Page 66 of Frisco

As I approached, the oldest woman glanced back as she washed a pot. “You Kali?”

I nodded. “You Shelly?”

She grinned wide and put the pot down. After drying her hands, she extended one to me. “I’m Rash’s sister, not his old lady, in case you heard different.”

We shook hands. Hers was a firm grip.

She was skinny, but I could see she was wiry with muscle. She had a gaunt face—not pretty, but not homely. Striking. High cheekbones. A bird-like chin and tiny lips. Straight, dark-blond hair, hers in a loose braid. Several strands had fallen free, but she just brushed them back, tucking them behind her ear. I took in her clothes too, now feeling somewhat overdressed. The other woman was dressed the same way.

Both had black biker tank tops that dipped low, showing a lot of cleavage, and skin-tight jeans with sturdy, functional boots—and not the hooker kind.

I’d guess she was in her forties. Maybe. She looked aged, and that wasn’t meant in a disrespectful way. She had old eyes.

“I was told to look out for you,” she said. “You guys got in late last night. This your first time venturing out and about?”

I almost laughed. “Is it that obvious?”

“Mom.” The younger version of her held out another pot, a towel thrown over her shoulder. “That’s the last of them.”

“Okay.” Shelly took the pot and motioned with her head to her daughter. “This one’s mine, Katie.” She gave me a nod. “Katie, this one’s with the national VP. Show some respect.”

Katie’s eyes widened, and she shot upright, nervously. Smoothing her hands down her jeans, she came over, giving me a quick dip of her head. “Hi. Sorry. I didn’t know. There’s a lot of—”

“There’s a lot of women around here, especially around times like this.” Shelly took over, speaking for her daughter. She gave her a smile and nodded to send her along. “I got it from here. Where are you off to now?”

“Uh…” Katie looked between us before turning to her mom. “There’s a house party at Jared’s tonight. Don’t suppose I could go?”

“You know the deal. We stay put until we know everything’s done and handled.”

Katie glanced my way again. “Okay. I’m going to my room. You need help with supper?”

“Nah. We’ve got more than enough help around here. If you think of leaving, I’m going to send your cousin after you.”

Katie’s eyebrows pinched together. “Mom!”

“Just saying.” Shelly shrugged. “You know the deal.”

Katie snorted before taking off.

“You drink coffee? Tea?”

“Coffee, please.”

She nodded to the pot, and I saw there was a whole set up, like this was a hotel. “Help yourself. We try to keep it stocked for anyone staying, and the guys love their coffee around here.”

“This is your place?” I asked as I went over and began filling a mug.

“Yeah.” She grabbed a few items and waited as I added some cream to my coffee. Then she indicated that we should go the same direction her daughter had.

We walked out of the barn and turned for the main house.

“This is my project,” she added. “Crow acts like it’s his, but it ain’t. It’s mine.”

“Are you and Crow…?”

“No! God, no.” She laughed. “Rash is my brother, like I said, and he and Crow grew up together. Crow’s my cousin. My husband used to be Red, but he died ten years ago. I got some inheritance and used that to buy this place, renovate it. It’s my business. Katie and I keep an apartment in a town not far from here. It’s where she goes to school, and we rent this place out. It does well too. Lots of companies use it for events, whatnot. Then Crow gave me a call yesterday and said the club needs it. So here we go.”

“It’s beautiful.”

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