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“Now, let’s talk about this dog of yours, Jonas,” she says.
“You were the one who wanted to keep him for a couple of nights,” I begin, but she cuts me off.
“Right. I heard strange noises outside, and I figured this dog of yours would protect me. Your Aunt Janice came to visit, and when she came to the door, all your big, bad shepherd did was roll over and show her his belly.”
My laughter fills the truck.
“And then, he saw a cat outside. He began chasing it, but when the cat turned around to hiss and turn the tables, Beau took off running like a bat out of heck.”
“He’s not used to things chasing him back,” I say.
“Well, on your way home, come get your sissy dog.”
“Alright, I’m about two hours out, but I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
We say our goodbyes, and I click the END button on the steering wheel.
I feel a little guilty that I didn’t listen to what she had to say about Jessie, but she should know better than talking to me about him. Jessie left town a few years ago and hasn’t been back since, or if he has, he has stayed far, far away from me. I don’t blame him. The last time we saw each other, things almost came to blows. He’s a troublemaker who has done nothing but disappoint our mother over the years.
Annie Mitchell is a hell of a woman. She dealt with my asshole alcoholic father for years. He’d go run off for months at a time doing lord knows what and then would reappear full of hope and promises. He’d do alright for a while before slipping back down his alcoholic slope, and the cycle would start all over again. She could never truly have a life outside of us kids and a man who only thought of her as a woman of convenience. A few years ago, he died, and I felt like for the first time in her life, my momma was finally free.
I shake my head as though I’m shaking out all the bad memories threatening to ruin my good mood.
Not today. It’s been too good of a day. And I have too beautiful of a woman at home waiting for me.
Well, she’s not waiting forme.But it’s still nice having her around all the same.
Mentally, I go through all the options that I could make for dinner later. I settle on some big, juicy hamburgers, homemade fries, and ice-cold beer. Then, it occurs to me that Andi wasn’t the biggest fan of beer last night. She said something about liking sweet wine.
I figure I have something to celebrate tonight, and I’d love some company in my good time, so maybe I’ll just have to stop at the liquor store on the way home and get her what she likes.
The rest of my drive home is filled with thoughts of my new house guest, and I can’t seem to get the smile off my face.
Chapter Nine
Andi
After Jonas leaves for the day, I take my time getting ready to begin mine. I take a long, relaxing bubble bath (There was a completely unopened bottle of bubble bath in the guest bathroom), and although I don’t haveallof my typical toiletries, I’m still left feeling clean and refreshed.
I listen to music on my phone while I do a small load of laundry. Jonas showed me where everything was before I left. From my days of driving across the country and the couple of days I’ve been here now, I’ve worn everything I had packed in my small duffel bag. Not wanting to go into town wearing dirty, stinky clothes, I decide doing a load is best.
Although this isn’t my house, and I still feel awkward, I’m trying to take Jonas’ advice and do the best to make the most out of a bad situation. And I must admit that there is something ridiculously homey about this house.
Maybe it’s the fact that the entire house smells like Jonas.
I don’t bother with too much makeup aside from some mascara and moisturizer after I'm dressed. I run my fingers through my curly hair and debate whether I want to straighten it. Jonas’s comments about how good it looks convince me to leave it just the way it is.
Great. I’m turning into THAT girl.
Although it will be nice not to spend over an hour straightening it every few days, taming the curls is a whole other beast. Michael always preferred it straight. He told me that it always made me look like I was more ‘put together,’ whatever the hell that means. The only time I ever wore it curly was when he was out of town, mainly because I would probably be staying home and not doing much. Who was I trying to impress?
Once I am out the door and in my SUV, I program The Stop ‘N Go into my GPS. It says I am only ten minutes away. Being surrounded by almost nothing but farmland and the occasional scattered house, I wonder where exactly the heart of Grady is.
Guess I’m about to find out.
I flip through the radio stations for the short drive, but I turn it off and enjoy the quiet after finding nothing but country music. It’s a beautiful, warm day, so I have the windows down even though I know later, my hair will be a complete rat’s nest.
After a few turns, my GPS says I’m getting close, so I begin to slow down even though I still don’t see much. Finally, the seemingly abandoned road that I’m on leads right into the small town of Grady. And when I say small, I meansmall.I think back to California, where we had college campuses bigger than this little hamlet.
