Page 40 of Already Home

“That would be nice,” Beth said, before Jenna could respond.“Jenna’s busy with her store, but I’m sure there will be time for you todiscover each other. Where do you live?”

“Napa Valley. We have a family winery. It’s beautifulthere.”

While Serenity answered Beth’s questions, she looked only atJenna. The hunger in her eyes made Beth a little uncomfortable. But she wasdetermined to do the right thing.

“Any other children?”

Serenity finally turned to her. “Two boys. Despite our parents’refusal to believe Tom and I were in love, we stayed together all this time. Wemarried out of high school. I got pregnant almost right away. I did love beingpregnant.”

She would have loved it, too, Beth thought grimly. If she’dbeen able to carry a baby to term.

“What do your boys do?”

“Wolf, our youngest, runs the winery. Dragon—” The smilereturned. “Dragon is a lawyer. We can barely believe it ourselves, but he swearshe loves it. I’m not sure how he can exist in a city, away from the land and thesun. He’s not one with the earth, but he never has been.”

“Children will go their own way,” Beth said, refusing to lookat her daughter. The last thing she needed was to see Jenna right now. Odds werethey would both break out into hysterical laughter. Onewith the earth?

Then her humor faded. Serenity had been blessed with two morechildren. Beth would have liked that.

“Would you like some tea?” Serenity asked. “Dandelion root. Idried it myself.”

“No, thank you,” Beth murmured. “Two boys. That’s so nice.”

“But you’re my only daughter.” Serenity turned back to Jenna.“You would have loved growing up with us.”

“I’m happy with the life that I had,” Jenna said. She clearedher throat. “Although you do paint a vivid picture.”

Serenity swayed slightly on the sofa. “We would have called youButterfly. If we’d kept you. Tom wrote a song about you. You’ll have to ask himto play it when he gets back.”

* * *

Jenna did her best not to choke or run for the door.Butterfly?

“The boys got to be animals and I’m a bug?” she asked beforeshe could stop herself. Only to slam into the realization that the “boys” inquestion were not only adults, but her brothers. As in brothers. She’d been an only child her whole life and now she hadbrothers.

“Technically Dragon is short for Dragonfly, but he’s asked usnot to call him that.”

Jenna looked at her mother, only to see Beth mouthing the words“Be nice.”

“Dragonfly?” Jenna asked, then wished she hadn’t.

Serenity laughed. “He wasn’t happy about it, but I kept seeingdragonflies when I was pregnant.”

Jenna thought about saying that it was good that Serenityhadn’t been near a farm with really big pigs, but kept her mouth shut.

Everything about this felt completely surreal. How could peopleshe’d never known show up and expect to have a connection with her?

“Do your boys look like you or Tom?” Beth asked.

“Mostly Tom.”

“Jenna looks like you.”

Jenna had to consciously keep from scowling.

“I think she’s much prettier,” Serenity said.

“You won’t have to worry about your weight as you get older,”Beth said to Jenna. She turned back to Serenity. “That’s nice. I’m a lifetimemember of Weight Watchers. Show me a food and I can tell you the points value. Ijust love their program.”

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