If Colleen wasn’t my mother's age, I would have been offended, but there was something endearing about her trying to feed me. It wasn’t just feeding me. The woman was like a mother hen, tidying my room and checking in on me like she knew something was bothering me.
“Thank you, Colleen,” I said before taking a bite, moaning like a whore.
Colleen smirked as she put some butter and jelly on the table.
“I knew you were hungry, you're too skinny anyways,” she said, walking back to the kitchen.
“Colleen, what the hell you put in that?” I asked, taking another bite and then another because I couldn’t stop myself from eating it, it had the perfect balance of spiciness and creaminess.
“It’s all about the seasoning,” she yelled from the kitchen. “My momma always said if you think it’s enough, it’s not.”
I groaned again, taking another bite, wondering if I could get away with eating another serving if I skipped the rest of my meals for the day. What I needed was to work out or for Iris to start talking to me, so I could get the hell away from Jackie and all her delicious food.
“Want some more?” Colleen asked, picking up my plate that I was scraping clean.
“Y-No,” I said, clenching my jaw before I begged for more.
She narrowed her eyes like she could see into my soul. “I’ll save you some for dinner if ya like.”
I let out a breath already ready for dinner. “Sure, if you have any left over,” I shrugged nonchalantly.
She chuckled, leaving me to my thoughts and what I was going to do about Iris. I doctored my coffee thinking I had to go back to The Boozy Bandit, but going to her place of work didn’t sit well with me.
“What’s on the agenda for today?” Colleen sat down with a plate of her own.
“I don’t know,” I answered truthfully.
“Are you here visiting someone or are you looking for work cause if you’re lookin’ for work there’s always places around here lookin’ for workers,” she said, cutting up her biscuit. “They’re building that freeway so if you like construction you could go to Monroe and look for work, but you look more like a cowboy. I don’t know if Theo is looking for someone else, but the ranch is always busy so I’m sure they are always needing some help. Plus, those heifers are getting ready to birth those babes soon.”
“Who owns the ranch?” I asked, remembering that Brooks said that Iris’ brother owns a ranch up here.
“Theo Malone and his family do,” she said, taking a bite. “They are good people, hard workers, and his uncle Archie, before he passed, was a wonderful man who helped build this community.”
“I think I’d like to check out the ranch. Can you give me directions or a phone number?” I asked, giving Jackie my best smile.
“Yeah, yeah, kid, you don’t have to butter me up, I just want to make sure you have the funds to pay me,” she said getting up.
I laughed, loving Colleen just a little more. She was endearing until she called you out on your shit. If I was going to stay here any longer, I needed more money and what better way than to be employed by my wife’s brother.
The dirt road led to a beautiful home with a few cars parked to the side and a small barn on the other side of the house. I parked my truck, getting off, admiring the home and the family that was out front. It was late afternoon, a warmer day than it was yesterday.
Winter was slowly making her exit and today was just a peek into what spring would bring. A few men, a woman and a little girl sat in front of a firepit, and I hesitated before making my way towards them. The little girl laughed as she ran around them, each of the men attempted to catch her from their chair. It was a cute family moment that I didn’t want to encroach on, but I was told to meet here at five-thirty.
“Hello,” I said, announcing myself, trying not to feel shy because this was my in-law.
“Hey,” one man got up.
I recognized him as Iris’ brother. They looked similar and I might have stalked Iris’s social media before I came here. She didn’t post often, but there were two posts with her three brothers. They all looked similar when they smiled, but Theo and Iris looked the most alike with their blond hair and bluish eyes.
“I’m Theo. Nice to meet you,” he said, holding his hand out to me, his brows furrowed.
“Nash, nice to meet you too,” I said, as a man on a horse rode up to us.
“Holy shit,” the man said, getting off his horse. “Nash Yarbrough?”
I tensed forcing myself to smile, hating that one of them recognized me because I knew the questions would come.
“That’s me,” I said, holding my hand out to him.
