“Of course,” Rhonda said softly then moved toward the living room.
Finley shifted, following his Mom. Kirby moved after them. With his free arm, Mike swept it around as an indication to his kids to precede us.
Finally, Mike moved us that way and I looked up at him. The farmhouse was not small, the rooms big and stuffed with years of family accumulated, well…stuff. But still, I didn’t want anyone overhearing anything I had to say. Like payback for Mike helping me take care of my family was going to take a variety of forms he would enjoy.
So I communicated this with my face.
Mike didn’t miss it, his eyes dropped to my mouth, his arm tensed around me and the tip of his tongue came out to wet his full, lower lip.
It was hot.
“Little Dusty” spasmed.
We hit the room and I pulled my shit together. Rhonda was seated on the couch. Kirby was sitting next to her. Finley standing by the arm, strong, tall, keeping his feet, the new man of the family. No and Clarisse were huddled to the side, probably uncomfortable, not knowing what was going on and never having been to the house, not sure of what to do or how to behave.
Mike didn’t delay.
Eyes on Fin, he asked, “Do you still have your mother and brother’s phones?”
“Yes, sir,” Fin answered immediately.
“You talk to them about why?” Mike went on.
Fin nodded.
“Good man,” Mike muttered and looked at Rhonda. “Dusty has shared with me that Debbie’s been in frequent touch to discuss her plans for the future of the farm. She’s also shared with me that Fin has expressed his desire to carry on the family tradition. I know things are very raw right now and, for you, it isn’t the time to be making decisions about your sons’ futures, decisions you can’t unmake. So I’ve asked Debbie not to call you for two weeks.”
Relief washed through Rhonda’s face and I was glad to see it. Contradictorily, I was also pissed because the relief was so keen I knew Debbie had been crawling right up her ass. I knew this already but her expression told me just how bad it was.
But for some reason my eyes went to Fin and he was grinning toward No and Clarisse. My gaze shifted to Mike’s kids and I caught Clarisse’s return smile before her eyes dropped to her shoes.
I looked back to Fin to see he was now looking down at the arm of the couch.
But his grin had not been the grin of a hot boy junior toward a beautiful freshman he thought was a beautiful freshman. It was intimate, knowing and triumphant.
Hers was the same.
Oh my God, something was going on between Mike’s daughter and my nephew.
Mike popped my sister’s cherry. Decades later, we hooked up. And now it seemed like Holliday/Haines history was setting up to repeat itself.
Oh boy, I didn’t know what Mike was going to think about this mainly because he was the one who had the penis in the last teenage scenario and he knew what he did with it.
Before I could think further on whether this was awesome or a complete catastrophe, Mike kept talking.
“Debbie is likely not going to do what I’ve asked, so –”
“She already hasn’t,” Finley cut in and I looked to him to see his eyes on Mike. “Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Haines, but you should know she called Ma three times last night, four today and left five voicemail messages.”
I clenched my teeth and my arm around Mike’s waist got tight.
“Did you take any of those calls?” Mike asked Fin.
Fin shook his head.
“It’s rude not to take a call,” Rhonda put in and I looked at her.
Seriously, no backbone. I loved her to pieces but she had two boys. I didn’t know how but I had to plant a backbone seed in my sister-in-law and coax it to grow. She only had a year and a half with Fin. He was mostly man already, Darrin saw to that like my Dad saw to the same with Darrin. But there was still a ways to go. She had to help me with that. She had to help Fin with that.
I opened my mouth to speak but Fin got there before me.
“It’s rude to call a woman who’s lost her husband and get in her face about important stuff, Ma.”
Rhonda looked up at her son. “I guess so, honey, but –”
“No buts,” he cut her off. “It’s just rude. She shouldn’t be callin’ you about that stuff. Not now. Not next week. Not the week after. Mr. Haines is right. You need a spell. She isn’t givin’ it to you. But you need it and you’re gonna take it.”
Okay, maybe there wasn’t still a ways to go to make Fin a man.