jesse scoffs and rubs a hand down his face. “Good thing OSHA wasn’t around.”
“No shit. We eventually got it down, but who knows when it’ll lock up again. It’s not worth the risk.”
He nods. “I agree.”
“I’ve been shopping around. I’ll bring what I’ve found into the office tomorrow to show you.”
“Yeah, do that.” Thankfully, he leaves it at that rather than reminding me that he told me to do that weeks ago. “By the way, I might’ve told Craig’s kid that he could cut grass with you this summer.”
“Yeah, I already heard about that.”
“From who?”
“Mason. I talked to him the other day. He’s going to start next weekend.”
Jesse blinks at me. “You did?”
“Yep.”
“You talk to Rachel, too?”
I dip my chin. “It’s all taken care of. All you have to do is pay the kid. Cash. And no less than fifteen bucks an hour.”
He gives a laugh, one side of his mouth kicking up. “Yeah, right.”
I lean forward and lock eyes with him. “I’m serious.”
“He’s eleven.”
“Yet you told him you had work for him.”
He blows out a breath. “That’s a lot of money for a kid who’s probably gonna stand around more than he does anything else.”
“Nah, he won’t be standing around on my watch.”
“What kind of work are you gonna have him do? He can’t do most of what our guys do.”
“I thought the community service stuff would be best. The church and the cemetery. Probably my lawn. Rachel’s, too.”
He lowers his chin, and his eyes go wide. “I am not paying him to cut your grass.”
“What else do you want me to do with him?”
He watches me for a long moment, then shakes his head. “That’s highway robbery.”
I lift my hands. “Again, you’re the one who told him he could work. I’m doing you a favor by finding shit for him to do.”
“You’re raking me over the fucking coals is what you’re doing,” he mutters.
I laugh. “You’re welcome.”
“Fuck you.”
RACHEL
“Hey, Mom!” Emma’s voice carries through the screen door just after four o’clock.
I’m up to my wrists in flour and butter, trying to, once again, make a pie crust that isn’t drier than my sex life, so I offer her a bright smile from the kitchen instead of a hug.
“Hey, Emmy Lou. How was your day?”
“It was good,” she says, dropping her softball gear in the foyer. “Dad took us mini golfing.”
“Oh, really? I bet that was fun.”
Did Cady go, too? Mason’s mood will tell me that, I’m sure.
“It was. Drake and his family were there, too. We had ice cream after.” She grins. “I got blue moon.”
“Yum!”
The door creaks open, and Mason strolls in with his backpack and, to my surprise, a small smile.
“Hey, Mom. Whatcha doing?”
“Trying to make the crust for a strawberry rhubarb pie. You want to help?”
He scrunches up his nose. “No, but I’ll help eat it.”
I give a soft laugh and brush at a wayward strand of hair with my forearm. “I figured. Is your dad coming in or—”
“I’m here.” Craig steps through the door and lifts a hand. “Sorry we’re a few minutes late. We just got back from Copper Crossing.”
“I heard.” I offer him a polite smile and step away from the dough to wash my hands. “Sounds like you had fun.”
When I turn around, drying my hands on a towel, he’s tucking his hands into his pockets. “Yeah. It was a good time.”
“Hey, Emma,” I say, setting the towel on the counter, “can you please take your gear to your room and get your uniform out so we can wash it?”
Her shoulders slump, but she does what I ask without a word.
Mason glances from me to his father and seems to read the room. “I’ll go get my dirty clothes ready for the laundry, too.” He heads toward the hall, but halfway there, he turns back. “Bye, Dad.”
“Bye, bud. See you Wednesday night.”
As soon as both kids are out of earshot, I turn to Craig. “I know we talked about Mason not playing football this year, but I think there’s a way we can make it work. Assuming he still wants to play.”
He lifts a brow. “How’s that?”
“Jinx is helping Dalton coach. He’ll be at all the practices and games, and he’s offered to take Mason.”
Craig assesses me for a long moment, his jaw tensing a little more with every passing second. “Jinx, huh?”
“Yeah. I saw him on Friday, and he mentioned it. He heard Mason wasn’t going to play, and—”
“Who told him that?”
A flash of annoyance hits me at the interruption, but I keep my tone neutral. “Mason.”
Craig tips his head. “When did he talk to Mason?”
Okay, the attitude is a bit much. “I guess he saw him messing with the lawn mower the other day. He stopped to see if he could help.”
“Really.” He gives a flippant scoff.
I ignore it, even as my blood heats with frustration. “I don’t want to take advantage, but if he’s willing to help, I think it would be good for Mason to continue playing. Especially with all the changes in our lives.”
Craig rubs at his forehead. “I get that. I just don’t know why Jinx talked to you about it and not me, unless…”
“Unless what?” I cross my arms and wait. I swear to god if he tries to make this about the night at the bar…
For a second, he watches me, his jaw working. Then he throws a hand in the air. “Fine. Whatever. If he’s offering and Mason still wants to play.”
“I’ll talk to Mase tonight and let you know what he says.”
“All right.” He nods, but rather than heading out like he should, he holds my gaze, like he’s waiting for me to cave and confess to a wild night in the back of Jinx’s truck or something.
“I need to get back to my pie crust,” I tell him, tipping my chin a fraction higher. “I believe you know the way out.”
JINX
“What the hell are you doing, man?”
Aiden stands on my front step, cell phone in his hand and confusion in his eyes.
“What are you talking about?”
I should be the one asking him what’s up since he blatantly lied to Ma and said he was out of town and couldn’t make lunch today. His truck was parked outside his place both times I drove by.
“Craig just texted and said you’re going back to coaching youth football. You don’t have time for the shit you have to do, let alone the shit you don’t.”
Oh, that.
With a huff, I turn on my bare feet and pad back to the living room, where I’ve been watching the Brewers’ game.
“You’ve got nothing to say or what?” He invites himself in and closes the door behind him.
“Other than it’s my problem and not yours?” With a cocky smile, I drop back down to the couch. “Besides, I’ve been busier than this and I did just fine.”
He makes a throaty sound. “One of these days, you won’t be. One of these days, you’re gonna have a heart attack from all those energy drinks you live on.”
I snort and lean back against the cushions. “For one, I don’t drink that shit anymore. And two, I think it’s funny that you care about how much I work while our brother, who’s my boss, doesn’t have a fucking clue.”
Aiden’s brows lift. “You don’t think Jesse’s noticed?”
“Nope.” If he has, he sure as hell doesn’t seem to care.
“How the hell could he not?”
“Probably because he’s had enough of his own shit going on?” I shrug.
He glares at me. “Here’s a wild idea… why don’t you just tell him you need help?”
I grit my teeth. “I can handle it.”
“For fuck’s sake.” He scrubs his hands over his face and claims a recliner. “Why are you so goddamn bullheaded?”
“Learned from the best.”
“Don’t give me that shit. You know damn well you could ask for help.”
Sure, I could. But it’s easier to keep quiet and do what needs to be done.
As the third of four kids, it’s always been this way. Aiden got the first-born honors, Jesse took over the family business, and Amelia is the only girl and the baby. I was—and still am—the sibling stuck in the middle.
I wasn’t overlooked or neglected. Our parents did a damn good job raising us and loving us each the same.
But among the four of us kids? That’s a different story. I’m not sure if it’s because Jesse and I are sandwiched between Aiden and Amelia, or because we’re the ones who stuck around Cole Creek to keep Enders Excavating going, but my relationship with him is the most strained.
The funny thing is, he’s my best friggin’ friend.
He’s also the one person I can’t help but compare myself to. And the one person whose opinion I respect more than any other.
“You gotta talk to him, Jinx. You gotta tell him about all this shit you’ve been doing for, what, three years now? Longer?”
I rough a hand through my hair. “We’re meeting tomorrow.” I hadn’t planned on bringing up the overtime, but maybe the bucket truck discussion will open the door for that bigger conversation.
“That’s good.” Aiden nods, pressing his lips together. “I’m telling you,” he says, sitting forward and resting his forearms on his knees, “he’ll hear you out. Especially now that Hayden’s here and she’s taken over the admin side of things. He’s in a better headspace these days.”
I hope so. Because Aiden is right. These long hours are killing me.
“Now back to football…”
“I’m already committed. I’m not backing out.” Not when there’s an eleven-year-old kid across town who needs my help more than I need a break.
He gives a deep sigh and shakes his head. “I know. But Craig should be the one doing that shit, you know?”
Yep. But he won’t, and I’m not going to let his son suffer because Craig is a selfish dick.
I arch a brow but leave it at that.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
I laugh. “Dude, you literally work around the clock. Or you’re out of town. Except for today, of course. I saw your fucking truck parked at home, you lying ass.”
His face flames, and he lifts one shoulder. “To be fair, I was out of town until yesterday.”
“Doing what?”
“I can’t tell you that,” he replies without missing a beat. As an investigator, he takes confidentiality very seriously. “Anyway, I wanted to come over and see if I could talk some sense into you, but I see that’s not going to happen.”
“Hey, I said I’m talking to Jesse tomorrow.”
He nods. “And you’re going to tell him about all the overtime he owes you?”
I give a guilty grin. “Now, I didn’t say anything about that.”