Riverbend Reunion(24)

Risa set her empty whiskey cup on a side table. “There were good times, but . . .”

“Most of those involved the girls, not the family, right?” Haley asked.

Risa nodded. “You’d think seventeen years would amount to something. I did what he wanted, catered to his mother and the family, but you can’t imagine how mad he was when he found those pills. He accused me of cheating on him, of robbing him of sons, and of being a horrible wife. I was afraid he might finagle a way to take the girls away from me.”

“Has he called to check on them or sent you child support?” Haley was genuinely worried about Risa and the girls now that she knew the whole story. With that kind of mother behind him, Paul might try to take the twins from her.

“All I got from him was a note saying that divorce papers were on the way. He said in the text that I can have whatever I brought into the marriage, and full custody of the girls. Since he doesn’t actually own property, then there’s nothing to fight about,” Risa said.

“How do you feel? Empty? Relieved? Liberated?” Haley asked.

“All of the above,” Risa answered, “plus angry, and now kind of sad since my own mother kicked me out. Then I’m worried that all this will have a snowball effect on the girls’ self-esteem. They’ve always had to take a back seat to the boys in the Jackson family.”

“We’re kind of in the same boat,” Haley said, “only my mother did that years ago in a sense. Maybe the reason I wanted to be a counselor and help kids is because I knew down deep in my heart that something wasn’t right in my own family. But concerning your girls, I don’t see signs of them being anything but happy, so you can wipe that worry off your list. It’s okay to be angry and even sad. Embrace it. Own it. Let the girls feel whatever emotions they’re going to as well. And then toss it all out with the trash.”

“Good advice.” Risa sighed. “Got any special tricks on how to do that?”

“Hard work,” Haley answered. “You’ll be cooking for the crew and then, when the bar opens, for the public. You’ll be earning wages, making your own decisions, and living the way you want to.”

“You were right.” Risa covered a yawn with her hand. “Talking about all this has helped. I think I can sleep now.”

Haley pushed up out of the rocking chair and hugged Risa. “Good friends make good listeners, and you’ve helped me as much as I’ve helped you.”

“Anytime I can repay you for tonight, just let me know.” Risa gave Haley an extra hug.

“You already did. I don’t have to worry about selling this house or trying to move furniture.” Haley paused by the door.

“Funny how twenty years changes things, isn’t it? Hey, on a different note, do you think Jessica and Wade . . .” Risa wiggled her eyebrows.

“Nope.” Haley yawned. “Remember when we thought she might have a crush on him in high school? She would never admit it. I believe that was their moment and it has passed, but it is strange how he showed up at the church parking lot at the same time we did that night.”

“And how he’s offered to put up half the money for renovations and paychecks.” Risa started up the stairs. “Thanks again for taking us in.”

“Hey, I feel better with y’all in the house, so this is a win-win situation,” Haley said.

Risa stepped on the squeaky step and stopped. “We’ve got to fix this step.”

“No, we do not.” Haley giggled. “That step is going to tell you when Daisy and Lily come home past curfew. You don’t want to fix that thing until they are grown and gone.”

“Good advice.” Risa’s smile even reached her eyes that time.





Chapter Five


Jessica awoke to the sound of a vehicle’s engine right outside her new RV. Figuring it was a fisherman using the church parking lot to get to what was now just a pathway leading down to the fishing dock on the Lampasas River, she turned over and shut her eyes. The sun was just coming up and sending a thread of light through the window blinds right into her eyes. Since she couldn’t get back to sleep, she crawled out of the narrow space in the overhang above the cab of the RV, bumping her head on the way.

“Dammit!” she swore as she rubbed her forehead and slung the door open to see the tail end of a trailer carrying heavy equipment parked between the church and the barn. “Well, you got up at the crack of dawn,” she said and then heard the crunch of gravel signaling the approach of at least one more vehicle. Oscar waved as he passed in an old blue truck that looked pitiful, and yet the engine still purred like a baby kitten, and after that Risa’s truck came to a stop in front of Jessica’s RV.

Risa rolled down the window and said, “Good morning. The girls and I got up early and made a run up to Walmart for today’s food supply. I need keys to the church so we can get inside and put on a pot of coffee.”

“Bless your heart.” Jessica grabbed the keys from the hook beside the door and made a mental note to have extra keys made for all her . . . What were they? Friends? Family? Partners? She slipped her feet into a pair of flip-flops and headed out to the truck. “Turn on the AC when you get inside. No sense in us working in heat when we don’t have to, and thanks. I’ll be out there in a few. Risa, grab a piece of paper and write down your hours. You’re on payroll when you go to the store, just like you are when you are at work.”