The Magnolia Inn(61)

“Dammit, Tucker,” she yelled as she stood up.

The last time she’d come home to a sight like this was the day before she’d kicked Johnny Ray out of her apartment. He’d taken her debit card and managed to wipe out her bank account, but even at that, it was worth getting rid of him. She’d decided right then that she might only be a bartender, but she deserved better.

“And I do,” she said as she stepped over Tucker’s curled-up body.

She made herself a sandwich and poured a glass of milk. She walked around him on her way to her bedroom. “Evidently, you like wallowing around in misery. Well, I might be your partner, but I’m not cutting you one inch of slack. You can sleep on the floor all night.”

She flipped the light switch in her bedroom and heard a moan in the foyer, but Tucker Malone was on his own. If he didn’t remember the hangover cure, then he could damn well suffer.

Sassy had followed her to her bedroom and curled up on the foot of the bed. “I don’t blame you, girl. I wouldn’t sleep with someone that reeked like he’d fallen into a barrel of whiskey, either.”

The adrenaline rush from swerving to miss the deer settled down. The chill of the walk home also eased when she got into a pair of sweats and an oversize T-shirt and crawled beneath the covers. The hunger subsided when she finished the sandwich. She fell asleep before her head hit the pillow.

Sassy was sitting right beside her when she awoke at noon. “I bet you’re hungry and needing to find your litter pan.”

The cat meowed pitifully.

“Well, darlin’ girl, I will feed you, but scooping the litter pan belongs to your master. Let’s get you taken care of, and then I’m diving into a warm bath.” Jolene crawled out of bed with Sassy right behind her.

Tucker was still on the foyer floor, in the same position as before. Jolene didn’t feel a bit sorry for him. She fed the cat, took a long, hot bath, and washed her hair. When she finished, she went back downstairs and stepped over Tucker again. He groaned and grabbed his head. She ignored him and went straight for the kitchen, where she made coffee. While it perked she put three sausage patties in a skillet to cook and made a stack of pancakes.

She heard another groan around the time she sat down to eat, but she still had a big ball of anger in her heart. Seeing him like that caused her to remember the anger, pain, and disgust connected with her mother all over again. Sassy hopped up on the table, and Jolene fed her little bits of sausage as she ate.

Her cell phone rang, and she dug it out of her purse. “Good mornin’, Dotty. Are you survivin’ this ice storm?”

“I’m fine, but the regular phone lines are down. We’re lucky we’ve got electricity. I’m just checkin’ in to see that you got home all right. It sounds like shotgun shells goin’ off all over town as the ice breaks down tree limbs. I tell you, it’s going to be a real mess to clean it all up,” Dotty said. “They’ve called off church services, and school has already been canceled for tomorrow. I guess we’re all iced in for the duration. How’re things there?”

Jolene told her about the deer, having to walk home, and falling over Tucker right inside the door. “I’m not so sure your fate thing was right. After living with a drunk, I’m sure not lookin’ to hook up with this one.”

Tucker staggered into the kitchen. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was a fright. The only thing missing was the rancid smell of vomit on his breath.

“Hangover cure?” Both his hands went to his head.

She gave him a dirty look and crooked her finger for him to come closer. “Figure it out for yourself,” she yelled right into his face, and then turned her attention back to Dotty. “Sorry about that.”

“What’s goin’ on?” Dotty asked in her ear.

“Why are you so mean? You fixed me the cure last time,” Tucker said.

She poked him in the chest with her free hand. “It’s called tough love. If you want to wallow around in the past, get drunk and pass out on the floor, and make me fall when I come home, that’s your business. But I’m not your nurse or your mama.”

“But you’re my partner,” he protested as he poured a cup of coffee.

“That’s right, and right now your partner is talking to Dotty. When I get done, I’m going to turn on some music and start laundry. Then I’m going to vacuum my room. Lots of noise fixin’ to happen. You might want to start that cure.”

Dotty’s laughter echoed across the room before Jolene even got the phone back to her ear. “I guess you’re not going to be an enabler again, are you?”

“Nope. If he can’t stay sober enough to help his partner out so she doesn’t walk the equivalent of two city blocks in sleet and freezing rain, then his partner isn’t going to mollycoddle him because of a hangover.”

“And we all thought he was getting better,” Dotty sighed.

“Drunks are professionals at fooling people,” Jolene said.

“Looks like you got your hands full. Call me later today and don’t back down,” Dotty said.

“Will do. I’ve been through enough of this to last a lifetime. You stay warm now.” Jolene ended the call and poured herself a second cup of coffee. She carried it to the table and sat down to finish the last few bites of her breakfast.