Chapter Fifteen
Kelly stirred a spoon of sugar into her cup, then added a healthy dose of cream. She propped her chin on her hand and stared out the window. Jack and Tyler were standing out by the barn, right in her line of sight. She couldn't hear what they were saying, even though the window was open. She did hear Jack laugh out loud after a minute and caught the grin on Tyler's face. Wonder what they're talking about? she thought. She sighed, feeling the weight of the world on her thin shoulders. A knock on the door startled her out of her reverie; she turned to see Janie Peterson open the door.
"Hi, Kelly, can I come in?"
"Of course! Want some coffee?"
"Sure, if you've got some made."
"There's always coffee around here," Kelly smiled. "What brings you out here today?"
Janie's smile disappeared. She looked down and tucked a lock of her blond curls behind her ear before looking up again.
"I take it you're not here for a personal visit."
Kelly could see the discomfort on the other woman's face. "Not exactly. Our agency got another call about Jack and Bobby, so my supervisor sent me out for a check-in. I told him I've been here a few times and don't have any concerns, but since the call came in he wanted me to make a special trip."
"Oh," Kelly nodded, handing her a cup of coffee. "Sit down. You want cream and sugar?" she slid them across the table to Janie.
"Where is everybody?"
"Jack's out back. Ennis took Bobby into town with him for some errands. They should be back any time now, if you want to wait."
"All right. Actually, I wanted to talk to you a little, if that's okay?"
Kelly's dark eyes met the faded blue of Janie's, shuttered and unreadable. "I guess."
"I just thought you might be getting to know the guys pretty good, since you're here most of the time." Kelly didn't reply, so she went on, "Kelly, what little I know about Jack and Bobby and even Ennis, I really like. I don't want anything bad to happen. I hope you, and they, know that. I'm really hoping that I'll be able to help them. But in order to do that, I have to know as much as possible about the situation."
"I understand, Janie." She took a sip of coffee, then stood up, "Would you like a cookie to go with your coffee? My mom sent some with me this morning. Molasses, my favorite." She brought a tin with rich brown cookies in it to the table.
"Have you lived here all your life?" Janie asked, taking a cookie.
"Yep. I grew up in Riverrun. Where are you from? I can tell you didn't grow up around here."
Janie laughed, "No, I'm from California."
"What brought you here?" Kelly asked.
"What else? A guy," she rolled her eyes. "I met Lance in college and followed him back here, got this job, and then he ran off with his high school sweetheart."
"Oh no! I'm so sorry," she paused before asking, "So how come you stayed?"
Janie looked thoughtful, "I'm not exactly sure. I like it here and I made a commitment with my job. I didn't want to quit right away. They took a chance hiring someone straight out of college, so I didn't want to let them down. And I've made some friends here. I've been trying to convince my brother to move out here. He's an artist and just can't seem to get his act together out there. Too many distractions, too many temptations. He's thinking about it." She paused for a moment, then took a deep breath before asking, "Kelly, does it bother you that Jack and Ennis are gay?"
Kelly choked on her cookie, took a big gulp of coffee to clear her throat, then looked at Janie, her eyes wide. "Wow, get right to the point, why don't you?"
"Sorry."
"Honestly? No. Most of the time I forget they are gay. If I didn't know they shared a bed, I probably wouldn't know it at all. They don't show affection if they think anyone can see them. I've caught them hugging a couple of times, but that's it. Well, except the way they look at each other sometimes. They don't always hide what they're feeling as good as they think they do. Besides, they aren't the only gay men I know."
Janie arched her eyebrow at her, "Oh, really?"
"Yeah. And yes, you know him. I can see the question in your eyes," Kelly's eyes sparkled at her. "It's Tyler," she whispered loudly.
Janie's eyes got big and she glanced out the window. "No!"
Kelly sighed, "Completely unfortunately, yes."
"Hmm . . . I sense that you, particularly, wish he wasn't."
"You're very perceptive."
Janie's eyes narrowed, "What about Dwayne and Dayle? Are they gay too?"
Kelly laughed out loud, "Oh no! Not those two. I graduated with those boys and if they're gay, they hide it amazingly well!"
Janie's face darkened, "Isn't Tyler staying here with Jack and Ennis? That might not look so good if L.D. heard . . ." she clapped her hand over her mouth, realizing she'd divulged something she shouldn't have.
Kelly laughed at her look, "Relax, Janie. Do you honestly think we don't all know who called your office? Who else would it be?"
Janie flushed, "Just the same, I'm not supposed to let things like that slip."
"Not supposed to let what slip?" a deep voice asked.
The women looked, to see Ennis just opening the door.
"Nothing. Girl stuff. You know . . ." Kelly trailed off, flapping her hand at him. She jumped up and took one of the grocery bags Ennis was carrying. "Let me help you."
"Hey Kelly! Look what Ennis got me!" Bobby yelled, running through the door. He held up a big, yellow, Tonka backhoe with a scoop on the front.
"Bobby, that's so cool!"
"Hi, Bobby." Janie smiled at him.
"Oh, hi, Janie. I gotta go show Daddy my backhoe! See ya later!" He raced out the door.
Ennis shook his head, a smile on his face, before looking up. "Hi, Janie. How're you?"
"Pretty good. How are you doing?"
"I'm okay. You girls need anything?" They shook their heads, "Well, I gotta bring some stuff out to Dwayne and Dayle. See ya later."
They didn't say anything until he was gone. Janie turned to Kelly, "It's so strange to imagine that he's gay."
"Not that he'd admit it," Kelly interjected dryly.
"I've been around gay men and I'm not saying they've all been kinda girly, but Ennis is just . . . just . . . just such a manly man, such a . . . a cowboy. A real, live cowboy. Like John Wayne or something!" She giggled.
Kelly chuckled, "We shouldn't make fun, but I know exactly what you mean. And Jack, oh my goodness! He's so good looking. Those eyes . . ." she sighed, a starry look in her eyes. "I can see why Ennis fell in love with him."
"I know."
Kelly grew serious. "Do you know what's going to happen? Can L.D. really take Bobby away from Jack?"
"I don't know. It really is up to the judge on the case. From the little I know about the situation, I think it would be such a shame. Anyone who spends five minutes with Bobby and Jack should be able to see the mutual adoration. I guess L.D. is blind."
"I'm not excusing him, but he did just lose his only daughter. People can do really stupid, selfish things when they're grieving." Her eyes were lost, looking somewhere beyond Janie.
"Sounds like you're speaking from experience," Janie said gently.
"Yeah, I am." She blinked quickly, then looked down.
Janie waited for her to say more, but she didn't. The silence was interrupted when Jack walked in the door.
"I heard there were two beautiful women in here," he grinned at them. Janie and Kelly looked at each other and giggled.
"Hi, Jack, how are you?" Janie asked.
"I'm pretty good. How are you?"
"Good."
"This a pleasure call or business?"
Janie sobered, "Business, I"m afraid. Our agency got another call, so my supervisor sent me out to check in with you."
"Ever'thin'g's fine, 'cept fer L.D. stickin' his nose where he shouldn't."
"I'm sorry, Jack."
"Well, I'm just glad if someone's gotta be checkin' on us that it gets t'be you."
"Me, too."
Kelly excused herself to start supper, so Jack sat in her chair. "Did you guys set up the appointment for the alcohol assessment?" Janie asked.
"Yep, we're goin' next Monday."
"Was Ennis okay with it?"
"Yeah, why d'ya ask?"
"Well, because he's not required to do it and some people might feel that's a real invasion of privacy."
"He didn't say anything–just agreed t'do it."
"He really loves you, doesn't he?"
Jack smiled, a mix of shyness and confidence that only he could pull off, "Yeah, he does."
"Daddy!" Bobby ran in the door, "Can I go to Danny's house? An' can I take my new backhoe?"
"Bobby, have you forgotten how to talk without shouting?" Jack asked, trying to look serious, but failing utterly.
"Sorry. Can I?"
"Did you tell Ennis thank you for that backhoe?"
"Yes, o' course I did! Can I go?"
"How are you gonna carry that on yer bike?"
Bobby stopped, thinking hard. "I don't know. I didn't think o' that."
"Did you call Danny t'see if you can come over?"
"Yeah, an' he said I could."
"How 'bout I drive you?"
"Yeah! But we gotta go now!"
"Hang on, little man. We got company."
Bobby sighed deeply.
"Go on outside an' I'll be out in a coupla minutes." Bobby turned around and raced out the door.
Jack turned back to Janie, "So, what d'ya wanna know?"
"How is Bobby doing? With grieving for his mom?"
"He wakes up crying sometimes. Takes him a while t'get back t'sleep. Other than that, he seems okay. He spends a lot of time with Danny and seems t'be real attached to Kelly. And Alice. And Ennis, too. I guess we ain't yer typical family," he said, smiling bemusedly.
"It seems to work for you, though," Janie said. She had a sudden wish for Mr. Collins, her supervisor, to see what she saw. She wasn't sure he'd understand, though.
"Any more questions?" Jack asked.
"No. You better take Bobby over to his friends house before he explodes," she smiled at him.
"Yer prob'ly right," he grinned back and went out the door.
Janie picked up her cup and brought it to the sink. She turned to Kelly, who was at the counter peeling potatoes. "I swear, I could fall into those big, blue eyes of his and just disappear forever. And his eyelashes! I've never seen eyelashes like that on a man before." She sighed lustily, then grew mock serious, "Of course, if you ever repeat this to anyone, I'll totally deny it!"
"I won't tell," Kelly smiled at her sympathetically.
"I wish all my clients were that sweet. Ah well, I'd probably be out of a job if they were." Kelly raised her eyebrow at her. Janie flushed, "Oh, dear, that sounded bad, didn't it? Don't get me wrong, I'd rather be out of a job if every child in the world was safe and happy and healthy, but the fact is, some of them aren't."
"Do you want to stay for supper?" Kelly asked, steering the topic back to safer waters.
"No, I better not, since I'm here on official business," she wrinkled her nose. "In fact, I'd better get going." She started towards the door, but turned back before she reached it. "Kelly, would you like to get together sometime, just hang out, maybe see a movie or something? I had fun talking to you today."
"Sure, just give me a call."
"All right, I will. See you later."
"Bye."
Ennis kicked the sheet off his legs. He'd pushed the one light blanket they used off an hour ago and he was still too hot. The fan in the window didn't seem to be helping at all. I can't believe Jack can sleep in this fuckin' heat. Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore and sat up, thinking of taking a shower. Dip in the lake would be better–won't wake anyone up. He pulled on his boxers and a t-shirt, slipped out of the room and padded down the stairs. He put his sneakers on in the entryway and went quietly out the door.
The path to the lake was illuminated by the pale light of the almost-full moon. He stopped at the edge of the trees, mesmerized by the beauty of the moon reflecting off the dark water. There weren't even many bugs to bother him. He had a sudden strong longing for Jack. I shoulda woke him up t'come with me. He toyed with the idea of going back for him, but decided to just take a quick dunk and get back to bed. Jack had been sleeping pretty peacefully, after all.
Ennis stepped out of the trees and was startled by a movement on the dock. A voice said quietly, "It's gonna storm tonight."
"Think so?" he asked.
"Yep."
"Too hot t'sleep."
"It's the humidity."
"Yep."
Ennis stood frozen, not sure whether to go forward or back. He came to the conclusion that it seemed stupid to go back, now that he'd come all this way. He walked forward slowly. Tyler was lying on the dock.
"You come out here a lot?" he asked, then winced inwardly. Sounded like a goddamn pickup line. Shit.
"Yeah, it's quiet. Peaceful."
Ennis toed his shoes off next to the dock and waded into the water, out to his waist, then sank down, dunked his head, and felt the coolness wash over him. He rested on his knees, all but his head under water.
Tyler sat up. "I've been thinking I should find somewhere else to stay."
"Why?" Stupid question, dumbass!
He could feel Tyler's gaze on him. "Ennis . . ."
"Tyler, I understand," he sighed, looking for words. He'd never been good at talking much or explaining what he was feeling. "You don't have to worry about anything happening. I like you, you're a hard worker, a nice guy. I appreciate everything ya do. You c'n trust me . . ." he trailed off, suddenly unsure.
"I trust you, Ennis." Tyler replied, then hesitated before adding, so softly Ennis barely heard it, "It's myself I don't trust."
There it was.
The silence stretched between them as each seemed afraid to move. After a while, Ennis started shivering and had to get out of the water. He hoisted himself up on the dock, sitting near Tyler.
"Tyler, I don't know exactly what's goin' on here, but we gotta put it aside. You can stay as long as ya need to. We can put all this behind us. I mean, I can. Can you?"
"Sure, Ennis," he whispered.
Silence again.
Ennis looked at Tyler, barely visible in the moonlight, his face a collection of shadows and darker shadows, except where the pale light reflected from his eyes and the gleam on his cheek. He reached out his hand and put it on Tyler's arm. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." His voice belied his words. He drew in a deep breath and said, stronger, "I'm fine, Ennis. I'll be fine. Jack is a lucky man to have you. I wouldn't do anything to hurt him. Or you." Tyler put his hand over Ennis's.
"I'm the lucky one," Ennis said, taking his hand away. He stood up abruptly. "I'm going back to the house."
"I'll be in later. I'm gonna sit here a while longer."
The phone rang while they were eating lunch the next day. Kelly answered and handed it to Jack right away.
"Hello? Hey, Anna . . . yeah . . . you're kidding."
Ennis looked up at the distressed sound in Jack's voice. Jack ran his hand through his hair. "Shit . . . okay . . . yeah, see ya then. Bye." He hung up and turned his back to the table, his shoulders slumped. Finally, he went up the stairs and into their bedroom.
Ennis waited a minute, then stood and followed him. He opened the door slowly. Jack was standing at the window, looking out over the rain-washed landscape.
"Jack? What's goin' on, bud?"
A sound escaped from Jack and his shoulders shook. Oh god, he's crying! Ennis thought. What the hell happened?
"Jack, darlin' . . ." Ennis turned him around and took him in his arms. "What's goin' on? What did she say?"
Jack took a shuddering breath. "L.D.'s lawyer filed a motion fer immediate custody of Bobby. He said it's because of us–that it ain't safe fer Bobby t'be livin' with men like us," he snarled the last part.
Ennis ran his hand up and down Jack's back and kissed the side of his neck, before saying softly, "Jack, ya knew it might come t'this. I shouldn't've come t'court with you."
Jack relaxed into Ennis, "Don't say that. I tol' ya I needed ya there. He would've found out anyway, so it don't make no difference, you bein' there or not. Not t'him. Made a difference t'me, though." Jack drew his head back and looked into Ennis's eyes. Jack's cheeks were wet, his eyes were watery, and a tear was caught in his eyelashes. Ennis put his hands on the sides of his face and wiped the tears away with his thumbs. He leaned in and kissed Jack softly.
"So, what happens next?"
"We have t'go t'court on Tuesday." He clung to Ennis and Ennis felt the shudder run through his body. "Anna said I might halfta hand Bobby over t'them after court, if the judge agrees with him. I can't do that, Ennis. I just can't," his voice disappeared into a sob.
Ennis hugged him tighter, if that was possible, and felt tears come to his own eyes. It was killing him to see Jack cry like this. "I'm sorry, darlin'. I'm so sorry. Shhh . . . it's gonna be alright."
