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Winnie nods.
I wave to Garrett, and she walks up to me, throwing her arms around my chest. My breath leaves in a quietoof, and I squeeze her back, tugging a braid before releasing her.
Jesse gives me a nod over the top of her head. He seems less pissed than when I first walked in, so that’s something, I guess.
A minute later, I’m tugging on my coat, my breath hissingas the freezing material hits my skin after I’d left it in the back seat. The porch light flips on, bathing the night in a subtle glow, and Winnie walks out, her arms slipping into the sleeves of her barn coat.
“Thanks for bringing this,” she says. “It’s my only coat, so I would have had to steal from Jesse, and all his clothes smell like Axe body spray.”
I huff a laugh. “Ah yes, I remember those days. Kerry used to ‘accidentally lose’ mine whenever she cleaned my room.”
Winnie’s eyes widen. “She cleaned your room?”
I freeze. “Not always,” I hedge. “But probably more than she should have. I was gone a lot.”
“You’re not one of those guys that doesn’t know how to do your own laundry, are you?”
“No! I can do my laundry.Technically,” I admit, thanking Christ I’d asked Kerry to show me how to run the washer and dryer a few weeks ago.
Winnie gestures to the left with a point of her chin, and we start down the road. She stuffs her hands in her overlarge pockets, and her head falls back as she looks at the sky. “It’s so clear tonight.”
I hum my agreement, and for a little while, we walk in the silence. It’s darker than dark out here, but the inky night is interrupted occasionally with a porch light from neighboring homes. Some are trailers like Winnie’s, and others are small single-level ranches. No one’s outside. Springs in the panhandle aren’t horrible, but it still gets dark and chilly early.
“I met your dad,” I offer. “He seems nice enough.”
Winnie shrugs. “Nice enough is about right.”
“Did he give you a hard time about being late?”
She shakes her head. “He never gives me a hard time.” Herlips curl in a humorless smile. “If he wanted to complain about me being late with his dinner, he would have to also acknowledge he could make dinner for himself before work.”
She’s silent a beat, then, in a low voice, she says, “We don’t have a Kerry. We have a Winnie.”
I swallow hard, my apology bubbling up and overflowing inside of me. “I’m so sorry, Winnie. You were right. I shouldn’t have gone to my dad. I wasn’t thinking. I didn’t mean to overstep.”
Winnie shakes her head, not meeting my gaze. “It’s okay. I’ve cooled down. I know you didn’t mean anything by it. But you see why now, don’t you?”
“Jesse told me about the guardianship thing.”
Winnie doesn’t look surprised, only resigned. “Yeah. That happened.”
“Do you think you’ll have to do it?” I can’t even imagine. I can barely take care of myself, let alone be responsible for two other lives.
But I suppose Winnie’s been responsible for two other lives for a long time.
She releases a breath into the night air, a misty cloud pouring from between her lips. “I don’t know. Maybe not, if Jesse can get his shit together. I’m kind of banking on his indignant fourteen-year-old conscience to motivate him into staying in school.”
“He said he was done skipping,” I offer.
“It’s been a week,” she says blandly.
I make a face. “Well,” I say. “Forward progress, I guess?”
“Forward progress,” she agrees, releasing her hands from her pockets. Our arms swing between us. I resist the urge to make a grab for her hand.
Be a friend. Friends don’t hold hands. Friends don’t kiss.
I think back to Walker.Friends don’t flinch.
