Page 59 of Echoes of a Southern Song

Chapter Twenty-One

Jack

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THE MIRROR’S STILL fogged from Jack’s shower. I’m sitting on the toilet seat in Aggie’s bathroom watching Jack shave. He’s got a towel wrapped around his waist looking every inch a Hollywood model. I stare at the suit Jack hung up last night. It’s not his—Aggie bought it for him. Said he couldn’t show up to court looking like a “scruffy bar singer,” which is... honestly, fair. Jack might be devastatingly handsome but he doesn’t exactly own anything that screams “respectable adult man making a serious courtroom appearance.”

He doesn’t complain when she hands it to him, either. Just nods and takes it like he’s still not sure he belongs here or anywhere.

The suit is dark gray. I can’t wait to see him in it. Aggie must have guessed his size perfectly, which is a little terrifying and also kind of impressive. She just showed up yesterday, handed it to him, and said, “Try this on.” And Jack being Jack, he did. No questions. I love their relationship. I love that my aunt loves him like he’s her own.

That has to be a good sign.

“You’re staring,” he says.

“I’m enjoying the show,” I smile.

The bathroom door is open and I can hear Aggie walking around. I came over here bright and early because the two of us trying to get ready in my tiny house was just never going to work. Aggie’s already dressed, walking around in her heels that are clicking across the floor. She looks amazing. Her dress is a deep blue to match Jack’s tie, her pearls catching the light, hair swept back in this sleek bun. It hits me suddenly how much I need her with me today.

“Jack, if you’re not dressed in five minutes,” Aggie calls out.

“Yeah, yeah,” he mutters back.

I stand up, kiss his cheek that isn’t covered in shaving cream, and touch his shoulder. “I’ll let you get dressed.”

“Two minutes,” he says.

Aggie is dusting. Of all things... dusting. I know she’s nervous.

“Thank you for doing all of this for me,” I say. “Helping Jack. All of it.”

“Honey, you don’t have to thank me. I can’t wait to get up there and look that smarmy little vermin in the eye.”

I laugh. “Okay.”

“Help,” Jack calls out.

I peek around the corner and catch him holding up the tie. I try not to laugh, because the rest of him looks unfairly good. The suit fits him perfectly, highlighting his shoulders and lean frame.

Hot damn. That’s my man.

Aggie appears behind me and pushes past without a word.

“Never thought I’d see the day you wore pearls,” Jack says, a lazy grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.

“And I never thought I’d see the day you’d wear a suit,” she snaps back, already reaching for the tie. “Hold still.”

Jack stands there obediently, letting her fix the knot. I watch them, appreciating their relationship. And admiring him. Something about the way he stands so still, eyes flickering toward me just once, makes my chest ache. There’s a boy in there still, underneath all the stubbornness and swagger. A boy who never learned how to tie a tie because life came at him too hard, too fast.

“There,” Aggie says, adjusting the collar. “You almost look like a grown-up.”

“Almost?” Jack grins at her, then glances at himself in the mirror. I see him straighten a little. He looks older, surer. Like a man stepping into something real.

“You clean up nice,” I say quietly.

He looks at me, and for a beat, neither of us says anything.

Aggie ruins the moment by clapping her hands. “All right, let’s get going. I want to be there early.”