My mother frowned. “Does this more irritated mood have something to do with Jessica Hayes being back in town?”
Shit. Of course, I didn’t expect my parents to stay oblivious to her return. After all, the town wasn’t that large and people talked, but I had hoped it would take a little more time.
“What are you going to do, dear?” She placed the vegetables inside the pot and turned to me. “Are you going to talk her?” Her eyes widened. “You already did.”
“No,” I snapped. “I’ve bumped into her once or twice, but we didn’t talk. I don’t want to talk to her. You know what? I don’t want to talk about her either.”
I marched out of the kitchen and went to the dining room to help my sister.
“Sorry,” she whispered, setting the last plate in its place. “I was the one who told Mom and Dad about Jessica being back.”
I glared at her. “What?”
“Sorry.” She retreated to the wall, though the table was between us. “I didn’t think much of it. Lindsey told me and I was just talking about my day. It came out, and a second later, they were arguing about it.”
“Shit,” I muttered. Another thing I had forgotten. Lindsey, Jessica’s cousin, was Brianna’s best friend. Damn, things were getting way too complicated for me.
“Sorry,” she said again, her voice small with fear.
I stared at her, backed against the wall, visibly scared of me. What had I become? Even my sister was afraid of me.
I took a deep breath. “That’s okay, B. They would have found out sooner or later.”
She seemed to relax a little. “And … how are you about it?”
“Honestly, I’m trying not to think about it, but everyone keeps asking. It’s kinda hard.”
“Sorry.”
This time, I offered her a small smile. “That’s okay.” I glanced around. “Where’s Tommy? He was here when I arrived.”
“Oh, he left when I came in.” She pointed to the door leading to the living room. “You know how it is. He and his secret phone calls.”
Which were not so secret. I knew what my brother was up to and I didn’t like. Despite all that had happened to me and all the conversations we had, Tommy was becoming the next Ryan. My younger brother was nineteen, the age I was when everything exploded around me.
“Ryan!” My father’s voice boomed from the other room, and I sighed.
I dragged my feet to the living room. “Hi, Dad.”
My father placed the empty beer bottle on the end table beside his leather armchair, and stared at me, his brown eyes hard. “You’re not gonna lose your head again because that girl is back in town, are you?”
I closed my eyes for a second, willing myself to stay calm. “Can we not talk about that right now?”
My father stood, stuffing his chest. “Why not?”
I shook my head, tired of arguing with my family. “Please, Dad, I’m not—”
The doorbell rang.
Frowning, my father spied through the window. “It’s Officer Mike.” He turned to me, his eyes shining with rage. “What have you done this time?”
I groaned. “Nothing.”
We marched to the foyer, where my mother was opening the door. “Good evening, Officer Mike, how can we help you?”
Mike spied inside and his eyes settled on mine. “Good evening, Mrs. Dawson. I’m just checking on our boy, seeing if he’s following through with his schedules and curfews.”
“Here I am, Mike.” I stepped to the door. “You’ve seen me; now you can go.”
An evil smile spread across the cop’s face. “Yes, I’ve seen you. I’ll be later, to escort you to your apartment.”
In my mind, I counted to ten, then nodded and closed the door, proud of myself for not having slammed it in Mike’s face.
“I don’t like him,” my mother said, twisting a kitchen towel.
“Are you going to be arrested again?” Tommy asked from the middle of the stairs.
I growled.
Mike was only five years older than I was, and shorter and less built, but because of the gun on his waist and the badge he carried, he treated me as if he was the king of Lexington.
Well, to be honest, his problem with me was much bigger. I had slept with his little sister before my eyes settled on Jessica. Apparently, the girl had fallen in love after just one night and didn’t hide it from anyone. As soon as he found out, Mike had threatened to break my face or cut my balls off or something if I ever got close to her again. Thank goodness, I did not intend to do that. Last year, I got out of jail, and he was appointed as one of the officers handling my case. He used every little excuse to make things worse for me.
I knew he was just waiting for me to do something stupid now that Jessica was back in town.
“Now, now.” My mother put her hand on my arm and squeezed it. “Tommy, that’s not a nice way to talk to your brother. Go wash your hands and come down for dinner.”
Without releasing my arm, my mother walked to the kitchen.
“You can let go now,” I protested.
She pulled me closer and put her fingers over her lips. “I would bet money,” my mother whispered, “if I had any, that Mike is going to be on your tail more than usual while Jessica is here. Be careful.”
I stared at my mother’s pleading hazel eyes. She was right. While Jessica was here, Mike would follow me everywhere, Jason would be awkward, and people would whisper and gossip more than before. It would be hell in my corner of the world, but it was only for two and half months. I had endured much more in places much worse. I could do this.
***
Jessica
Wednesday was going by too slowly for my taste.
Every time I looked at the ancient clock on the wall of the studio, only a few minutes had passed.
At least Alan was out and didn’t hover, watching as I transferred the hand-drawn plans into AutoCAD. It was a delicate and snail-paced job, but I never complained about it. Until this tedious day.
There were only ten more minutes for my short shift to end, when Noah appeared at my desk.
“Hi,” he said with a large smile.
I glanced at him and quickly returned my attention to the screen. “Hmm, hi.”
He pulled a chair from another desk and sat down right beside my computer. “I haven’t seen you at the Habit for Humanity site.” He propped an elbow on my desk, and leaned his head on his fist, still smiling.
“Yeah, well, that was a favor to Alan. It’s not part of my job.”
“What a shame.” He patted the wad of paper in his lap. “I’m glad I decided to bring the report here, then.”
What the hell? I stopped the mouse wherever it was and stared at him. If he were a girl, he would be batting his lashes at me right now. But no, he was a guy—a so-not-my-style one—a man, actually, because I suspected he was almost thirty, and the way he was openly flirting with me was downright creepy.
“Alan is not here, but I bet you can leave that in his office.” I pointed in the direction of Alan’s office, hoping he understood the dismissal.
He didn’t.
“That’s okay. I can talk to you while I wait for him.”
I pressed my lips together, holding in a frustrated grunt.
Without sparing him another glance, I closed the program, shut down the computer, grabbed my purse, and fled the studio.
“Wait.” He caught up with me in the lobby. “Where are you going?”
I tried my best not to snap. “My shift is over, and I think where I go is none of your business.”
I spun around and left the building before he could come after me again. I walked to the parking lot and cursed when I remembered Jason had borrowed the truck to take his bike to the next bike show place. However, he promised to be here to pick me up … three minutes ago.
If only I had worn flats instead of my four-inch heels, I could walk the twenty to thirty minutes it took to get home.
A coffee shop on the other side of the street caught my attention. I could use an iced coffee in this heat.
While ordering, I kept my eyes on the street outside, through the large glass windows, watching for my brother. He should arrive any moment. Ten minutes later, I was outside, sitting in a chair around one of the round tables covered by large blue umbrellas, my drink in hand, and still waiting.