Chapter five
Dallas
Classic rock blares through the stereo as I pull into the driveway of the home I grew up in and shift my car in park, turning the key in the ignition and cutting the engine.
“Do you have to blare your music loud enough for the whole town to hear?” My little sister, Hazel, stands on the front porch with her hands on her hips, glaring in my direction.
“It wouldn’t do anyone harm to appreciate music in its finest form.”
She rolls her eyes and then steps toward me as I stand from the car and shut the driver’s side door, intercepting her hug as we meet each other in the middle.
“I feel like it’s been forever since I’ve seen you,” she mumbles in my ear as I lean down, squeezing tightly before we let each other go.
“It’s because it has been a while, Hazelnut. How are you? How’s business?”
“Social media has been both a blessing and a curse.” We walk up the pathway to the front door, sliding inside the house together.
“Staying busy, I take it?”
“So busy I need to hire a new photographer and a social media manager. I can’t keep up with the demand on my own.”
My little sister by nine years owns her own photography business and studio right on the boardwalk in town.
She’s been wildly successful since she started over a year ago, and I couldn’t be prouder of her.
Tourists have been a huge source of income wanting family photo shoots during their stay in Carrington Cove, and the locals support her as well.
“That’s good. Just find someone you can trust.”
“Easier said than done.”
“Is that my favorite son?” My mother comes around the corner from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel.
“I don’t know. What day of the week is it and what have Penn and Parker done to piss you off?”
“I haven’t done shit,” Penn says as he walks into the room from the hallway.
“And Parker isn’t here to defend himself yet, so the jury’s still out on that,” Hazel adds.
My mother rolls her eyes much like my sister does all the time—wonder where she gets that from—and then pulls me in for a hug. “Shut up and hug your mother.”
I wrap my arms around my mom, holding her close for as long as she can stand.
I worry about her constantly, especially now that Dad isn’t around.
During Dad’s final year, I made it my responsibility to make sure that she was cared for and aspects of her life were running smoothly.
Mowing the grass, fixing anything that broke, running errands while she took Dad to the doctor’s office—I did what I could so she didn’t feel alone.
But I still don’t feel like I did enough. She lost her husband.
There’s nothing I could have done to prevent that.
“How are you?” I whisper in her ear as I feel her squeeze me harder.
“I’m okay.” When we part, I can see the sadness in her eyes that she’s trying to hide behind her smile.
“Sorry I’m late,” Parker announces as he walks through the door with his medical bag in hand, pushing up his glasses along the bridge of his nose. “Mrs. Hansen’s dog had puppies, so I had to make an emergency house call.”
My brother Parker is the town veterinarian, a classic hometown celebrity since almost everyone has a pet of some variety in our town. He’s the sibling that always managed to stay out of trouble and could do no wrong. But it’s not like he hasn’t dealt with shit in his life, too.
We all have.
“Saving Carrington Cove one animal at a time?” Hazel teases as Parker lets out an exasperated sigh.
“You’re not late, Parker. Come here.” My mother moves to my brother as Penn and I make our way into the kitchen.
“Is Brian on duty tonight at the bar?” Penn asks as he sits on a stool at the counter.
I nod as I reach for two beers in the fridge, passing one across the granite counter toward him. “Yeah. Who else would be?”
“I was just asking. No need to get testy.”
“I’m not. I just hate when you ask questions you already know the answer to,” I fire back, not sure where the animosity is coming from. But the truth is, I’ve been on edge all week, ever since that blonde came into my restaurant.
Not even jerking off twice a day has made me feel less irritated.
It’s because you’re picturing those red lips when you do.
“Damn. You sound like you need to get laid,” Penn mutters as he takes a sip from his beer bottle.
“I could say the same about you, Penn.” The glare he gives me could cut glass, but luckily our mom breaks up what’s brewing between us.
“What are you two fighting about already?” mom asks as she steps back in the kitchen, forcing us to part and move around to the other side of the island so we’re out of her way.
Penn and I argue like most brothers do, but of my three siblings, he’s the one I’m closest to. I guess that’s to be expected when you’re only fourteen months apart.
“Not fighting,” Penn replies, still scowling at me from the across the island.
“Well, I don’t want to listen to it tonight. I have all four of my children together, and I want us all to get along.”
“You don’t have to worry about me,” Hazel interjects, grabbing a Coke from the fridge and popping the top.
“Yes, the princess can never do anything wrong,” Parker chides as he reaches for his own beer from the fridge, sitting on the stool next to Penn.
Hazel is both the only girl and the baby of the family, so we’re used to her getting away with bloody murder and never getting blamed for anything. I’m pretty sure she had the best relationship with both of our parents, too. Lord knows Dad and I had our issues.
My mother laughs. “All of you took turns being the troublemaker. You boys were just out of the house when it was your sister’s turn.” She shakes her head in amusement. “I never knew raising a teenage girl would be harder than raising three teenage boys.”
Penn and I snicker as Hazel drops her jaw. “You act like I was a hellion or something!”
“You sure weren’t innocent, Hazel,” Mom says while eyeing my sister over the stove, tucking her shoulder-length black hair behind her ear. “And if you want your little indiscretions to be kept between us, I suggest you drop it,” she warns.
“Oh, no. I think we need to know what little Miss Hazel was up to while we were all too busy to pay attention.” I smirk before taking another drink. Hazel shoots me a daggered glance.
“Now, now. That’s enough. Boys, set the table, please. And Hazel, get over here and help me finish dinner.”
The three of us settle into the same routine we used to have when we were kids—I’m responsible for place settings and plates, Penn grabs glasses of water for everyone, and Parker grabs the condiments from the fridge.
When my mother and Hazel bring over the casserole dish and bowl of salad, we all settle in and start eating.
It feels right being here all together, even though a huge part of our family is missing. But I don’t want to be the one to point it out. In all honesty, I don’t think anyone needs to. We all feel it.
It’s just easier to let it remain the elephant in the room than bring it up and risk us slipping into dark moods.
Nevertheless, my eyes drift over to the empty chair at the head of the table, faintly hearing all of the criticism that would be directed my way if he were here. I hate that my mind goes there, but it does. Sometimes the bad moments are more prevalent in our minds than a dozen good ones.
Forcing out those stifled thoughts, we eat our dinner while catching up on each other’s lives. And when we finish eating, I grab another beer and step out onto the back deck of the house to catch the sunset. I hear Penn follow closely behind me.
“I need to come over here and trim those branches,” Penn declares as he and I stand along the railing of the deck, staring at the overgrown trees in the yard while Parker and Hazel help my mom clean up inside.
“Yeah. I should probably cut the grass out front too.”
“I know Mom’s capable of handling stuff on her own, but I don’t want her to feel like she has to, especially with Dad gone. I want her to know we’re here for her, you know?
I nod. “I feel the same way.”
“I can’t believe it’s been six months already.”
Mentally, I knew the significance of today’s date, but again, I didn’t want to bring it up. And every time I think about the last conversations I had with my dad, anger steeps in my gut. “I know. It still doesn’t seem real, even though we knew it was coming.”
“I’m not sure death is any easier even if you know to expect it or not.” He sighs, and for a moment, I remember his own experiences with death that still affect his life. I love my brother, I do. But damn, the man lives way too far in the past while his future is slipping away.
Much like my own, but I’ll be the last one to admit it.
“All we can do is make sure we take care of her and don’t let her feel like she’s all alone.”
“I agree,” Penn says, sighing into the air around us. “But I feel like it’s not enough.”
“Seems like nothing ever is,” I add, knowing those words apply to many aspects of my life, ones I can’t do anything about now even if I tried.
“So, I got a job for tomorrow.” His change of topic is welcome.
“Yeah? Doing what?”
“The renovations for the house on Bayshore Drive.”
That detail makes my ears perk up. “Really?”
“Yeah. Seems like the new owner’s looking to fix it up and sell it.”
“Fuck.” In the years since I left the Marines, there’s only been one house in Carrington Cove I’ve had my eye on buying, and it’s the very one Penn’s talking about.
Growing up here, I used to walk by that house all the time, wondering what it looked like inside, envisioning myself living there when I was older.
And about six years ago when I knew my time in the service was coming to an end, I decided to look into the house since it’d always been vacant.
Turns out it was tied up in a trust with an obscure name, and the owner asked not to be contacted about selling.