Already Home (19 page)

“She never talks about anything that isn't directly related to her,” her mother continued. “She doesn't ask about anyone else. She's myopic and narcissistic.”

Jenna was stunned. “You really don't like her. I thought you did. I thought you two were getting along.”

“She's fine, in her own way,” Beth said grudgingly. “As long as you don't mind only talking about her. And that's not even what bothers me. What pisses me off is her assumption that you would have been better off with her.”

“She didn't say that.”

“It's implied in her guilt. As if she'd left you at the side of the road. What is there to be guilty about? You were loved and nurtured every second of your life. Is she saying she could have done it better? That we were lousy parents?”

“I don't think it was about you at all,” Jenna said slowly, feeling odd about having to defend Serenity.

“Of course not—because that would mean thinking about someone other than herself.” Beth shook her head. “She's good, I'll give her that. She's managed to weasel her way into every corner of your life. She even picked your boyfriend.”

“It wasn't like that.”

“Really?”

“You wanted me to get to know her.” Jenna couldn't figure out what they were fighting about.

“I know and I still stand by that.” She sighed. “She's just so damned annoying. Now you're going off to see the winery they named after you. If you were so precious to them, why didn't they get in touch with you before? Why didn't they contact us when you were younger?”

Jenna had wondered the same thing herself but not with Beth's energy. This probably wasn't the time to admit she'd started to like Serenity and appreciate having her around. Watching the vegan classes had opened her eyes to cooking possibilities. She couldn't deny that Serenity had inspired her in some important ways.

“Do you not want me to go to California?”

Her mother took a deep breath. “Of course you have to go. It's important that you see whatever it is they want you to see.” She looked at her. “I'm fine. Most of the time I can deal with her but every now and then she rubs me the wrong way. Like I said, it's the drama thing.” Beth paused and looked down. “You've been the center of my world so long, it's difficult to share.”

“Finally,” Jenna said, putting her hands on her hips. “All this time I've been telling you the whole thing is strange and you've been pushing me toward them. It took you long enough to feel threatened.”

Beth laughed. “Well, I am. I know it's irrational, but I can't help it.”

“Mom.” Jenna hugged her. “I love you so much. I'm not going anywhere.”

“You're going back to California. You might adore it and want to stay there again.”

“Different circumstances, I swear.” She paused. “As for Ellington, Serenity didn't pick him. She introduced us.”

“A subtle difference. You weren't interested in meeting anyone I mentioned.”

Jenna winced when she realized her mother was right. “I will. When I get back you can set me up to your heart's content.”

“I thought you liked the naturopath.”

“I do.”

“So why would you want to go out with anyone else?” She shifted her handbag over her shoulder. “It doesn't matter. I want you to be happy. That's the most important thing.” She glanced at her watch. “I need to run. I'm getting all my errands out of the way so I can stop by the store every day and get in Violet's way.”

“You won't be in her way.”

Beth ignored that. “You're leaving day after tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

“Give us a call when you arrive.”

“I will.” She hugged her mother again. “It's only for five days.”

“I know. I'm happy you're going. Really. You'll have a wonderful time.”

The words were right, as was the tone, but pain darkened her mother's eyes and something that might have been fear.

Jenna watched her leave, then rubbed her forehead. Nothing about this was turning out how she'd planned. The last thing she'd wanted to do was hurt Beth. Ironically, she was only going because her mother had suggested she give Serenity a chance.

Relationships were complicated, she reminded herself as she turned to answer a customer's question. Complicated and unpredictable.

 

Tiffany left at five, so Jenna was alone as she shut down for the day. After locking the front door, she closed out the cash register, then started stocking shelves. She wanted to leave the store in good shape when Violet arrived the following morning. She was just about to turn off the lights and head out the back when she heard a knock on the front door.

Why people couldn't read a Closed sign was beyond her, but it happened more often than not, she thought as she crossed to the front of the store. But instead of a customer, she saw a familiar dark-haired man. He was only a couple of inches taller than her and slim. When he saw her, he flashed a smile that used to have the power to bring her to her knees.

Yesterday she would have been terrified to see him again, worried about what he would say and how he could hurt her.
It was amazing what a short phone call could do to change a woman's perspective.

She opened the door and smiled. “Hello, Aaron.”

“Sweet Cheeks,” he said, sweeping into her store and lightly kissing her. “You look great. And this store. Amazing. How are you? I've been thinking about you, so I decided to stop by and see how you're doing.”

“L.A. is about twelve hundred miles away.”

He gave her his best smile, the sexy, slightly lazy one that had always made her want to push him down on the kitchen table. Now she saw the smile for what it was—an act.

“I miss you, Jenna. More than I thought I would. I miss us.”

“Really? You haven't called. Oh, wait. I take it back. You did call to tell me that someone you'd never met was trying to find me. You gave out my personal information. That was nice.”

“It wasn't bad, was it?” he asked, sounding horrified. “God, did someone try to hurt you?”

“No. It was fine. So why are you here?”

He drew in a deep breath and took both her hands in his. “Let's go have dinner. Or we can stop by a store and pick up some ingredients. We'll cook together. I miss that, Jenna. Us cooking, side by side. You were always so brilliant.”

“Um, I don't think so.”

He blinked in surprise. She could almost hear him thinking, “But hey. It's
me.
”

“Don't you want to spend time with me?” he asked, sounding more petulant than sexy.

“Not really.”

“But we have things to talk about. Jenna, you can't be happy here. A store? Really? Your heart and soul belong in
a kitchen. We did so much together. I hated it when you left.”

She pulled her hands free of his. “Hated it? You told me you'd never been faithful and that I was holding you back.”

“I was drunk.”

“It was ten in the morning, Aaron.”

She knew she could let him keep talking, get her pound of flesh, so to speak. Or she could be mature and tell him he was too late. It was the mature thing to do.

Besides, being mature was going to feel really good.

“You don't have to pretend,” she told him. “Tara Peters already called me.”

He stiffened, then relaxed into a smile. “Did she? Good. Then you know about her idea for us to work together. I think it's great.”

“No, that's not really what she said. She's interested in working with me, but she didn't seem that impressed by you.”

The friendly facade slipped. “What the hell did you tell her?”

“Nothing. She was doing all the talking. Oh, wait. I said yes.”

He glared at her. “I never thought you would play the bitter ex.”

She felt happy and free and filled with possibilities. “That would make me a bitter woman with a book contract, Aaron. You probably want to leave now.”

He started to speak, but she didn't stay to listen. Instead, she walked to the front door and held it open. “Have a safe trip home.”

He stalked past her, then turned. “You're nothing without me. This store is ridiculous. It can't possibly support a book deal.”

She stared at him, wondering what she'd ever seen in him and why she'd ever thought his opinion mattered.

“You know the best part?” she told him. “I don't even care if the book thing works out or not. I'm happy here, Aaron. I've made it work and you can't take that away from me.”

He was still sputtering when she closed and locked the door.

As she turned out the lights and walked into the back to collect her purse, she had to ask herself why she'd thought he was so special. She'd finally figured out she'd been wrong about him.

“I
'm sorry,” Ellington said, sounding frazzled. “Isaiah picked up this stomach bug somewhere and now my mom has it. He's finally feeling better, but she's worse and I can't get away.”

“I understand,” Jenna said, keeping the disappointment from her voice. She and Ellington had been planning an eveing together before she left for California.

“Do you?” he asked. “I'm sorry I won't be able to see you.”

She smiled. “I'm sorry, too. Anything I can do?”

“No, but thanks for offering. The pediatrician said he would be okay to go to school tomorrow. Now I just have to keep my mom hydrated.”

“You take your son to a pediatrician?”

Ellington chuckled. The sound was both weary and amused. “Sure. There are a whole lot of laws about doctors treating their own family members. Plus kids aren't my specialty.”

“But you've given him tree bark or whatever it is you'd prescribe.”

“Are you mocking me?”

“I've heard tree bark is very helpful.”

“It is, but you're mocking me.”

“Maybe a little.”

“Nice. I like a little mocking now and then.” He paused and she heard muffled conversation. “Sorry, I gotta run. Call me while you're gone?”

“Promise.”

“Good. Talk to you soon.”

She hung up and glanced at the clock, then wondered what she was supposed to do with the rest of her evening. She'd already packed and had been planning to spend the time with a certain handsome doctor.

She felt badly that he'd been having to deal with a sick kid and now a sick mother. If it was anything but tummy trouble, she would have taken over food. But with a stomach issue, it was best to leave the special dishes for another time. There were—

She sat up straight as she remembered Ellington saying something about a bake sale. Wasn't that this week?

Five minutes later she'd logged on to his son's elementary school and saw that the bake sale was tomorrow.

 

It was close to nine-thirty when she stopped in front of her garage. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ellington.

“Hello?”

“It's me,” she said. “Hope I'm not disturbing you.”

“Both patients are sleeping. Isaiah's energy is back, which is both good and bad, and my mom's improving.”

“I'm glad. Did you remember that tomorrow is the bake sale?”

There was a second of silence, followed by a lot of swearing.

She held in a laugh. “I'll take that as a no. It's okay. Go look on your front porch. I'll wait.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Go look.”

She heard him open the front door.

“You didn't,” he said. “Jenna, I don't know what to say.”

“Be careful when you pick it up. Then look inside.”

“I need to put the phone down.”

“I'll wait.”

A moment later he was back. “I can't believe you made these.”

She smiled, picturing the cupcakes she'd baked, then decorated to look like a bright gold C3PO from
Star Wars.
“My homage to your obsession. I hope Isaiah likes them.”

“He's going to love them. That was very thoughtful.” He cleared his throat. “Thank you.”

“You're welcome.”

“I'm going to miss you.”

She leaned back in her seat. “Then my work here is done.”

She heard him laugh.

“I'm going to miss you, too,” she admitted.

“Then we have that in common.”

“I'll call you while I'm gone,” she promised.

“I look forward to that and seeing you when you get home.”

“Night, Ellington.”

“Good night.”

 

Dragon was waiting at the San Francisco airport, looking as tall and handsome as she remembered. Several women eyed him as he took Jenna's suitcase.

“Do you get that everywhere?” she asked as they hugged. “The female attention.”

“Everyone suffers,” he said with a grin. “I bear my pain as best I can.”

She laughed. “Thanks for picking me up.”

“You're welcome. I'm part of the entertainment for the weekend, so you're not getting rid of me. Mom and Dad got in late last night. Rather than make them take the drive again, I said I'd bring you.”

They walked to his car—a silver BMW 550i—and she watched as he put her suitcase in the trunk.

“I'll warn you my parents have the entire visit planned down to the second. There's going to be plenty of eating and drinking. While I don't object to the drinking part, I was thinking we could stop and get a burger on our way out of town.”

He looked so hopeful as he spoke that she had to laugh.

“That sounds great,” she told him.

“It won't be up to your excellent standards. I'm still dreaming about that dinner you fixed for me.”

“Next time you're in town, I'll make you something else.”

“Promise?” he asked, holding open the passenger door for her.

She made an X over her left breast. “I swear.”

They stopped at a diner with big windows and comfy booths. They both asked for burgers with the works, an order of fries and an order of onion rings to share. Dragon pulled two small disposable toothbrushes out of his shirt pocket and waved them.

“For after,” he said. “Mom can smell meat on my breath from a mile away. When I was a kid, I tried chewing grass to disguise what I'd been eating, but it never worked.”

She stared at him. “You're what? Thirty? A successful at
torney who has his own life. Can't you simply tell her this is your choice and to lay off you?”

He scrunched his face and shook his head. “I don't think so. When was the last time you really stood up to your mother? How did that work for you?”

“Good point.”

Dragon sighed. “I'm saying it all wrong. Mom is great. I joke about her, but seriously, she couldn't have been more supportive. Maybe I didn't always love the food, but there was lots of freedom at our house. There were just enough rules to keep us safe, but otherwise, we got to do what we wanted. I knew whatever happened, whatever I chose, she would be there for me.”

“I've heard Serenity talk about you and Wolf. It's obvious how much she loves you both.”

“We love her and Dad just as much.”

The waitress brought their sodas.

“I'm looking forward to seeing the family home,” Jenna said. “From what I've heard, it's beautiful.”

“You'll like it. It's big and bright, with lots of windows. Nearly all the materials are recycled, which gives the place a lot of character.” He grinned. “Wolf is just like Mom and Dad. Totally organic, vegan.”

“I heard Jasmine weaves her own cloth.”

“Oh, yeah. She's currently weaving diapers from organic, unbleached cotton. She's sweet enough, but not my style.” His gaze sharpened slightly. “How's Violet?”

“Still seeing Cliff.”

“Bummer. Let me know if they break up.”

While she kind of liked the idea of Violet dating her brother, it wasn't what she would call a practical relationship. “You live a thousand miles from her.”

“For the right motivation, I could move.”

She raised her eyebrows. “That's a long way to go to get laid.”

He fell back in the booth, his hands spread across his chest. “You wound me. I'm a good guy.”

“You're a hound dog. You sleep with women because you can.”

“I'm looking to change. I'm older now.” He grinned. “Not as old as you, of course.”

“Of course.”

“I liked her.”

“If you tell me the universe said she was the one, I'm not sharing my onion rings with you.”

“The universe and I don't talk much. I just liked Violet. I want to get to know her better. I could get a temporary assignment in Austin and see where things went.”

Which all sounded nice, but as much as she liked Dragon, she couldn't help wondering if he was all flash and no substance.

“Have you ever been in a serious relationship?” she asked.

He sighed. “Once. College. She was brilliant. My age, but in a master's program. I was crazy about her. But I was eighteen, newly freed from parental restrictions. My big plan was to finish my freshman year with decent grades. She was graduating and heading off to Europe to work for NATO. I couldn't be what she needed. She married a Swedish prince or something.”

She stared at him. “Is any part of your story true?”

“The broken heart part is. Since then I haven't met anyone who intrigues me. Until Violet. Mom says that there is more than one right someone for each of us and not to give up hope.”

“I hope she's right about that,” Jenna murmured. “Although she and Tom have been together since high school.”

“Not everyone gets that lucky.” He grinned. “She's fixed me up a few times and the relationships have gone surprisingly well.”

Something Jenna could relate to. Ellington had been Serenity's idea. Still…

“If you're serious about Violet, you're putting a lot on a thirty-second conversation.”

“I'm a romantic.”

She laughed. “While I wouldn't change a thing about my past, I have to say, it would have been fun to grow up with you as a brother.”

He winked.

 

After they'd finished their lunch and brushed their teeth, they got back on the road. Dragon kept Jenna entertained with stories about growing up. Tales of recycling experiments gone wrong and the cow Serenity had bought to provide milk, only to have it get loose in her spring garden and eat everything back to the dirt.

“The winery itself has some old vines, which gave my folks a place to start,” he said as he followed the signs pointing to Napa. “They didn't have the usual downtime waiting for the vines to mature. Mom made different kinds of crafts to supplement the money coming in. We lived pretty simply.”

“No TV?”

“We had TV. They thought it was good for us to experience the world, and television brought the world to us.”

“The original house on the property is now the tasting room,” he continued. “Dad, Wolf and I built our house ourselves, with a little help from local contractors. Like I said, nearly everything is recycled, repurposed or reused. She did want new appliances, though.”

“I've seen a couple of great stoves from decades ago,” Jenna said, remembering a white monster with three different ovens in a friend's house in Los Angeles. “They're beautiful, but not always practical.”

“The kitchen is Mom's pride and joy, so you'll get points for noticing.” He glanced at her. “Not that you need the points.”

Jenna turned to him. “When did you know about me?”

He shrugged. “Always. I can't remember when I didn't. They would talk about you now and then. Our big sister. When I was little, I would ask when I would get to meet you.”

“What did they say?”

“When the time was right you would come to us.”

The information only confused her more. “Why would they talk about me, make me real to you, and do nothing about it? What if I'd never wanted to find them? I mean, you.”

He kept his eyes on the road. “If you're looking for logic, you've come to the wrong place. Mom lives by her own rules. I never knew what she was waiting for and now…”

“Now, what?” Jenna asked.

“Now's when she decided it was time for her to find you.” He flashed her a smile. “The universe doesn't check in with me.”

“Me, either,” Jenna said, staring out the side window.

It wasn't that she
wanted
her birth parents to have shown up sooner, exactly. But an explanation would be nice.

“Families are complicated,” she murmured.

“Yes, they are.”

They drove around vineyards and small towns. The sky was blue, the grape leaves a vivid green in neat rows that
stretched out for miles. As Dragon signaled a right turn, she saw the sign pointing toward Butterfly Wines.

She found herself wishing she'd brought someone with her for a little moral support. Ellington, she thought wistfully. He would be fun to travel with.

Her hamburger sat heavily in her stomach, making her wonder if eating it had been the smart thing to do. Not that she had anything to be nervous about. She already knew Serenity, Tom and Dragon. She only had Wolf and his wife left to meet.

“Wolf doesn't resent me, does he?” she asked, trying not to sound anxious.

Dragon patted the back of her hand. “No. Don't sweat it. We're family. Everybody here wants you here.” He flashed another smile. “Trust me.”

They drove past the beautiful old farmhouse that was now the tasting room, continuing down a road with a sign declaring it “Private.”

They dipped down into a valley. The vineyards stretched out on either side, as far as the eye could see. After a couple more curves, she could see a two-story house sitting on a slight rise.

“You didn't say it was a log cabin,” she breathed, taking in the huge house, the wraparound porch and the flowers blooming from pots and planters.

“It's sixty-five-hundred square feet. Hardly a cabin.”

She turned to him. “You said you built it with your dad. You can't have built a house this big.”

“I said we had help.”

She laughed. “What exactly did you do?”

“I hung a door.”

She was still laughing when he pulled up in front of the house and parked. Before she could do much more than
climb out of the car, Serenity had burst through the front door and hurried toward her.

“You're here,” her birth mother said, rushing toward her, arms held open wide. “You're finally here.”

As Serenity embraced her, holding on as if she would never let go, Jenna realized the “finally here” comment wasn't about the fact that Serenity and Tom had flown in the night before. It was the relief of a mother who had been waiting thirty-two years for her child to come home.