“What else have you heard?”
“Nothing that’s relevant anymore.” She glances Dad’s way as he shakes hands with somebody new. “All I’ll say is that the good people of Temperance wouldn’t be so outraged by these petty crimes if they knew what really went on.”
“You’re not wrong there.”
She gives me a curious stare.
“Men underestimate the comprehension of young children, too.” I’ve lost count of the times Dad took me with him on errands or had work colleagues at the house and held conversations inappropriate for a girl playing on the floor with her ponies. I may not have fully understood what they talked about, but the tone of the conversation, familiar names, and unmistakable words such as ‘dead’ and ‘stolen’ sure painted a vivid picture in my mind. “I thought everyone would be happier now that the club moved rural.”
“They thought they would be too.” Mom stares at Sally. “But then people realized how dull it was when they lost their main source of gossip.”
“Small towns are so damn fickle.”
“Amen to that.”
I glance at her before picking at the side of my nails. “You know that’s why I left, right?”
“I had a fair idea.” She gently moves my hands apart to stop the destructive habit. “I would have done the same if I were your age and single again.”
A huffed laugh slips through my nose. “I’ll be single forever if Dad has anything to do with it.”
Her stare grows serious. “Your father has a right to be concerned when people start coming to him asking why his daughter talks with ‘that biker’.”
“He told you about that, huh?”
Mom smiles wryly. “He didn’t have to.”
“You got asked too?” I exclaim.
She nods.
“Fuck this town and its meddling.” I glare at the dwindling parishioners, a small line of cars quietly leaving the adjacent parking lot. “I hope you appreciate the hell I put myself through being back here for you.”
“I never asked you to come back.” She stares at me, no nonsense.
I twist on the seat to face her. “Are you saying you would rather I hadn’t?” My gut sours.
“Of course, not,” Mom gently scolds. “But you’d made yourself a life somewhere other than here, Kyra. You shouldn’t have been so quick to give that up.”
If only she knew how ready I was.“There was no question in my mind.” I turn to assess how long Dad might be. “It’s my job to care for you as much as it’s your job to care for me.”
“Right predicament we have ourselves in, then, isn’t it?”
“What do you mean?”
She rises to her feet and adjusts her purse. “Both of us so intent on caring for the other that we neglect caring for ourselves first.”
“Hazard of the job being a Green woman, isn’t it?” I stand and join her.
“I’m just saying, your father won’t approve of whoever you bring home. It could be a preacher’s son, and he’d still find fault with the boy. So you may as well pick your battle and just run with it.” She meets my eye before adding, “Just make sure it’s a fight worth having.”
FIFTEEN
JINX
I bought a house.
I stareat the message from an unknown number, but the question on my mind isn’t who it came from; it’s how she got my number.
