“I’m working on fixing that. But it doesn’t matter which building I’m in, the power is conveyed to the man, not a structure.” Cy winked.
Dial snorted, “Did you wield that power to get yourself reserved parking at the Gas Guzzle?”
“No, Logan decided to do that all on his own.”
“The perks of the office I guess.” Dial poured a few drops of the mixed drink in the palm of her hand to taste.
Cy turned his attention back to our mother, but his next words were intended for Dial all the same. “I had drinks with Ozzie the other night and he wanted me to tell you hello.”
Dial chucked the wooden spoon into the sink. Ozzie was her ex and Maple’s father. The two were successfully co-parenting, but the bad blood ran deep between them. Truthfully, the beef was mostly one-sided. Ozzie was a lover and Dial was a fighter.How those two got along long enough to create Maple I’d never know.
“Can we eat now?” My father’s booming voice reached the kitchen before he did.
“We were just waiting for you,” my mother said, leading us to the wraparound porch out back.
Dinner consisted of steak, potatoes, and grilled veggies and it was a great break from my frozen dinners. I could cook, my mother saw to that, but preparing dinner for one was not a motivator. If I had a family or at the minimum a girlfriend, maybe I’d feel differently. So, for now it was mostly TV dinners and a cold beer. When Willa spent the night, I’d order out, but cooking for a booty call appointment was a strict no no. The last thing I wanted was for her to get any ideas. Or maybe I should say … any more ideas. Willa had designs on a future with me, but I’d made it clear that right now a relationship was not in the cards. All I could offer was my company and this dick.
“So what’s the news and why did you soften us up with meat and sweet wine?” Classic Dial jumping right to the point. I loved that about her because she always said the things I was thinking but was never bratty enough to express.
“Well, your mother and I have been talking.” My father reached for his wife’s hand. “Your momma and I aren’t getting any younger and well, this is a lot of property for just she and I.”
“And we only have one grandchild,” Mom chimed in, eyeing Cyrus and me.
“We’ve been thinking about selling the farm and maybe even moving to Gainsborough.”
Dial’s laughter pierced the air. “You can’t be serious. This is our home.”
“You three are grown. And Pops and I are interested in a change of scenery,” my mother said.
“We ain’t too grown for our homestead,” I protested.
“I’m pregnant,” Dial blurted out.
It was my mother’s turn to laugh loudly. “You’re not.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I’m your mother. I would probably know before you did.”
“I could be,” Dial insisted.
“No, you couldn’t.” I brushed her words aside. In the relationship department Dial was worse off than me.
“When are you thinking about doing all this?” Cyrus asked.
“We have some repairs we need to perform around the property but we’re thinking this Christmas will be our last here.”
“Christmas? That’s six months away. Hardly enough time for a change like that,” Cy said.
“What about Figs and Twine?” I asked.
“You and your sister are more than capable of running that place on your own.”
Dial leaned forward. “Wait … you’d let us do that?”
Sure, Dial and I discussed our ideas on ways to improve the nursery but those conversations always implied implementing the changes years from now when the parental units retired. The thought that we could be months away from being in charge was a bit terrifying for me at least, but I could already see the gears beginning to turn in my sister’s head.
Cyrus scrubbed his face with his hand. “Is this something that’s still up for debate or is it settled?”
