The Strawberry Hearts Diner(33)

Fourth. “What if he changes his mind and my heart is broken?”

Her thumb went up. “What if I disappoint all y’all?”

When she held up the other hand, Nettie reached over and closed both into fists.

“We can’t let the past run our lives. We have choices. You can decide not to be like your dad. You can decide to sit still right here in Pick and see if you like it. You can decide to leave after you give me a six-month notice. All of those are your choices, but remember with each one comes a different set of consequences.”

Jancy pulled her hands free and hugged Nettie. “Thank you, but my decisions haven’t netted me much other than heartache. I learned to be tough and take care of myself, but I wasn’t always the sharpest knife in the drawer when it came to reading people.” She stepped back and gave Nettie a sharp look. “Six months?”

Nettie patted her on the back. “That’s the least notice I’ll take. Anything less and I won’t give you a decent recommendation for another job. So suck it up, kiddo! That’s rule number two. And honey, I’m the least smart of anyone in this room. I was smart enough to stay single until I was forty and then spent some miserable years before Vicky’s mama, Thelma, helped me get rid of the sorry sucker. So I can’t give advice on relationships. I can tell you that I don’t think Shane gives a damn about your past.”

“Is that why there are two shovels out there in the shed? Did you and Thelma get rid of him permanently?” Jancy teased.

“No, just used a real good divorce lawyer. Of course Thelma was ready to use the shovels when she saw the bruises he left on me. He liked whiskey more than me,” Nettie answered. “But this is probably enough of a group therapy session for one night. That afternoon in the heat wore me out worse than working in the kitchen all day. I’m going to take a fast shower and go to bed.” She pushed back her chair and straightened up. “Jancy, I’m glad you are here and that you trust us enough to talk to us. Don’t shut the door of opportunity until you see what’s on the other side.”

“Crazy, ain’t it,” Jancy said. “I feel like y’all are family and I ain’t even been here a week. Is it all right if Shane calls me on the house phone? He asked for my cell number, but I couldn’t pay the last bill, so they cut it off. I’ll have enough money saved next week to take care of that.”

“We could give you an advance . . . ,” Vicky started.

Jancy quickly shook her head. “No, ma’am. You’ve done enough.”



Vicky flipped on the light switch in her bedroom and took a look at the pictures scattered around the room of Emily—when she was a baby, her first day of school, her first date, her high school proms, high school graduation, and the last one, a picture of her the previous summer taken in front of the diner.

She settled down in the rocking chair at the end of her bed and propped her feet on the bedpost. A gentle knock on the door was followed by her blonde-haired daughter, who crossed the room and crawled into the middle of the bed.

Emily inhaled deeply and let it out slowly. Something was on her mind, but Vicky had learned long ago not to apply pressure. The past had proven that if Emily was ever going to open up about whatever was bothering her, it had to be her idea.

“She’s had it rough. I’m glad that I never had to live like she has. Isn’t it good that Shane knows her from back when?” Emily asked.

“It is, but what will happen if she tells him what she told us?”

Emily shook her head slowly from side to side. “I don’t think it will matter one bit. If I was Shane and got a second chance with someone I’d always had a big crush on, it wouldn’t matter to me.”

“But you are not Shane or Jancy,” Vicky said.

“Still, I’m glad you hired her and I’m sorry I told you to lock your door at night. She’s a good person.”

Vicky got up from her chair and joined Emily on the bed, giving her a hug. “My child, I’ve always been a good judge of people.”

“Except with my dad,” Emily shot back.

“Oh, I was a good judge there, too. I knew exactly what Creed Rawlins was when I fell in love with him. It wasn’t that I was blindsided. And he might’ve been the wildest boy in the whole state of Texas and the biggest daredevil in the world, but he had a soft spot when it came to loving me. He didn’t hesitate when I told him I was pregnant. He did what was right, so give him that much. And remember he was young, only eighteen when he died.”

“Racing motorcycles on a dirt road without a helmet,” Emily said. “I grew up without a dad because he was wild.”

“But you had a mama and an aunt Nettie who adored you, so you don’t have much to bitch about,” Vicky scolded. “Are you trying to start a fight with me, Emily Rawlins?”

“Okay, you win. I’ll change the subject,” Emily said. “I researched Carlton Wolfe. I can’t find anything on the man. That’s probably not even his name. You should hire a private investigator and expose the sorry sucker for what he is.”

Vicky nodded. “I’m not wasting my money. That’s the same thing Andy Butler told me. Carlton will figure out that he’s not going to con any of us in Pick.”

Emily slid off the bed and headed toward the door. “So to sum up the weekend, Shane might be fallin’ for Jancy, who may or may not stay in Pick, Carlton’s a con man, and I’m not going back to school in the fall.”