The Barefoot Summer(42)

She had hoped that she could slip into the cabin and go right to her room. She didn’t want to argue or to even see those other two that night. She wanted to lie in her bed, stare through the darkness at the ceiling, and beg God to help her find closure. Kate’s Cadillac pulled up in front of the cabin at the same time Amanda did, canceling that idea.

Jamie was sitting in a rocker on the porch with her bare feet propped on the railing.

“This is not closure. This is another argument,” Amanda muttered as she got out of her truck and started across the yard with Kate on her heels.

“Where in the hell have y’all been?” Jamie asked. “Better yet, what have you been doing, Kate? You are barefoot.”

“I worked for Waylon driving a hay truck all afternoon, and then I had supper with him. Amazing steak! You should have tasted the pepper poppers. And I get paid for driving the hay truck anytime I want to work,” Kate answered, her tone so happy that it shocked Amanda.

“Why would you do that kind of work?” Amanda gasped. “And where are your shoes?”

“I remembered them when I was halfway home and didn’t want to go back and get them because I didn’t want Waylon to know his kiss affected me like that,” she answered. Words spilled out of her almost as if she were Gracie.

“Sweet angels in heaven.” Jamie rolled her eyes. “You better start at the beginning.”

“Before I even get a shower?” Kate grinned.

“Before you do anything. You can’t be sleeping with the enemy.” Amanda slapped the arm of the rocking chair. “Or maybe you are doing this to throw suspicion on us and get it off you. You sure that you didn’t kill Conrad?”

“For the last time, I did not kill him or have him murdered, either one. I’ve never had a sister, but I imagine this is the way siblings argue!” Kate grinned.

“We are not sisters in any sense of the word,” Amanda said coldly. God Almighty! There was no stretch of the definition that would ever make her own kinship with either of those two women. What had Kate been drinking or smoking? Or maybe she’d done a lot more than just kiss Waylon.

“That’s what Gracie said the first day we were here. She said we were like Sister Wives on television,” Kate said.

“Well, I don’t share well with others, and I would never have married Conrad if I’d known he already had two wives,” Amanda said. “I think sister wives have a screw loose in their heads.”

Jamie slapped a hand on her forehead. “Gracie’s babysitter watched that!”

“You need to be more careful about who you leave her with,” Amanda said.

Jamie shook a finger at her. “Don’t tell me how to raise my kid.”

“Don’t you two get your underbritches in a wad. You are definitely not my sisters in any sense of the word, and I’m damn sure glad—even if we are fighting like siblings. Here’s what happened.” Kate started at the beginning and told the tale with every detail, including how Waylon’s kiss made her feel. “So what should I do? Give up my job because I liked his kiss?”

Jamie pulled her dark hair up into a ponytail and secured it with a rubber band she took from the pocket of her denim shorts. “I expect that real sisters would act like we do sometimes.”

“But real sisters would love each other sometimes, too,” Amanda said. “And I don’t intend to ever love either one of you. However, if a parent died with no will and only one piece of property, they might all get a little greedy. As for you and your summer job, Kate, go for it.”

“I disagree. He’s just softening you up for information,” Jamie said.

“No, he is not,” Amanda argued. “He needs help on the ranch.”

Jamie held up a hand. “We’ll have to agree to disagree. Now, on to another subject. I got offered a job today, too.”

Well, crap! Amanda thought. That means she’ll probably stay here.

Kate sat up straighter. “Go on.”

“The principal and Victor want me to apply for a position that’s open, but I only have a week or two to think about it.” Jamie paused. “I could sell my house, and I wouldn’t have that mortgage hanging over my head. I could rent something here a lot cheaper, or maybe even live in the cabin until the probate court decides what’s happening to it.”

“Which, like Kate said, could take months, maybe years.” Amanda sat down in a rocking chair and frowned. Did living in the cabin mean the same as possession being ninety percent of the law?

Kate nodded and headed inside. “The cabin is better off if it’s occupied. What about Gracie? You should ask her what she thinks.”

Jamie and Amanda followed her. Amanda opened the cookie jar in the middle of the table and took out a fistful. Jamie went to the refrigerator and brought out a pitcher of freshly squeezed lemonade.

“Of course I’ll talk to her before I make a decision. But I know what she’ll say. She’s always, always loved this place, and she’ll float on clouds if she thinks we can stay here forever,” Jamie said.

“Well, she’s definitely like a breath of spring, spreading laughter and smiles everywhere.” Kate filled three glasses with ice cubes and set them on the table. “That lemonade looks wonderful. I haven’t had the real thing in years.”