Chapter Six

 Jane stared at Blair. "They never let anyone in their apartment?"

"Or their lives," the younger girl answered. "I mean, they're really secretive. No one knows anything about them. They showed up a few years ago and the next thing you know, they took over Grammy's finances and everything." Cadence scowled, shaking her head as Blair added, "Why'd they let you into their apartment?"

"Um...because I needed toilet paper," Jane replied.

Blair crossed her arms. "What's it like inside?" 

"Uh..." Pink panels to keep out looky-loos. Even dim-witted teenage ones, apparently. Pink panels to block out the amazing transformations inside. How would Prett answer this? "A lot of neon beer signs and posters of naked women," Jane said. Blair smiled with self-satisfaction. Her suspicions confirmed. Jane pulled the ski pants' straps over her shoulders. Cadence was correct. The legs were a tad long, but otherwise the pants fit. Cadence handed Jane the matching ski jacket. Blair blew a bubble with her gum and popped it loudly. So annoying. "They have a nice game room and concessions bar, though," Jane added. Truth really is stranger than fiction. "And their movie theater is way cool."

Blair flipped her hair. "They don't have a movie theater."

"Seats twenty-one. But they only invite their closest friends."

"Friends? What friends? They don't have any friends. They only hang out with each other. Daddy thinks they're queer and maybe they aren't even really brothers." Cadence let out an annoyed sigh as she handed Jane a pair of pink snow boots. Jane sat to put them on. "Which is too bad," Blair continued, "because Vel is awfully cute. But I've seen him kiss Prett and Val, so I think Daddy's right."

"Vel's just an incorrigible flirt," Cadence said with disgust. "He'll kiss anything that moves."

Blair giggled. "He's never kissed me."

"Wait till you're eighteen. I'm sure he will."

"No," Blair replied with a mixture of disappointment and anticipation, "He'd be too afraid of what Daddy would do to him." Sighing, she blew another bubble.

"So wait, their names are Vel and Val?" Jane stood. How did I miss that before?

Staring blankly, Blair popped her bubble before saying, "Well, duh."

But Cadence said more kindly, "Vel for Velentinny and Val for Valentine. But Prett told you 'Val' for both didn't he?" Jane nodded and Cadence added, "He does that to new people. He doesn't mean any harm by it."

"So their names are different, then?"

"Well, spelled the same. Like 'valentine.' Pronounced different."

"So what about them? Val and...Vel? How come they don't talk?"

"Duh, 'cause they're deaf and dumb," Blair said.

Is she serious? "But...they're not deaf."

"Yes, they are."

"No, they're not."

"Yes they are. Helloooo, that's why they use sign language."

"They must use it for some other reason, because they hear just fine."

"But I have to look Vel right in his face so he can read my lips."

"No," Cadence said, "he ignores you till then."

Blair stared at Cadence a moment. Then her jaw dropped, causing her to almost lose her gum. "But that's mean!" Cadence shrugged. Blair crossed her arms in a pout.

"Looks like it fits okay," Cadence said to Jane.

Jane put her hands in the ski jacket's pockets as she sized up the bright outfit covering her body. "It's way too pink for me." She pulled out pink gloves and a stocking cap from the pockets before stuffing them back.

"Prett will like it, though," Cadence replied.

What does she mean by that?! Jane stared at her.

"–That it fits." Cadence smiled as she put the lid back on the plastic container.

What's going on here? "Should I be worried? About helping Prett? I mean, he didn't know me, and out of the blue he's buying me breakfast and giving me a job and a place to stay, and being so nice. I was just wondering...what his...if he might have some intentions for me other than painting, and uh, pushing trucks out of snowdrifts."

Cadence shook her head. "You don't have to worry about him. Or Val." She shrugged. "Vel will get fresh, but slap him and he'll leave you alone."

The image of Danny's pretty eyes flashed through Jane's mind. How many women actually slap him? Has she?

"Maybe he'd notice me if I slapped him," Blair said.

"Try it and find out," Cadence said.

"But he'd hate me as much as he hates you, and I don't want that."

Cadence's annoyance returned. "Better keep batting your eyelashes and giggling, then."

"Well, at least he does notice me, sometimes," Blair said. "He never pays any attention to you at all." Cadence's eyes narrowed and her lips squeezed into a tight line. "You know, I just remembered," Blair added, her eyes widening, "Daddy heard Vel actually talk once. He said he sounded like a drooling, drunken retard."

Anger set into Cadence's face, and she raised her hand as if to hit Blair. "Go help Holly with her cookies!"

Blair stepped back at Cadence's outburst, her expression changing to defiance. However, she crumbled under the older woman's glare, masking her defeat by crossing her arms and raising her chin. "Fine." She flounced out.

Cadence lowered her arm and stood a moment with her hands clenched. She let out a long breath. "Ignore Miss Bippy." Her anger dissipated, but her scars appeared even deeper. "She repeats everything her dad says, and he twists things just to be hateful. She's too stupid to know it. All you need to know is, Prett's a good man. The best you'll ever meet. He's giving you a second chance, so don't blow it."

"A second chance? At what?"

Cadence shrugged. "You're homeless, aren't you? He found you at the truck stop? Living in your car? He's giving you a chance to get back on your feet."

She knows all this? How? Oh. The texts. "But why would he do that? Why would he even care?"

Cadence gave a small smile. "Because that's who he is."

I don't buy that. "I don't know. He said I resembled an old friend, but he sure got nervous when Mrs. Gingery started to say something about it."

"Yeah. That was weird." She examined Jane's face a moment. "But you don't look like anyone I know. Come on, he probably wants to get going."

Jane picked up her discarded coat and shoes, but halfway to the door she stopped. "Oh, um, Cadence? This is embarrassing, but I was wondering if you have...if I could...see, I got my period, and I'm out of supplies, and I don't have any money to buy any, and I can't really explain that to Prett, you know?"

Cadence gave her an understanding smile and touched her arm. "Follow me." She led her upstairs to another bedroom, and the first thing Jane noticed, the thing that dominated the room, was a towering mahogany canopy bed draped with ivory lace.

"Wow."

"Yeah," Cadence said, "it's huge, isn't it? But..." She smiled shyly. "I always wanted a canopy bed. It was my idea of rich, and...of being loved." She flushed, fingering the lace. "This was Genevieve's when she was a little girl. Prett brought it out of storage when he hired me. Said there's no reason to have things if you don't use them. But the thing is," she said as her eyes misted, "I'd told him about my dream of having a canopy bed the night we met. He remembered that. Years later he remembered. That's what I mean about him. He's always listening. Even when you think he isn't. And he does things just because he has a good heart." She wiped her eyes and pointed to the bathroom. "Anyway, look in the cabinet under the sink. Take as much as you need. I'll be downstairs."

Cadence left, and Jane glanced around. Beyond the bed, the room contained the bare minimum of furniture and far less clutter than Mrs. Gingery's. The mirrored dresser held nothing but a lace runner topped with a wooden jewelry box, while the nightstand held a lamp, clock radio, and a framed photo of a young man in a military uniform.

In the bathroom, Jane stripped off the snowsuit, found what she needed, and stuffed what she could into her pockets. After she put the snowsuit back on, she examined herself in the mirror. Pink is not my color. The reflection from the jacket gave her face an unnatural glow that resembled an allergic reaction she'd once had. And the florescent lights above the mirror highlighted the dark circles under her eyes. I look like a meth addict dressed as an Easter bunny. She let out a short laugh. No one's going to find me the least bit attractive in this. Not even Prett, God forbid. Too bad he didn't have that elf costume with a pointy hat.

She sighed. How did I get here, of all places? But she knew. Losing her job. Sending out dozens of fruitless résumés. Hating the subsistence unemployment provided. Finding a job, losing it. Rinse, repeat. Then Brandon kicking her out. That had been the final motivation to start someplace new. No, I can't lie. Even that hadn't been the final motivation. The truth made her sick to her stomach. I'm as pathetic as I look.

Jane whirled around so she couldn't see herself cry. She didn't want anyone else to see her, either. She wanted to find a place to hide. What if I do? What if I lock myself in here and don't come out? Yeah. You did that before, remember? No. Don't think about that. She sniffled. But that's why you're here now. Everything starts from that day. She shook her head and wiped her eyes. I said don't think about it. This is just a detour. A delay. A side-stop till I get back on track. She straightened her shoulders. A second chance. If that's all Prett's offering, I'll take it. A few weeks' work, and there'll be enough money to continue escaping to a better life. What other choice was there? She was stuck with redneck Prett and his misfit brothers. For now. She opened the bathroom door.

Jane found a back stairway which led to a family room. "...that cranberry-nut apple pie?" Holly was saying from the adjacent kitchen. "And the amaretto-pear one? And you know Dad's favorite is cherry. You sure you'll get them all made?" Jane entered the kitchen to find Cadence standing at a center island, mashing cranberries through a sieve. Val sat on a barstool near her, his head leaning on his hand, watching the red sauce oozing through the holes. Across from them Holly and Danny sat side-by-side decorating gingerbread men: Holly piping on frosting, with Danny sprinkling on colored sugar. Blair sat near Danny, her arms crossed, twisting her barstool back and forth.

Danny noticed Jane first. He grinned and signed. She recognized "resemblance" and suspected flipping his fingers backwards at the top of his head indicated rabbit ears. "Oh, hush," Holly admonished, jabbing her elbow into his side and trying to suppress her own smile. "You look fine," she said to Jane.

"No, he's right. I look like a neon-pink snow bunny." Danny laughed, nodding enthusiastically. Val and Holly laughed too, and Jane couldn't help but smile.

"Oh, good," Prett said when he walked into the kitchen, "it fits." If he thought Jane looked as ridiculous as she felt, he didn't show it. He snatched a couple chocolate chip cookies from a plate and held one out to her. She wasn't the least bit hungry, but accepted it anyway. I should have declined. She nibbled a bite before sticking the cookie in her jacket pocket.

"Oop, watch your feet, Miss Jane," Prett said, indicating she move back from Mrs. Gingery's fast-approaching wheelchair. "GiGi rides roughshod over anyone in her way." Mrs. Gingery zipped past them, coming to a sudden stop between Danny and Blair, mere inches from crashing into the island base.

"If you didn't want me using this contraption, Prettamin, you shouldn't have gotten it for me," the old lady retorted as she maneuvered it around to face him.

"I want you to use it, GiGi. I just don't like you driving it over my feet half the time."

"Don't stick them out if you don't want them run over."

"Exactly what I was telling Miss Jane." Prett tapped a button on the wheelchair's control panel, causing a semi-circle of lights to blink off. "And how many times have I told you, keep it on 'turtle' in the house. 'Turtle,' not 'rabbit.' "

"If I want to move as slow as a turtle, I'll walk on my own two legs."

"If you had walked as slow as a turtle, you wouldn't have broken your leg, and I wouldn't have had to buy you this."

"That was four years ago. I don't see why I have to use it now!"

"So you don't break your other leg. Or worse. And you need to use it all the time, not just when I'm around to see it."

"Oh, quit your sniping! I've sat here long enough. Put up this footrest and help me stand."

"Yes, ma'am."

Prett helped Mrs. Gingery out of the chair, and once she had steadied herself, she patted his cheek. "Thank you, sweetheart, but always watch your feet." She pressed one foot onto his as she walked away.

"Yes, ma'am." His expression held the hint of a smile.

"My lands!" Mrs. Gingery had now noticed Jane. "That outfit is even more blinding than I remembered! Prettamin, why you ever picked such a bright color for me, I will never know."

"In case you wandered off into a snowbank. Easier to spot your frozen corpse."

She waved her hand at him with a huff before putting her arm around Holly. "What can I do to help, dearie?"

"I think the dough is ready to make into rolls. It's over there on the counter."

As Mrs. Gingery busied herself, Blair leaned towards Danny. "I'll be eighteen soon. April thirteenth." In reply Danny pointed to himself and signed a series of numbers.

Blair swiveled her seat to face Prett. "What did he say?"

Prett took a bite of cookie, seemingly assessing the meaning behind Blair's sudden declaration. "He's askin' what kind ah birthday present ye'd laike." Danny shot him a glare.

Blair giggled and swiveled back to Danny. "Oh, I don't know. I'll have to think about it." She giggled again. Danny replied by grabbing upwards with both hands followed by a two-fingered scratching near his chin. This prompted Holly to kick his leg while Val almost choked on a molasses cookie. Prett's expression remained deadpan.

Blair swiveled to Prett. "What did he say?" she asked with anticipation.

"He suggested jewelry. Something with diamonds."

With another glare, Danny pointed at Prett, circled his chest, swirled his hand in front of his face, and plucked his forehead.

You'll be sorry, Beautiful–is that what he said?

"Diamonds?!" Blair couldn't contain her excitement as she swiveled back to Danny, who switched his expression to one of bland interest. "I saw some diamond earrings in a catalog. Are you talking about those?"

"She needs stationery," Mrs. Gingery interjected, her fingers slowly working dough into balls and lining them in a baking dish.

"Stationery?" Blair said with annoyance. "Like paper? Why would I need that?"

"To write thank-you letters."

"Nobody writes thank-you letters anymore, Grammy."

"They don't if they no longer receive gifts."

"What do you mean?" Blair asked. Mrs. Gingery smiled at her. "Oh." Blair crossed her arms and went silent.

"Ah, there you go, Vel," Prett said. "Stationery. Good birthday gift." He popped the last bit of cookie in his mouth, took a few chews and added, "Diamond earrings are better for Valentine's Day anyway." In response, Danny picked up a gingerbread man and snapped off his head. "You're right," Prett said. "We've wasted too much of the morning already. Let's go."

"Oh, leaving so soon?" Mrs. Gingery asked. "You just got here."

"Daylight is burning, and we've got work to do."

"You should wait till tomorrow, when the weather is better."

"And miss your party? Couldn't do that."

"What time will you be here tomorrow?" Holly asked Prett.

"What time you eating?"

"I was thinking one o'clock."

"That's when we'll be here, then. Your parents still coming?"

"Yeah. They were supposed to come today, but decided to wait till morning because of the weather. Blair's family is going to her grandparents', and everyone else is coming for New Year's. So," Holly said, counting on her fingers, "that'll just be ten of us."

"You including Miss Jane?"

"Of course."

Prett said to Jane, "GiGi's annual Christmas birthday dinner."

"Oh. I'm invited?"

"Why yes, dear," Mrs. Gingery said, wiping her hands on a towel and coming around the island towards Jane. "We'd love to have you. We're celebrating Christmas, which is most important of course, but it's also my birthday, so it's doubly enjoyable for me." Mrs. Gingery squeezed her hand. "You be sure to come with Prettamin."

"I will." It's not as if I have other plans.

Mrs. Gingery beckoned to Prett, putting her arms around his shoulders. "Hmmmmma," she intoned, squeezing him. Then she placed her gnarled hand on his cheeks. "You know I scold you because I love you."

"Yes, ma'am."

Mrs. Gingery said goodbye to his brothers with the same enthusiastic squeeze and declaration of love, adding to Danny, "Cut your hair for my birthday. You'll do that for your old GiGi, won't you?" He only smiled, and soon after, planted a quick goodbye kiss on Holly's cheek. This made her laugh, Cadence scowl, and Blair stamp her foot and cross her arms.

Jane followed the men out. When Prett reached the driveway, Danny took two quick steps, grabbed Prett's coat, and yanked him backwards into a snowdrift. He scooped a handful of snow and mashed it in Prett's face before pushing himself up and resuming his uneven gait towards the truck. Prett wiped his hand over his beard, spitting out the snow. "Hey, I toldt ye'," he called to his retreating brother, "ye'd pay fer yer insolence." Danny flipped his middle finger. "Hey! Watch the language! There's a lady present." Danny walked back to Jane, signing an apology. He sweetly smiled, crooked his arm and led her to the truck. Val offered his hand to Prett. "We jest dun' know what it's laike, do we, Val?" Prett said, loud enough for Danny to hear. "To suffer the constant burden ah fending off lovesick teenyboppers."

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Please help me improve my writing by pointing out problems. And if you like what you read, please click the Vote button below. And comment! I love comments! 😊

Fun Fact: The last couple years of his life, my dad was wheelchair-bound. It cracked me up that his motorized wheelchair really did have turtle and rabbit icons on the control panel. He tended to use the rabbit setting. 😉

Here's my mom & dad on my mom's 92nd birthday, Sept 4, 2013. (Dad was 96.)

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