Page 13 of Small Town Frenzy
“I can’t believe you’re here,” my sister says, dragging me from my thoughts. Christine looks at the clock hanging on the kitchen wall. “And you’ve stayed more than twenty-four hours, too. You’ve been here for twenty minutes. Breaking records.” She hands me a fork with a teasing grin. “The jet not fueled?”
“The girl’s got jokes.” I grab my chest, feigning pain. “Aw, that hurts, sis.” I start laughing, but I can’t hold on to itbecause I do feel bad, which is interesting since I didn’t feel much of anything while traveling. Just like when I was flying from one destination to another, being back comes with its own baggage.Good and bad.“Joking aside, sorry I’ve been gone so long?—”
“The ranch. The family. Our lives.” She lightens the guilt with a genuine smile. “It’s been longer than it should have been, big brother.” She leans on the light-colored stone counter of the island and slides a pie between us. “But you’re here now.”
So many memories come flooding back that I can’t help but smile when I see it. “Blackberry pie. Damn, I’ve missed this.” This is way better than the turmoil of earlier.
“Mom’s recipe. Homemade like she used to make.” She digs her fork right in without hesitation and scoops out a bite. My stomach growls just from seeing that filling. “Dig in.”
I take my first bite, savoring the fruit and then the flaky crust. Memories of Mom and me sitting together at the table, eating and laughing while my brother and sister napped, come rushing back. I try to remember her smile and the sound of her laughter instead of her sudden death dragging me down, which is what usually happens. “She always made two pies. One for after dinner when Dad was there to enjoy it?—”
“And one for her and us kids to devour as a treat before he even got home.”
“We were really getting away with something back then.” I take another bite. As soon as I swallow, I grin again. “It felt like robbing a bank.” I chuckle.
My sister’s smile reminds me so much of my mom’s that it almost catches me off guard. The family sends me photos, but seeing it in person makes it hard to miss theresemblance. I’m not sure when my pipsqueak of a little sister grew up, but it’s good to see that trait carried on even though the rest is uniquely her own.
“It kind of feels like we’re breaking the law right now.” Digging in again, she holds the bite in front of her, and adds, “I’ve carried on the tradition with the kids.”
“I’m sure they love it as much as we did.” I scoop another bite onto my fork. “You make a good pie, sis.”
“It’s even better because we’re totally ruining our dinners.” We both laugh again like we used to. Christine was never as annoying as Baylor. My brother is great, my best friend if I have one, but we’ve thrown down a time or two. Dad had to separate us more than a few times, and Mom would send us to our bedrooms to think about what we had done.
It was always the same result. We were both fine with what we’d done, even if it was sitting in front of our parents sporting a new shiner. We fought, but we made up fast like nothing had happened. He should be here delving into the pie with us.
“How’s the ranch doing?”
She lowers her fork and grabs a napkin to wipe her mouth. Standing, she asks, “Is this an official meeting or are you asking your sister casually over blackberry pie?”
“I get the quarterly reports. I’m asking you off the record.”
“Tagger has really come into his own, running a lot of it while I was pregnant. I was living in the lap of luxury in my air-conditioned office here in the house. And now that Julie Ann is here, I have her with me.”
“You were doing the books anyway.” I may have made millions in the majors, but my wealth has only grown because she single-handedly created an empire for ourfamily. Even when Baylor and I gave her most of our shares a few years back because she had more than earned them, we still rake in the big bucks from the ten percent we each retained.
“He’s a natural and has taken over most of the physical duties?—”
“Well, he practically grew up at Rollingwood himself and knows it like the back of his hand.”
The thought of him causes her to smile. She looks down as if she can hide it from me.Is that what love looks like?It’s how Mom used to look at Dad. I shift, tempted to drop my feet to the ground to find a more solid surface to rest on than this thin metal bar.
I don’t.I’m not giving Christine the satisfaction of proving she’s right. Do I consider it running when I leave?No.I’ve always had a backup plan. Even when it came to settling down. I knew it was something I didn’t want at her age. After all these years, though, and maybe being back in the Pass, my emotions are mixed up. I have no idea what I want anymore.
This is why I don’t stay in one place. I start to face reality, and I’m more lost than ever. At least, the ranch is a nice detour to give me time to figure out where I go from here.
She says, “We have solid ranch hands in place as well. Now I don’t have to do the outside chores, but I do miss riding my horse. I find her grazing out front most early mornings.”
“When can you ride again?”
“The doctor said it was fine since having the baby four months ago, but I—” She sighs. “I just want to wait a bit longer. No need to rush it. I still spend time with Sunrise each day, though. And our little Julie Ann seems interested in horses already by how she wriggles when she sees them.”My niece was named after our mom, which I think is sweet. Though hearing her name is still not something I’m used to. I know I will in time. And she’s so cute that it fits her. My mom would have loved having grandkids.
“Maybe she’ll barrel race like you did.”
“I’d love it, but only if it’s something she loves. I’m not forcing it, but I’ll support her own goals. You had baseball. Baylor was all about football. I had the rodeo. The ranch is the perfect place to dream as wide as the sky.”
I’m not sure I’ve seen this side of my sister. Maybe it’s because I’ve been out of the house since before she turned fifteen because of our age difference, or perhaps it’s because she’s a mom with a family of her own. Either way, I’m glad to see it now.
I steal one more bite of pie and then stand. Three kids and a husband keep her busy enough. She doesn’t need me to add myself into the mix. “I’m heading back to Dad’s house. I need to ice my shoulder.”
