Page 7 of Cups of You

Benjamin’s heart sped up at the recognition in Randy’s expression. “You know her?”

“Sure. Well, not directly, but I know of her.” Randy nodded before taking a swig of his beer. “She graduated with my little brother a few years after me. From what I remember, she was quiet but sweet. She didn’t stick around after graduating high school though and I don’t think she’s come back before now; definitely not since you moved here.”

“Oh, no wonder I didn’t recognize her. Ms. Jay talked about her a lot, but never showed me what she looked like.”

Samantha’s smile morphed into a knowing smirk. “But you think she’s cute.”

“She’s fucking gorgeous,” Benjamin blurted out before slapping a hand over his mouth.

“Awesome,” Olivia said from behind him making him jump slightly. She smiled and pointed at the kitchen counter. “That’s one dollar to the swear jar old man. Also, who’s Amber?”

Benjamin groaned when Samantha and Randy laughed.

It was going to be a long night.

THREE

Amber sighed and leaned back. The scent of bleach and lemon were suffocatingly pungent, and she coughed as she pushed herself up off the bathroom floor. It had taken her nearly a week to get Jackie’s house fully cleaned and now she just had the guest bathroom to finish. Other than a few more trips to town for groceries and a reunion with her favorite librarian, she had spent every day stalking the halls of her aunt’s small home gazing at the photos she hadn’t seen in years and attacking any specks of dust or dirt she came across.

“Amber?”

“Yeah,” she called out. “Hold on; I’ll be right down.”

Amber tossed the sponge in the sink before descending the creaky stairs. Faces frozen in time stared at her as she passed, and she couldn’t help but pause at one in particular. Familiar brown eyes looked without seeing and her gaze soaked in the same smiles she sometimes saw in her dreams.

“Hey mom. Hey dad. I’m home.” She ran her fingers over the cool glass before taking a deep breath and continuing down the stairs.

Jackie was in the living room her right ankle encased in a cast and propped up on a pillow on the coffee table. The older woman had taken a spill thanks to some ice on her front steps and broken it. Thank goodness she had been on her way somewhere and had her cell phone with her. Amber had been terrified when she got the call from the hospital and only slightly relieved when she heard that other than the cast and some rest as the ankle healed, her aunt would be okay.

Aunt Jackie had told her she didn’t need to come down, but Amber refused to take no for an answer. Josiah had not been happy about Amber leaving for Georgia, but in the end, it came down to being there for the only family she had left. The timing was perfect anyway. It gave Amber time to think about the direction her life was going in as well as what she might do regarding Josiah’s uncovered infidelity a few months back.

“You alright?” Amber asked as she carefully walked around the coffee table and plopped down on the couch beside Jackie. Her aunt scrunched up her nose.

“Goodness child. You smell like you bathed in bleach.”

Amber snorted. “I was cleaning the bathroom when you called me down.”

“You always were particular about your cleaning,” Jackie said with a soft smile. “I hate that I made you take time away from your job and ‘what’s his name’.”

“Josiah, auntie.” Amber waved her hand gagging softly as the scent of bleach wafted by. “And you didn’tmakeme do anything. I told you I was planning to leave that job anyway. I already had feelers out and I was just waiting to hear from one of them.”

And Josiah was already trying my patience so some time away was a good thing.

Jackie’s dark brown eyes were shining with the same pride Amber remembered seeing at each graduation. It was the look that never failed to make her eyes burn with happy tears. Warmth spread through her and she relaxed into the couch.

Despite not wanting to be back in Millensville, she had missed her aunt terribly. After taking her in, she and Amber had become exceedingly close and Amber always enjoyed when her aunt came to visit in Chicago. Her hometown itself might hold uncomfortable memories, but Jackie brought Amber nothing but contentment.

Aunt Jackie was home.

“Have you heard anything from them?”

“Not yet, but I will. The big one I already interviewed for before I left, so hopefully I’ll hear from that one in the next couple of weeks.”

Jackie nodded. “And that’s the one you really want? The library director thing?”

“It’s the Chicago Public Library Foundation and yes. I applied for a director position which is big for me. I don’t know if it’s exactly the direction I wanted to go in, but it is a pretty big step up for my career.”

“Who knew that hiding away in the library would lead to you being a bigshot in one of them.” Jackie covered Amber’s left hand with one of her own and squeezed gently. “I’m so proud of you sweetie. Your parents would be thrilled to see how far you’ve come.”

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