Chapter 45
The aroma of steeping tea does little to calm the nerves bouncing around my stomach. Across from me, Pearl”s eyes are wide and searching. Her great aunt Delta”s are narrowed with skepticism. The weight of the family”s future rests on the shoulders of this moment.
And despite my usual confidence, it feels like a crushing boulder pressing down on me.
”Delta,” Pearl starts. Her voice is steady but I can hear the ripple of anxiety beneath it. ”I know you”re worried about what will happen next time the taxes come due.”
The old woman snorts, a sound that somehow carries both derision and sadness. ”Do you have a way to solve that little problem?”
My hand slides across the table, pushing the contract towards her. It”s thick because it is packed with legal jargon designed to protect and serve.
”Read this,” I say. ”We”ve structured a deal with Ray Kendrick. It”s more than generous.”
“A deal? What kind of deal?”
“Aunt Delta,” Pearl says. There is a pleading undertone to her words. “You can’t afford to keep the property as it is. We all know it. This deal is your one way out that doesn’t make you homeless.” She taps the contract. “This is an offer from Mr. Kendrick for at least fifty million dollars.”
Delta’s jaw drops. “My land is worth that much?”
“Yes, auntie. You would know that if you ever so much as talked to any of the people that have offered to buy it.”
Delta picks up the document, glaring at me. She sniffs and then pulls out her reading glasses. Her fingers are surprisingly nimble as they flip through pages. She reads, ”Fifty million now, plus an annuity? What”s the catch?”
Pearl leans forward, her hand resting on her stomach. The secret is still an unspoken promise between the two of us.
”There”s no catch,” she says. ”We will need to make some changes, though.”
Delta’s gaze sharpens. “Like what?”
“The cabins and trailers… Auntie, they will have to go. But this land here…” She spreads her hand over the map I lay out for her. ”These acres stay with us. We can build, start fresh. Our family will have a place… a place to belong.”
”New beginnings without losing our roots,” Delta murmurs, nodding slowly. She touches the paper, almost reverently, tracing the lines that mark the Jackson family legacy.
”Exactly,” Pearl says, her smile blooming like a promise. ”We hold onto the heart of it all. The current structures on the land can”t stay. Mr. Kendrick wants to buy the land and build a resort on it.”
Delta snorts. “I can’t believe you think out family’s land should be a goddamned resort.”
”Delta, the thing is,” I start. Pearl cuts me off with a sharp look.
”Let me do the talking.” She turns to her great aunt and folds her hands neatly on the table. ”This isn”t just about River or me. It”s about our future. Our family”s future. You have to see that. You can’t leave me or anybody else owing thousands of dollars on this property. It simply isn’t fair.”
Delta leans back in her chair, the lines on her face deepening. It makes her appear like one of those wise trees you see in storybooks. ”And how can you even sit next to that man after what he pulled? If it were up to him, I think he’d take the land and leave you behind, honey.”
I flinch at the accusation, but Pearl remains calm. She spreads her hands out on the table. ”I won”t lie, Aunt Delta. I”m still mad as a hornet at times,” she admits. In the space her admission leaves, I feel a fresh pang of guilt. She shakes her head. ”But anger”s a luxury we don”t have right now. And he”s not just River, the man who made a mistake. He”s also the father of my child. I think some space can be made for him at the table, regardless of whether or not he messed up.”
Delta stares off into the distance for a minute. ”Your child?” she repeats.
I nod, feeling the weight of responsibility settle heavier over my shoulders.
Pearl reaches across the table, taking Delta”s weathered hand in hers. ”Yes, our baby. A little baby carrying your DNA. And we need to think about what kind of world we want to bring that baby into.”
Delta”s eyes shift between us. For a moment, there”s silence except for the creaking of the old house settling. I can almost hear the gears turning in her head as she weighs her options. It’s her legacy against the raw deal life has handed her.
Delta nods slowly. The lines etched deep in her face seem to soften just a fraction. There”s a flicker of something like understanding in her eyes. ”I see,” she murmurs.
It takes everything in me not to react. I just nod once.
Pearl clears her throat. Her eyes lock with mine for a brief second. She bites her lip for a second before saying more. ”We would like our future children to know that they will always have a home here.”
Delta lets out a long breath, the fight in her gaze softening. ”I never had children of my own,” she murmurs, almost to herself. ”But I suppose it”s time for the next generation to take the lead.”
Tears glisten in Pearl”s eyes as she stands and moves around the table. She wraps her arms around Delta in a fierce hug. ”I love you, Auntie.”
I watch the two women. Feeling like an intruder on a private moment, yet also part of something much larger than myself.
Pearl turns to her great aunt with a plea shining in her eyes. ”River has a plan, Auntie. He”s willing to clear the property tax debt. The whole seventy-five grand of it.”
”Seventy-five thousand dollars...” Delta repeats the sum like she”s tasting each syllable, bitter and sweet at the same time. ”All right,” she finally says, her voice carrying the weight of generations. ”Let”s do this.”
Relief floods through me, swift and sweet, but I mask it with a nod, playing it cool. ”I”ll take care of the payment right away. You”ll have the IRS off your back by sundown.”
”Thank you, River,” Delta says, and there”s no mistaking the gratitude in her tone. It”s a new chord in the symphony of our complicated relationship, one I hope to nurture.
”Always,” I swear. “We’re family now.”
”And always take care of Pearl,” Delta commands, her gaze piercing into mine.
”Nothing is more important to me,” I swear, my voice unwavering. ”Delta, I know you have every reason not to trust me. But I love Pearl. You can always trust that I will do whatever I can do to make her happy. Listen, I messed up royally here. You have my permission to kick my ass every other Thursday for the next five years because of it. ”
Delta picks up the check, her fingers brushing against mine. Her eyes linger on my face for a heartbeat longer than necessary. ”You”re a good man, River Taylor,” she acknowledges. The corners of her mouth lift into a semblance of a smile. It”s not quite warmth that passes between us, but it”s close enough to respect.
”Now, what are y”all planning on naming this little one?” Her eyes flicker to Pearl’s still-flat belly, where our future kid sleeps.
”We haven”t decided yet,” I admit. The words come tumbling from my lips as my hand instinctively moves pat Pearl’s stomach.
Pearl shoots me a look and I ease my hand away from her stomach, sliding it around her waist instead. She flashes me a quick smile of appreciation.
”Delta”s a strong name,” Delta suggests, a mischievous twinkle lighting her eyes. ”Just saying.”
A chuckle escapes me, warm and genuine, as I glance at Pearl.
”Maybe.”
She leans in to kiss me and all thoughts of naming the baby vanish in a puff of smoke.