Jennie Sue nodded. “He hasn’t called, and I’ve been worried about him.”
Lettie wrung her hands. “Well, it’s not him, but Cricket says he’s still an old bear, so she’s stayin’ out of his way. It’s us, and we don’t even know where to begin.”
“At the beginning.” Jennie Sue figured that they were going to offer to keep the bookstore for her on Thursdays and Fridays if she would clean for them.
“It all started a long time ago,” Nadine said.
Looked like it wasn’t going to be a problem with the house cleaning business after all, and it wasn’t Rick or Cricket. Jennie Sue’s heart and pulse slowed down to normal.
“Oh, we don’t have to go back to the first chapter of Genesis, when God created dirt,” Lettie fussed. “Everyone in town knows that we have an interest in Texas Red.”
“That’s where all that money comes from, but they don’t know how deeply we are into it. We own a major percentage of the stock there, and we’ve tried to buy Baker Oil for years, mostly because we were enemies of the Wilshires. Your lawyer called our CEO this morning. We don’t feel right buying it without tellin’ you because of all the past problems with the families.”
“And you are our friend, so you should know,” Nadine said.
“I knew you weren’t poor, but I’d forgotten about your family and Texas Red. I remember Daddy talking about it when the company was mentioned in oil-magazine articles.” Jennie Sue stumbled over the words.
“We inherited the shares when our parents died. Baker Oil and Texas Red were started the same year. Our parents bought into one, and the Wilshires into the other,” Lettie said. “Our parents didn’t believe in spoiling kids with material things, so all three of us girls worked.”
“And, just like you, we like a simple life, but we do a lot of good with what we have. Scholarships at the Bloom school for girls who can’t go to college without help—Texas Red money built the library in town. I’m not braggin’, but just wantin’ you to know some of what we do, so you won’t . . .” Lettie had wrung the handkerchief in her hands so much that it was nothing but a knot.
“Your friendship means more to us than buyin’ Baker Oil. We’ll back off if you have a single problem with it.” Nadine finished the sentence for her sister.
“Would you buy a watermelon from me if I had a vegetable stand on the side of the road? Would you buy a book in my store?” Jennie Sue asked.
“That’s kind of an irrelevant question,” Lettie said. “But of course we would. We already buy watermelons from Rick that you probably helped harvest, and we’ll always buy used books in here because they are cheaper than buying new.”
“Exactly. Watermelons, books, companies. They are all just things and should never come between friends. Buy Baker Oil if you want to expand. Tell the whole world that you did. Let’s put an end to this crazy feud,” Jennie Sue said.
Lettie glanced around the store, evidently making sure there were no cameras or listening devices. “We could tell everyone that you gave all the money away to charity.”
Jennie Sue went to give them both a hug. “Except for what I kept back to build a house of my own. Do you know about any property in the country? Maybe five or ten acres so I could have a garden?”
Nadine nodded. “Well, I heard tell that there’s five acres north of town that Amos’s cousin by marriage would sell for a song.”
“Why is he selling it?” Jennie Sue asked.
“He split up his property and sold it off in ten-acre sections. Trouble was, he wasn’t thinkin’ real straight, and that last five acres don’t have access to a road. It would be a headache to get easements across other folks’ property. But since it abuts the Lawson farm, you could get permission from them to cross their land in your vehicle and be just fine,” Lettie explained.
“It’s grown up in mesquite and cactus. You’d have to get enough cleared for a house and sink a well,” Nadine told her. “’Course I’m not sure right now is the time to approach Rick about it.”
“Is that fence not far from the creek the one that separates that piece of property from Rick’s?” Jennie Sue was already visualizing where she’d put the house and what way it would face.
“That’s right,” Lettie answered.
“I want it. I’m going to call Justin right now.”
“And if Rick won’t let you drive through his place to get to it?” Lettie asked.
“I’ll buy a helicopter,” Jennie Sue answered.
“That’s the spirit.” Nadine nodded in agreement.
“Hey, I need to go pick out a headstone after work. I’ll treat us all to supper at the café if y’all will go with me,” Jennie Sue said as she dialed Justin’s number.
“Love to. We’ll be at Lettie’s and ready when you get there,” Nadine agreed without hesitation.
Jennie Sue used her lunch hour to go to the Baker grave sites. The big, gray granite stone in the middle was simply engraved with “Baker,” but each person buried in the enclosed area had an individual headstone—great-grandparents and grandparents and the fresh grave on the other side of the grassy area where her baby was buried. That was it. There was room for her parents but none for Jennie Sue. Should she buy a headstone for each of them? Should she bury the ashes in the urns right there?
She sat down on the grassy lawn and flattened both hands out over her baby’s grave. “My precious little darlin’. I will never understand why you didn’t live. I’m so sorry if all the stress I was under caused you to have issues. I wanted you so badly, please know that.” Tears rolled down her cheeks and dripped on the grass. “I love you so much, Emily Grace.” She needed her baby to know that she was loved and wanted—to hear her say the words. Finally, she rose to her feet and promised that she’d be back soon.
She’d intended to get a sandwich at the café and eat it as she pored over the ledger that afternoon, but she couldn’t have swallowed anything past the huge lump in her throat. She just made a fresh pot of coffee and sipped on it as she opened the ledger back up. When Iris had been there, the store had shown a nice little profit every year, but it had slowly been declining since Iris had passed away.
Jennie Sue dug around in her purse until she found her phone and called Justin. “I’m sorry to bother you again, but how much am I paying Amos for this store?”
“Fifty thousand. That’s the building’s appraisal for insurance. He’s throwing in the inventory for free,” Justin said. “It’s a steal. With a little work, you could flip it for twice that in six months.”
“I’m not interested in ever flipping it. Have we heard from Texas Red?”
“I was about to call you. They want to buy the company and the house for the CEO that they plan to send up here to take over Lawrence’s position. He’s asked to step down to a less stressful place, so Texas Red said they’d let him choose a new position before they make decisions about the rest of the staff. Looks like everyone will still have a job. It’ll take a while for the official signing, so you’ve got some time to take care of the personal property,” he said. “You still have time to change your mind. We can back right out of the deal if you want.”
“No, thank you. My mind is made up,” she said. Now if only she could figure out exactly what she wanted to do with her folks’ ashes, she’d have most of the big decisions made.
“Anything else?” Justin asked.
“Just that property I’m interested in,” she said.
“I’ve made a phone call. That’s in the works. Want to quibble with him over price? It’s a little high, considering the fact that you’ll have to have an easement to even get back to it,” he said.
“Just give him the asking price and get the deed to it, but I do want all of it, mineral rights included,” she said.
“Going to start your own oil business?” Justin asked.