Chapter 18 Josie
JOSIE
While sleeping on JR’s couch was a million times better than sleeping in my car, I couldn’t keep going on like this. I needed my bed and my things. I wanted a bathroom with easy access so I didn’t have to run inside in the middle of the night to pee.
Thankfully, JR had saved me from that, but I couldn’t rely on his kindness forever. Something had to change.
After making him breakfast again this morning, I walked back over to my house and turned the knob, but it was locked. Frustrated, I stood out there in my pajamas, banging on the door.
“Something wrong?” Marty, our mailman asked, smirking at me from across the street.
“Nope. I’m all good!” I shouted.
“Cuz, it seems like you’re locked out!”
Wow, what a thinker.
Turning away from him, I banged furiously on the door, pulling the blanket tighter around my body. It was way too freaking cold to be dealing with this first thing in the morning.
Finally, the door swung open and Scarlet stood there with her hair all mussed and her boobs practically hanging out of her nightie.
I shoved past her and stormed into the living room, curling up on the couch to warm up.
“Don’t you have a key?” Scarlet asked, slamming the door behind her.
“Why would you lock the door?”
“Because you left and I didn’t want anyone to break in. Besides, I saw you go next door,” she smirked. “It seems like you have all the comfort you need in the middle of the night.”
“I went next door because—”
“There are my girls!” Sawyer beamed as he walked down the hall with his arms spread wide. Scarlet grinned at him, rushing into his arms. When she started kissing his neck, I had to turn away.
Whispers and promises for later had me gagging, but I promised myself I would not be sick so early in the morning. I had things to get done.
“Josie, you’re not looking so good. Did you not sleep well?”
As I turned, Scarlet’s eyes twinkled at me like she’d won, so I put on my brightest smile and flung the blanket off. “Actually, I slept like a baby.”
“Good. I uh…” He flushed red, dropping his eyes, “I was worried we were a little too loud.”
“Not at all. I didn’t hear a thing.”
“Well, I’m going to take a shower,” Scarlet yawned, then pressed an indecent kiss to my brother’s lips while grabbing his crotch.
Rolling my eyes, I turned away and reminded myself that she would be gone soon enough. My brother would get tired of her, and then I’d be the one to have the last laugh.
“She’s great, isn’t she, Josie?” Sawyer asked with stars in his eyes.
“Oh, yeah,” I deadpanned. “Great.”
“Listen, I know she’s a little…unlike us, but she really is great once you get to know her.”
Unfortunately…or rather, fortunately for me, I would never get to know her the way my brother knew her.
“I’m sure she’s wonderful. Do you want some breakfast?”
“Can’t. I woke up late, so I have to hit the road. But hey, I was thinking maybe you and Ellie May could take her for a spa day soon. You know, show her the town and all the good stuff.”
Turning, I hid my face by grabbing my things to make tea, hoping he didn’t see the absolute disgust on my face. “Uh…gee, I’m not sure I have time. You know, the shop is really busy and I’m thinking about putting the olive oil in the shop—”
But the moment I looked at him, I knew I couldn’t say no. He had those sad puppy dog eyes that made it impossible to turn him down. Which really sucked because the last thing I wanted was to spend any time with Scarlet.
“Listen, Sawyer…I want to like her, but I just met her. A spa day is a very personal thing—”
“Which means it’s the perfect time to get to know her,” he pleaded. “Imagine moving to a small town and knowing absolutely no one. Can’t you see how hard that is on someone? I want her to feel welcome, and I want her to love this place as much as I do.”
I never could say no to my brother, especially not when he had that adorable look on his face that said Don’t deny me a single thing. You know I’m cute and I’ll do anything to make you happy.
“Alright, I’ll see what I can do, but I make no promises.”
I was swooped up in one of his awesome bear hugs before I even had a chance to finish my sentence. Smiling, I patted him on the back.
“You’d better leave before you’re late for work.”
He pressed a slobbery kiss to my cheek and grinned as I wiped it off in disgust. “You’re the best sister ever. Have I told you that?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m amazing.”
“Ooh, and she likes some kind of egg-white omelette with some special seasoning. Do you think you could—”
I waved him off, desperate not to hear another word out of his mouth about his fiancée’s breakfast specifications. He moved in again, but I held him off. If I got one more thank you or hug out of the man, I would do some serious damage.
“You really are the best!” he shouted as he walked out the door.
For a moment, there was peace.
And then I remembered Cuddlebug was in the shower. If I didn’t get started on her omelette soon, I’d never have time to get to the shop in time to open. I wasn’t exactly a fantastic cook, but I prided myself on being able to make a variety of meals and make them tasty.
I put extra care into her omelette with a renewed determination to forge some kind of sisterly bond with her.
Maybe Sawyer was right. Maybe I had her all wrong.
Her attitude could be a defense mechanism to cover how completely uncomfortable she was in our small town.
I’d never been anywhere, so I had no clue what it was like to be in her shoes.
Maybe I would be a royal bitch as well in her shoes.
Then again, probably not.
I was just plating her omelette when I heard the bathroom door open. A cloud of steam followed her out of the bathroom, and it irritated me that she looked so freaking perfect right out of the shower.
“I made breakfast!” I said cheerily.
“Oh,” she pursed her lips. “How…kind.”
“Sawyer said you like egg-white omelettes. So…enjoy!”
I was as peppy as I possibly could be, and I did a damn good job pretending to be everything she could ever want in a sister-in-law.
“Well, I need a shower and then I have to get to work. Oh, and I also made some tea. It’s a specialty of mine. I hope you like it.”
“Tea?” she scoffed.
“Yes, and it’s very tasty. It’s one of the favorites from my shop.”
She nodded, but the disgust on her face couldn’t be hidden, even if she tried.
Without a thank you or even so much as a half-smile, she went to Sawyer’s room and shut the door.
“You’re welcome,” I said to the door. “Oh, no. It really wasn’t a problem at all. I was happy to help.”
Rolling my eyes, I grabbed my things out of my bedroom and headed for the bathroom. I had even less time to get ready now that I had attended her highness, but I could make it work.
Except that when I turned on the shower, there was no hot water. Not warm water or even lukewarm water. It was cold. Freaking cold water that would do nothing to improve my mood.
I stuck a toe in the shower, but that only solidified the fact that I definitely would not be taking a shower this morning. I needed hot water, and if I stuck my head under the freezing cold stream, I would never warm up the rest of the day.
Shutting down the shower, I grabbed my things and huffed all the way back to my room, getting dressed and spraying myself with enough perfume to cover any smelliness. My hair was ratty from having slept first in my car, and then on someone else’s couch.
I did the best I could with it, even using some cream to smooth it out, which only made my hair feel greasy.
“Disgusting,” I muttered, choosing instead to throw my hair up in a messy bun.
I felt so off-kilter this morning. Nothing was going right, and the circles under my eyes made me feel twice as old as I actually was.
I grabbed my coat and slipped on my shoes, ready to get the hell out of here.
At least at my shop, I was all alone and could ignore the fact that my brother had picked up a woman twice as old as us.
“Josie!” Scarlet called out as I rushed out to Delilah. “Oh, Josie! Hold up!”
Gritting my teeth, I turned to Scarlet, who stood in the doorway—couldn’t even walk out the front door. “Yes?”
“Hey, I was wondering if I could use your car today. I have a few errands to run.”
“I need my car today.”
“Oh, well, maybe I could just borrow it for part of the day? I wanted to get something for Sawyer as a thank you for all he’s done for me, but I can’t exactly ask him to drive me there, you know?”
Be nice. Be nice. Be nice. This is your brother’s choice, and until the witch hits him over the head with her broomstick, you’re stuck with her.
“Sure. But I need to get to work, so hurry up.”
“I’ll be right out.”
Right out turned out to be thirty minutes later. I could have walked to work and back by then, but instead, I waited because I was an idiot, thinking any minute she would be out. By the time she sauntered out in her high heels, I was fuming.
“Sorry about that,” she giggled. “You just never know what to wear in a town like this.”
“Clothes. That’s all people care about,” I muttered.
“Ooh, do we have time to stop for coffee?”
“I made you tea.”
“Oh, I know, but it smelled funny. Oh, and that omelette, I had to toss it out.”
“Why?” I snapped.
“Well, no offense, honey, but it smelled funny. I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it after you watch a few videos.”
Dragging my eyes from her overly decorated face, I focused on getting to my shop in one piece so I didn’t kill the woman by swerving off the road, directly into a telephone pole.
Pulling up to the store, I grabbed my things. “Delilah can be a little temperamental, but if you’re patient, she’ll take care of you. Just be careful at stoplights. Sometimes she likes to die, and you have to give her a second to start up again.”
“Wonderful,” she said way too cheerily. “I can’t thank you enough for this. Honestly, I always wanted to have a sister, and now I have one!”