Allen laughed, put his hands on her shoulders, and playfully pushed her to the door. “I’m not going anywhere. The prisons are full of violent offenders and there are plenty waiting in the wings, so they aren’t going to take up space with my ass. And besides, I’m not using again. So can I pee now?” he asked as he pushed across the threshold. With a wink, he shut the bathroom door in her face.
“I’m not leaving until we talk, Allen!” Audrey shouted through the door, but as she might have guessed, she got no response. She stared at the door another moment, but finally gave up—he wasn’t coming out until she was gone, just like they were ten and twelve all over again. With a sigh of frustration, she headed for the kitchen and a cup of coffee.
Jack had been in a lot of uncomfortable situations in his thirty-seven years—some of them including assault rifles, some of them while he was hanging off rock faces he hadn’t intended to be hanging from at all, some of them on good dates gone very, very bad.
But this had to be the most uncomfortable he’d ever been in his
life
.
He wouldn’t be surprised if Mrs. LaRue wasn’t cooking up arsenic in that coffeepot. She was mean and bitter and it showed in every craggy line on her face. On top of that, staring at him like they’d never seen a grown man before were Logan and his brother Dustin—two years older and sleepy-eyed.
Jack was never so happy to see anyone in his life when Audrey walked into the kitchen. “I’m back,” she said sheepishly. The hint of dark circles shadowed her eyes; she looked tired and worn. But she smiled brightly at her nephews. “Hey, you guys,” she said, opening her arms and hugging them both tightly to her. “I bet I have something in my bag for you.”
“What?” Logan asked.
“Go get it for me and I’ll show you. It’s upstairs.”
“You don’t need to bring them junk, Audrey,” her mother said as the boys ran to find her bag. “It just gives ’em the wants,” Mrs. LaRue said.
“Oh,” Audrey said, and glanced nervously at Jack. “It’s no big thing.”
“Not to
you
,” Mrs. LaRue said, as if that should mean something. She shuffled to the stove in her Dearfoam slippers and fit strips of bacon into a frying pan. She hardly spared Audrey a glance as she nodded to the coffeepot. “I made some coffee. I assume you still drink coffee, or do you drink some of them healthy drinks they have in California?”
“Coffee is great,” Audrey said, and took a cup touting a local insurance firm from the hodgepodge of coffee mugs on a little tree near the pot. She glanced at Jack. “Coffee?”
“Please.”
She poured another cup and joined him at the kitchen table while Mrs. LaRue dug inside the fridge. When she emerged with a loaf of bread, she asked, “So why is it you need your own personal bodyguard?”
“Oh, no reason, really,” Audrey said, flicking her wrist dismissively. “Lucas thought it would be a good idea just because.”
“Because what?”
“Because . . . there have been a couple of stupid freaky letters,” Audrey said, clearly trying to downplay the threat.
“What kind of letters?” her mother pressed.
“Well . . . the threatening kind,” Audrey said. She forced a laugh. “Seems like there is some whack job out there who doesn’t like my singing.”
Mrs. LaRue frowned over her shoulder at Audrey. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
“I am well protected, Mom. See?” she asked, pointing at Jack.
“Maybe if you didn’t wear those trashy costumes on stage, you might not get mail like that,” Mrs. LaRue said matter-of-factly as she turned the bacon.
Audrey’s smile disappeared. “What?” she asked, as if she hadn’t heard her mother correctly.
“I said, put some clothes on, and maybe you won’t get such hateful letters.”
Hurt swelled in Audrey’s features; she shifted her gaze to the table cloth. “I think there’s a little more to it than what I
wear
.”
“Then try something less revealing,” Mrs. LaRue said. “It won’t hurt to try and it won’t affect your music any. Who knows, maybe your old mother is right.”
Jack did not get Mrs. LaRue’s problem. He really couldn’t fathom it. Three hundred miles west of here, in Midland, was a woman who would be busting with pride if her son had made a big star of himself and would be overjoyed if he popped in on her. She would welcome Audrey with open arms even if she were a stranger.
This
woman was working extra hard to make sure her daughter never came back again.
“I think she looks fantastic on stage,” he said, and felt his heart nudge him when he saw the gratitude in Audrey’s eyes. He sipped his coffee, shifted a cool gaze to Mrs. LaRue. “She’s beautiful.”
“I’m sure you think so, Mr. Price,” Mrs. LaRue said with a wry smile. “She’s paying you to think so, isn’t she?”
“No, ma’am. She’s paying me to keep her safe.”
If Mrs. LaRue had a retort, it was lost when the two boys had skidded into the kitchen again, carrying Audrey’s bag. “Here’s your purse,” Logan said, dropping it on Audrey’s lap.
“What took you so long?” she asked with a wink as she thrust her hand into her bag.
“We were looking at the cars.”
“What cars?”
“The cars outside,” Dustin said. “There are a
lot
of cars out there.” Audrey instantly looked at Jack.
“I’ll check it out,” he said, and as Audrey told the boys to close their eyes for their big surprise, he got up and walked into the front room. Through the windows, he spied one TV van and two cars. Radio and print by the look of it, judging by the equipment and the people milling about her mom’s lawn.
Probably someone at the hospital had clued them in. In a matter of hours, the entertainment world and all of its followers would know that Audrey’s brother had fallen off the wagon, and really, Audrey didn’t need this sort of publicity right now. He pulled out his cell, put in a call to Mitzi to warn her and to see if she could begin the damage control.
“Damn media,” Mitzi said. “Always looking for dirt. I’ve got it, lover. You just make sure Audrey gets to Nashville in one piece.”
When Jack returned to the kitchen a few minutes later, Audrey gave him a questioning look over the heads of her nephews, who were now playing with two identical iPod Shuffles. He shook his head, and Audrey relaxed, resumed showing the boys how to work them. The Shuffles, as it turned out, were loaded with her songs. “Now you can listen to me anytime you want,” she said.
“Yeah!” said Logan in a very loud voice, unaware of how loud he was with his earbuds and music playing.
“They can’t play with those now,” Mrs. LaRue said, one hand on the small of her back as she pushed bacon around in the pan. “They need to get a bath and get ready for Bible School.”
“I don’t want to go today,” Logan shouted, until Dustin pulled his earbuds from his ears and said
Sssh
. “I want to stay with Aunt Audrey,” Logan added.
“You’re going to Bible School, and I don’t want any argument from either of you. I got enough to do around here without having to watch you during the day. Right now I want you to go pick up your rooms.”
“I could watch them, Mom,” Audrey offered.
“
Yeeees
!” the boys cried in unison. “Please, Grandma?”
Mrs. LaRue looked at Audrey with surprise. “You’re going to be here that long?”
Once again, Jack could see the pain of her mother’s words slicing across Audrey’s features.
“I thought I’d stick around and make sure everything is okay,” she said uncertainly.
“I think they’d be better off in Bible School,” Mrs. LaRue said with a snort of disdain, and turned back to her bacon. “Go pick up your rooms!”
With a lot of grumbling, the boys went, their Shuffles in hand.
“So where’s Gail?” Audrey asked tightly, and to Jack, she said, “Gail is my sister.”
“You can ask her yourself,” Mom said. “She just drove up.”
As if on cue, Gail suddenly sailed through the back door. Like Audrey, she was somewhat tall, but unlike Audrey, she was also a little chunky. She had honey blond hair and was attractive, but a little weathered. She was wearing a short denim skirt and a low halter top. Her large breasts had no visible means of support that Jack could see, and hung down her chest. She was carrying a pair of espadrilles, her hair was a mess, and her mascara was smudged under her eyes.
She took one look at Audrey and her mouth curved into a warm smile. “
Audrey
!” she cried, dropping her shoes and hurtling toward her sister. “I knew you were here when I saw the cars outside!” she exclaimed as she grabbed Audrey in a bear hug. After a moment of squeezing the life out of her, Gail stepped back and examined Audrey from top to bottom. “You look fabulous! What are you doing here?” she cried, and caught sight of Jack. “Oh
hell
,” she said, grinning like a Cheshire cat. “Where did
he
come from?”
Before Audrey could answer, Gail gave her a stern look. “You didn’t break up with Lucas, did you?”
“Oh for God’s sake, Gail,” Mom muttered.
“
No
,” Audrey said, shaking her head. “No, Lucas and I are still together.”
Jack’s insides clenched.
“Did you color your hair?” Gail asked excitedly.
“Highlights.”
“Girl, it looks
good
. Maybe I oughta do that color.” She abruptly let go and moved to the coffeepot. “Pardon me while I get some coffee—I really need it. I’m getting too old to stay out this late!” She laughed as she helped herself to a cup. “
Dustin! Logan
!” she shouted, her voice bouncing off the yellowed kitchen walls as she poured. “I’m home!”
Logan was the first to arrive, launching himself at his mother’s legs. Dustin sauntered in a moment later, looking very sulky as he leaned against the door jamb.
Gail lifted Logan’s face and covered it with kisses. “Go put some clothes on,” she said.
“Take a bath!” Mrs. LaRue demanded.
“Take a bath,” Gail cheerfully corrected herself. She shifted her attention to Dustin. “Don’t look at me in that tone,” she said playfully. “C’mere, baby.”
Dustin reluctantly came forward. Gail messed with his hair, then hugged him tightly. Dustin never took his hands from his pockets. “See, baby? I’m home before you go to Bible School, just like I said I’d be. Now you go get cleaned up and dressed and I’ll take you.”
As Dustin slunk out, Gail turned the full force of her attention to Jack. She slurped her coffee as she sidled across the room and plopped down next to him.
“You are
cute
,” Gail said. “Who are you?”
“Audrey’s bodyguard,” Mrs. LaRue said snidely.
“No, he’s really . . . he’s my friend,” Audrey said.
“Some friend,” Gail snorted. “What’s your name, Cutie?”
“Jack Price. And yours?”
“I’m Gail Reynolds, about to be LaRue again in a couple of weeks. Audrey’s big sis,” she said, and made a show of leaning over Jack to look at his ring finger. “Oh goody.” She winked at him, then shifted her gaze to Audrey. “Looks like you gained a little weight,” she remarked. “Did you see
Us Weekly
? They gave you the prize for being the curviest.”
“They what?” Audrey exclaimed. “What does that mean, that I’m fat?”
Gail shrugged. “Maybe it just means you’re curvy.”
“
Fat
,” Audrey muttered, frowning down at herself.
At that moment, a man appeared in the doorway, looking even more disheveled than Gail. “Maybe it’s not fat. Maybe it’s the baby bump we’ve been reading about,” he drawled.
“Come on, you guys,” Audrey said, clearly uncomfortable. “How many times have I told you that you can’t believe any of that stuff? I’m not pregnant.”
“Uh-huh,” Gail said, her eyes twinkling. “You and Lucas have been together for what, nine years? It’s about time.”
“Not if they aren’t married, it’s not,” Mom barked.
Gail rolled her eyes at Mom’s back and then turned to Jack again. “So what brings you to the middle of hell?”
“Can I have his attention long enough to introduce Allen?” Audrey asked, pushing Gail back with her arm. “Jack, this is my brother, Allen.”
“Hey,” Allen said, extending his hand to shake Jack’s.
“Okay, that’s Allen. You didn’t say what you were doing here,” Gail said again.
“Audrey came for me,” Allen said with a sigh as he shuffled to the coffeepot. “I
told
you not to call her, Mom.”
“Why shouldn’t I call her?” Mom asked irritably. “Why should I have to deal with your crap by myself?”
“Well, what am I? Chopped liver?” Gail cried, and then winked at Jack as if she was playing some sort of game.
“You ain’t even got a job, Gail. How are you going to pay for his foolishness?” Mom asked, pointing a fork dripping with fat at Allen.
“Maybe he could come to California for a while,” Audrey suggested hopefully and looked at Allen. “You could hang out at the house and get it together while I’m on tour.”
Allen shook his head. “Can’t. My probation officer won’t let me. And besides, I got to get a job here. I think I can get on at the tool and dye.”
“That’s your answer to everything, isn’t it, Audrey?” Mrs. LaRue said coldly. “You just tell everyone to leave here. Well, I got news for you—your family is here. You can’t just leave and act like they don’t exist.”
“Oh Mom,” Gail said wearily.
“I don’t act like that,” Audrey said, her eyes wide with hurt. It almost seemed as if she were getting smaller and smaller and her family bigger and bigger. “I came as soon as I could. I was in the middle of a tour, but I left that to come home and be with my family, when apparently, I didn’t even need to.”
“You didn’t need to come?” Mrs. LaRue said angrily. “Then who do you think is going to pay for his trouble? I sure can’t.”
Jack almost gasped with outrage for Audrey.
“I . . . I can’t believe that is why you asked me to come home,” Audrey said, her voice gone soft.