Mercedes giggled, stepping forward to point a finger at his chest. “You don’t mean that.”
He bent to look into her eyes. “I’d like to be your date.”
Mercedes giggled again as Betty McFerrin came back with a hamburger. “I’ll leave it to you to get your own fixings,” Betty said. Then her mouth dropped open, and she pointed to something behind Destry’s back. “We’ve got a little problem!”
He turned to see Orion nibbling at a shrub beside the house. “I must not have tied that knot well enough,” he said. Thinking fast, he plucked a few baby carrots from a nearby relish tray. “I’ll be back in a minute.” He just hoped the horse would obey him this time.
Holding the carrots out, Destry approached Orion and snagged the reins. Orion cooperated as Destry led him back toward the barn, except that he left a little steaming pile behind in Rosie’s side yard—something that Destry would have to clean up before anyone stepped in it. He supposed the horse didn’t have much control over such things.
Once Destry got back to the shady spot behind the barn, he tied Orion up with several tight knots. On his way back to the party, he borrowed a shovel from the barn. Just as he started scooping up the manure and tossing it over the fence into the pasture, Rosie came out of the house with Mr. Curtis. “Look who’s here,” the old man called, “the art aficionado.” Rosie shimmered in the same cream-colored dress she had worn the night he cleaned out her chicken coop. The short sleeves showed off the sculpted muscles in her arms, and he couldn’t help remembering how it had felt to hold her. She was a perfect mixture of softness and strength.
Being here for her engagement party was going to kill him. He swallowed and then forced a smile. “Hello.”
“Hi, Destry,” Rosie called. “I’m so glad you made it.” Her blue eyes gleamed as she smiled, dazzling him with her beauty.
If they were going to be next-door neighbors for the rest of their lives, he would have to learn to overlook all the things he found most attractive about her. She had at least two faults to focus on—she was incredibly stubborn and preferred animals to people. Still, he found himself defending her against his inner accusations. After all, he liked a woman with strong opinions, and he was also starting to prefer animals to some of the people he knew. Propping the shovel against his side, he reached for the gift card in his pocket. “I brought something for the bride-to-be.”
“I can see that,” Mr. Curtis said, chuckling and pointing at the manure.
Rosie glanced down at the horse’s mess as she pushed her grandfather’s wheelchair over the grass. She laughed in that melodious way of hers.
Destry held his breath and handed her the card. “Something other than free fertilizer.”
She took the card, saw that it was for one of the restaurants in Copper City, and hugged it to her chest. “You didn’t have to bring anything. This was supposed to be our way to thank you for all you’ve done.” It was only the second time he’d seen her wear her hair down, and he found himself trying to memorize the way the various shades of gold blended with the wheat and honey tones. “Everything okay?” she asked.
He jumped back into the conversation. “Yes.”
She slipped the card into a bag that hung from the back of the wheelchair and went on pushing.
Destry looked from the wheelchair to the pile of manure, trying to decide which was a bigger priority. By the time he decided to help push the wheelchair, Rosie had already reached the backyard. Another fail. Not that it mattered. This was her engagement party, after all.
He hurried to finish cleaning up and returned the shovel to the barn. Arriving back at the party, he was just in time to witness Tanner’s announcement that he and Rosie would be married over Christmas vacation, right after the auction date for the paintings. That was less than three months away. “Best Christmas gift I’ll ever receive,” Tanner said, holding Rosie’s hand in his.
Jade asked where they were going on their honeymoon.
“Probably Las Vegas,” Tanner replied, “but we haven’t quite decided.”
Behind him, Mr. Curtis harrumphed. “Vegas is no place for a honeymoon.”
Destry felt the same way. If it were up to him, he would take Rosie to the Galapagos Islands or Australia, where she could see exotic animals. He imagined walking barefoot with her along the beach, holding her hand in his as the waves washed up against their ankles. His jaw tensed as he reminded himself that it would never happen.
Mercedes touched his elbow. “Tanner’s so sweet,” she whispered. “The way he’s helping Rosie buy this place.”
Destry couldn’t bring himself to agree. He could have made Rosie much happier. Finding his hamburger where he left it on the edge of a table, he heaped condiments on it. Then he sat on a folding chair beside Mercedes. A gray-haired man came to sit beside him and introduced himself as Azalea’s boyfriend, Mike. Another future stepdad for Rosie, Destry thought as he shook Mike’s hand. “I’m Destry, the next-door neighbor.”
Mike grinned. “Glad to know you.”
While Destry and Mercedes ate, a toddler with dark pigtails climbed onto Mike’s lap. “My granddaughter,” he explained.
Destry watched Mike slice grapes in half and feed them to the little girl one at a time. They chatted about Mike’s real estate business, but soon the sound of an animal whining drew Destry’s attention to the other side of the lawn. Behind the grill, Wile E pulled at her leash, begging Tanner for some food. Tanner ordered her to sit, but it was clear he didn’t plan to reward her efforts. He tossed some meat to Cheddar on the other side of the fence but went on ignoring Wile E. For a few minutes, Destry watched, growing more and more angry at Tanner’s prejudice. Why would he feed the retriever but not the coyote?
Finally, Destry removed his hamburger from its bun, scraped off the ketchup, and wrapped it in his napkin. “I’m going to get another burger,” he told Mercedes. “Can I get you something while I’m up?”
She had been so occupied watching the toddler that she hadn’t noticed Destry’s napkin trick. “No, thank you.”
Destry strode across the lawn, his napkin-wrapped burger in his hand. He stopped in front of Tanner. “Mind if I have another?”
Tanner pointed his spatula at a plate of burgers on the nearby table. “Help yourself.”
Destry stood still. “Oh, I didn’t notice those.” He looked off across the fields. “The view here is so distracting. I’m still getting used to seeing so far in all directions.”
Tanner refused to take the bait, keeping his eyes on the grill in front of him. “It seems to me that Mercedes is the only distraction that’s holding your attention.”
All Destry cared about was getting Tanner to look away from Wile E for a few seconds. He tried again. “Like I said, I have a great view from where I’m sitting.”
This time, Tanner glanced over to Destry’s empty chair, and Destry tossed the rest of his hamburger in Wile E’s direction. She caught it and ate it without a sound. “I didn’t know you two were going out,” Tanner said, sounding too much like Betty.
Destry held back a chuckle as he stepped toward the table and helped himself to another burger. Of course Tanner would be happy to see him talking to a woman other than Rosie. He caught Rosie’s eye as he walked back toward his seat, and from her amused expression, he could tell she had witnessed him feeding Wile E.
Back at his seat, Destry bit into his second hamburger. It was definitely time to go. “Are you doing anything after the party?” he asked Mercedes. “There’re a couple good movies playing in Copper City tonight.”
“I’d love to go.” She pressed her knee against his. “But I promised Janessa I’d go to the widows’ support group.”
Destry leaned back to appraise Mercedes. “You’re a widow?”
She giggled. “Oh, sorry, I guess you’ve never heard. The widows’ support group is a party Janessa Moore throws for all the women left behind when the men go deer hunting. I’d love it if you came along.”
E
xcept for the three times he’d eaten at La Cocina, Destry had mostly avoided the flirtatious Janessa. Now that he knew she had caused the death of Rosie’s grandmother, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know her better, but she was the type of person he wanted to help. This sounded like a party for women though. “I’m not sure I fit the profile.”
“Sure you do. Janessa invites everyone she knows. I promise there’ll be men there.”
He supposed the worst that could happen was that he’d end up watching a chick flick on Janessa’s couch—a fate much preferable to staying at Rosie’s engagement party—but he hoped things would go much better than that. Maybe he could forget Rosie altogether.
Chapter 25
Before he knew it, they were barreling down the highway toward town. Mercedes drove a little, white SUV—the kind that was barely big enough to be considered an SUV. He had feared she might be like his last girlfriend, who had one of those little air fresheners hanging from her rearview mirror, but luckily, all he could smell in Mercedes’s car was the vanilla fragrance she wore.
“I would’ve loved to go to the movie with you,” she said, glancing his way. “It’s just that Janessa’s been having a rough time since Rosie mentioned the accident in her class. Now everyone’s gossiping about it again. It doesn’t help that she still drives herself home from the bar.”
Destry shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. “Maybe it’ll turn out to be good for her. It sounds like she needs to make some changes.” He couldn’t help wondering whether the same people who gossiped would volunteer to give her rides when she needed them.
“People don’t change. Believe me, I spent five years of my life trying to turn my ex into a respectable human being, and you know what?” Mercedes’s voice grew louder, as if her ex could hear her outburst. “He still burps without saying ‘excuse me.’”
Destry waited until he was sure she had finished ranting. “I agree that we can’t force someone to change, but they can change themselves if they want to. I’m not at all the same guy I was in high school.”
Mercedes swatted at his arm. “You aren’t fooling me, Destry. I can tell you’ve always had high goals.”
He couldn’t help remembering a similar conversation with Rosie when they discussed whether people could really change their natures. What had started out as a disagreement ended in agreement. With Mercedes, things were going just the opposite. There was so much he still wanted to know about Rosie’s opinions, her past, her taste, her habits. She clung to his thoughts, a series of unfinished equations he would never solve.
Mercedes turned off Main Street to a lane where newer homes mingled with older ones. Cars lined both sides of the street. Mercedes pointed to a large home with a brick and stucco exterior. “That’s where we’re going.”
“Whose house is that?” Destry asked, figuring Janessa couldn’t afford a house like this by waiting tables.
“Phil’s. Janessa lives with her parents.”
Destry suddenly needed a very large glass of water. He’d have to be on his best behavior.
Mercedes found a spot at the end of the line of cars and opened her door without waiting for Destry to open it for her.
As he got out of his side, he noticed that smoke carried the smell of burning wood from the backyard. He hoped it was a marshmallow-roasting kind of fire.
They padded over the thick, green grass and passed through a rose-covered arbor that Destry had to duck to get through. On the other side of the gate, someone had decorated the yard with hay bales, quilts, and white Christmas lights. Groups of people sat on the bales. Others crowded together on the patio, holding plates full of food. Three guys sat in deck chairs around a fire pit. He had talked with the same guys at La Cocina once and hadn’t liked what they said about women.
“Come get something to eat,” Mercedes said. “I’m sure there’s plenty.” She led him past the crowd to a buffet table on the patio. It was decorated to look like something out of a women’s magazine with little chalkboard signs and napkins tied with ribbons. He walked past the mini bar, in search of a marshmallow to roast. After eating at Rosie’s, he wasn’t hungry for more.
Instead of marshmallows, he found more expensive faire—stuffed mushrooms, bacon-wrapped filet mignon, shrimp cocktail, and caramel-topped cheesecake. He spread a few shrimp out on the large china plate Mercedes handed him.
She leaned in and whispered. “It’s too bad there aren’t more people.”
He scanned the backyard. There had to be at least thirty guests. “It looks like a lot of people to me.”
Mercedes took a few stuffed mushrooms for herself and leaned in against his shoulder to whisper. “Yes, but most of these are her relatives.”
He glanced around at the women who stood nearby. “That explains all the dark hair.”
“People always think it’s easy for the pretty girls,” she said, still leaning her head toward his shoulder. “It’s not. The girls always talked behind Janessa’s back in high school, and her dad expected so much from her. He wanted her to be a lawyer, but she only lasted one semester at college. I don’t know what happened.”
He stepped back to give himself a few more inches of personal space. “Nobody has it easy. That’s the great secret of life. During my junior year of high school, my father had an accident at work and ended up in a wheelchair. My mom had to quit her job to take care of him. We weren’t all that well-off to begin with, and a lot of times during high school, I’d come home to find there wasn’t any food to eat.”
Mercedes’s eyes widened, and she brought her hand to her mouth. “I thought—”
“I grew up with money? Everyone thinks that.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “The truth is I spent the last two years of high school begging food off my friends’ moms and taking the bus down to the food pantry for groceries. Dad was constantly in and out of the hospital, and I thought things couldn’t get any worse. Then one day, we got evicted and had to move into my uncle’s two-bedroom apartment. There we were, my parents, my brother, and I, all crammed into one bedroom. That’s when I realized that the only way to make things better was to go to work. So I did. I started a lawn-care company that summer. When the weather changed, I shoveled snow and repaired computers. Between those three jobs, I put myself through college and helped pay my dad’s medical bills.”
Mercedes kept her eyes riveted on him as Janessa emerged from the back door. “And your parents? Do they still live with your uncle?”
He raised a hand in greeting to Janessa and spoke quickly, trying to finish before she walked across the patio. “My father’s health improved after that, and they both went back to work. They’ve got a nice home now.” He turned to Janessa and called out. “I hope you don’t mind my crashing your party.”
Janessa’s smile surfaced in all its exuberance. “I’m so glad you did. Load up your plates. There’s plenty more in the kitchen.” Her voice had its usual casual lilt—as if nothing in the world could bother her. Destry wasn’t convinced though. To him, her happiness seemed forced.
He piled meat and appetizers onto his plate as his mind went back to the day he encouraged Rosie to share the story about her grandmother. In helping Rosie, he had never intended to injure Janessa. The way gossip worked around here, he imagined Janessa felt as trapped as a veal calf stuck in a stall for the rest of its life. Drunk driver had become her identity.
She had to have another side to her—some special gift that went beyond serving tables and planning parties. He was about to ask her what she liked to do when he spied a basketball net at the other end of the yard. “Do you play basketball?”
Her smile spread. “Sure. You want to play? The ball’s over there by the hoop. My brothers never put it away.”
He walked over and picked up the ball. “Who wants to play HORSE?” He sunk a shot about ten feet from the basket.
Janessa took the ball, walked to where he had stood, and made the basket. Mercedes did the same and missed. Destry took an easier shot the next time, h
oping Mercedes could make that one. She did.
As they chatted, he learned that Janessa loved all sports. She played football, baseball, basketball, lacrosse, and soccer with her brothers for fun.
He bounce-passed the ball to her. “Are there any marathons or half-marathons held around here?”
“I wish,” she replied, letting discouragement creep into her voice. “I’d sign up if there were.” She took a shot and missed.
He caught her rebound and held the ball under his arm, growing serious. “I can see you organizing a race for Lone Spur. It can’t be much harder than throwing a big party like this. You could start out simple—a 5K to raise money for victims of the flood.”
Janessa giggled and shook her head. “No, I just do parties.”
“I could help you advertise,” Mercedes offered, her voice picking up speed. “We could call it a Fun Run and keep it small for the first year.”
Janessa threw her head back and laughed. “You’re sweet Mercedes, but event planning isn’t my thing.” Her tone lacked conviction, and Destry could tell she was considering the idea.
“Next summer,” he said, “when I open my resort, I’ll need someone to help plan parties like this. I hope you’ll consider applying.”
She glanced sideways at him. “Really?”
“Really,” he said.
For a moment, she hesitated. Then she faced him, smiling. “Thank you. I’ll plan on it.”
She and Mercedes continued to brainstorm ideas for the Fun Run as they went back to sit around the crackling fire. He hung back behind them, watching as the stars broke through the darkness, dotting the sky by the thousands. He considered all the people he wanted to help—the recovering addicts who would come to his resort, Janessa, his students, and Alan’s family—it would require more than he could give. Much more. But he still felt the pull of their needs. Where was the easy life he had expected to find in the West?
Chemistry Lessons Page 21