Part 17 (1/2)
”Sorry, I got tied up with something. I hope you weren't waiting too long.”
”Five minutes,” I admitted. ”So what have you been doing? And why are we in your truck and not your patrol car?
”I took this afternoon off,” he said.
”With a killer loose in Rebel Forge?”
”This couldn't wait till later,” he said.
As he started driving, I said, ”Is there any chance your dear, sweet wife has any chocolate cake lying around?”
”If she does, she's better at hiding things than I am at finding them. Would you like me to stop someplace for you?”
”Honestly, I'm in the mood for some pizza and some cake, but it can wait. Right now all I want is to get home and relax. Bradford, that was my turn back there.” My brother had completely blown past the path that led to Whispering Oak.
”Trust me, I know what I'm doing”
”Listen, big brother, you're going to cancel whatever it was you had planned. I'm not in the mood for any surprises this evening.”
”Then you're not going to be very happy,” he said softly.
”We're not going to your house, are we? I'm fine on my own. Honestly. Just take me home.”
”That's what I'm doing,” Bradford said.
I turned around and pointed. ”It's back there, remember?”
”Not anymore,” he said, ”What do you think I've been doing all afternoon? Sara Lynn, Lillian and I moved you out of Whispering Oak, including Oggie and Nash.”
”You what?” I screeched. ”I wasn't even finished packing.”
”We took care of it for you,” he said. ”I'm sorry, but your car's still parked there. I'll take you over to pick it up tomorrow.”
”I can't believe you did this.” It was just like my family, b.u.t.ting in and offering help when none was needed.
”Believe it,” he said. ”It was Sara Lynn's idea, and I wasn't about to say no. She had a good time, and it seemed to get her mind off her problems, so be gracious, would you?”
”Maybe I did overreact a little,” I said. ”It really did help her?”
”The only thing that would have made it better would have been if you were there, too, but part of the kick for her was doing this as a surprise for you.”
”Okay, I'll be gracious,” I said. ”But it's going to be a stretch.”
”Did you think that was a news flash? I've known you longer than anybody should.”
He paused at the gate of my new place, then punched in a set of numbers. As he drove in, he chose a path I hadn't seen earlier. ”Do I have my own entrance?”
He laughed. ”I guess in a way you do. They can't even see you come and go at the main house. I think it was designed that way on purpose. You've got more privacy than anybody needs here. The way it was situated, it wouldn't surprise me if they couldn't even see your lights from the house.”
”I like that,” I said.
”I knew you would.” He stopped in the trees just before we got to the cottage. ”Listen, we all worked really hard on making the place feel like home. It would help if you could smile once or twice, even if you're not feeling it.”
”Got it. Fake it till I make it.”
”Jennifer, you know what I mean.”
I wanted to pat his shoulder, but my wrist really did hurt. I doubted it would be healed by the time I would have been evicted, so my family really had helped me out. I just wished it would have been at my bidding and not theirs.
As Bradford pulled up in front of the place, Sara Lynn and Lillian came out to greet us.
”Surprise!” they shouted.
”It's that, all right,” I said. ”You all really shouldn't have. It's too much.”
Sara Lynn hugged me, and I noticed that she was being careful of my wrist. ”Nonsense. We were happy to do it. It looks lovely,” she added.
”I can't wait to see it. How do my roommates like it?”
Lillian smiled. ”You're kidding, right? There are so many places to swoop down from, they both think they've gone to cat heaven.”
I walked inside and took it all in. They'd done a marvelous job, even adding fresh flowers to the small dining table in the kitchen. ”Those are beautiful,” I said as I saw the skillfully arranged roses, baby's breath and ferns.
”Thanks,” Bradford said.
”You picked them out?” I asked.
”Hey, I'm not completely without taste.”
Lillian and Sara Lynn looked at me, but n.o.body said a word. Bradford said, ”I don't get any respect in this family.”
I kissed his cheek. ”Thank you, it was thoughtful of you to bring me flowers.”
”Okay, it was Cindy's idea, but I picked them out. Well, I picked them up, anyway. She ordered them and had them waiting for me at the florist.”
We all laughed, including Bradford. Lillian asked, ”Would you like some company tonight, or would you like to settle in by yourself? You won't offend us if that's your preference, I promise you.”
”I'd love to have a housewarming party,” I said. ”Just not tonight. My wrist's aching, and I just want to grab a bite and go to sleep early.”
”That's fine,” Sara Lynn said. ”We'll do something next weekend, once you've had a chance to settle in.”
Lillian nodded her agreement, then said, ”There's a pizza in the oven, and we took the liberty of stocking your refrigerator. I hope you don't mind.”
”No, I think I can live with that,” I said, smiling. Okay, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing being the baby of the family. Sometimes it was nice being pampered.
I walked them outside, and Bradford said, ”I'll pick you up bright and early.”
”I'll let you come get me on one condition,” I said. ”We go get my car so I don't have to rely on the kindness of strangers to get back and forth from work.”
”You're calling your dear, sweet brother a stranger?” he asked.