Page 110 of When the Storm Breaks
I scowled at him in the rearview mirror. “People don’t need to give you a present every time they see you.”
“Not every time. Just when they go away. Like when you were a rodeo man, remember? And after you got back from being with Shy Viv, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember.” I didn’t mention that my gift-giving had been fueled by guilt. Every time I left him, I felt like shit about it, so I never came home empty-handed. It had gotten to the point where he expected it, and since I never wanted to disappoint him, I always delivered. “But Shy doesn’t need to bring gifts.”
“Of course I brought you a present,” Shy said. “I’ll give it to you when we get to your grandma’s, okay?”
“Okay. Did you bring Daddy a present too?”
“Okay, little man. That’s enough from you. It’s not cool to ask for presents.”
Shiloh laughed. “I brought extra special presents for your daddy.” She lowered her voice for my ears only. “You’ll be getting yours later tonight.”
“Yeah? Well, as it turns out, I’ve got a nicebig, juicysomething special just for you.”
She laughed. “Juicy, huh?”
“Mmhmm. It’s the gift that keeps on giving. All night long. Never quits. No batteries needed.” I side-eyed her. “Not too late to change your mind about Sunday dinner.”
“Tempting. But we’re going. I want to see everyone.”
Of course, she did.
Twenty minutes later, I pulled into the driveway at my aunt’s and uncle’s house. The porch was decorated with pumpkins and cobwebs and the old scarecrow was hanging in the front yard.
I opened Noah’s door and he raced across the lawn. The air was crisp and cool, and it smelled like woodsmoke, the gold and orange and red fallen leaves raked into a big pile. I met Shiloh next to the passenger door. She was wearing a black hoodie and ripped black jeans with her Army boots, like the first time I’d picked her up at the airport.
“How’s Jesse?” she asked as we crossed the front lawn.
Noah got a running start and threw himself right into the middle of the giant pile of leaves. I picked him up and tossed him in the leaves again.
“He’s been better.”
Jesse wasn’t doing great, and that was putting it mildly. I’d never seen my youngest cousin like this before. The weekend after I flew back from France, he crashed his bike and broke his back. The surgery had gone well and physically, he was healing fine. He had to wear a back brace for another month or two and then he was starting physical therapy.
But his spirit was broken, and that was sad as fuck to see, especially when it was Jesse who had always been the charmer, the one most likely to put a positive spin on any situation. Now he was having to face the fact that his career might be over. Not to mention, the other shit he’d gone through when he found out his girlfriend had been cheating on him. Two weeks ago, he’d moved back to Texas and the few times I’d seen him he’d barely spoken a word let alone cracked a smile.
So yeah, Jesse was not in the best place right now. Hopefully, with time and distractions, he’d make it through to the other side.
* * *
Everyone washappy to see Shiloh again and peppered her with questions all through dinner. Steaks on the grill, corn on the cob, cheesy potatoes and apple pie. We sat at the long farmhouse table Patrick had given Kate for her birthday and Shiloh regaled them with tales of the road. A natural storyteller, she had everyone at the table charmed, including Levi who was sitting in her lap, grabbing fistfuls of her hair and yanking on it. She laughed and kissed his chubby cheeks like it was the most adorable thing ever.
Jesse didn’t even join us for dinner which said a lot. He was family-oriented and usually loved spending time with everyone. Ridge wasn’t there either. He made it a point to work every Sunday so he could skip the family dinners. But he’d ended up joining the football team, and Patrick never missed a single Friday night game. None of us did if we could help it. We all showed up to cheer him on and even though he claimed to hate football, he was pretty damn good at it. He was big, he was strong, and he was fast. All raw power and brute strength.
By the time we left, it had gotten dark already, the days getting shorter.
“I’ve missed this place so much,” Shiloh said when we walked through my front door. Buster was there to greet us, wagging his tail as Shiloh knelt down to rub behind his ears. “Can we go see the horses?”
“That’s the first thing you want to do?”
She smiled but it wasn’t her genuine smile. “We have four days. And um, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”
I didn’t like the way that sounded. “What is it?”
“Let’s go see Phoenix.”
My eyes narrowed on her. She smiled again and looped her arms around my neck, giving me a kiss, a promise of more to come. She was hedging, which was unlike her, so I knew it had to be something big. Something I wouldn’t like. I grabbed a flashlight from the kitchen, and we walked to the barn, my arm around her shoulders, Buster trotting along beside us. Earlier, I’d brought Phoenix in from the pasture and put her into a stall, knowing Shiloh would want to see her. She whinnied in greeting as if she remembered Shiloh and was happy to see her.
