Taryn patted her on the shoulder. “You poor girl, having to live with all that bottled up inside of you.”
“None of that was your fault,” Anna Rose assured her.
“Yes, it was,” Jorja argued. “I went to that party, and I took that drink from Ford, so part of it is my fault. I didn’t pray about going, so now I have to face the consequences for the rest of my life. Ford is married to Kaitlin, and that’s really the reason I turned down Linda’s invitation to go to dinner with them after church. I’m pretty sure it was his baby, since he gave me the drink, and I found his wallet in the back seat of my car. But something worse could have happened if he’d invited others to ...”
“You don’t have to go on,” Taryn said. “We get the picture.”
“What did you do with the wallet?” Anna Rose asked.
“I threw it in a mud puddle on the way home,” Jorja said. “And I can’t get past the hate in my heart for that man even yet. Jesus says I have to forgive him, and I’ve tried, but I can’t.”
“Want us to take care of him for you?” Anna Rose asked. “I would enjoy a bit of revenge.”
Jorja shook her head. “It’s not your place. Vengeance belongs to God.”
“Maybe He’s busy and needs a little help,” Taryn suggested.
Jorja almost smiled. “Y’all are right. It does feel good to get it off my chest. Maybe someday I will forgive him. God says I need to do that, but He doesn’t say I have to like the sorry bastard.”
“No, He does not.” Anna Rose slapped Jorja’s arm. “I’m not hitting you. I’m killing a mosquito the size of a buzzard.”
“Thanks for that, then,” Jorja said, “and thanks for listening to me tonight. I’m going to turn in now and hope that I don’t have nightmares again.”
“Anytime,” Anna Rose said, still wishing that she would have taken out more revenge on the man who had abused her.
“We’re here for you,” Taryn assured her.
Anna Rose stood up at the same time Jorja did, but she went back to the rocking chair instead of going inside. Poor little Jorja, with her religious upbringing and ideas, shouldn’t have had something like that happen to her. God help Ford if Anna Rose ever found him out alone on a dark road. She was not nearly as nice as her cousins, and she vowed that he would pay for what he had done in some way before the end of summer.
Chapter Seven
Taryn glanced at the seven people around the dinner table that afternoon. Ruby had never married and had become a second grandmother—or maybe she was a great-aunt—to the three cousins. Her dark hair had turned gray years ago, but the sparkle in her crystal-blue eyes was still there, even after surgery. Nana Irene sat next to her, and she seemed more rested than she had in years, but her gray roots were showing. With Clinton and the cousins, the little dining area was crowded.
“Nana, I would be glad to come visit with Ruby a couple of hours next week if you want to schedule a trip to the hairdresser,” Taryn said as she passed the platter of roast beef over to her grandmother.
“Thanks for the offer, darlin’”—Irene took the platter and put a slice on her plate—“but I’m going to let it grow out. I’m tired of dyeing it. I figure by the end of summer, it will be grown out, and I can get all the red cut off and won’t look so much like a skunk.”
“I’ve been trying to get her to do that for years. All that stuff on your scalp can’t be good for you,” Ruby said. “Did she tell you that the last time Lacy Jones down at the beauty shop was covering the roots, she dropped a blob of that dye on the countertop?”
“What happened?” Jorja asked.
“It ate right through the white paint and down to the wood,” Ruby answered. “It’s a wonder that crap hasn’t eaten through Irene’s flesh and bone and into her brain.”
Irene turned and winked at Taryn. “I bet that’s what’s wrong with my knees. The danged stuff bypassed my brain, got into my bloodstream, and ate the cartilage right out of my poor little kneecaps.”
Ruby shook her fork at Irene. “This is not a joking matter, and I refuse to let you go back on your word. We should be growing old with dignity, and that means gray hair.”
“Ruby, darlin’”—Irene raised her eyebrows—“I do not intend to grow old with dignity. I will have a good time right up until the day I die. I want to roll into heaven on roller skates with every ounce of what is Irene O’Reilly all used up and not a single regret.”
“Some people never grow up,” Ruby grumbled. “You girls take a lesson from your grandmother in whatnotto be.”
“All due respect,” Taryn said, “but I want to grow up to be just like her—except after that story you just told, I may never let my hairdresser mess with hair dye.”
“That’s my girl,” Ruby said with a nod.
Taryn tuned out the conversation and let her eyes settle on Zoe, who was strapped into a high chair at the end of the table. She vaguely remembered Jorja using the same chair when she was just a baby. That would have been when Taryn and Anna Rose were probably sitting on thick books or maybe even a big pot from the kitchen.
“Taryn, are you listening to a word I’m saying?” Irene asked.
