The sermon was good, but it would have been better if I didn’t feel like I was in a display case. I can’t imagine why I was so interesting to people. The stares came from both sides of the church. I mean sure, a long time ago I broke the rules in a very public way. Once Brady and I came out, we were pretty blatant that we were a couple, and yes, I ruffled some feathers with my prom coup, but hey I was a good kid. I never broke the law, and I was the valedictorian for goodness’ sake, and I’ve gone on to make something out of myself.
Caroline was a little fidgety during the sermon, but I didn’t blame her. I was tempted to whisk her away and go play on the playground behind the church, but that would have for sure cemented me as a rule breaker, and it would have further sullied my reputation with the Jacksons. Not like I really cared what they thought of me anymore, I wasn’t dating their son. But I did look down at Caroline and contemplate. Here she was, a Jackson sitting with an Eaton on the “Eaton” side. The phrase, “And a little child shall lead them,” came to mind. It gave me some hope that maybe things wouldn’t always be so divided in this town. Maybe the next generation would do it better. I remember all the grand plans Brady and I had made to change Kaysville, but that’s all they would ever be, plans.
During the closing hymn, Caroline sang loud and proud. I think she was just happy to have something to do. I couldn’t help but smile at her and wish I had one of my own. After the closing prayer, I hugged her tight. “Thanks for sitting with me, sugar. You better scoot off to Sunday School now.” I watched her as she skipped off to her parents.
Oddly, I had a line of people waiting to talk to me. I was embarrassed to say, I didn’t remember most of their names, but they were all kind to me and asked if there was anything they could do for my aunt and me. I told them we were all set. After all, we had Doris, and honestly, I didn’t require much. I was more than surprised by David Mayfield. Him, I remembered. He was one of Brady’s friends, and he was one of the first ones to accept me into their group when Brady and I became public. He was even nice to me when Brady broke up with me.
“Wow, Ellie Eaton, you look terrific!”
I smiled. “Thank you. It’s just Elle now.”
He looked pretty darn good too. He was around six foot, with dark brown hair, deep brown eyes, and olive-colored skin.
“Well, Elle, we haven’t seen you around here in ages. I guess now that you’re a famous author you’re too good for us.” He winked.
“Oh, Dave, you know I always thought that,” I teased.
He laughed loudly. “So, does Brady know you’re back in town?”
Before I could answer, someone else did. Brady came up from behind him, staring directly at me. He slapped Dave on the back. “Of course I knew. We’ve already been out twice.”
I glared at him and then smiled at Dave.
Dave looked between the two of us. “So you’re back together again?”
“No!” I said quickly
“We’re working on it,” Brady said at the same time.
“No we’re not,” I refuted.
Dave looked confused. Brady looked like he was enjoying himself. Well, he was going to love this then.
“Dave, would you mind escorting me to Sunday School?”
Dave looked surprised, but pleased. He held out his arm to me like a fine southern gentleman. I happily took it and smirked at Brady. He just gave me that country boy smile and followed us to Sunday School.
“So, Elle, how long will you be in town?” Dave asked as we walked down the hall.
Is it bad to lie in church? I didn’t really want people to know my newly changed plans. “That’s a good question,” I said.
That definitely caught Brady’s attention. Both men looked at me expecting me to elaborate, but I didn’t. I just smiled closed lipped.
“So, Dave what are you still doing around here?”
“I work at the arsenal as an electrical engineer.”
“That’s quite a commute every day.”
“It beats living in the city.”
I didn’t know that I would call Huntsville “the city,” but for a country boy, I guess it would seem like it.
I ended up sitting in between Brady and Dave with all of the other Roll Tide fans. Like I needed more attention. Sunday School wasn’t quite as split up as the chapel was. The seating arrangement wouldn’t allow for it. We sat behind Brady’s brother and wife; it looked like the elder Jacksons went home, thank goodness. Kendra Jackson turned around, and now that I was up closer to her, she surprised me. She wasn’t what I would expect from a beauty queen. Don’t get me wrong, she was cute, cute as a button even, but definitely not a bombshell like Benjamin had been married to before. Her strawberry-blonde hair was cut into a short pixie hairstyle, and she had pretty green eyes, just like Caroline. She didn’t look too much older than me, definitely much younger than Benjamin.
“Hi, I’m Kendra Jackson, Caroline’s mom.”
“It’s so nice to meet you,” I said.
Benjamin turned around now too. I had never really met him. I was the enemy, and he had been called in to convince Brady to break up with me. I was sure he’d been there that Christmas when it happened. Maybe that’s why he seemed nervous when he turned around.
I was surprised when he held out his hand. “Ellie, I’m Benjamin, I don’t think we’ve ever been properly introduced. It’s very nice to meet you.”
I looked at Brady. I don’t know why, maybe because I thought this was a joke or Brady put him up to it, but Brady just smiled sincerely as if to say it was ok.
I looked back at Benjamin, and he, too, seemed sincere. I felt like all eyes were on us. I took his hand cautiously. “It’s nice to meet you too.”
He seemed relieved. How odd.
Brady leaned in close to me. “I told you things have changed,” he whispered.
I shouldn’t have, but I leaned into him too. “I saw the way your parents looked at me this morning. I don’t think things have changed too much.”
Before I could sit up straight, Brady turned and we were face to face. Whoa, did he look good. I quickly moved upright. He tugged on my hair and smiled that smile I used to love so much. Thankfully, the class started before I did something I would regret. Brady smelled, looked, and acted too good for my own good.
When the class was over, I received a dinner invitation from Kendra. I hesitated. I didn’t want to be rude, but having dinner with the Jackson family, especially if that included any of their extended family, probably wasn’t the best idea. She must have sensed my hesitation and the reason why.
“It would just be you,” she said kindly.
“Um … ok.”
She smiled sweetly, and even Benjamin smiled warmly. Brady acted offended that he wasn’t extended an invitation. Dave feigned disappointment as well. Kendra just gave them both the “look,” and boy was she good at the “look.” I had the feeling she was a woman to be reckoned with. She was a tiny little thing, but I bet she packed a punch.
“We’ll see you at six,” Kendra said as she handed me a piece of paper with their address on it.
Brady and Dave both offered to escort me to my car. I didn’t really answer, but they both followed me out.
Dave walked close to me. A little too close. “So, you know I wanted to ask you to prom, but bonehead over there told me he would kill me if I did.”
Why would he say that? And, who still used words like bonehead?
I looked at Brady after that little revelation. “Oh really, and why was that Brady Jackson?”
Brady just winked at me.
“I voted for you for prom queen,” Dave threw in.
Weird.
“How nice, but that was a long time ago.”
“It wasn’t that long ago,” both men said in unison.
This was so bizarre for me. Thankfully we made it to my car quickly.
“Sweet ride,” Dave said as he ogled the gift I’d recently given myself.
“Thanks.”
I instinctively reached up and touched my cheek. It felt warm.
He smiled at my response. “By the way, I voted for you for prom queen too. I’ll see you later, Ellie,” he said quietly.
I was so taken aback, I didn’t respond.
Dave looked at his retreating friend and then back to me. “Are you sure you’re not together?”
I knew I was blushing, but I dropped my hand from my cheek. “Yes, I’m sure. It was nice to see you again, Dave.”
“It sure was, Elle.”
I quickly got in my car and drove right back to the hospital. What a very strange day.
My aunt seemed pleased with my report; she even seemed happy that I was having dinner with the Benjamin Jackson family. “Do you know them well?” I asked her.
She just smiled mischievously. She was behaving very oddly, which only added to my strange day.
“Also, did you mean to have Benjamin and Brady on your Christmas list?”
She sat up straighter and smoothed out her pajamas. “Yes, of course.”
“Of course? Why?’”
She just turned from me back to the news. They were talking about her beloved Auburn Tigers. I guess they should have been beloved to me too, but I never loved them the way my aunt did.
“One more question,” I tried to avert her attention. “Do you have any suggestions on what to get them?”
She didn’t even look at me. “I trust your judgment, Ella Lu.” Then without warning she said, “War Eagle” enthusiastically in response to something the newscaster was blathering about. I think it had something to do with the playoff game Auburn would be in the next weekend.
After our frustrating conversation, I was almost glad to be leaving to go back to the house to change. The only solid information to come out of my visit was that her procedure was scheduled for the next morning at ten o’clock.
I ran to the house to change out of my dress. As I changed, I was reminded I was either going to need to go shopping or go back to Atlanta for a day and gather some more of my clothing. I was also going to have to reschedule some signings. My publisher wasn’t going to be happy, but they would have to deal with it. I would just tell them I was being blackmailed by a fine old dame who just happened to be the inspiration for Aunt Calliope.
On my drive over, I realized where I was heading. They lived by the elder Jacksons out on the lake. I also remember Brady mentioning he lived out there too. I obviously didn’t ever go out this way much. The closest I ever got to the Jackson mansion was their driveway, once when Brady forgot his math homework. He used to pick me up for school sometimes, when we could get away with it. I would meet him a block from my house. I remember sitting in his truck, feeling nervous, while he ran in to get his forgotten homework. I wasn’t sure what I thought would happen, but I knew his parents hated me, and from their looks today, that hadn’t changed. I wished I knew the whole story and why they hated me so much. I mean, Mrs. Jackson got her man. I have a feeling that not even my Aunt Lu knew the whole story. She never really talked about it, but I could tell she still seemed confused about the whole situation. Kind of like how I felt confused about why Brady started dating Amber so quickly. His little revelation on Friday cleared that up, well sort of. I still couldn’t believe he would think that of me.
Oh well, I needed to quit thinking about it and him, but he was making that difficult. I knew it was just a kiss on the cheek, but I’ll admit it felt just as sweet as it had ten years ago. And if I knew Brady, that was only the beginning for him. I was just going to have to avoid him at all costs.
I passed the Jackson mansion in all its glory. It looked like it came right out of the pages of Southern Living. Where our house was classically southern, their house was contemporary southern. I had always wanted to go in, just to see what it looked like on the inside. I’m sure it was beautiful. It seemed so weird to have never been in the home of the only person I had ever loved, but that was how dumb this town was. I drove a half a mile past it and turned into the drive of the Benjamin Jacksons. I wondered if Kendra liked living so close to her mother-in-law. If things had been different, we would have shared the same mother-in-law, but I would have refused to live this close to her. Kendra and Benjamin’s home wasn’t as grand, but it was still beautiful. It was a two-story gray brick home with a sweeping large porch lined with square columns and a gabled roofline. The landscaping still looked fantastic although it was winter time. My favorite part was the several pine trees that dotted the property—it felt very Christmassy.
As I walked up, I realized I should have offered to bring something. I’m not sure what. I really lacked some domestic skills, but I could shop and decorate like no one’s business, and I could still play the piano and sing, even though I rarely got the chance to anymore. It reminded me that I should tickle the ivory of the grand piano at Aunt Lu’s.
I didn’t even get to knock on the door.
My favorite five-year-old opened the door and gave me a huge hug. “She’s here, she’s here,” she yelled.
Kendra and Benjamin both came out from the kitchen to greet me. I think we were all a little nervous. I think we may have even been making Kaysville history. I don’t know the last time an Eaton ate at a Jackson home. My aunt never talked about when she and Mr. Jackson were dating, so I didn’t know if she was welcome at his home growing up or even how long they dated or were engaged. The only thing I knew was that they both grew up here like Brady and me.
“Thank you so much for inviting me. I’m sorry I didn’t think to offer to bring anything.”
“Nonsense,” Kendra replied.
“Brady said you weren’t much of a cook anyway,” Benjamin teased and winked at me. Wow, he looked like an older, slightly grayer version of Brady.
Kendra smacked his arm. “Please excuse my husband.”
I laughed. “Honestly, it’s ok, and it’s all true.”
She smiled graciously. “Well, we certainly can’t write books, and we also hear you’re quite the musician. None of us can carry a tune or play an instrument.”
Obviously I’d been talked about quite a bit. It also made me wonder what they did in the talent portion of their pageants. Maybe I would find out later. I smiled at the compliment. “We each have our own talents, and by the smell of things, I see you have some that lie in the kitchen.”
They welcomed me back to the kitchen and eating area. I looked around. It was decorated in very warm tones, and it was tasteful and cozy. “You have a beautiful home.”
“Thank you,” Kendra said.
“This may be a dangerous proposition, but can I do anything to help?”
Both Kendra and Benjamin grinned.
“She can help me set the table,” Caroline offered.
I looked down at her sweet little face. “Something I’m actually good at. I would love to help you.”
While I helped Caroline set the table, they asked me about my aunt. I told them she was having angioplasty in the morning at ten, and hopefully, if all went well, she would be home on Tuesday.
“So,” Kendra asked. “How long will you be in town?”
I looked at her. The way she asked was like she was fishing, but she was so darn nice. I hated skirting the issue, and outright lying was out of the question. “Well, my aunt asked me to stay through the holiday season, well more like she blackmailed me. So I guess until the New Year.”
Benjamin and Kendra laughed.
“That sounds like your aunt,” Benjamin said.
I looked at him curiously. “I feel like I’ve been missing several pieces of the puzzle since I came back. How do you know my aunt? Besides the obvious.”
Kendra and Benjamin both looked at each other. Ok, this was getting weird. What was the big mystery?
Benjamin looked at me thoughtfully. “W
hy don’t we talk about that over dinner?”
“Ok.”
Caroline and I set the table while she told me all about what she learned in Sunday School. She talked faster than anyone I knew. By the time we were done, dinner was ready and being placed on the table. It smelled fabulous. I rarely had home cooked meals, so this was a treat. Kendra had made roast beef with roasted potatoes and carrots and it even looked like homemade rolls. It was probably good we weren’t sisters-in-law, I could never compete with that, and of course the in-laws would’ve hated my guts. I should stop thinking about that stuff.
“Wow, this looks and smells fabulous. Thank you again.”
Kendra took my hand and squeezed it. “We’re really glad to have you here, Ellie.”
Why did her saying that, and looking at me like that, make me want to cry? And I can’t imagine why they cared so much about having me there. They didn’t even know me. I squeezed her hand back and smiled and tried not to let my eyes water.
We all sat down, and Benjamin blessed the food. It was short and to the point, the way my aunt liked prayers. I still couldn’t get over how much he reminded me of Brady. All I knew was Brady was going to look great when he was in his forties.
As the food was being dished, Caroline kept chattering, which was super cute until … “Did you know that Uncle Brady and Miss Ellie were boyfriend and girlfriend?” She looked at me and smiled, like I would be so happy she shared that tidbit.
I smiled back, because what else was I going to do? And of course her parents already knew.
But her Daddy seemed a little embarrassed. “Yes, darlin’, we knew that.”
She seemed disappointed that this was not news to them, but she wasn’t done. “So how come you’re not anymore, Miss Ellie?”
I felt my cheeks turn pink. I really didn’t know what to say. The truth didn’t seem to be the best way to go. I could only imagine what their reactions would be if I said, “It’s because your grandparents hate me and your uncle left me for a beauty queen.”
House Divided Page 8