Lead Me Home (Fight for Me #3)(68)

So many of our summers had been spent here.

Sydney and Ollie always in the midst.

How many times had we raced our bikes down this lane, shouting that the last one there was a rotten egg?

Apparently, I stunk, considering I always came up short.

Funny how I’d always had a smile on my face while doing it.

Nostalgia rippled around me like the small waves that lapped at the shore of the lake as I made it to the clearing and pulled up in front of the old house.

The historic structure oozed a vintage charm, even though it was rundown and needed a whole ton of TLC.

The porch planks were warped and worn and the paint peeling, not to mention all the junk that sat around the property—broken-down cars and machines and sheds filled with who knew what.

No wonder they were wanting to unload some of this crap.

Turning off the ignition, the headlights cut and the interior light glowed as I snapped open my car door. I climbed out and was smacked in the face with the overwhelming scent of honeysuckle and the river and decaying earth.

The dirt was rich and heavy, as heavy as the air and the overhead canopy of the darkened sky that was smattered with twinkling stars.

In the distance, a dog barked and bugs trilled in the trees.

Inhaling deeply, I held the warm familiarity of it all in my lungs and ambled up the creaking steps and onto the porch.

I didn’t knock at the door, I just turned the knob and poked my head inside. “Hello, anyone home?”

My mother appeared at the top of the stairs. “Nikki. What on earth are you doin’ here?”

“Thought I’d stop by and check in.”

“Well, it’s about time. Think it’s been an age since the last time I saw you. I don’t even recognize you.”

Light laughter filtered free.

This was exactly the reason I’d come here.

For the warmth.

After everything that had been happening, I just needed to see my mama and grandma. The two women who had been there for me through thick and thin.

There had been so much upheaval in my life.

I started for the wide set of stairs. I slid my hand along the railing as I climbed. “Now, don’t go exaggerating. It’s been a whole two weeks since you’ve seen me. Not all that much has changed.”

That was a lie.

It felt like everything had changed. Ollie and my sister and my world. I was struggling to make sense of it.

She sent a playful smile my way. “Two weeks is like an eternity when it comes to your kids.”

“So, you’re saying you missed me?” I teased as I mounted the last step. “Guess people really just can’t get enough of me. I am kind of amazing, aren’t I? My being around just makes everything better.”

I leaned in and dropped a kiss to her cheek.

She reached out and cupped mine. “Totally amazing.” Then she hitched up a grin. “You are my daughter, after all.”

I laughed. “My, my. Someone is full of herself.”

She swatted at me. “Just tellin’ it like it is, just like you. No reason to be coy when everyone knows it anyway.”

My heart squeezed. Love overflowing.

The truth was, my mama was amazing.

Through and through.

And she was a load of fun, too, always laughing and joking and teasing.

Taking life by the reins and leading it where she wanted it to go.

But Ollie was right about some things.

Sometimes, life didn’t give us the choice, and tonight, there was no missing the strain that lined my mother’s face.

“How’s Grandma?” I whispered.

Mama smiled. “Ornery as ever. Why don’t you go see for yourself?”

Buoyed, I grinned and moved down the narrow passageway for the master bedroom at the end of the hall. The door was open, and the television blared as it blipped and threw colors across the room.

Affection pulled tight across my chest, thick with nostalgia. Pausing in the doorway, I tapped at the wood. “Hey, Grandma,” I called.

She snapped her head my direction. She was sitting propped against a bunch of pillows in her bed. Frailer than she’d once been, but all that vigor still glinted in her eyes. She grabbed the remote and lowered the television volume. “Well, there’s my knockout of a granddaughter.”

I made a scoffing sound. “Which granddaughter is that you’re talkin’ about?”

A wide grin pulled across her wrinkled face. “What? You think I’m senile and blind like the rest of this bunch does? Don’t go writing this old lady off just yet.”

I crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed. I kissed her forehead. “Never.”

She wrapped her hand around mine. “As if I wouldn’t recognize you. Tell me you’ve been tearing up the town and bringing all those boys to their knees.”

A soft giggle slipped out. “Oh, you know that I am. None of them know what hit them.”

Her eyes narrowed. “And how’s the boy?”

A quiver rolled down my spine, belly tipping and my pulse giving an extra kick. “I have no idea what boy you’re talking about,” I said, just as innocently as I could.

Probably about as innocently as the day Ollie’d brought over a bunch of firecrackers and we’d accidentally set the back lot on fire.

“I think you know exactly what boy I’m talkin’ about. Your boy, trouble maker that he is.” She reached up and cupped my cheek. “Tell me he hasn’t been causing trouble in your world.”