Romance: My Stepbrother's Plaything

by Valentine, Annie

  Chapter 4

  About a week after Emily had sent her letter there was an ad that ran in the paper for a baker. Leila responded immediately, and was called in for an interview. She was hired on the spot. Emily was thrilled for her cousin, but at the same time she also felt an uneasiness in her bones. What would happen to her if she didn’t hear from Dylan McBride? What if he already decided on marrying somebody else? Emily worried, but told herself not to get too worked up just yet.

  On the morning of Leila’s first day at the bakery, a letter came in the mail for Emily. It was postmarked from the United States, and the return address was 3532 Running River Road in Lubbock, Texas. Leila was so excited for Emily that she almost made herself late for work. “Hurry! Open it and see what it says.” Leila ran her hands through her hair and watched as Emily carefully tore open the edge of the envelope.

  In what felt like an eternity of silence, Emily carefully unfolded the letter and held it in front of her face. Leila leaned in next to her to try and see what it said. Emily giggled with excitement and then read the letter out loud. “Dear Emily, I wanted you to know that after reading through more than fifty letters, I’ve decided to choose you for my marriage. I will tell you more about how I came to my decision after you have made the trip out to Texas. I look forward to meeting you. Please let your cousin know that I will likely have some work for her in the spring when the weather gets warmer. I will arrange for your flight and would like you to come out as soon as possible. Thank you. Dylan McBride.”

  Emily dropped the letter and it drifted across the floor. Even with her optimistic attitude, she was still surprised that he had actually selected her. What would she do now? How could she just pack up and leave Leila? What if the spring work he mentioned didn’t actually pan out? Her mind whirled with questions and anxieties. Before she could even process a reaction, Leila threw her arms around her cousin and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

  “See?” She jumped up and down. “I knew that he would pick you! I’m telling you, Emily. I just had a feeling that this was meant to be. And look at the timing. I just found work, and I think I’m going to like this job. We’re both going to make it, after all.” Leila beamed with happiness. To her, this was the best sequence of events that could have occurred since the fire.

  “Texas, here I come.” Emily threw her arms around Leila and the two embraced until Emily backed away with a questionable expression on her face. “Leila, I sure hope this works out. I mean, I’ve never left Lancaster, and now I’m going to be traveling to another part of the world, to a ranch…” Her voice trailed off and she started to worry. “I don’t want to leave you. What if the bakery work doesn’t suit you? Then you’ll be here all alone, with no job.”

  The thought of Leila being alone, with no work, and very little family made Emily’s stomach churn. She couldn’t let it happen. She wouldn’t. She would make sure that Dylan McBride knew where she stood with her cousin’s wellbeing, and she would insist that she come out to Texas if her work at the bakery didn’t last.

  “Emily.

  There is no sense in worrying about the unknown. You have to just go out there and give it a try. Who knows? You might even end up liking the guy.” Leila shrugged and then walked toward the hallway. “Come on. Let’s get you packed up while that soup simmers.” With that, she headed into their bedroom and started to rifle through the closet. “You might as well pack all of your nice clothes. What if wants to take you out to dinner? He’s a successful business man. He’ll probably want you to wear fancy dresses and wear expensive jewelry.” Leila smiled, trying to imagine how her cousin’s life might abruptly change. Emily frowned.

  “I don’t own any fancy dresses or expensive jewelry, so I hope he plans on buying whatever he needs.” She frowned and then looked at the clothes as Leila pulled them out of the closet. She was already nervous about not fitting in with his Texas lifestyle, but there was nothing she could do now except get on the plane and go.

  Emily’s flight was on the following Saturday. With a mind filled with trepidation, she made her way to the ticket counter and checked in. Leila stood by and waited for them to call her flight, then watched as she got in line to board. “I love you, Emily!” Leila called out as Emily got in line to board. Emily didn’t turn around because she didn’t want her cousin to see her crying.

  She found her way to her seat, then stowed her carry-on bag. She sat down and buckled her seat belt, then closed her eyes as the pilot announced their take-off. In a matter of minutes, she was up in the air, flying over the clouds and away from England. When her flight landed safely in Texas, she sat in her seat and then took a deep breath. She had arrived, and now she had to meet Dylan.

  He was waiting in the airport when she got off the plane. Emily didn’t know what he looked like. All he told her in his letter was that he was tall and had dark hair. It could have been any of the men that she saw when she got off. She swallowed hard and then walked toward the bag carousel. When she had her suitcase, she carried it to the side and waited for him to find her. “Emily?” Someone called her name and she looked up to see a tall man, with dark hair and blue eyes, standing before her.

  “I’m Dylan.” He smiled and took her suitcase. Emily sized him up and decided that he was an attractive man, probably around thirty, and with a solid, yet lean sort of build. He reminded her of a man she had once seen in a cigarette commercial, and she wondered if he was going to be someone that she enjoyed being with, or someone that she couldn’t stand.

  “It’s nice meeting you.” Emily was nervous. She pulled her hair away from her face and tried to straighten her posture. She knew that it probably didn’t matter much what she looked like- after all, he was looking for someone out of “convenience.” Yet she still had the urge to make herself appear as attractive as possible.

  She had worn one of her long, denim skirts with a cream colored sweater. Dylan walked forward, turning around on occasion to make sure that Emily was still right behind him. He had a long stride, and Emily noticed that he wore brown leather cowboy boots. “Sorry if I seem to be in a rush. I just don’t like crowds too much.” Dylan gave Emily a half-hearted smile and then continued forging ahead.

  When they reached the parking lot, Dylan hoisted Emily’s suitcase into a large, red pick-up truck. So far, he seemed to match the description pretty accurately. He looked professional, clean, and confident. Getting to his home would be the real test, Emily assumed. To her, it was both exciting and anxiety- producing. She didn’t know what to expect, and she had no real gauge with which to measure her expectations, either.

  “I live about a half hour away, over in Lubbock.” Dylan smiled and then turned on the radio. Emily was already aware of many differences between her home town and Texas. For one, the highways were larger and wider. The people were definitely more fashion conscious, and there seemed to be an aura of country-living that emanated from those she saw in the street.

  When they pulled into Dylan’s driveway, Emily’s jaw dropped. She did a double-take and then looked at Dylan. She didn’t know what to say, but she was floored by what she saw. “Well, this is my humble abode. I’ll help you with the suitcase and then show you to the front door.” Dylan hopped out of the truck and then opened up the trunk. Emily sat in the passenger seat, not sure if he was joking or not.

  His home was a dilapidated single wide trailer, surrounded on either side with a faded picket fence that was busted in several places. Two dogs on long, rusty chains barked and growled from their doghouses and a single rooster strutted alongside the driveway. Emily tried to imagine what the inside would look like. “You ready to come in?” Dylan stood in front of her with a smile on his face. Emily gulped and then stepped out of the truck.

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.” She whispered under her breath and then followed him up the crumbling porch steps. When they reached the front door, Dylan took a deep breath and then turned the knob. The door flung open, and Emily’s eyes widened. Two young girls were
cutting each other’s hair in the middle of the room, and a woman with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth was watching television. Emily froze in her tracks and then looked at Dylan. What had she gotten herself into?

  Chapter 5

  There was nothing she could do right now except watch the two girls as they both held scissors at each other’s heads. “I’m cutting yours just like the girl in the superhero’s movie!” One of them yelled out loud. Emily didn’t know what to say, but she wanted to know why Dylan wasn’t having much of a reaction to the entire scenario. Instead, he looked at the woman who was sitting on the couch and then stepped over a pile of laundry that was piled on the floor. Emily still waited in the doorway.

  “They ate some pita pockets around seven and then watched a movie.” The woman flicked ashes from her cigarette into an ashtray. “Hey, you two, put them scissors down.” She got up slowly and Emily saw that she was wearing a tank top and skin tight jeans. “I guess kids will be kids.” She laughed and then snatched the scissors out of the two girls’ hands. Dylan shrugged and then wandered into the dining room.

  “Come with me, Emily.” He gestured for her to come inside and she walked slowly toward the children who were now jumping off the chairs and onto the couch.

  “Hello, there.” Emily knelt down and smiled at the young girl with the brown hair, and the girl stuck out her tongue. Emily backed away as Dylan waited patiently for her to follow him into the kitchen. A foul stench emanated from the sink and when he flicked on the flights she saw that there was a mountain high pile of dishes leaning off to the side. Emily didn’t think it could get much worse, but when he opened up the back door, the screen fell off the window.

  “As you might be able to tell, it’s not the most organized house in Texas.” Dylan let out a chuckle and then peeked around the corner, just in time to catch one of the girls throwing a pile of crayons at the woman in the tank top. Emily was floored. How could he just let these children run wild? She still didn’t know how to react, and she was truly baffled by the woman’s lack of disciplining.

  “Well, gimme a call next time you need me, okay, Dylan?” The woman called out from the front door and then stood with her hands on her hips, apparently waiting for him to pay her. She chewed on a piece of gum and then watched as the girl with the red hair threw a pillow across the room. It hit the lamp and knocked the shade over. Emily gasped as the shade then hit a glass of water which broke and fell all over the floor.

  “Dylan.” Emily couldn’t restrain herself any longer. “One of these children is going to hurt, and possibly badly, if you don’t do something about their behavior.” Emily couldn’t believe that the words came out of her mouth, but they did and there was no taking them back. He looked at her with an expression of relief.

  “I know, Emily. That’s why you’re here.” He walked toward her and then patted her on the shoulder. It was the first gesture that he’d made toward her that really caught her attention. His hand was large and strong, but she felt a certain comfort from it, as well. The woman in the tank top remained by the door. She cracked her gum and then Dylan snapped out of his daze. “Yes. Of course!” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and handed it to the woman. She stuffed it down her bra and then winked at Dylan and left.

  “Well I’m not sure I can…” Emily’s voice trailed off as she tried to speak. Just then the girl with the brown hair took a pile of books and started ripping the pages out of one of them. Emily’s eyes widened.

  “Stop!” She grabbed the book from the girl and then held it tightly against her chest. Growing up she had always been taught to respect books and her parents had always showed her an appreciation toward them with their elaborate library. Emily was appalled at the children’s behavior, and watching one them attempt to destroy a book put her over the edge. “Go upstairs to your room!” Emily snapped again and then shooed the young girl away.

  “You know, I realize that I didn’t even introduce you to Anna and Eisley.” Dylan shook his head and then attempted to pull one of the dishes out from the pile in the sink. The entire tower toppled over and a loud crashing sound ensued. Emily covered her ears and then tried to think of what she should do. There were so many levels of dysfunction to what she saw around her that she didn’t know where to start.

  “It’s fine. I think I just a few minutes to…” Emily’s voice tapered off just as a loud boom came from upstairs. “I just need to adjust.” She looked at Dylan and then rushed out of the kitchen to see what had happened upstairs. “Is everything okay?” She yelled from the foot of the stairs and then craned her neck to see if she could see anything. The girls let out a roar of laughter.

  “Anna and Eisley. If you get into your pajamas I’ll let you sit up and watch a movie with our new family member, Miss Emily.” Dylan called out from downstairs and the girls gushed with excitement.

  “I want to watch The Muppets!” The one with the red hair yelled with excitement.

  “No! I want to watch The Roughkins!” The one with the brown hair and freckles piped up. Emily could see that this was going to be much more than she had bargained for, but what could she do now? Here she was, in the middle of a broken down ranch in Texas, with nowhere else to go, and with someone counting on her to save his life from falling apart.

  “I’ll tell you what.” Emily called out loud and then took a deep breath. “First, we’ll put the movies down on the floor and then we’ll draw cards for it. Whoever gets the highest card gets to pick what movie we watch.” It was the first idea to come off the top of her head, and while it wasn’t the best strategy, she knew it was better than watching them duke it out over preferences.

  Both of the girls stood silently and then looked at Emily. The one with the red hair smiled and started jumping up and down. “I want to sit next to Miss Emily for the movie!” She smiled and then looked at her cousin with a glimmer in her eye. Dylan smiled and then approached Emily with a sigh.

  “Please don’t run away.” He whispered in her ear and then looked at the two girls who were now patiently waiting to pull the cards and see who would be declared the winner. Emily didn’t know if she’d survive this experience, but she didn’t see that she had much of a choice right now to get out of it. Then again, she hadn’t even unpacked her suitcase yet. Maybe she could slip away in the middle of the night, she thought.

  The girls stared at Emily and for once, the room was completely silent. “We’re ready to pick the cards, Miss Emily.” The one with the red hair smiled and then Emily handed them each a card from the deck she’d seen lying on the floor earlier. Dylan folded his arms and then watched while the first child, Eisley, pulled a Queen of Hearts. He watched in suspense as the second child, Anna, pulled a 3 of Clubs.

  “Okay, girls! Eisley is the winner this round so she gets to pick. Go ahead and put on those pajamas then bring down your movie.” Emily felt a sort of calm descend on the house and she watched as Eisley fled the room to get into her pajamas. Anna, looking forlorn, trailed behind Eisley and then turned around and looked at Emily.

  “I’m sad that I didn’t win.” She sighed and Emily gave her a pat on the head.

  “Don’t be sad. You’ll have a chance next time.” She smiled and Anna went off to put on her pajamas, as well. With both of the children out of the room for a few minutes, Dylan had a brief moment to give her the rundown of their situation.

  “So, Anna is the one with red hair. She’s eight. Eisley has the brown hair, and she’s seven. They are both my nieces, and it’s a long story, but they’ve been living with me for the last five years. They lost their parents to a tornado, of all things.” Dylan shook his head and then frowned. “I was married around the same time, but found out that my wife of ten years had been cheating on me with our neighbor. Together, we we’re doing all right raising the girls as our own, but as soon as the marriage fell apart, pardon the expression, the shit hit the fan.” Dylan sighed and shook his head.

  Emily didn’t know what to
say. She looked at her suitcase, still sitting by the front door. Then she looked up just in time to see Eisley running down the steps, her long hair flowing behind her. “Hey, girls. Before we get this movie going, I think we have a few things to do round here.” Dylan spotted the broken glass from earlier, the toppled lamp shade, and the pile of books. He knew that it would be too overwhelming to ask them to clean all of it, and so he said nothing.

  “I think that your… uncle?” Emily paused, not sure if they referred to him as a dad or an uncle, or maybe something else. Dylan nodded and Emily continued. “I think that your Uncle Dylan wants you to help clean up some of the books first.” Emily smiled and then diverted them to the pile they had tried to destroy earlier. Then she stepped toward the broken glass and got to work cleaning it up.

  By the time the room had been restored to some semblance of order, it was almost nine o’clock. Emily was wiped out. In fact, as soon as they had popped in The Muppets, she fell asleep on the chair that Dylan had told her to sit in. The next thing she knew, Dylan was tapping her on the shoulder, telling her to get up and go to bed. “Come on, I’ll show you to your room.” He had already put the girls to bed and had Emily’s suitcase in his hands.

  “I’m sorry. I fell asleep.” Emily was slightly embarrassed. Dylan led her up the stairs and down a long carpeted hallway. Both of the girls were sound asleep in their bedrooms. Emily watched as Dylan opened a door and then flicked the light switch. A small twin bed sat in the center of the room, and a tiny dresser was situated to the left.

  Emily wasn’t disappointed in how small the room was, but she did feel surprised when she reflected on the ad she’d originally responded to. She thought about saying something right then and there, but bit her tongue and smiled, instead. She didn’t want to come across as ungrateful but she wanted to understand why Dylan placed an ad that insinuated he was a well-off business man when this was clearly not the case. Maybe the truth would come out later, she told herself as she looked around the room.