Beauty and the Mustache (36 page)

“
Darrell Winston, get off
my property. This is the last time I’m telling you.” Drew stepped
forward and Jethro flanked him. I didn’t want Drew to touch him. He
was an awful, evil man, and I didn’t want Drew to have any contact
with him.

I walked out from Roscoe’s
hold and stood in the center of the porch, crossing my arms over my
chest. “Yes, Darrell. That’s my man. And he just told you to get
off his property. There is nothing for you here. All the money is
gone. The house belongs to Drew. Momma left you a checking account
with exactly sixty-three dollars in it. That’s enough money for you
to buy a tank of gas, a six-pack of beer, and get out of
town.”

“
Ashley, did your momma
give you my house?” My father was shouting now, and his smile was
gone. Even in the stark twilight, I could see his face growing
red.

“
No.” I
shook my head. “No, she didn’t. She left us nothing.”
Nothing except peace of mind, love, memories,
laughter, wisdom…and Drew
.

My father backed up as
Drew, Cletus, and Jethro strolled forward, yet his gaze was affixed
to me. “This ain’t over. You think just ’cause I’m leaving this is
over, but it ain’t. This house is mine. That money is mine. You are
all mine. You belong to me. What’s yours is mine. You’re my
blood.”

“
You ain’t shit.” Billy
spat.

“
Shut your mouth,
William.” My father was even with the door to his car now; he
turned a snarl on Billy, his blue eyes flashing mean and wicked at
his son who might as well have been his physical clone. “I’ve beat
you once, and I’ll beat you again.”

Billy surprised us all by
laughing. “You think I couldn’t have fought back, old man? I was
twelve, but I knew where the rat poison was kept. I let you beat
me. It was the only way to get you out of our lives. You hit Momma,
but she would’ve taken it forever. You hit one of her babies, she
became a momma bear.”

I was gratified to realize
that I wasn’t the only one staring at Billy with shock and wonder.
It seemed none of my brothers had known that Billy was the
architect of our freedom, and at twelve years old.

My father made a movement like he was
getting ready to charge at Billy, but Jethro and Cletus blocked his
path and pushed him back to his car.

“
It’s time to go,” Jethro
said, pointing at our father.

“
Yes. It’s time for you to
go,” Cletus said, then he pointed at the wheels of Darrell’s car
and added, “But it might also be time for you to invest in a new
set of tires. At least get them rotated for the safety of other
vehicles on the road.”

Darrell scowled at his
third son then he aimed his anger at me. “This ain’t over. I’ll be
back.”

He slammed the door to his
black Mustang and peeled out of our gravel driveway. We all watched
the car until it left the property and pulled onto Moth Run Road.
Then we waited until it was out of sight. Even then, we all stood
in our places for several long seconds.

Cletus was the first to
move. He walked to Drew and clapped him on the shoulder. “Welcome
to the family, Andrew. You two will make beautiful
children.”

“
Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than
outright dislike
.”

―
J.K.
Rowling,
Harry Potter and the Order
of the Phoenix

I was up
in my room laying down when Drew found
me.

“
There you are.” He
crossed to the bed, sat on the edge of it, and pulled me into a big
bear hug. Then, he cussed. He cussed and he cussed, and he did this
for a long time. He also mentioned my father’s name more than a few
times.

Darrell Winston had left
approximately two hours ago. I was the first one in the house, and
I made a beeline for my room. I lay on my bed and stared at the
ceiling. I needed some quiet time with my thoughts. I wasn’t hiding
so much as trying to get my head on straight.

But I was also hiding. I
didn’t want to face my brothers after claiming Drew as my man.
Heck, I didn’t want to face Drew either.

I thought about Momma and
the upcoming funeral.

Over the past forty days,
I think I grieved for her every hour. In a way, I grieved for her
before she died. And now that she was gone, I grieved for her
still. Part of me wondered, however, if the grief would have been
sharper, more debilitating, if I hadn’t been given the month to say
goodbye.

I thought about her
sickness and wondered if I could have done anything differently.
Then I remembered one of the last things she’d said to me: not to
feel guilty about things that were beyond my control. These words
made feel better, steadier.

And then I thought about Chicago.

I thought about my life
there, my friends, my job, my apartment, my books, my things. My
job allowed three months’ leave of absence to take care of an
ailing family member, but they only allowed five days for funerals
and bereavement. It was quite likely that I would be back in
Chicago in one week’s time or less.

This thought gave me
pause. I was excited to see my friends. I missed them terribly. I
missed the city. I also missed my apartment and my job, but to a
much lesser extent.

This last month and a half
happened. My mother’s sickness and death happened. The bonding and
rekindling of my relationships with most of my brothers happened,
the notable exception being Billy, who still seemed to hold me at
arm’s length.

Also, Drew happened…and
that’s where my brain stalled. Because I didn’t know what to think
about Drew. I didn’t know how to feel about him or what I was
allowed to feel about him.

He’d told me more than
once that he didn’t need anything from me. He’d said that my life
was in Chicago. What did that mean for us?

Furthermore, was there an
‘us’?

Or was all this just a
good man trying to help his friend’s family through a difficult
time?

Now, sitting on my bed,
angry with my father on my family’s behalf, I felt absolutely no
clarity on the issue. Drew holding me close made it especially hard
to imagine a future without him in it.

My hands went to his hair
and I stroked it back from his face, encouraging him to lean away
so I could look at him.

My words were meant to
sooth his waspish temper. “Hey, it’s over, yeah? He’s gone. He
doesn’t know it yet, but there’s nothing he can do to hurt us. You
and Momma made sure of that.”

Drew studied me; his eyes
felt more vivid to me than before, hot steel and silver. “Ashley,
let me take you home with me, just for the next few days until the
funeral is over and the will is read and Darrell sees that there’s
nothing for him here.”

His offer caught me off
guard; I stared at him and he stared back. A little voice in my
head wanted to say,
You’re confusing me,
Drew. You can stop taking care of me now. She’s gone. And I’m going
to be okay.

I decided I didn’t know
what to say or think about the two of us. Maybe there wasn’t
anything to say. Maybe we would get through the funeral, he’d wish
me well, I would board a plane back to Chicago, and that would be
that.

This thought left me numb,
so I opted for honest politeness. “Thank you, Drew. That’s a really
nice offer. But I’m afraid I can’t accept.”

He winced at my words,
blinking twice. His expression changed as he studied my face.
“What’s going on, Ash?”

I disentangled myself from
his arms and stood; I walked to my dresser and faced him. “I don’t
want to leave my brothers alone, not now.”

Drew’s eyes narrowed as he
watched me. “Darrell’s fixated on you. You can’t take a step
outside this house, Ash; it’s not safe. He might charge in
here.”

“
I know, I know—it’s just,
I left them before. When I went to college, I left them.” Billy had
taken a beating for all of us. There was no way I was going to
leave my brothers now.

“
No, Sugar. You lived your
life.” Drew stood from the bed and walked to me. He was reaching
out for me, but he stopped when I crossed my arms.

Drew took a step back,
frowning, but continued to press his point. “You didn’t abandon
your brothers then, and you’re not doing it now. Just…come with
me.”

“
I did. I did abandon
them.” I thought over the last six weeks or so and how Billy was
perpetually irritated by my presence. “I can’t leave them
now.”

“
Your daddy’s focus will
be on this place because he doesn’t understand yet. No one in town
knows where I live. He can’t get to you up on the mountain. Plus, I
think your brothers need this. They need a battle to fight. You
come with me.”

“
Drew….”

The door to my room opened. Jethro and Billy
walked in, glancing from Drew to me then around my room.

Billy frowned at my suitcase, open and messy
on my floor. “You getting ready to go?”

I surmised they were
talking about Drew’s offer to take me to his house. I glared at
Drew for a quick second to show my displeasure that he’d talked to
my brothers about this before talking to me, and then I placed my
hands on my hips and addressed Billy directly.

“
No, I am not ready to go.
I’m not going anywhere. And I do not enjoy being discussed while I
am not present.” Then, not hiding my disappointment and frustration
that he’d gone behind my back, to Drew I said, “You should have
talked to me about this first.”

“
Ashley Austen Winston,
this wasn’t Drew’s idea. This was my idea. You cannot be here. You
need to leave.” Billy’s quarrelsome tone was a surprise, and I
found his eyes boring into me with stark exasperation.

After my initial
astonishment wore off, a surge of heated irritation swelled,
leaving me seeing red. “William Shakespeare, you quit being ugly.
You’ve been throwing snarky remarks in my direction since I
arrived. I know you don’t like me much, and I’m sorry that I left
you all eight years ago, but I’m here now. And that’s got to count
for something.”

Billy looked like he was
ready to pitch a fit, but Jethro stepped between us, blocking our
view of each other, and spoke to me in his most reasonable
voice.

“
Now, rest your feathers,
Ashley. You know that’s not true. Billy loves you same as the rest
of us. Honey, let Drew take you to his house. He explained
everything, and I know he’s not your man. He’ll keep you safe from
Darrell.”

I blinked at that, again
taken by surprise, and opened my mouth to protest, but
Jethro
shushed
me
and pulled me into an embrace. “Listen, it’s just for a bit, maybe
just one night. But I think we all would sleep better knowing you
were out of our father’s reach.”

“
I’m safe here,” I argued.
“How much safer can I get? I’m surrounded by my six hillbilly
brothers.”

He breathed a laugh and
laid his cheek on the top of my head. “Ash, I honestly don’t know
what Darrell is going to do next. He could break in here with a
gun; he could try to set the place on fire. He’s crazy. What I do
know is that Drew is a federal law enforcement officer and his
daddy is a US senator. He can arrest Darrell on sight if he has to.
Besides, he lives on top of the mountain at Bandit Lake. Navigating
those roads is like trying to pee in a thimble while drunk and
blindfolded. No one knows exactly where Drew lives except me and
maybe Roscoe.”

“
But….”

“
But nothing, hon.” Jethro
pulled away but his hands rested on my shoulders, his light brown
eyes penetrating, almost hostile. “Please, Ash. Please go with
Drew. Please let him take you home and keep you safe.”

I blinked and glanced to
the side. My eyes were scratchy from crying. My voice was nasally
when I spoke, and I knew my frustration was bleeding through. “I’m
not helpless, Jethro. I’ve been taking care of Momma for the last
month. I made sure she was bathed and comfortable, and that she’d
eaten. I live by myself in Chicago. I put myself through
college.”

“
Honey, Ash, no one is
questioning the fact that, out of all of us, you are the most
capable of living in the real world and making good decisions. But
Darrell Winston is not one to be reasoned with.” Jethro released a
pained breath, his eyes were glassy. His fingers flexed on my
shoulders and he shook me a little when he spoke, his voice
unsteady. “Honey, you are precious to us. You are precious to me.
We just lost Momma. You are my baby sister, and I
can’t-”

“
Okay, okay.” I cut him
off because he was working himself into a tiff. The last thing I
wanted was to argue with my brothers. If they wanted me to go with
Drew, if it gave them peace of mind, then I would go with
Drew.

Jethro exhaled, closed his
eyes in relief, and he gave me a big hug. “Thank you.”

My eyes locked with
Drew’s, whose gaze was inscrutable; his mouth was a flat line. I
couldn’t guess what he was thinking for all the world.

“
It’s fine,” I sniffled,
not liking that I’d been emotionally blackmailed into leaving. When
Jethro finally took his hands from my shoulders, I spoke to all
three of them, holding my index finger in front of me like a sword.
“But let the record show that I’ve agreed to this only under
duress.”