“Chase!” warned Joey.
“Sorry,” she said.
“I’m gonna say that it’s nice just to have people to talk to up here,” Jake said. “Laura’s usually asleep by this point in a flight.”
“If you don’t mind my asking,” Joey said. “What’s a plane like this cost?”
Jake eyed his brother-in-law for a moment, trying to read his expression. So far, neither he nor his wife had made even so much as a hint about wanting or needing money. They had spent all day and evening together yesterday, much of it spent at an outdoor rifle and gun range where Jake had been introduced to the joys of shooting firearms (and he had had a blast doing it, he was not ashamed to admit) and nary a mention of finances was made. Was that about to change? He decided to simply tell the truth. “The sale price was four point seven-five million dollars.”
“Four point seven-five million?” Joey asked incredulously. “No shit?”
“No shit,” Jake confirmed, “although the bank still owns most of it. I put down twenty percent and financed the rest.”
“Holy shit,” he said, shaking his head in wonder. “I guess there’s good money in being a musician.”
“Not for most,” Jake said, “but I’m one of the exceptions. I paid a lot of dues along the way, but I managed to turn my natural talent into a pretty decent life.”
“I guess you did,” Joey said. He then said no more about Jake’s money. At least not until Jake himself brought it up.
“Listen, Joey,” Jake said. “I noticed that your house, you know, needs some repairs. The roof primarily, but I also noticed your plumbing has some issues as well.”
“That’s true,” Joey said. “I’m hopin’ to be able to start working on the roof come next summer. I got some money in savings put aside just for that project and I have some buddies at work that will come over and help me get her done.”
“I see,” Jake said. “Well ... I was just wondering if maybe ... you know ... I could help you out a little bit with that project.”
“Help me out?” Joey said, looking at him strangely. “You want to fly out to Pocatello in the middle of summer and help us pull shingles down and put up new ones?”
“Uh ... no, that’s not what I meant,” Jake said, shuddering a little at the very thought. “I was thinking more along the lines of maybe ... uh ... paying for a contractor to do the job for you.”
Joey did not even pause to think it over. He simply shook his head. “I appreciate the offer, Jake, really I do, but I don’t borrow money from family. Don’t lend it to ‘em either.”
“I wasn’t thinking about a loan, Joey,” Jake said. “I was thinking we could just pay for the job for you. We can afford it.”
Joey nodded a few times. “I’m sure you can,” he said, “but I have to say no. I won’t take no charity. Just not in my nature. I’ve been putting money aside for that and I’ll get her done on my own.”
“Okay,” Jake said. “Just remember, the offer is on the table and I would be glad to do it for you.”
“I understand,” Joey said. “And I appreciate you making it.” He gave Jake a shrewd look. “You know, I was really prepared not to like you.”
“Yeah?”
Joey nodded. “I’ve read all those things you been up to over the years. The cocaine, the other drugs, puttin’ your hands on women you date, cheatin’ on women you date, the Satanism. A big part of my reason for getting in touch with Little Bit was that I wanted to make sure she was okay. After all, until my mom broke contact with me, every time I talked to her on the phone she would rant about how my little sis was trapped in a marriage with you and you were keeping her from staying in touch with family and you were probably beating her every day.”
“But now that you’ve met me? Now that you’ve talked to Laura?”
“I think you’re all right,” Joey said. “I’m pretty good at reading a man and I don’t get any vibes about you being like what they say you’re like. And I can tell that Little Bit is very happy with you. She loves you and you love her. It’s obvious watchin’ the two of you together.”
“Well thanks,” Jake said, sincerely appreciative of the sentiment.
“You two are a bit highfalutin though,” Joey added, “but I guess that goes along with havin’ more money than you know what to do with.”
“Perhaps,” Jake said. “And, just so you know, I think you’re all right as well.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah,” Jake said. “I’ll be truthful as well. I was not looking forward to coming here to Pocatello and meeting you all. I had no desire to get to know anyone in Laura’s family after the way your mom and dad treated her. I assumed you were all nothing but a bunch of intolerant ... you know ... assholes.”
He shrugged. “I can’t say you’re wrong about mom and dad and the other kids,” he said. “But being on the receiving end of their shaming of me ever since Sarah got pregnant and now being on the receiving end of a full-blown Mormon shunning, I like to think I’m a bit more tolerant of different lifestyles and points of view.”
Jake nodded. “I would say you are,” he said. “And I like to think that about myself as well.”
Joey nodded himself, perhaps a little reluctantly, but a nod nonetheless.
“Anyway,” Jake went on, “Laura and I were talking last night, and we would like to return your hospitality.”
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“Maybe over spring break in April, you and the family would like to come visit us at our house.”
“Your house in Los Angeles?” he asked.
“Well ... we do have a house in Los Angeles, but we don’t hang out there much. I was talking about the house in San Luis Obispo. It sits up on a cliff over the ocean. It’s more than big enough for everyone to stay in. I even have a housekeeper who will cook meals and do the laundry and all that.”
“Sounds pretty fancy,” Joey said.
“It sounds amazing!” Chastity said with shrill enthusiasm. “Can we do it, Dad? Say we can do it!”
“I have always wanted to see the ocean,” Grace put in. She touched Jake’s shoulder. “You can actually see it from your house?”
“Oh yeah,” Jake said. “From any of the windows that face west, from the deck out back, and we have a hot tub that sits on another deck right on the edge of the cliff.”
“A hot tub!” Chastity said. “Wow!”
“And Grace, you could set up your easel right there next to the hot tub and paint the ocean scape—although sometimes the wind does kick up a bit.”
“I would really like that,” Grace said.
“Uh, before we start packing our bags,” Joey said, “I’m not sure we’ll be able to afford such a trip. How long would it take to drive from Pocatello to this San Luis whatchamacallit?”
“Uh ... well, fourteen to sixteen hours, I would think,” Jake said, “but there’s no need to do that. We could fly you from Salt Lake to LAX, no problem.”
“Fly us in this plane?” Joey asked.
“Well, not the whole way,” he said. “We’ll get you some airline tickets for the hop to LA and then I can fly everyone from LA to San Luis Obispo from there.”
“We can’t afford airline tickets,” Joey said.
“We’ll get them for you,” Jake said. “It’s nothing to us. Literally. Laura and I have a buttload of frequent flier miles that we never use for anything. They would cover everybody’s tickets, no problem. You just get yourselves to Salt Lake City and we’ll take care of the rest.”
“I don’t know,” Joey said.
“Oh, come on, Dad!” Chastity cried in dramatic anguish. “He said it won’t cost them anything! That’s not charity!”
“We would be happy to do it, Joey,” Jake said. “Sincerely.”
“I don’t know,” he said again. “I really don’t like accepting expensive things from anyone.”
“Did I mention the sand dunes around where we live?” Jake asked.
“The sand dunes?”
“Yeah,” Jake said. “Big ones that stretch for miles along the beach. And there’s places where you can rent ATVs for the day and explore to your heart’s content. I know a guy who rents them to us for pretty much free in exchange for letting him use my face in his advertisements.”