by Judi Lynn
On Saturday morning, Ansel carried George to Jazzi’s pickup and put him on the seat in the back cab. Then he and Jazzi drove to Elspeth’s apartment. Radley was already there, helping Elspeth pack up a few last-minute things.
Elspeth had her long, light-brown hair pulled back in a knot to keep it out of her face. She wasn’t exactly pretty, but her gray, sparkling eyes and sweet smile made her attractive. As usual, she wore a loose-fitting top and baggy jeans. She never showed off her figure. Radley, tall and fair like everyone in his family, had fallen for her the minute he met her.
Neat piles of boxes were lined up by the door. Elspeth was nothing if not organized.
“Looks like you’re ready.” Ansel reached for a box. “I’ll start loading these.”
“The heavy things are on this side,” Elspeth said, “so you can place them on the bottom if you need to. And the lighter boxes are over here.”
A smart plan. Jazzi helped Ansel carry things to the pickup, and Radley and Elspeth carried more boxes to his work van. Once everything was loaded, Elspeth went back to the apartment for one last look-through. She walked from room to room while they waited and finally returned with a sigh. “It looks so different when it’s empty.”
Jazzi knew the feeling. She’d loved her first-floor apartment in West Central before she and Jerod bought Cal’s house to renovate. She could hardly bear the thought of someone moving in after her who didn’t care about the place. So she was overjoyed when Reuben and Isabelle bought the old Victorian to turn it back into a single-family home. Reuben was a decorator, so they’d restored it into the beautiful home it once was. Elspeth obviously had fond memories in this place, too.
“Do you have to paint the walls and make them white again?” Ansel asked.
She shook her head. “There’s already a renter who wants it. He likes the colors I chose, so the landlord said I didn’t need to worry about painting.”
Good news. With one last look, Elspeth went to the door and locked up behind her for the last time. Then she dropped the key in the landlord’s mail slot on the first floor. She rode with Radley to his apartment, and Jazzi and Ansel followed them. Once there, they carried everything to the third floor. Radley’s not-so-gently used furniture was gone to make room for Elspeth’s, which was in much better shape. Still, the apartment was cramped.
Elspeth nodded to the beat-up coffee table. “We’re keeping that to remind us of Donovan. In time, we’re going to ask Franny to refinish it.”
It wasn’t the most attractive table Jazzi had ever seen, but she understood the sentiment. Elspeth had been serious about Donovan before he died, and Donovan had been Radley’s supervisor at work and a good friend. When he was shot, they’d both lost someone they cared about.
Ansel scowled at it but wisely didn’t comment. Radley grinned at him. “We’ll make it look better eventually.” Then he went to the refrigerator and took out two beers. “When are you picking us up tomorrow morning? Bain’s wedding’s in the early afternoon.”
“Seven a.m.,” Elspeth told him. “Ansel told you that last Sunday at the family meal.”
“Oh, right.” Since Radley met Elspeth, he depended on her to keep him on track.
“Are we going out for pizza after the justice of the peace makes them legal?” Radley asked.
“Jazzi and I reserved a room at the Vine and Sea for a wedding supper,” Ansel said. He’d volunteered to have the reception at their house, but Dalmar had refused to pay someone to milk the dairy herd while he was gone, so Bain had decided to have the wedding at the ranch-style house he and Radley had once shared and then go to a nice restaurant afterward. Dalmar even grumbled about that, so Ansel paid for the room and meal as Bain’s wedding present.
Radley pinched his lips together. “The Vine and Sea is supposed to serve decent food. I never went there; too pricey. I hope it’s as good as Jazzi’s cooking.”
Ansel rolled his eyes. “It’s Bain’s wedding. We’re trying to help him celebrate. Bain and Greta chose salmon, so you shouldn’t suffer too much. Adda and Henry paid for the wedding cake. Dad had a fit when Bain was going to order one. Said the money was…”
Radley finished for him. “…better used on the farm. Greta must be a good woman or she’d have told Bain to stuff Dad in the manure pile and be done with him.”
The two brothers laughed. Jazzi pictured Dalmar buried in cow dung so that only his head stuck out. It was an appealing fantasy.
Ansel caught her expression and grinned. “We’re only staying for the meal and then driving home. You won’t have to be around Dad very long.”
Three minutes was too long, but he was Ansel’s father, so she’d try to bite her tongue and behave.
Elspeth glanced at Radley, alarmed. “You said your father was a hard man, but you’re starting to scare me. Is he going to like me?”
“Not a chance. He’s still not happy I stayed in River Bluffs and didn’t return to the farm to help with the milking. He tolerates Jazzi because he kicked Ansel out of the house when he graduated from high school, and he knows it’s his own fault Ansel doesn’t want anything to do with him.”
Elspeth turned to Jazzi. “Is he rude to you?”
“He’s rude to everybody, even his wife. Don’t worry about him. He’s a lost cause.”
Radley put his arm around Elspeth’s shoulders. “Stay close to me and we’ll get through this thing in good shape.”
The poor girl looked doubtful, so Jazzi changed the subject. “Can we help you guys with anything else? Do you need us to move any furniture?”
“We can take it from here,” Radley said, “and thanks for everything.”
They took off and headed to the store for their weekly grocery shopping. It didn’t take long because they weren’t cooking for anyone the next day. Then they drove home to unload everything they’d bought.
George pouted when they put the groceries away before tearing off little pieces of the deli ham they’d bought, but when they made sandwiches for lunch, he came to the kitchen island to beg. So did the cats. The house was clean enough that Jazzi helped Ansel outside all afternoon, raking leaves and cleaning the yard while George watched from the back patio.
She put a chicken in the oven to roast for supper while they went upstairs to shower and change into their pajamas. A box of Stove Top and a bag of salad later made for a quick and easy meal. Ansel kept slipping the pets pieces of chicken while they ate, but there were still enough leftovers for sandwiches if her Norseman was starving when they got home late tomorrow night.
After that, they relaxed in front of the TV, ready to call it an early night. They’d have to get up before the sun the next morning to get ready for their trip and Bain’s wedding. Ansel was taking George with him, but the cats would be left on their own for the entire day. She shouldn’t have bought a bouquet of flowers at the store. When they got back, Inky would probably have chewed off the blooms from every stem to let her know how unhappy he was. She loved the furry brat, but he knew how to express his opinions.
The pug and her cats were happy when she and Ansel headed upstairs at ten, but when the alarm rang at six, Inky opened one yellow eye to glare at her. Yup, she was coming home to dead flowers.
Chapter 10
There was no small talk all the way to Chicago. Everyone was still half asleep. Jazzi and Ansel usually slept in on Sundays, but getting an early start made traveling easier. Traffic was light, and making the exits to Wisconsin was a breeze.
Once they were on their way to the green hills of their farm, Radley gazed out the window and sighed. “It’s hard to beat how beautiful Wisconsin is. River Bluffs felt so flat when I first saw it.”
“And now?” Jazzi asked.
“It’s still flat, but once you get farther out in the country, the land rolls more. And I like everything you can do there. So many restaurants and shops. We hardly ever left the far
m except to drive half an hour to town once or twice a month, and that was nothing to brag about.”
Ansel had driven his brother to see the house they were working on, he was so proud of it. Radley had been suitably impressed, but he’d commented that Merlot was no bigger than their farm’s hometown.
Jazzi’s parents had taken a family trip every summer, visiting both coasts and a lot of places in between, but there was no place she’d rather call home than River Bluffs.
“You were never tempted to move away?” Radley asked.
She shook her head. “I’d miss my family.”
“Me too,” Elspeth said. “I can’t imagine moving so far away I’d rarely get to see them.”
“It’s too easy to lose touch.” Jazzi turned in her seat to see Radley and Elspeth better. George lay between them, his head on Radley’s lap. “That’s why I invite everyone to the Sunday meal, so that we stay close.”
Radley snorted. “Your families are nice. They’re fun to be with. Ansel and I left to get away from ours.”
“I would have run from Dalmar, too.” That made her think about Jessica. “The girl whose journals I’m reading wanted to be a photojournalist and travel the world. Probably to get away from her father. He treated her worse than your dad treated you guys.”
“What did he do to her?” Radley tsked. “If he was worse than our dad, I have to feel for her.”
“He punished her every time she did anything well. He didn’t want her to show up her older brother.”
Radley chuckled. “Well, that would have left me out. I didn’t bother to excel at much.”
Elspeth turned to him. “You’re so smart. You weren’t a good student?”
“What do you consider good? Passing?” He smirked. “High grades would have involved doing homework. That never happened. I was good at shop class, though.”
Jazzi looked at Ansel. He shrugged. “I got Bs and Cs. We were so tired after working on the farm after school, the last thing I cared about was getting As. You?”
“Olivia and I both got As and Bs. Mom wasn’t strict about it, but Dad was. He was in college when he met Mom. He wanted us to keep our options open, so we could go if we wanted to.”
Ansel tilted his head, thinking. “I can see that. Your dad’s a smart businessman. He has to be to run successful hardware stores.”
Jazzi bit her bottom lip, remembering. “He was a little disappointed that I was more interested in the tools he sold than getting a degree, but college isn’t for everyone.”
“Did Jessica’s dad expect her to go to college?” Elspeth asked.
“Oh, yeah. It was a status thing. He just didn’t want her to get better grades than Alwin.”
Elspeth’s voice had an edge to it. “Then he was a stupid man.”
“No argument there,” Jazzi agreed.
Two hours later, they pulled into the drive of Bain’s ranch house. They’d never met Greta, and Jazzi was curious about her. The woman who opened the door to greet them was an inch shorter than she was, and thin to the point of being skinny. She had drab brown hair and a ruddy complexion, but a beautiful smile.
“I finally get to meet all of you!” She threw open her arms for a group hug, and they all circled her, putting their arms around her.
Bain pushed outside to be part of it. When they separated and he led them into the house’s living room, Radley looked around, eyes wide.
“It looks homey in here.” He couldn’t hide his surprise.
Bain nodded toward Greta. “All her doing. She has a way of making everything nice.” He motioned for them to take seats. “Hon, let me introduce you.”
Ansel’s eyebrows rose, and Jazzi exchanged a quick glance with him. She never thought she’d hear the word “hon” roll off Bain’s tongue.
Bain started with Radley. “Radley’s four years younger than I am, and this must be his new girlfriend, Elspeth.” He pointed to Ansel. “Ansel’s the baby of the family, only twenty-six now, and that’s his wife, Jazzi.”
He’d just finished when a gray cat with no tail streaked into the room from the kitchen and leaped on his lap. Bain reached out to pet him.
Jazzi smiled. “Stubs! He’s doing all right.” Bain, a suspect in Donovan’s murder, had adopted the stray while he stayed at their house. He’d started feeding it by the side of their garage. They’d taken the cat inside after a coyote bit off his tail.
Greta gave him an indulgent look. “He loves that cat.” Then she beamed a welcome to them. “I’ve heard so much about all of you. Bain wants to travel to River Bluffs to show me where you live when the weather gets cooler and the farm work slows down.”
“We’d love to have you as guests.” Ansel included his brother in the invitation. “We’re building a family room in our basement, so there’ll be plenty of space for everyone.”
Bain surprised them by saying, “Let’s hope Dad doesn’t want to come.”
What an about-face! At their wedding, Bain was just as unhappy as Dalmar about having to make the trip for her and Ansel’s marriage ceremony. He wouldn’t have come at all if Ansel’s mom hadn’t threatened to drive to River Bluffs with Radley. Back then, in Bain’s mind, Dalmar could do no wrong.
A sympathetic smile tugged at Greta’s lips. “Dalmar isn’t any happier about our wedding than yours, and he won’t even miss one milking. But the man’s always had to work hard. The only thing he focuses on is the farm.” She didn’t sound one bit bothered by that. Jazzi got the feeling that she’d met a lot of irascible people with her job caring for people in their homes. She seemed to take them in stride.
Radley glanced at his watch. “Will Mom and Dad be here soon? Should we get changed for your ceremony?”
“Might as well,” Bain told them. “Everyone will be here in half an hour. Dad will probably come a little late, just to make us wait.”
The men grabbed suitcases and each couple disappeared into a different bedroom. Ten minutes later, they emerged, dressed for the wedding. Jazzi wore a midcalf, wraparound, rust-colored dress, and Elspeth had chosen a long, navy-blue skirt and a matching blouse. The guys wore black dress slacks and white shirts. Greta had changed, too, into an ivory dress that skimmed her knees, and Bain was dressed like his brothers—in black slacks and a white shirt. Appropriate for the occasion.
A few minutes later, Adda and her husband, Henry, arrived. Ansel was partial to his sister, and his eyes lit up at the sight of her. She’d chosen a midcalf, periwinkle-blue dress that matched her eyes, and Henry had gotten the memo for black and white. They were all visiting and catching up with one another when the justice of the peace arrived. And just as Bain had predicted, ten minutes later, Dalmar led Britt into the room. Their mother looked lovely in a below-the-knee, rose dress. Dalmar wore work jeans and a flannel shirt.
Jazzi had to bite her bottom lip to keep from commenting, but Greta’s smile blossomed as she said, “We’re so glad you’re here. We can start now.”
The ceremony took less than ten minutes; then Bain paid the man and he left. Ansel grinned and went to their pickup to bring in two bottles of champagne they’d kept cold in their cooler. He and Radley popped the corks, and Bain returned with plastic water glasses. Ansel poured the bubbly, then lifted his glass in a toast. “Congratulations!”
Greta laughed and took a sip, then gave Bain a surprise smack on the lips. He looked delighted and kissed her back.
Dalmar grumbled, “Britt didn’t make lunch. Are we going out to eat?”
Britt’s cheeks reddened with embarrassment, but Greta’s laugh tinkled again. “Ansel and Jazzi are providing us with a wedding feast. Does everyone know how to get to the Vine and Sea? We can lead the way. Dalmar and Britt, you can ride with us if you want to.”
“We’ll drive them,” Henry volunteered. “This is your big day. Enjoy it.”
They filed out to their cars and fol
lowed Bain to the restaurant. When the hostess led them to the private room, Greta blinked in surprise and tears filled her eyes. “It’s beautiful.”
Adda clapped her hands, happy. “Henry and I decorated it this morning. We left your present from us and Radley on your place at the table.”
Bain went and handed Greta the envelope to open. She sucked in her breath. “A gift card for a two-night stay in the Concourse Hotel in Madison.”
Dalmar frowned. “I can’t milk the herd alone for three days.”
Bain waved him off. “We’ll figure something out. Thanks to all of you. You’ve made our wedding better than we dreamed it could be.”
“Then let’s eat!” Radley found a seat at the table. A waiter came with more champagne, and then the salads were served. Dalmar silently ate while everyone else laughed and talked, but Jazzi noticed that he cleaned every morsel from his plate.
Greta put a hand to her throat and blinked back tears again when the waiter carried in the wedding cake. Jazzi had learned that Greta collected baskets, so the sides of the cake were decorated in a basket weave pattern, with the top covered with frosting flowers.
The cake didn’t just look pretty. It was delicious, and Ansel ate three pieces before he was satisfied. The bottom layer was still intact, and Bain gladly boxed it up to take home. When the meal was over, Ansel discreetly left the room to pay for everything, including a nice tip. Then everyone got ready to load into their vehicles to return home. Henry and Adda drove her parents back to the farm, and Ansel, Jazzi, Radley, and Elspeth got into Jazzi’s pickup to drive back to River Bluffs.
“First, we have to stop at your place to pick up George,” Ansel told Bain. “And maybe we’ll change back into our comfortable clothes for the ride home.”
“Good, we’ll get to see you a little bit more.” Greta sounded happy about that. Jazzi sure liked Bain’s new wife.
They didn’t stay long, because it was a long drive home, and when they got up to leave, Bain grabbed both of his brothers for rough hugs. “Thanks for making this day so special.”