Chapter Six

By the third day of my rehabilitation, I was itching for a change of scenery. Lounging around is all well and good, but I was done playing the bird with all of her feathers pulled out.

“Time to do something productive.”

Things light straightening the pantry, my closet, or preparing meals for the rest of the week sounded easy enough and wouldn’t keep me on my feet for all that long. Surely I could manage one of those things without making a complete fool of myself.

Bonus points if I do all three, I thought with a smile.

Halfway through my less-than-normal busywork, I realized I’d made way too much food for one person. Leftovers were an option, but after packing up half of the lasagna, I had a better idea. It was about time I thanked Bree and Jackson for all they’d done. I might not have been able to offer much, but I could keep them fed, which was what I planned to do.

Taking out my phone, I pulled up Bree’s number and froze. She’d asked me to stay off my feet for a few days, and I’d done exactly that. So why was I so nervous? It wasn’t like she had a say in what I did, and considering the fact my leg didn’t hurt nearly as much when I walked on it, I knew at least some of the injury had already started to heal.

“I can’t just sit here and do nothing,” I growled at my phone.

I’d already thanked Bree personally, but I wanted to do more than that. I wanted to show my appreciation, and without an online app to code or a pc I could use, cooking was my best bet.

Besides, the food was already made. All we’d have to do is heat it back up.

“They don’t even have to stay,” I said as I stared the phone down.

Looking at Bree’s number then as it popped up on the screen, I couldn’t decide if my nerves were because of some damage I might’ve inadvertently done from all of my moving around or something more. It felt as though I was a teen all over again. I was getting up the nerve to call and ask her out, which was absolutely ridiculous. What I had planned wasn’t even remotely close to a date. It was dinner, it was as simple as that, and yet…

I took a deep breath and hit speed dial. Bree picked up on the second ring.

 

 

It took some convincing, along with a handful of apologies, but Bree and Jackson finally agreed to join me. Granted, when I opened the door, I expected to find them in their usual attire, not a full set of evening wear.

Seeing Jackson in a crisp shirt and slacks was completely out of the ordinary, and Bree, well…

“You look lovely.” The words left my lips before I could pull them back, and as I stood there with my cheeks on fire, the two of them simply smiled and waited for my embarrassment to pass.

Bree had on a baby blue blouse with a pair of dress pants and shoes that must’ve been a pain to keep on while trudging through the snow. That is until I realized they’d brought the car.

They almost never drive. Bree had said so herself. So, if they had the car, that meant—

“Crap, I didn’t pull you away from an important job, did I?”

Just thinking about it made me sick to the stomach. Being so far away from the city, it must’ve been hard for them to keep up with the bills. If my call caused them to lose a job, I’d never forgive myself.

“Folks don’t invite us over very often,” Bree explained as she joined me in the living room, soon followed by her brother who stood in the doorway. “Those that do usually want us to do something for free.” She gave me a sideways glance, then smiled. “Relax. I know a genuine offer when I hear one.”

Jackson didn’t move. In fact, I couldn’t tell if he even breathed. Instead, he hovered by the doorway with his shoulder pressed against the frame.

“Is Jackson okay?” I asked Bree, doing my best not to pry.

Bree, likely used to his behavior, rolled her eyes, then walked over to her brother and grabbed his arm, pulling him away from the front door before closing it behind him. “We’re her guests. Stop acting like some trapped animal.”

Jacked grumbled something under his breath, yanked his arm out of Bree’s grasp, then finally joined us in the living room.

“You can put your things wherever,” I said as I made my way into the kitchen. “Food should be ready soon.”

“You need any help?” Bree asked, quickly following after me once she gave her brother a warning glance.

“Nope. I’m fine.”

“Not on that leg, you’re not. Here. Let me.” Before I could protest, she shooed me away from the overhead cabinets to grab three plates. “With all this extra space, why use those ones there?” She was referring to the cabinets.

I leaned against the island separating the living room and kitchen and shrugged. “It’s where my folks keep theirs. I didn’t want to fish around for everything, so I sort of used the setup they have back home.”

“You live with your folks?” She glanced over her shoulder to look at me before finally placing the plates on the island beside us.

“No, but it’s something I do at home as well. It just makes it easier when you’re in a rush. Muscle memory, you know?”

“We’ve lived in the same place since we were kids, so I honestly can’t comment on that. Still, anything to make life a little easier, right?”

“Outside of working for a living and drowning under all the stress? Sure.”

Jackson grunted from his place in the living room, then looked out the front window. “These trees are in the way. I can’t see a damned thing.”

“Yeah,” I agreed, turning back for the kitchen to get the silverware. “That’s something I plan to take care of once it warms up. I plan to do a lot of things, actually, with the barn, the front fields, and some of the woods in the back.”

“No.” He whipped around and looked at me with a pair of wide, dark eyes. “Those woods are sacred. You can’t—”

“Jackson,” Bree scolded. “We’re her guests. Don’t get us kicked out until after we’ve eaten, okay?”

“No, no, it’s okay,” I assured her. “I wasn’t planning to remove any of the trees. I like them just the way they are, actually. I did want to add a small garden as there’s a bit of a nook with some old ruins. I figure they’re from an old well, but it would make the best little garden to collect my thoughts, you know?”

Bree nodded in agreement, and a moment later, Jackson joined us.

“Really?” he asked with surprise, pulling out one of the stools so he could sit on the living room side of the island along with his sister. “That sounds really nice.”

“It does,” I said with a nod, finally sitting down so we could eat.

The rest of our meal was rather uneventful. Bree talked about one of their more recent jobs along with some of the bad ones such as repairing the roof over the post office during a storm as some of it had blown off, whereas Jackson kept to himself.

He’s isn’t terribly social, I reminded myself, doing whatever I could not to pressure him. I wasn’t the most social person in the world, but I’d gotten a lot better since we were kids. Greta went out every chance she had. As for me, I happily spent most of my time inside a book.

That is until we started a business and all of my joys of reading went out the window.

“Did your folks live here long?” I asked once there was a break in the conversation.

Jackson froze. Bree didn’t do any better. The color drained from her face, but unlike her brother, she recovered.

“A bit,” she managed between bites of pasta.

“But I thought you said your dad was a surgeon. Surely he would’ve stayed in the city instead of coming all the way out here.”

“He—” Bree paused, then glared at her brother who’d elbowed her in the arm. “I suppose he was a little different. He did housecalls along with an occasional drive into the city. It wasn’t anything fancy and nowhere near what you’re probably used to, but it kept a roof over our heads and kept us fed.”

“And neither one of you wanted to continue once… I’m sorry. I’m not trying to pry.”

“Well, you are.”

“Jackson!” Bree snapped. “I’m sorry, Carley. It seems my brother has forgotten his manners.” She glared at him then, staring her brother down until he finally stood away from the table to leave.

“Thanks for dinner. It was lovely.” He emphasized the last word, mimicking something I’d said earlier.

“Don’t let him get to you,” Bree said once he walked out the front door. “He means well, he just doesn’t know when to keep his big mouth shut.”

She looked the way her brother had gone, then released a deep breath and folded her hands in her lap. “After our folks passed, he shut down. He hasn’t always been like this. He isn’t as trusting as he once was.”

I nodded gently. “It must be hard watching someone change so much in such a short span of time.”

“It is, and unfortunately for me, it’s something I need to deal with on a daily basis. Some days are better than others. Today isn’t one of them, and I apologize for that. He seemed fine before we left the house, but—”

“He’s in unfamiliar territory. I get it. Before we started our business, I hid away in books. My sister would go out, party, and do all of the social things while I sat in. You kind of remind me of her, actually. She would’ve been pissed if I acted the way Jackson did, but considering the fact I’ve been in his position before, I can’t say I blame him. I’m sorry if I ruined things for you.”

“Oh no, it’s nothing like that, and I promise you aren’t the only one he’s done this with. He’s terribly rough around the edges and cautious when it comes to meeting new people, but he’ll come around. You just need to give him some time.”

“Even if I’m only staying here for a year?” I asked, wincing at the way I spoke then.

“He might still come around,” she assured me. “It’s just, out here, you can never be too careful. Jackson and I have lost a lot. It’s hard to make new connections when all you can think about is the ones you’ve lost.”

“You can’t get hurt if you never get close.” Or, if you’re like me, you simply stop talking to someone once you get out of high school.

“Pretty much. In any case, I should probably go after him before he thinks I’m sharing top-secret information with you.” She passed me a toothy grin.

“Covert operations, huh?”

“Only the best.” She paused inside the doorway to gather her things.

“Oh, before you go, I wanted to give you this.” I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a doggy bag, which I then handed off to her. “I don’t know if he’s allowed to have table scraps or not, but this is for Hunter.”

She studied the bag and smiled. “He’ll love it. He probably won’t taste any of it, but it will be just as rewarding as his kibble.” Then, looking at me, she said, “I’ll check back soon. We have a big job tomorrow, so I probably won’t be around until Friday morning. I’ll be sure to call before I head over.”

“What? No surprise visits to make sure I’m on my best behavior?”

She cocked an eyebrow at me and studied the way I favored one leg over the other. “Stay off of it for tonight. The dishes can wait until the morning if you let them soak. Besides, I figured I startled you the first time I showed up on your doorstep, so…” she trailed off.

“Not at all. It was just…” I waved my hand in the air as though it could produce the right words. “Unexpected.”

“Then you can expect a call from me Friday morning.”

“And I’ll try to be on my best behavior until then. No promises, though,” I said as I gestured at the dishes I still had to clean.

“You’d better. Otherwise, I’ll have to come over here and reprimand you myself.” Considering the way she’d scolded her brother during dinner, I figured it might be best to stay on her good side.

After another five minutes of banter and realizing her brother wasn’t remotely close to the house anymore, I saw Bree out, then eyed the dishes once more.

“The dishes can wait,” I said, taking a breath as I slowly lowered them into the sink.

My next visit with Bree couldn’t come soon enough.