Page 62 of Sweet Little Thing

She sighed and rolled her eyes. “Dear God, if I ever visit that place again, don’t let me wear this. My thighs have seen better days.”

I smiled. “I thought you looked great in it.” I hoped I had her attitude about life when I was older, and my brain got scattered.

“Thank you. But trust me. There was a time long ago when I could turn heads,” she said with pride.

“You are still turning heads. Your beauty is ageless,” I informed her

She narrowed her eyes at me but then smiled brightly. “I guess you just might be right,” she replied looking pleased. Then she added a sigh. “I have some unpacking to do. If you could water the garden for me while I put things away, that would be wonderful.”

“Yes, of course.”

She started to leave, then paused and looked at me. “You’re a good girl. I’ve known a lot of beauties. Many that have been in and out of Stone’s life. But never have I met one with your genuine goodness. Don’t give up on him.”

I opened my mouth to tell her that Stone was only helping me and she had the wrong idea about us. However, she left the room too quickly, and her footsteps echoed down the hall before I could gather my words and respond.

Surely, Stone had explained our situation to her. He wouldn’t want her thinking there was anything between us. Her mind was scattered. Maybe she was confused again, thinking I was a girl from his past. That idea saddened me. Stone wasn’t an ideal guy to spend your life with. He was hard, blunt, and cruel at times. He looked down his nose at others and was closed off. But I had seen him with Geraldine and the way he looked at her. There was a heart in that man. He was just very careful who he allowed inside of it. The idea of a woman hurting him made my chest ache a little. But only a little.

Watering the garden took over an hour. It was an impressive setup, and she’d told me yesterday how Stone had helped her organize it during spring break three years ago. They’d spent four days preparing the irrigation and making sure the planting system was installed properly. He would have been a sophomorein college. His friends would have gone to some exotic location to party, but he’d come here to help an elderly woman begin a garden in her multi-million-dollar castle.

It was as if there were two of him. One, I respected and admired, and the other, I wanted to punch in the face. When I was here with Geraldine, I found myself seeing him through her eyes. Then when I was with him again he always seemed to make me feel stupid and inferior.

I wondered how many childhood memories Stone had in this backyard. From the bits and pieces I’d learned about his parents, this must have been his safe place. He came here to be a little boy and feel secure. I’d been raised with love and security. I didn’t know what it was like to grow up with parents like his. I couldn’t expect him to be normal after that.

“Beulah, dear, we seem to have company. I believe it’s more for you than me,” Geraldine called from the back patio. When I put the water hose down and looked back toward the house, her concerned frown made me think she might be having another spell.

“I’ll be right there,” I assured her, turning off the sprinklers set to water most of the crops. She stayed on the patio. I wondered what she could be imagining that had her so upset. Stone hadn’t prepared me for a spell like this. I only knew about her more entertaining episodes.

“Is everything okay?” I asked once I reached her. She sighed heavily as if she hated to tell me what was wrong.

“I’m not sure, to be honest. He’s always been welcome here. Because of that, I didn’t think anything about it when he came to the gate. I happily let him inside. I was ready to make him a cup of tea and feed him a slice of the almond pound cake you made earlier. But when he got inside the house, he asked to see you, and I remembered. Stone warned me this could happen and said I should tell you to call him if he tried to get in here. But…Iforgot, and now he’s here. In the parlor.”

“Jasper,” it wasn’t a question. Although she had never said his name, I knew who she was referring to. He shouldn’t have come to my job. To a place that he’d always been welcomed. It was wrong to take advantage of Geraldine. Instead of the panicked mess I’d been every time I thought I’d have to face him, this time I was angry. I was frustrated that he’d do something like that and upset Geraldine.

The thought of having to face him made my stomach knot up, but I wouldn’t allow this to upset her more than she was. “That’s all right. Not to worry. I’ll see if I can help him, then send him on his way. Or you can feed him some pound cake and enjoy your tea. I’m sure he’d like that.”

She shook her head. “Oh, no. He isn’t to stay here with you. Stone told me to be sure this didn’t happen, and I messed it up.”

The distress in her voice was unfair to her. Jasper was being selfish. “Then you have a seat in the kitchen and let me handle Jasper. This isn’t a problem at all, and Stone doesn’t even need to know about it.”

Geraldine pinched her lips and shook her head. “No, no. I’ll have to tell him. And you’re not going in there alone. Stone didn’t tell me why, but he was very adamant about it. I just wish I’d remembered sooner.”

Arguing with her was a waste of time.

“If you’re sure,” I said, worrying this was too much stress for her.

She gave a firm nod. “Absolutely.”

I didn’t know what he’d say or why he was here, but I had to deal with this and make him leave. Coming between him and Stone’s friendship made me feel terrible. Jasper and Stone were as close as brothers. It wasn’t until after I’d left that I realized how close they were. Stone and Jasper didn’t have a lot of family, from what I could tell, and they weren’t going to lose each otherover me.

“Then let’s go see what our guest wants,” I said with a fake smile.

She studied me and then sighed. “This isn’t good,” she muttered.

With Geraldine by my side, we walked to the parlor, and I began mentally coaching myself to face him. I had to do this without any crack or breakdown, for Geraldine’s sake. Maybe for my sake, too.

When we reached the doorway, Geraldine stepped in front of me almost protectively. “You’re not supposed to be here. Stone didn’t give me any details on the situation, but I know you boys are close. If he thinks you shouldn’t be around Beulah, there must be a good reason.”

Jasper’s eyes weren’t on Geraldine, they were locked on me. My chest ached at the sight of him. But it wasn’t as painful as I’d feared. I did believe I had loved him or that I had been falling in love with him. Before I had known the truth.

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