Elise looked at him with a strange expression, like she had never heard him laugh before.Maybe she hadn’t.
He grabbed my hand and yanked me inside. His lips found the cusp of my ear and he whispered, “I don’t know how to date or impress a woman but Elise’s cooking will either make you fall in love me or her.”
The humor was so unexpected that it almost knocked me back. I cracked a smile but it quickly disappeared when I saw all the guys sitting around the table by the kitchen and children playing in the living room. One of the little girls rushed at Derek and wrapped her arms around his waist. He picked her up and kissed her hairline. I didn’t know why I was so nervous, I had met all of them before. But this was different. I was getting the chance to be one of them instead of their beer lady. Ian held up his beer and whooped at me. The rest of the guys smiled as they saw me and complimented my natural hair.
Elise rolled her eyes at the stove. “They don’t know how to be decent, I swear. But I do love your hair too. The wigs are nice, but this is different. It’s gorgeous.”
I breathed out a soft thanks and tried to give myself an internal pep talk. It wasn’t working, especially when Elise turned around with her large spoon and pointed it at me. “So you work at Halona’s?”
I bit the inside of my cheek and idled closer to the little woman. How was it we were the only two tonight? “I own it.”
She grinned. “That’s incredible! Good for you! You’re so young, how did you make that happen?”
The one question I hated and always lied about. But I couldn’t lie now. I had promised myself that I would stop hiding and running away. I needed to face this head-on too. Derek was busy with the kids on the floor and I knew if I was going to get it out, doing it while he was distracted was the best option.
“That’s a long dark story,” I warned.
Elise went back to her pot and put the lid on it. When she turned back to me her face was different, vulnerable. “I know all about dark. If you tell me your story, I’ll tell you mine.” She nodded to the patio and grabbed two bottled waters. She handed me one of them and led the way. I settled down in one of the rocking chairs and she slid the doors closed until there was only a tiny crack left.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Derek
Leaveit to Elise to meddle just like her mother. I pretended to play with the kids. Eric’s toddler was here, staying with Jace and Elise until they had their twins. They had gone to the hospital early this morning and I wondered if they were going to have the twins tonight or tomorrow. We still hadn’t heard anything. There would probably be an update soon. Everly, Jace’s little girl, talked about anything and everything like we hadn’t seen each other yesterday. When things got hard, it was always best to bring myself to their home. Elise always welcomed me with open arms and Everly always talked my ear off until I couldn’t hear my own thoughts anymore. Darren was seated at the table but his wife wasn’t here. She was probably tending to their kids and didn’t want to add to the chaos or at least, that was what she hinted at in the group chat.
I planted another kiss on Everly’s brow and sat at the table with the guys. They were talking about playing cards and the funeral tomorrow. I pretended to listen but all I cared about was what Aiyanna was about to tell Elise on the other side of the sliding doors. I had been able to hear everything they said in the kitchen, but now I had to focus a little harder on their voices to make out the story.
“I inherited the bar.”
Elise chuckled. “Lucky girl.”
Aiyanna’s voice didn’t sound happy or lucky. “No,” She corrected her. “It wasn’t luck, it was kindness. Ten years ago I was homeless.”
“Oh my goodness,” Elise leaned forward and put her hand on Aiyanna’s. Aiyanna looked down surprised. Elise was like that. She was loud and opinionated but she was kind and loved deeply. She was one of a kind and Jace was a lucky bastard.
“I left abuse in my reservation just to be abused out in the real world too.” Her voice broke and something inside of me did with it. “I hitchhiked across the United States. When I got to Vivian’s truck, I was beaten up and battered beyond recognition. I had been starved, held against my will, and raped for months. Possibly years. The time frame was rough. I was fourteen and didn’t know what year or month it was when I got away from one truck driver, just to find another one as equally horrible. When Vivian found me I was ready to die.”
Rage surged through me at her words. I clenched my fists and that’s when I realized the table was quiet. The guys were listening too. Their eyes watched me carefully. Jace held his beer out to me but I turned away. I looked at the two women. The two damaged women that had found each other. They grasped each other’s hands as if their lives depended on it. I couldn’t see their faces but I knew Elise was crying. Her shoulders shook softly and I felt protective over them both. They had been through hell and back and here they were, creating a bond through their brokenness. Through their will to survive.
“Vivian found me in Kentucky and told me she wasn’t going to let me go. She had insisted that she bring me back to the reservation, but I was adamant against the idea. I told her that I would die there if she took me back. She cared for me like no other. She owned Jack’s with her husband but she loved to travel and she picked up different trucking work. She liked to hotshot and repo vehicles. After she found me, she retired. She homeschooled me and made sure I knew how to make an honest living at the bar before it opened. I cleaned the place spotless every morning. After her husband, Jack, died she was never the same. I didn’t know the bar was left to me until she passed a few short years after. I was getting ready to run away again. I had everything that ever meant anything to me packed in the little hatchback they bought me and was ready to bolt when the lawyer showed up as I was leaving. He must have known my story because he treated me like an injured animal.” Jace’s green eyes met mine and there was understanding in the depths, like he knew why I was drawn to the broken woman outside. I had never told Jace my story or what happened but the records of what happened that night were public and if he dug, he would find out everything.
As he stared at me, I knew he knew. He had done the work, he knew my demons and I didn’t know how it made me feel. I looked away and watched the way the women clung to each other. Sadness gripped my heart in a tight vice.
“The bar made more money than I had ever seen in a lifetime. They had ample savings set aside for me to go to college if I wanted to. For years I knew my mother sent those guardian angels to watch over me. I still believe it now. I miss them a lot, as much as I miss my mother.” She coughed and I wondered how much of a mess she was out there. The smell of the jambalaya cooking in the kitchen wrapped around me. Jace got up to check it before he came back with a few more beers. I gave the one meant for me to Ian and he gave me a grin. I cocked an eyebrow as I realized he was alone. Where was that date he asked about bringing?
“I changed the name to Halona’s because that was my mother’s name.” Her voice was softer, like telling someone her story had taken the weight from her shoulders. Like it was easier to bear the weight of her story now that someone else carried it too. I looked at the men sitting around the table and realized they were carrying it for her too. I had never been as thankful for those men as I was at that moment. Their backs were straight as they watched me like I did them.
I nodded once to acknowledge how much I appreciated them. Aiyanna didn’t know it but she had changed me. It was something about her story and letting go that helped me change something within myself. I couldn’t hold onto the pain anymore. I had to let someone else carry the weight with me.
There was a soft cry in the other room that soon turned into a wail. Jace and Elise’s baby boy was waking up for the night. Elise got up to go to him, her face was red from crying and there was some makeup smudged under her eyes. I held my hand up and went to retrieve the little booger. Little Henry looked up at me from his crib with big brown eyes. I scooped him up and went back into the kitchen. Jace had a big bottle full of boobie milk waiting for the little guy on the table. He cooed as I popped the bottle into his mouth. The men watched me with guarded expressions. This was the first time I had held Henry. I had been too afraid when he was first born, he was so tiny but now he was a little bit bigger. He was almost a year old and chunky as all get out. I didn’t think I was going to break this one. Everly watched me from the floor where she played with her Barbie dolls. She smiled and continued to play with Eric’s little girl. Ian smacked my back as he walked to the fridge to get another beer.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Aiyanna
I hadn’t expectedto fall in love with the huge, tight-knit family that had opened their arms to me. It was overwhelming but incredible. When we walked back into the room, I knew they had all heard my story by the way they watched me. I had expected to see pity on their faces but instead, I found acceptance and love. I didn’t realize why until Elise told me her story of abuse and almost death as she and Jace found love for each other again. It felt weird but beautiful as I realized I had inherited another family.
Everly had peppered me with tons of questions which I hadn’t minded. She was adorable even if she didn’t stop talking. Seeing Derek holding a baby did all the wrong and right things to my insides. It apparently had some kind of effect on everyone else too because all they did was give us both odd looks for the rest of the night.
