Page 76 of Blue-Eyed Jacks
Danielle glanced over.“I lasted exactly five minutes.Jackson had a party going before I could even open my mouth.”
Gina wrapped an arm over her daughter-in-law’s shoulders.“Don’t let her fool you.She’s got Sprout wrapped around her little finger.”
Danielle put a hand over her stomach.“It helps that I can play the pregnancy card now.”A secret smile tilted at the corners of her mouth.
“Face it, you either fight it or join it.Or you do like we do and stake claim on a section of the house and make it a testosterone-free zone.”Gina indicated the stairs and the bedrooms.
From my vantage point, I could see the open doors for each one.They were empty.
If this had been Shock’s house, they wouldn’t be.I took comfort in that.
“What was the tipping point?”Danielle asked.
My eyes darted to Zoe and then I sent Gina warning in my silent “don’t get me started” expression.
Danielle’s mouth opened with a little gasp of understanding.
Gina, however, had no filter.“Was it the drugs or sex?I haven’t heard any fights yet.”
Of course, Zoe perked up and heard that.
“Gina!”
“Everyone calls her Ma,” Zoe observed.
“That’s because most everyone is young enough shecouldbe their mom,” Lily stage-whispered.
“That’s enough out of you.”Gina clamped her fingers around the air to shut her up.
“Jelly’s older.”That was sweet of Danielle to stick up for Gina that way.
“I’m not calling her, Ma.”I sent a stream of gratitude to Gina.I wished I could tell her how much I appreciated her help.I opted for a partial truth.“She was one of the few people who were nice to me a long time ago.”
Poppy wrapped an arm over her half-sister.“Was that the night I met you?Mom said you were sick.”
“It was.Old Toolbox gave me some antibiotics and stitched up my head wound.”I’d almost forgotten that.When Shock clobbered me in front of the entire Skilletsville chapter, he’d opened up a cut I’d gotten the week before when Shock threw me into the corner of the dresser.It was infected.Which meant, even if I had gotten free, I’d probably be dead now.
Gina looked uncomfortable.
“Who’s Toolbox?I don’t remember him,” Lily wondered aloud.She looked to Poppy for insight.
Behind Danielle’s head, Gina slashed her hand in front of her throat, warning me to kill the trip down memory lane.Interesting.
Lily directed her question at me.
I shrugged.“A doctor, I think.Maybe.”Shock had a horse trainer on call.Their go-to for everything from stitches to syphilis was addicted to gambling.“They find someone with debts, usually.”
Gina’s eyes bored into mine.
“Shock’s guy had a gambling habit and used to give us horse medicine.”I scratched at my nose nervously.My hand shook, remembering the times he doped me up with ketamine.
“Mom?”
Zoe’s soft question broke me from my fugue.
“I’m okay.”
She frowned and got up from where she was sandwiched between Danielle and Lily to sit on my lap.I wrapped around her almost as tightly as she wrapped around me.But I didn’t cry.I wouldn’t.I was the strong one here.
