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Jacks laughs. “Fair enough. You told the rest of them about your big plans yet?”
“No. You know, Jarret doesn’t listen to anyone. And I didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up when I wasn’t sure what you’d think of the idea.”
“Jarret needs to realize that he’s not the oldest brother. Shit, I really have been gone too long. But I’m back now.” Jacks stares at me with narrowed eyes. “You really didn’t know what I’d think?”
Shrugging, I shake my head.
Jacks presses his hand down on my shoulder. “That’s on me then. I’m sorry. I’ll support you in anything you want to do, Jameson. Always. Whether it’s farming, carpentry, or however else you want to spend your time. And even if it’s spending time with my best friend. You’re my brother.”
“Thanks, man.” Then because I don’t know what else to say, I crack a joke. “Almost brought a tear to my eye. Should we hug it out?”
“Fuck off, little brother. Let’s go eat.”
Lily saved a seat for me at the big table Selena set up for us outside. The way she smiles at me when I walk over to her tells me she’s okay. As nervous as she was, tonight went fine. This is her family as much as it is mine.
Dinner is loud, with everyone talking over everyone and Lily and Selena making fun of all of us. It’s exactly how I pictured this. Lily being here with me, being part of my family. Being mine.
After dinner, Lily goes in to help my brothers with the dishes, but I get an out because of the broken arm. She still won’t let me do anything. Not even help clear the table, so I head over to the fire pit where my dad is building a fire.
My dad just grunts when I sit down on a bale of hay nearby and keeps on assembling the log cabin of kindling and firewood he’s building in the old brick fire pit.
“Why are you so damn quiet about this, old man? Don’t you have anything to say? Everyone else is telling me what they think about Lily and me.”
He glances at me over his shoulder. “What do you want me to say about it?”
Shrugging, I shake my head. “I don’t know. The general consensus seems to be that my ass is going to get kicked if I hurt her.”
“You don’t need me to tell you that, son. And I don’t think you’re going to hurt her.”
“You seem suspiciously chill about this, Dad.”
He chuckles. “I’ve had a little more time to get used to the idea than everyone else.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“I saw you two making out next to the porch months ago.”
“You saw what now?”
“That night you insisted I invite Lily over for Sunday dinner and make sure she said yes. I was already a bit suspicious that something was going on because of how hard you were pushing for me to get her here. But I thought you two were fighting about something or other, and she was giving you the cold shoulder. She definitely seemed pissed at you at dinner, so my theory checked out. Then it was time for dessert, and the both of you disappeared. I went looking for you, and I found you next to your mom’s garden talking about something serious. I thought maybe you were making up. But then you dragged her off and started kissing her against the side of the porch. I was about to come down there and haul your ass off of her, but then it didn’t seem like she much minded.”
“She didn’t.” I shrug. “She always wanted me. Just took a little convincing to make her see how good we could be together. Shit. You knew about us this whole time?”
My dad shrugs. “I know a lot more than you kids think I do. Just because I don’t run my mouth about everything doesn’t mean I don’t see it.”
“Feel free to tell me all the family secrets any time, old man.”
“Not a chance,” my dad says with a laugh as he crumples up some old newspapers and flyers and tosses them in the middle of the log cabin he’s building.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about you and mom lately.”
“Yeah?”
“It was like you always said when you saw mom at the carnival, you just knew.”
“You’ve known Lily your whole life, son. You probably saw her for the first time a couple of hours after you were born.”
“I know. But then everything changed. One night, I just knew there was something between us. That we could be more.”
