Real Men Knit(79)

Val entered the shop then along with some students who’d come from the center, and Kerry’s emotion meter went clear over to tilt level.

Val had the kids do a presentation, reading thank-you notes to Mama Joy, and after each child read their note, they attached it to the little yarn tree with a safety pin. When all was said and done, the tree looked more beautiful than the one at Rockefeller Center, and more full of love.

As they were decorating the tree, Ms. Cherry started to sing and before long there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. There was a sense of closure and new beginnings that they hadn’t had at Mama Joy’s funeral, and it took all Kerry had to not burst into uncontrollable tears and fall into Jesse’s arms or take the path of least resistance and run out the door.

Seeing his moment, Noah stepped in, his smile bright as he admonished the crowd for their tears. Sounding every bit like a little Mama Joy, he told them, “Drink up, stitch well,” and then he looked at his brothers when he said, “Love hard and live in the moment, not in the past.” He ended his little speech by promising to come home quickly and not to be too big a big shot once he became a huge international star while on the road.

Everyone laughed, and Kerry knew Jesse and all his brothers were having a hard time keeping it together. Real men didn’t just knit. They cried their eyes out too. Though they may not come out and say it, she knew they’d be counting down the days until Noah was back home, and they’d be running up international phone charges left and right in the meantime. Family was like that, and they were all they had.

Kerry and Jesse locked eyes again, and she blinked fast while wiping away her tears. He was striding toward her, but suddenly stopped when Gabriel Webb came up to her, handing her a tissue. She saw the exact moment Jesse’s jealousy reared. As if he should be mad, whether as her boss, old friend, first crush or current bedmate.

Kerry wiped at her eyes, thanked Gabriel and looked around the party. It was like that damned old DMX meme up in there with all of Jesse’s exes packed into the place. There was Brenda, Latisha, Linda and Felisha. Plus dammit if there weren’t at least three Kims, and she bet Jesse had hooked up with all of them. This opening launch party was like old home week for him. And of course there was Erika too. No, Jesse didn’t have a leg to stand on in the jealousy department.

Kerry closed her eyes against the cavalcade of women. It was a lot to take. But thankfully she didn’t have to take it. They weren’t serious. She was just another on his list of names. She’d known this going in and she would damn sure know it going out. Plus, it was better this way. This was what she’d wanted from the start and it was better being hit with the reality of it square-on now.

She gave Gabriel as much of a smile as she could muster so as not to make the party mood awkward but still watched Jesse as he now turned his attention to Errol Miller. Her forced smile faltered as she saw the intense look of sadness in Errol’s eyes. He was longingly looking around the shop, but she could see his mind was a long way off.



* * *





Jesse turned away from the scene between Fake Blair and Kerry, and caught sight of Errol Miller. The boy had been unusually quiet, and he’d been on Jesse’s mind since the incident with the neighborhood kids. He walked Errol’s way. “How are you, E? How’s that scarf coming?”

Errol only shrugged, his silence mirroring his sullen expression. Finally, he spoke. “It’s fine, I guess.”

Jesse frowned. “You guess? Convincing.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Okay then. Well, know you’re welcome here anytime for tips or when you’re ready for another project. We have tons of extra yarn.”

Errol nodded. “Thanks, but I don’t think I’ll have much time. School’s about to start and I’ll probably be doing basketball once that happens.”

Jesse looked at him. “Wow. That was about the worst endorsement for intramural sports ever, but okay,” he said jokingly, but Errol didn’t crack a smile.

Jesse sobered. “Sorry. I get it and it’s cool. Just know the offer is always open.” Errol was about to walk away, but Jesse stopped him with his voice.

“You know, I played ball too. Basketball and baseball. I was better at baseball though. I knitted while hanging in the dugout to pass the time while waiting for my turn at bat. I still hate waiting.”

Errol looked at him now with more than a little skepticism.

“No, really,” Jesse said, “it’s true. And I took more than my fair share of crap for it.” He grinned. “Ugh, the fights. I had plenty, but they stopped quick enough. Coach and Mama Joy weren’t having it from me or anyone else. Plus, you’ve seen my brothers. And it’s okay. I always made them eat their words with each triple or home run I hit.”

Errol finally cracked a smile.

“Working with yarn helped me with my game. My focus and concentration, you know? I wasn’t the best student, so I needed that. It sort of kept me centered, if that makes sense.”

Errol was quiet. “It does,” he finally said.

“Hey, it’s great for hand-eye coordination,” Jesse added. He liked talking to Errol. He could see the struggle the boy was going through, and he didn’t want him to give up on something he clearly enjoyed.

“As if you ever had any trouble with your hand-eye coordination.”