by Dylann Crush
By the time she got back to the table, Stella had downed half of her drink. “What do you think? It’s fantastic, isn’t it?”
“It’s great.” Delilah took a sip of her white wine. It reminded her of the wine she’d shared with Jasper after the movie. For a moment she let herself remember what it had felt like to gaze up into his eyes with the glittering night sky spread out above them.
“Monique thinks we’ve got a winner. We’re so close to making it happen. How does it feel to have all of your dreams coming true?”
Delilah stared into her glass. All of her dreams? What did Stella know about her dreams? Before she could answer, someone touched her on the shoulder.
“Delilah?”
She turned toward the woman’s voice. Bright red hair, teased way beyond its natural height, stuck out from Jasper’s aunt’s head. “Oh, hi, Suzy.”
“I thought that was you. I’m just about to head out but wanted to make sure I stopped over to say hello.” Suzy stood there, her eyes full of kindness. “What are you doing all the way over here in Swynton?”
“We’re just grabbing a bite. Suzy, this is my mother, Stella Stone. Stella, Suzy is Jasper’s aunt. She’s been a huge help since I’ve been here.”
Stella blinked a few times in rapid succession, her telltale sign of annoyance. Then she nodded, like a queen greeting a commoner. “How nice to meet you.”
“Stella?” Suzy’s brow wrinkled underneath her teased bangs. “Are you from around here?”
“She grew up in Bellsview.” Delilah didn’t mean to speak for her mother, but Stella looked like she wanted to crawl under the table and hide.
“Stella.” Suzy said her mother’s name like she was trying to work out where she’d heard it before. “Is Stone your maiden name?”
“It’s my only name.” Stella regained her composure and polished off her drink. “We don’t want to keep you.”
“I’m not in a hurry. It’s card night over at Helmut’s. Those boys will be grateful if I’m a little late. None of them know I taught myself how to count cards, so I always end up coming home with the jackpot.”
Stella reached for her glass and sucked the rest of her drink through the stirrer straw. A loud slurping noise made Delilah turn to look at her mother. Her eyes were wide, and her cheeks had gone white.
“Are you okay?” Delilah asked.
Stella reached for Delilah’s wine and downed it in one gulp. It was so out of character, Delilah just sat there, frozen in place. She’d never seen her mother so unnerved before.
“Gardner, that’s right.” Suzy’s face lit up like she’d just won the lottery. “I tell you, my mind doesn’t hold on to information like it used to. Why, just the other day I was telling Helmut—”
Stella closed her eyes, her hand shaking so hard that the wineglass clattered as she set it down on the table.
“What’s going on?” Delilah asked.
“Oh.” Suzy’s eyes widened. Her eyebrows shot up so high they disappeared under her bangs. “I’d better be going. It was so nice to see you. And nice to meet you, Estelle.”
“It’s Stella,” Delilah corrected Suzy, thinking she must have misheard her say Stella’s name the first time.
Suzy gave her a tight-lipped smile. “Sorry. Nice to meet you, Stella.” Then she turned and fled toward the door.
Delilah’s gaze bounced from Suzy’s hasty retreat to her mother, whose face had taken on the same color as the light gray tablecloth. “Do you know her?”
“Darling, it’s been a long day. Can you ask them to change our order to takeout? I’m not feeling well, and I’d really like to get back to the motel so I can lie down. I’ll wait for you in the car.”
“Of course.” Delilah flagged down the server as Stella casually made her way toward the door. While she waited for the food, Delilah pulled out her phone and skimmed through the pictures she’d taken since she’d been in Ido. Her and Jasper at the kickoff celebration. Jasper watching the movie at the barn. The two of them catching butterflies. If she ever needed a reason to stand up to her mother, maybe this was it.
The server brought their food and Delilah slid her phone back into her purse. She and Stella needed to have a talk. Her mother wouldn’t take it well, but it was time to set some boundaries. She had every intention of doing just that when she got to the truck. But Stella wasn’t inside.
“Stella?” Delilah set the bag in the truck and turned to scan the parking lot.
An old El Camino sat a few spaces away. The windows were fogged and the person sitting in the driver’s seat was waving his or her hands around. Other than that, the parking lot was quiet. Delilah was about to return to the restaurant to see if Stella had gone back in to use the restroom. But then the passenger door of the El Camino opened. Stella got out, her eyes wild, her cheeks full of smeared mascara.
“Mom. What’s going on?” Delilah rushed toward her mother as the car reversed out of the spot and pulled away. “Who were you talking to?”
“It doesn’t matter.” Stella gripped her arm. “Let’s go.”
“Not until you tell me what’s happening. Was that Suzy?”
“Yes.” Stella wiped at her cheek. “We actually knew each other once upon a time.”
eighteen
After he’d dropped Delilah off at the trailer, Jasper went for a drive. He felt like he was at a crossroads. He either needed to shut down what was going on with him and Delilah and focus on saving the family farm, or give his all to convince her they belonged together. His desire to have something for himself for a change battled with his lifelong habit of putting his family first. And with Colin back in the picture, how could he turn his back on the people who’d raised him? The people who’d loved him through thick and thin?
He couldn’t.
If it came down to making a choice, and he prayed it wouldn’t, he couldn’t set the needs of his family aside. So, he drove back to the big house, grateful Delilah’s truck wasn’t parked in the drive. It was time to get serious about turning up the romance in Ido. And lucky for him, he had access to four committed helpers.
Mom was setting dinner on the table as he walked in the door. “Jasper. Come join us. I made enough chicken-fried steak to feed an army.”
“Don’t mind if I do.” He took his regular spot at the table, surrounded by his parents, his brothers, Abby, and even little Maggie. This was where he belonged. He’d been a fool to ever think he could let something else take priority.
They passed bowls full of mashed potatoes and gravy, platters of fried okra and buttermilk biscuits. When everyone had filled their plates, Jasper looked around.
“I’ve got an idea for the contest and I’m going to need some help.” He waited for someone to be the first to respond.
“I’ll help.” Abby gave him a sweet smile. His little sister was always ready to pitch in.
“That would be great. I’m sure we can use a bit of a feminine touch to smooth things over when I’m done.”
“What exactly do you have in mind, son?” Dad wiped his mouth with a napkin and set his forearms on the table.
“Lacey’s been after me to come up with some big romantic event to wrap up Delilah’s time in Ido.” Jasper leaned against the back of his chair.
“I can think of a way to send her on her way.” Trent waggled his eyebrows.
“Cut it out.” Davis elbowed Trent in the gut. “Jasper’s right. If we don’t get that title, we could very well lose this farm. Whatever you need, I’m with you.”
“Thanks.” Jasper nodded at Davis. He was the most logical. Jasper knew he’d be on board.
“Even if Ido wins the title, that’s no guarantee we’ll be able to make a go of it as a wedding barn,” Dad said. “Now I know I promised that if you somehow convinced that beauty queen that there’s love to be found here in our little corner of Texas, that I’d let
you try out your crazy plan. I’ve been going over the numbers and Jasper’s right. If we want to stay here, in this house that’s been in our family for four generations, work the land our ancestors first planted over a hundred years ago, then we need to do something.”
Mom’s chair legs scraped on the hardwood as she pushed back from the table. “Is that what we’re up against, Frank? We might lose this place?”
“I pray it doesn’t come to that.” His dad hung his head. “Right now, it looks like Jasper’s idea is our best bet.”
Mom stood, covered her mouth with her hand, and rushed out of the kitchen.
Jasper’s stomach tightened. He was tempted to go after her, but Dad beat him to it.
“I’m going to go calm your mother down. But I’m asking you boys to listen to your older brother.” He put a hand on Jasper’s shoulder as he walked by. “Whatever you need, son, we’ll do it.”
With the weight of his family’s fate pressing down on him, Jasper nodded. As his dad went after Mom, he turned his attention to his brothers. “So here’s what I think we should do.”
* * *
* * *
The next day Jasper woke from a restless night spent tossing and turning. He got up to start a pot of coffee, his mind already spinning with all the plans he and his younger brothers had talked about late into the night.
While he waited for the coffee to brew, Jasper scrubbed his hand over the scruff on his chin. He was glad he didn’t have to deal with Colin and his shit, but knowing he was out there, somewhere close by, sure did mess with his head. But he didn’t have time to worry about Colin now. His brother had made his own bed, and eventually he’d have to lie in it.
He and the other Taylor men were starting on their plan today. Jasper would join them later, but first he had to take Delilah up to the school. She’d set up a time to speak with Abby’s class and he’d promised to be there. The text she sent late last night said she’d spent the night at the Sleep Tight Inn with her mom but would be back by the time he needed to pick her up.
He wasn’t looking forward to the conversation they needed to have. Every time they got together, he seemed to forget all the reasons why he shouldn’t get involved. But now, after getting his entire family on board the crazy train he’d proposed, he had to draw a hard line in the sand. One he couldn’t let himself cross, no matter how much he wanted to.
She was sitting on the steps of the trailer when he pulled up. As he brought the truck to a stop, she got to her feet and gave him a sweet smile that made him instantly reconsider his resolve. He fought back the urge to pull her into his arms and press a kiss to those full lips. Instead, he leaned over and opened her door for her.
“Good morning.” She hopped into the cab, her sash hanging across her chest.
“Hey. How did things go with your mom last night?”
“Just great. She overindulged in a mix of vodka and white wine. I got to hold her hair back while she puked up the overpriced dinner I bought her over in Swynton.”
“I’m sorry I asked.”
“It’s fine.” She clipped her seat belt in place. “She’ll apologize later, and we’ll pretend it never happened. We have a somewhat complicated relationship.”
“Are you all right?” Against his better judgment, he reached out and put his hand on hers.
The lips he wanted to kiss spread into a tight smile. “I will be. We saw Suzy at the restaurant. Seems she and my mother knew each other once upon a time but as usual, Stella doesn’t want to talk about anything from the past. Do you think I could follow up with your aunt sometime?”
“I’ll text you her number. I know she’s got a big order this week. Some museum in Texarkana flooded and needs their stuffed beaver display remounted. But I’m sure she’d love to talk to you.”
“Good. Now, onto bigger and more exciting things. Is Abby looking forward to me coming to her school today?”
He put his hands back on the wheel. “That’s all she wanted to talk about last night.”
“She’s a great kid.”
“She sure is.”
“I hope I live up to her expectations.”
“I don’t think you’ll have any problem with that. As long as she gets to tell everyone you slept on her trundle bed while your trailer was being de-cricketed, she’ll be in seventh heaven.”
Delilah let out a laugh. “Ah, the naivete of youth.”
The mood in the truck lightened and by the time they arrived at the middle school, Delilah seemed to be in better spirits. He introduced her to the office staff, some of them the same faces he’d seen on a daily basis when he’d attended school there. They were early, so Delilah asked if she could head over to Abby’s science class. The last time he’d been inside the walls of the junior high he’d been a student himself. Somehow the building felt like it had shrunk over the years. The lockers seemed narrower. The ceilings seemed lower. Although, the smell of teenage body odor and ammonia was the same.
He held the door and they slipped into the back of the classroom. The teacher was talking about recessive genes. Jasper vaguely recalled studying the same topic, led by the same teacher, all those years ago.
Abby turned around, spotting them leaning against the back wall. She bounced up and down in her seat, and Jasper could feel her excitement like it was a tangible cloud of bubbles, hanging in the air over her head. Finally, the bell rang, and she sprang from her desk.
Delilah was ready and had a hug waiting for her after she skipped to the back of the room.
“I’m so glad you’re here.” Abby bounced on her feet like she couldn’t stand still.
“What are you learning about?” Delilah asked, her gaze flicking to the whiteboard.
“Nothing exciting. Just what kind of eye color two parents might have. Like Mom and Dad both have brown eyes so the odds of their kids having brown eyes, too, is really high. What color eyes do your parents have?”
“Oh. Um, my mom’s eyes are blue and my dad . . .” Delilah’s forehead furrowed. “I’m pretty sure his were brown. Isn’t that odd? I haven’t thought about it in so long, I’m not sure I remember.”
Abby checked the whiteboard. “He must not have been brown. If your mom’s are blue and his were brown, the chance of you having green eyes would be, like, zero percent.”
Delilah peered at the board. “Maybe they were green. I feel awful I can’t remember. I’m going to have to check when I get back. Otherwise it will drive me crazy.”
“But not now.” Abby grabbed her hand. “I can’t wait for you to meet my friends. Are you ready?”
“Of course. Show me where to go.”
Jasper followed as his sister half led, half tugged Delilah to the auditorium, where the student body had gathered. The principal introduced her, and Delilah took the stage. He stood to the side as she launched into a speech talking about how she’d been bullied as a middle schooler. He’d planned on stepping out to check in with his brothers, but he got sucked into listening to her talk about what it felt like not to belong. He never would have guessed she’d been teased as a kid. The woman was drop-dead gorgeous. But she’d struggled with depression and major anxiety as a teen.
Hell, he wasn’t female, or a middle schooler, and her words still inspired him. When she finished her speech, she opened it up for questions and he took that opportunity to step into the hall. While he’d been spellbound by Delilah, he’d missed three calls from Lacey and one from Delilah’s mom. With a sense of trepidation, he dialed Lacey first. If something was going on, he’d rather hear it from her than have to deal directly with Delilah’s mother.
“There you are. I’ve been trying to reach you.” Lacey didn’t even bother saying hello.
Jasper braced himself for something bad. “What’s going on?”
“We’ve got a problem. I just sent you a text with a screenshot.”
“Hold on a sec.” Jasper pulled his phone away from his ear and opened his texts. An image of Delilah and her mother sitting at a table filled his screen. “I don’t get it.”
“Do you see where they are?” Lacey asked.
“A restaurant?” Jasper zoomed in on the photo. Looked like the inside of that place over in Swynton. His heart dipped. “When was this taken?”
“Last night. And Adeline is having a heyday telling everyone that Ido can’t come up with anything good enough to feed Miss Lovin’ Texas, so she had to go to Swynton for dinner.”
Jasper let out a soft chuckle. “Come on, Lacey. That’s ridiculous.”
“Maybe to you and me. But not to Adeline. Where were you last night? Were you with them? Please tell me you didn’t take them across the river to Franklin’s for a special dinner or something.”
“No, I was at home. Delilah’s mother showed up and surprised her, and they must have gone out for a bite. Maybe she wanted privacy since everyone here in town knows who she is.”
“Well, everyone in Swynton now knows who she is, too, and they’re not wasting any time sharing their side of things. Can you please gently remind Miss Lovin’ Texas about the longstanding rivalry between the two towns?”
“I think you’re making a bigger deal out of this than—”
“They mentioned it on the local radio station. I fully expect it to get picked up by the paper, too. If there’s anything she needs, anything at all, you’re her contact. If she wants takeout from Franklin’s, that’s fine. But please don’t let her cross the river again.”
“Okay.” Students began to file out of the auditorium doors. “I’ve got to go. Don’t worry, I’ll handle this.”
He hung up and waited for a break in the mass exodus so he could get inside. Just when he seemed to make progress in one area, something else popped up that needed his attention. With a little less than two weeks until Delilah’s time in Ido came to an end, he needed to make sure she experienced the best they had to offer, while keeping his heart out of the equation.