Page 15 of Stronger Than Blood
Elias stood and put his hand on my shoulder. “Son, we’re family, and family that’s been separated way too long. If you’d told me you were wanted for murder or bank robbery, we mighta had issues, but knowing you have the family’s gifts is not something that disturbs me any. Truth is, it just confirms you’re one of us.”
“Wait,” I said, rising too. “You see them?”
He shook his head. “No, and thank goodness, but my daddy had more than a few encounters, and it spooked him to no end. I don’t envy that talent whatsoever.”
I sighed, and when Mrs. Kennedy stood up, I hugged her. “I’m so thankful you introduced us. Seems all this was meant to be.”
She hugged me back and smiled. “The most wonderful things in life often happen when you least expect them. Now, you run along. I’ve got more work than I know how to do, but you come on back over here for supper and bring the Hensley boy with you. I’m sure he’ll be half-starved after working on his uncle’s place.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I said and turned to follow Elias out the front door. It seemed strange to call him by his first name, but he had told me that if we were to be family, there was no need to use Mister. His wife had not offered the same courtesy. Not thatI was surprised. Things down here hadn’t changed that much over the years. Respect your elders was a very strongly embraced concept, even in the twenty-first century.
Chapter ten
Mick
Ishook my head. The place was a dump. “How can someone collect so much crap?” I asked myself as I went through the back of the building. The front was mostly cleared out; that’d been where Uncle Eddie had kept his little store, but the rest of the building looked like a hoarder’s paradise. I hated it, but there was no way to clean it out without using the front. Luckily, all the shelves and stuff had been taken by the church, so the space was open.
I began hauling out the junk and trying to separate it into useful and trash, and an hour later, the trash pile was the only thing in the room. I called the dump and asked them to bring out a roll-off dumpster. “You’ll need to empty it daily, ’cause I called over to city hall, and they said I can have it as long as it doesn’t get too full.”
The dumpster people assured me they knew the drill, and by ten thirty, I had a dumpster sitting in front of the building. The guy who dropped it off had just left when Mr. Kennedy from the pharmacy came walking up. I sensed the same feeling I’d had inthe café earlier and looked over. Sure enough, the sexy guy was with him.
“Mick, how are you?” Mr. Kennedy asked.
“Hot, dirty, and confused as to why my uncle used his building as a trash bin. You?” I asked, laughing.
Mr. Kennedy shook his head. “Your Uncle Eddie was a character, and there’s absolutely no telling why, but I’m going to guess it’s because he had something in there he didn’t want people to find,” he whispered, then winked at me.
“This is my cousin, Rory Jenkins Kennedy. Rory, this is Mick Hensley. His people have been in these parts for as long as there have been parts.”
Rory Jenkins Kennedy,I said the name in my head and loved the way it sounded. I managed to smile, but when he put his hand out, I sighed. “You don’t want to touch my hand after what I’ve been doing this morning.”
Rory nodded and pulled his hand back. “So, it’s pretty dirty then?” he asked.
I sighed deeply, letting out my frustrations. I hadn’t even gotten to the second floor to look at the apartment because there was too much junk between me and the door to go up. “I’ve never seen anything as bad,” I admitted.
Rory thought for a moment, then smiled. “I used to help a lady who did estate sales and stuff. I’m here for a few days if you’d like some help.”
I gasped before I could stop myself. There was nothing in this world I’d like more than spending time with a handsome hunk. I had visions of him taking his shirt off and pouring water down his front, which, from how he filled out his clothes, would be pretty tasty.
“Oh, sorry, um… well, I-I’m doing this for my grandmother. I-I don’t think there’s any money to pay anyone. Sorry.”
Rory chuckled. “I don’t need to be paid, but since I’m here getting to know my long-lost family and because my boss pretty much sent me on this journey, I could use something to do besides staring at my face in my hotel mirror.”
“I could give you about fifty suggestions that’d be more fun than cleaning out this dump,” I said, laughing but totally serious.
“I don’t know. Helping clean out a store with a handsome man might not be all bad.”
I blushed. How had he figured out I was gay? I looked at Mr. Kennedy, who was staring at the sidewalk. He must’ve told him. “Well,” I said ignoring the comment about me being handsome, “if you’re crazy enough to volunteer, I ain’t gonna say no. But you sure don’t want to come in here with those fancy clothes. They’ll be dusty and ruined before you even step inside.”
“I dressed up ’cause I was meeting Elias,” he said, smiling at the man next to him, “but I have grunge clothes back at the hotel. Why don’t I run over and get changed, and we can meet back here?”
“Are you staying in the Piston Creek Hotel?” I asked. When he nodded, I said, “In that case, I have a better idea. I need something to eat, and the new Roadside Service Station sells the best chicken sandwiches. Why don’t I meet you there, and it’ll be my treat?”
“I’ve just eaten enough to last me a year or two, but sure, I’ll meet you at the station.”
I watched as Mr. Kennedy and the sexy dreamboat walked away. Luckily, the store still had running water and a passable bathroom where I could wash. I could at least get a layer of filth off me before I went to Roadside. I could also use their bathroom to clean up enough that I wasn’t afraid of catching a disease while eating.
I’d have suggested Piston Creek Restaurant to eat, except I was afraid Brenda would send me packing if I walked in therelooking and smelling like I did after working all morning in the hot, dusty, mouse droppings of a store.
