Page 69 of Moonshine Lullabies

“Let me guess, he took up for his buddy.”

“At first, but I was smart about it and did it while we were out on the boat where he does his best thinkin’.”

I nodded and asked, “And?”

Cy sniffed and said, “Gonna be a tough few months, comin’ up,” he said. “For my daddy, not for Jess or Tater,” he amended quickly.

“How’s that?” I asked, frowning.

“My dad’s the one determined to do it,” he said quietly, and I cocked my head. “Huntin’ season is in the fall. My dad an’ Hambone go every year. Sometimes I go, sometimes Tate goes, but this year Tate’s gonna have to stay home.”

“You cuttin’ me out of this huntin’ accident?” I asked quietly.

He shook his head.

“Hell nah, brother.” He leaned way back in his seat. “You best get your huntin’ license, though. We don’t fool with those game wardens, I tell you, boy.”

I nodded.

“Then a hunting we will go.”

He opened his mouth to say something when the water had cut off and simply nodded instead.

Now it was Friday night and the club was poppin’ and here come Cy and Tate who was more ‘n excited to see his mom and hang with the fellas as we drank, fucked around playin’ games like darts and pool, and Cy pitched in with La Croix an’ Hex on workin’ on Jessie’s truck while Jess, me, and a rotating group of the fellas worked on the bike.

It was a low-key night, wasn’t a whole lot of our usual crazy going on, and even though it didn’t go unnoticed by many of us when it reached the wee hours of the morning and Chainsaw and Axeman disappeared, no one said a goddamn word.

Alina and Cor came on over to talk to Jess at one point and Hex caught my eye and threw me some chin.

There was something in the air, and I wanted to know what it was, but I’d have to wait. It would only be a matter of time before it all came out in the wash, but I’d been given the silent signal to roll with it, and so I would.

Jessie-Lou wandered back over and sat down next to me and I glanced over.

“Everything alright?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” she said. “Something funny just happened.”

“Funny, ha ha, or funny weird?” I asked with a faint smile.

“Funny weird,” she said and raised an eyebrow.

“Talk to me, baby,” I said, and she sighed a frustrated sound and finally after gathering her thoughts she told me, “Alina and Corliss just invited me and Tate out to La Croix’s place for a crafting and art weekend the rest of this weekend.”

I nodded, “And that’s funny weird, how?” I asked.

“I ain’t ever have another girl ask me to do nothin’,” she said, and she curled her lip like it was so out of place she was genuinely disturbed by the notion.

I laughed and shook my head, my grin firmly affixed to my face as I said, “Things are different, now, babe. You’re in a different hierarchy now.”

“I ain’t changed zip codes,” she said, crossing her eyes and then laughing and saying, “Much.”

“Nah, but you ain’t just Cypress’s little sister no more, either,” I said, and she started some, her eyes going a little wide as she leaned back in her seat.

“Well, I don’t know how I feel about all that,” she said. “I ain’t a different woman just because you give good dick.”

I lost it, dropping my wrench and fuckin’ laughed until I fuckin’ cried at that one.

“What?” she asked with a zany grin that lit up her whole face.

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