Home Tears

Dani grinned. “I’ll take one of those then. Whatever you have on tap and need to get rid of.”

Mae slid the drink across the bar. “That’s my girl.” A pause and a tap on the counter with her fingers. “So, you going out to see that sister of yours after this?”

“I was wondering about a place to stay. I wouldn’t feel right about imposing on Julia and Aunt Kathryn.”

Dani was lying, and Aunt Mae knew it. She wouldn’t step foot in that home if it were the last habitable place in the world.

Mae nodded, approving. “You’ve grown some teeth. I can see it. You look good, too.”

Dani flushed.

She was fit and trim. Clear skin. Doe eyes, or that was how they’d been described to her by a boyfriend once and eyelashes that models would’ve killed for. Dani knew she looked good, but she also knew it’d cause problems. It was another reason to steer clear from her last remaining sister, but that was a problem for a different day. “How about a place to crash for a while?”

“There’s my place. You’re always welcome there, but if you’re looking for some privacy, the cabin’s open, too.”

A three-bedroom, log cabin on a corner of Loon Lake and protected by miles of woods on both sides. It was out in the middle of nowhere, and that sounded perfect. It was exactly what Dani needed.

“Sounds good. Thank you so much.” She sipped the rest of her drink.

“Do me a favor.” Mae rested a hand on the counter, pointing to where Dani was sitting. “I remember how you used to be, always ready to go off on your own, but stay a while. You only got fighting to look forward to right now.”

Put that way…Dani stayed sitting.

A settled atmosphere ascended the bar for a moment, but the front door opened up. Sunlight lit up a path inside, hitting right onto Dani’s back, and the peaceful feeling was suddenly gone. She tensed, and then the door slammed shut. The room was cast into darkness for a moment.

“Hey, Mae.”

The voice was smooth and silky, and Dani recognized it immediately.

Jonah Bannon.

He was the badass in high school, always ditching class and fighting when he was there. She didn’t know much about him because they ran in different circles. She did know that even back then, he’d been gorgeous. He was literally a lean mean machine, and glancing from the corner of her eye, Dani saw that hadn’t changed. There was a bit more recklessness built into the twitch of his jaw. His hands were tan and strong. Firm. A bit rough from working, but a person could tell the fitness underneath those clothes.

Jonah’s infamous body couldn’t be hidden.

The only other difference she could see was that his ruffled curls were shaven for a clean-cut, buzzed look. They had been rich and thick before.

The new haircut agreed with him.

“Can I get a beer?” Putting some money onto the counter, he hopped on a stool three down from Dani. “And who owns that Mustang in your parking lot?”

Aunt Mae reached for a bottle. She glanced to Dani underneath her eyelids as she set it before him, then waited a minute before commenting, “No can do, Jonah. My loyalties lie elsewhere on that topic.”

He had reached for the bottle, but held it suspended in the air now. “You kidding?”

She shook her head. “Nope. ’Fraid not. I know for certain that owner won’t want you bothering him. Can’t tell you a thing.”

The back door slammed shut, and a second later Barney appeared, holding a bleeding arm to his chest. “Mae, I didn’t find a barn back there, but I’m pretty sure I found your cat. He didn’t take a likin’ to me. You might need to pay up on that tetanus shot you offered.”

Mae cursed, grabbing his arm. “I don’t have a barn cat. I was just messing with you.”

“You were?” He sounded like an insulted four year old. “But you said you weren’t.”

“That’s the whole point. You don’t admit to it when you’re doing it.” She started probing his wound.

“Ouch, Mae! That hurt.”

“We need to clean this so you don’t get an infection. Jeffries, watch the bar for a while?”

He lifted his hand in the air. “Sure thing, Mae.” Then he pretended to zip his lips. “And look, still shutting it.”

She rolled her eyes, pulling Barney to the back. “Come on. Let’s clean this up.”

“You make sure that’s all you’re cleaning up.”

“Thought you were shutting it, Jeffries?” Mae shouted over her shoulder.

“Doing so again. It was a temporary error.” He saluted and took another drink.

As they disappeared into a back area, Jonah asked, “Hey, who owns that Mustang out front?”

Jeffries shrugged and took a drink. “You got me there.” His eyes slid toward Dani and a hint of a smile lingered there, just a hint. “I haven’t seen a vehicle like that around for a long time, not since Mae’s little niece took off.”

Jonah frowned. “You mean Erica and Julia’s sister? That niece?”

Jeffries waited till Jonah glanced to where Mae had disappeared before winking at Dani. “That’s the one.”

Dani glared at him, knowing she took a seat purposely in the shadows. If Jonah fully looked around, he would’ve seen her and maybe recognized her, but he was more interested in Mae. Feeling a knot start to tighten in her stomach, Dani knew it was time to head out to the cabin. Jonah would have more questions if he spotted her and she was still hoping to put off giving those answers.