I nod slowly, draining the rest of the beer. I didn’t expect this topic of conversation, but it’s not hurting like it usually does. There’s a pain in my chest, the one that I think I’ve just come to live with, but it’s not throbbing. It’s just—there.
“Emmy would slap us both for this, you know?”
Jimmy grins. “Nah, I think she’d just be impressed we’re here, having a beer, and you haven’t started a fight.”
I lift my beer. “The night is still young.”
“Great.” Jimmy puts his bottle down, looking around. After a few seconds, he looks back at me. “Try not to fuck my night up.”
“I make no promises.”
He sighs and then drains his beer. “You know, she would be proud of you, Tris.”
“What?” I ask, confused.
“Emmy.”
God, I thought we were done with this. I don’t want to sit around and talk about Emmy. I want to forget my damn problems and just have a few drinks.
He continues before I can tell him this. “The way you’re raising Sadie, taking care of the ranch, making sure that your dad and your sisters are all thriving. Emmy Jo would’ve wanted all of what you’re doing. Minus the life of crime.”
I could tell him how much I feel like I’m failing, but I don’t. Some days, it feels like I’m doing great. Other times I’m so deep in the mud I can’t see straight. Sadie is growing up way too fast, and I’m trying so hard to do right by her, but it’s hard. Then I have these idiots trying to say we’re causing trouble on their farm, like I have the damn time.
“You really think we’re doing these things to the Gatlins? Truly?” I ask.
My best friend shrugs with one shoulder. “I don’t know. Off the record, I don't think you are. I know your family like I know my own, and I can't see you doing it. I just can't find anything to exonerate you. Everything points to your family, even if I don't think it's you guys. You gotta help me out, brother. I need something concrete to show that it’s not your family.”
“There is, because it’s not us. Apparently, next time I go on a trip, I need to buy trail cams to show that it’s not us.”
“Yeah, that would work if it was ever the same place twice.”
“Well, it’s better than nothing.”
Clearly, no one else is capable of figuring out who it is, so I will.
And then I’ll collect on whatever Lark is going to pay up.
It’s as if by just thinking about her, I was able to conjure her. I spot her out on the dance floor, dancing with two other girls, clad in jeans and a backless top that hugs all her curves. Her longbrown hair sways back and forth, and the pure joy on her face makes my chest ache.
Fuck, she’s beautiful.
Fuck, I shouldn’t be thinking about how beautiful she is.
But her smile, the way her eyes are bright, makes me smile myself.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the two men I love the most,” Mary Lou, my sister-in-law, says as she slides up beside me. Thank God, she just snapped me out of staring at Lark.
I get to my feet, pulling her tiny frame into a crushing hug. “You little shit, you didn’t tell me you were back in Infinity Ridge.”
She laughs, pushing out of my arms with a huge grin. Mary Lou has always looked like her sister, but as she’s gotten older, it’s even more pronounced. She could’ve been Emmy Jo’s twin. “I didn’t tell anyone, including my friends, which went over incredibly well.”
“I bet it did.”
Mary Lou shrugs. “What? I live for the surprise.”
Five years ago, Mary Lou got the job of her dreams running a resort in Montana and took off without a backward glance. It’s been a long time since she’s been back in town. “Uh-huh. Are you coming by the ranch tomorrow?”
“Of course. I got a text from my very favorite niece a few days ago saying she was in need of some help…”
