Before the phone rang, Lena had been busy peeling three different kinds of apples for a pie she planned on giving to the Stones to thank them for their thoughtfulness while she was at the hospital.
“Hello?”
“Lena! Jesus, are you okay? You haven’t been back at the B&B for days. I was getting worried.”
“Edie, hey! Did you say days?” Because of the brothers’ complementary and flexible work schedules, one of them managed to be with her at all times, never affording her a moment to dwell on the practicalities of real life and her business.
“Yeah, girl. You’ve been MIA for four days since you left the hospital, and you haven’t called or anything. What the hell?”
“Oh, Edie, I’m so sorry. I can’t believe it’s been that long. I guess I just lost track of time. They keep me so busy here—”
“Busy, eh? Right. Listen, Lena, how are you feeling?”
“Fine, I guess. Actually, never better.” She sighed as she thought about how wonderful her time with her men had been so far.
“Okay, lovebird. Since you’re fine, how about you leave cloud nine for a sec and come back and help me with this place? The electric company called today and they say if we don’t pay the bill by tomorrow, they’ll shut our power off. You have so much mail, too, and they’re probably more unpaid bills.”
“Oh, God. Okay, Edie.”
“And you know I don’t do the business end. I can’t add my way out of a paper bag.” Edie sounded completely exasperated, which brought Lena quickly back to reality. She couldn’t believe how neglectful she’d been.
“I know, I know. I’m so sorry. Wes should be out of the shower soon, and I’ll have him drop me off. I promise, I’ll be there soon.” Lena looked down at her pie and decided it would be best if she finished making it back at the B&B, where it could possibly serve as a peace offering to one very angry, and rightfully so, best friend. “Hey, I have a surprise for you, too.”
“A surprise? Lena, don’t try to butter me up and just get your ass back over here, stat.” Edie hung up with a loud click, clearly fuming mad.
* * * *
As soon as Lena got back to the B&B, she stuck the pie in the oven, still hoping that its smell would appease at least some of Edie’s anger. Then she got right to attending to the business side of their joint enterprise.
Edie very generously separated the piles of Lena’s mail between those that were obviously bills and others, allowing her to zip through paying all their debts. She felt overwhelmed when she finished, realizing how doomed their business became as the money in her inheritance quickly dwindled. Without any cash coming in, she couldn’t possibly keep the B&B afloat for the long term.
She decided to grab a slice of pie, which mercifully had dampened Edie’s fury, as hoped, and sat down to go through the rest of her mail before taking another look at the books. The pie also soothed her until she stopped mid-bite, her fork suspended in the air. She put it down and picked up a stack of envelopes on the same stationery as the threatening letter she received before she ended up in the hospital. Lena’s hands trembled as she opened the envelope and unfolded the letter.
Lena—Fucking two men is shameful. You’re sick. You don’t belong with them anyway and are wasting your time. They couldn’t love you as you can’t love them. You’re alone in this world and always will be. Always should be. You’re a dirty twat that will never come clean.
A cold mist of sweat broke out over Lena’s body and a shiver iced down her spine as she opened letter after letter, six in all, with the same kind of menacing admonishments. She crumpled up the letter in her hand, put her head on her desk, and sobbed. On some level, she believed what the letter said. She wasn’t raised to be with two men. Normal and respectable behavior in Liebling didn’t jibe with her traditional upbringing.
She did feel ashamed. She wondered what her parents would’ve thought of their daughter, what kind of woman she’d become. Would they approve?
She doubted it. She asked herself whether she even loved the men, and she just didn’t know. Or maybe she wouldn’t let herself accept it. Was it worth all this agony if she didn’t love them or they didn’t love her? Maybe being with Brock and Wes was a mistake.
She threw the letters in the trash and tried to forget she even received them and instead focused again on her paperwork. Regardless of what happened with her love life, she still had a business to run and so far, business was not good. They weren’t even close to breaking even and it wouldn’t be long before her trust fund ran out.
“Hey, you. I’m sorry I was so hard on you, just so stressed, you know?” Edie set down a steaming mug of organic chamomile tea. She put a hand against Lena’s shoulder and gave her a soothing pat. “How ya feeling?”
“I’m okay. It’s the B&B I’m worried about.” She put her head back down on the desk, unable to help but feel defeated already.
“Eesh. That bad?” Edie pulled up the chair across from the desk and sat down. She reached over and grabbed Lena’s hands, making her look up from her pity party. Lena held up a handful of papers.
“You see this? All bills, and if we don’t start making money soon, we won’t be able to pay them.”
“How much money is left in Margot’s trust?”
“Plenty if you’re not trying to run a struggling business with it, but not enough if you are. At this rate, we won’t be able to stay open another few months, depending on how well we budget right now.”
“Well, at least Mara came back to stay with us again. That will bring a little money in. I gave her the room across the hall. She said it had the best view or something. I have to go to the store tomorrow to get her some saltines. The woman insists on having them with her lunch, but I’m almost positive the store carries organic ones. So convenient. Anyway, let me know if you need anything else, and I’ll add it to the list.”
“That’s good she’s here, even if she’s kind of an odd bird. Any cash flowing in is better than nothing.” Lena shrugged and then looked at Edie, readying herself to give her the bad news. “You know, we might have to cut back on the organic stuff and buy conventional for a while.” Edie’s face fell.
“What? But that stuff is poisoned, covered in pesticides and God knows what else,” Edie protested. She looked truly wounded.
“I’m sorry, but it would save us a lot of money and could keep us open for another month. Once we got off the ground and started making money, we could go back. It’s just that, it’s time to tighten our belts.” Edie sat quietly as if mulling it over and sighed, her shoulders rising heavily up and down.
“You’re right. I’ll just think of it as conservation.”
“Exactly. And it’s even conserving something green, just not grass or trees or whatever but—”
“Money.” Edie smiled, but Lena could tell it was halfhearted. As if she could register Lena’s disappointment in her own reaction, Edie squeezed Lena’s hand. “Hey, I’m sorry for being silly. You’re the business person here, and I know you’re doing your best.”
“Thanks. We just have to figure out a way to make this thing work.” For a moment Lena managed to make herself feel optimistic, but then she exhaled deeply and grumbled out of frustration. She didn’t know what to do and thought about how she’d been running their business so far. “You know, maybe I’ve been too distracted.”
“What do you mean?”
“With Brock and Wes. I’ve been spending too much time with them when I should be focusing on this business. I just don’t have time for a man right now, let alone two. That’s just crazy. I mean, two guys?”
“Well, that’s how they do things in Liebling,” Edie offered.
“Yeah, but that’s not how things are done back home. I can’t just adjust to this lifestyle so easily. Anyway, that’s not even entirely the point. The point is our business, our childhood dream, is failing, and I need to be putting a hundred percent of myself into this. I can’t let our dream die.” Lena felt tears well in her eyes and
she pushed them down into the growing lump in her throat. This was not how she envisioned her life and their dream turning out.
“Lena, this isn’t all your responsibility, you know. I’m here, too. You have to lean on and trust other people sometimes.”
“I know, but more importantly, I need to be dependable and responsible.” Lena burst into tears as Edie rubbed her back and consoled her. She already had doubts, or maybe just fears, about her relationship with the Stone brothers. The confusion and guilt and shame she felt from neglecting her business and best friend as well as the possibility of doing something her parents would’ve disapproved of, was all too much.
She had to stop the turmoil churning inside her. She had to end it.
“As much as I…” Lena’s voice caught as she considered what she intended to say. “As much as I care about Brock and Wes, I just can’t put them first right now. Edie, this is our dream and we have to do this. It’d be impossible for me to make both this business and my relationship with Brock and Wes work. I just can’t think straight with them around. It’s over.”
* * * *
Wes rode with Brock in his truck to the B&B. Lena only left their house yesterday, but he missed her terribly already. Wes and his brother both agreed that without Lena something felt missing. A definite void pervaded their lives when they couldn’t go to bed each night with her sleeping between them.
“Wow, Wes, that’s really incredible. I can’t believe you made it with your bare hands out of clay.” Brock briefly glanced from the road and looked at the ceramic butt plug in Wes’s palm.
Wes had worked on it, perfecting it in secret for days and planned on surprising Lena with it. He and Brock thought it would be a nice way to show her how much she meant to them.
“Thanks, I just hope she likes it.” Wes held the plug like a baby bird and eyed it, carefully examining every curve for the hundredth time, vainly checking for any imperfections but there were none. Just like Lena, it was perfect.
The ceramic plug was delicate, petite, and unique, ideal for Lena, and was smaller than any other plug available. Wes glazed it in white and decorated it with hand-painted images of bluebonnets, the state flower, which blanketed the area’s rolling hills every spring. The diminutive plug was hollow so that it could be filled with warm or cold water, depending on Lena’s preferences, and had a nub of wine cork at the end to make sure the cute but erotic object wouldn’t leak while in service.
Although he’d never used a ceramic butt plug before, he suspected the addition of water would be soothing, regardless of the temperature chosen, and the added weight would be extra satisfying. He painstakingly smoothed it out and used a special hypoallergenic and easily sterilized glaze so that it would be not only incredibly comfortable nestled in Lena’s behind but also safe and clean. He couldn’t wait to see her face when he presented it to her and hear her moans when he could finally use it on her.
Wes heard the crunch of gravel as they pulled up and stopped in front of the B&B. He got out of the car and put the plug in a small box he got especially for it and slipped it in his front shirt pocket. They walked up the front steps and before Brock could reach the door it flew open.
“Hey, guys,” Edie said, looking slightly uncomfortable. Wes could tell immediately that something was wrong. “I was just heading to the store. What’s up?”
“Hi, Edie. How’re ya doing? We’re here to see Lena.” Brock tried to walk past her, but she blocked his path.
“Um…you can’t, I mean, she’s um…she’s not here right now,” Edie hedged. Wes couldn’t be sure from this distance, but he thought he could see her breaking into a sweat. Something strange was going on.
“Well, then we can wait for her inside,” Wes offered. “We really need to see her and we came all this way—”
“No!” Edie yelled. She looked flustered and then lowered her voice. “Sorry, I just can’t let you guys in here. Please, just go back home, okay?”
“Edie, what the hell is going on here?” Brock looked irritated and Wes feared any more of Edie’s peculiar shenanigans would make him lose his temper.
“Listen, Edie, just be straight with us, okay? Where’s Lena and why won’t you let us in? She’s inside, isn’t she.”
Edie leaned into the men, gesturing for them to bend down to her meet her height. “She’s upstairs but she’s upset and doesn’t want to see you guys right now,” Edie whispered. “She’s super stressed about the B&B staying afloat, and just between us, I think there’s something else going on, but I don’t know what. Lena just seems way more stressed than I’ve ever seen her before, like something’s really bothering her.”
“If there’s something wrong with her, we deserve to know.” Brock again tried to push past her, but Edie held firm. Wes had to admit, she was pretty spunky, too.
“Please, guys, as a friend I’m asking you a favor. She told me not to let you guys in, so can you please, pretty please, respect her wishes and go. Just give her some time to work things out. I’ve known Lena almost my whole life and the girl is stubborn. If you push her, she’ll push back twice as hard.”
“Brock, maybe Edie’s right,” Wes said, tugging on his brother’s shoulder. “Maybe we should give Lena some space, like she asked for.” He carefully lead Brock off the porch and they started to get back into the truck as Edie closed the door behind her, carrying two reusable canvas grocery bags.
“Thanks for understanding, guys. I know she’ll come around eventually, but just give her some time. Catch y’all later.” Edie hopped down the steps and headed down the street.
As soon as she rounded the corner, Brock stepped out of the truck and headed back to the B&B.
“Brock, what’re you doing, man? You heard what Edie said.” Wes walked toward his brother, hoping to get him to change direction, but there was no stopping him.
“I’m gonna find out what the hell is going on with that girl. This is ridiculous, just fuckin’ ridiculous. This woman is acting like a child and if she needs help, we can help her. There’s no reason for her to be stressed out about a goddamn thing.” Brock stomped up the stairs and opened the door to the B&B with Wes following closely behind.
“Are you sure that’s such a good idea?” Wes followed Brock in but then stopped abruptly, banging straight into his brother’s broad shoulders.
“What the hell are you guys doing here?” Lena fumed with her hands on her hips in a defensive posture. “Didn’t Edie tell you two I didn’t want to see you anymore?”
“What the hell are we doing here? What the hell are you doing trying to keep us from seeing you? And what the hell are you doing making Edie do your dirty work? If you have something to say, why don’t you tell us to our faces?”
Brock looked as if he was starting to lose his temper, but Wes let out a sigh of relief when he saw his brother take a deep breath to calm himself down. Wes decided this was a good time to try to smooth things over.
“Just listen for a minute, okay? What is going on, Lena? If you need anything, we can help you.”
“That’s right, Lena. We love you. All you have to do is stop fighting and ask.” Brock held his arms out to her and his jaw dropped when she pushed them away.
“Jesus, how many times have I already asked? I just want you to leave me alone. Just go away. Why can’t you get that message into those thick heads of yours?”
Lena started to push Brock and him back out the door, and the amount of force that could come out of such a little body surprised Wes. Before he even fully realized what had happened, Wes found himself back outside on the porch. Brock turned to get in a last word, but he didn’t respond quickly enough. Lena had already slammed the door in his face.
“Please, just go. If you care about me, just go,” Lena said through the closed door, her voice cracking.
Wes thought he could hear her crying and it made his heart break in two. He grabbed Brock by the arm and pulled him off the porch.
“Come on, Brock. You know it kills me,
too, but we should just do what she wants and give her some time to herself. Let her work out a few things. Anyway, there’s no point in upsetting her any more than she already is.”
“But, Wes, she’s crying in there. I know it.” Brock never looked so desperate in his life and it pained Wes to see his brother, usually so strong and in command, look so defeated and wounded.
“I know, but I don’t want to be the ones making our woman cry.” Brock nodded and acquiesced to Wes’s words.
Wes gave his brother’s arm a squeeze, and they both got back into the truck. They were completely silent during the entire ride back home. As they pulled up to their empty house, Wes remembered the little box in his shirt pocket. He pulled it out and looked at it.
“Shit, Brock. I never gave Lena her present. What if…” Wes’s voice trailed off. He couldn’t say out loud the fear that screamed inside his mind, inside his heart.
Brock looked thoughtful for a moment as if weighing the situation. “I think we should go back and just give it to her. We won’t say a thing. Maybe just leave it for her.”
As if Brock also couldn’t stomach the possibility of never getting another chance with Lena again, he made a U-turn and sped down the road.
* * * *
Lena started bawling as soon as she turned her back to the door. She quieted herself for a moment, waiting to hear the sound of gravel flying as the men drove away, away from her and hopefully never to return.
Never.
It was a horrible thought, but one she knew she had to get used to. It was for the best and the sooner she got them out of her system, the sooner she could get her life back in order and the B&B back on its feet again.
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