She grabbed her purse and hurried out of the room. The door to the outside seemed miles away, but finally she made it and was able to breathe again.
This wasn’t happening, she thought, bent over slightly, sucking in air. She didn’t want to know.
But the knowledge couldn’t be unlearned. The reality of Simon’s past horrified her. She’d seen Kalinda’s burns. Simon’s would have been as bad. Maybe worse. She knew they were on his face and went down his neck. They were also on his body, she remembered. He’d told her that.
His mother hadn’t just pushed him into a fire, she’d tried to keep him there. She’d tried to punish or even kill him in one of the worst, most hideously painful ways possible. All the while, Simon would have been screaming, fighting to get out. The one person who was supposed to love him had nearly destroyed him.
She straightened, only to find she was crying. Tears filled her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. Tears for the boy who had been brutally disfigured and tears for the man who insisted on living in emotional solitary confinement.
As she brushed her face with her fingers, she drew in a breath. Mayor Marsha had known all this when she’d first approached Montana about helping convince Simon to stay in Fool’s Gold. She’d wisely kept the truth quiet until Montana was ready to handle it.
Whatever her personal feelings for Simon, there was more at stake than her fragile heart. Simon needed to see there were good people in the world, people who cared about each other. She had to find a way to make him want to stay in Fool’s Gold. No matter what.
“TELL ME WHAT YOU LOVE about this,” Nevada said as she pulled weeds from between the roses. “It’s hot and sweaty. You’re digging in the dirt and the roses are attack plants.” She sat back on her heels and studied a new scratch on the side of her arm.
Denise laughed. “You make it sound so unpleasant. I happen to like gardening.”
“I get that. What isn’t clear is why.”
“It relaxes me. And I have something to show for my labor. I can stand back and look at what I’ve accomplished. I don’t get the same satisfaction from things like doing laundry. There will just be more tomorrow.”
“There’ll be more weeds tomorrow, too.”
“You’re missing the spirit of the work,” Denise scolded her.
Denise had been surprised when Nevada had shown up a few minutes ago, claiming to want to spend a little time with her. While she had close relationships with all her children, they seldom stopped by just to catch up. Usually they invited her out to lunch and dinner for that. When one of her children came home, it usually meant there was a problem.
What Denise didn’t know was what Nevada wanted to talk about, but many years of being a mother had taught her patience. Her daughter would tell her when she was ready. Which turned out to be sooner than she had expected.
“I’ve been thinking about my job,” Nevada said a few minutes later. “Ethan’s doing more with his windmills and less construction.”
Ethan had inherited the family business when his father had died. Although the company had focused entirely on home construction and renovation, he’d branched out into wind energy, building windmills in a facility outside of town.
“Are you interested in taking over the building part of the company?” Denise asked. Nevada had studied engineering in college and, when she’d finished her degree, she’d gone to work for her brother.
“Not exactly.” Nevada shifted until she was sitting on the grass. “I need to tell you something, Mom, and I don’t want you to get upset.”
Not words designed to make her relax, Denise thought, also sitting on the grass and taking off her gardening gloves.
“I can’t promise what I’ll feel, but I will do my best not to shriek so loud the neighbors hear.”
Nevada smiled. “I’ll take that.” She drew in a breath. “I’m thinking of changing jobs.”
“You want to do something else at the company?”
Her daughter stared at the grass, then back at her. “No. I want to go work somewhere else.”
“Why?”
“There are a lot of reasons.”
Denise didn’t know what to think. Nevada had worked for her brother for six years. As far as she knew, they got along fine. Ethan always talked about what a great job his sister did. But instead of asking, Denise once again waited.
“I never had to do anything to get the job,” Nevada told her. “It was understood I would join the company when I graduated, and I did. I didn’t have to think about what I wanted to do or where I was going to work. Mom, except for summer jobs, I’ve never been on an interview. I want to figure out how good I am.”
“Doesn’t that come from within, rather than from an external source?”
“I’m not talking about self-respect or self-esteem. I mean I want to know how good I am at my job.”
“Your brother thinks you’re great.”
“Does he have a choice? Could Ethan actually fire me?”
“Do you want him to?”