Daisy's back in town

Chapter Thirteen

You remember Azelea Lingo, don't you?"

"No," Daisy answered absentmindedly as she stared out her mother's front-room window.

"Sure you do, she's the one who bought Lily half a vacuum when she got married," Louella continued as ifDaisy had been at Lily's wedding, which she hadn't.

"How does a person buy half a vacuum for a wedding present?" Daisy asked, although she really didn't give adamn at the moment. It had been over an hour since Jack had come and gone. Over an hour and she hadn't seenhide nor hair of him or Nathan.

"She put it on layaway and Lily had to pay to get it off. Cost her fifty bucks for a ninety-dollar vacuum. Andyou know, Azelea isn't poor. She's so big she has to sit down in shifts, so it isn't like she can't afford a wholevacuum."

Daisy had started to leave a dozen times only to decide that staying put was the best course.

"Anyway, Azelea's husband, Bud, left her a few years back and married a gal from Amarillo. Only the gal inAmarillo doesn't know that Bud's been sneaking back to Lovett the whole time for a little lovin' on the side withAzelea."

Daisy massaged the deep crease that had formed between her brows. Her head was going to explode.

"What is it, darlin'?" Louella paused in her story to ask Pippen. "Oh, you want your hat? Daisy, honey, where'sPip's hat?"

Daisy was so tense it felt like she had to,unlock her jaw to speak. "Probably in your bedroom."

"Go check grandma's bed."

"You go," Pippen demanded in his tiny voice.

"We'll go together."

Daisy kept her gaze out the window as they left the mom. She grabbed a handful of her mother's dark bluevelvet drapes and pressed her forehead to the glass. Since Nathan hadn't returned, she figured Jack had foundhim, and all sorts of scenarios ran through her head. Ranging from the two of them sitting somewhere talking toJack kidnapping Nathan and heading some place where she'd never find them. The last scenario she didn't reallythink was likely, but with Jack she never knew.

She opened the front door, and stuck her head out to look up and down the street. There was no sign of either ofthem.

"You're letting all the bought air out. Shut that," her mother said as she entered the room. Daisy glanced behindher, at her mother dressed in a pink blouse with fake pearls sown on it and a denim prairie skirt. Pippen stoodbeside her, wearing his coonskin cap and a pair of Big Bird pull-ups.

"This afternoon as I was leaving the hospital, they brought in Bud Lingo," her mother continued where she'd leftoff. "Appears he had heart failure while he was with Azelea. I couldn't stay at the hospital, but I am powerfulcurious to know what's gonna happen when Bud's wife gets her tail up here from Amarillo." Louella walked tothe cabinet where she kept her VHS tapes and opened it up. "And their youngest girl, Bonnie, was there too.

She's the one who had that real ugly baby last Valentine's Day. Lord, when I picked the blanket off the baby'sface in church, I 'bout had heart failure myself. It was all bald and pink and skinny like a newborn rat, bless herheart. Of course, I lied and told her it was precious. You remember Bonnie, don't you. Short. Dark hair..."

Her mother was determined to make Daisy's head explode. Daisy stepped out onto the porch and shut the doorbehind her. She sat on the first step and rested her temple against the white post that supported the roof. Hernerves were frazzled. Her head pounded, and her patience had deserted her awhile ago. It was barely oneo'clock in the afternoon, and she knew the day was bound to get worse. Jack hated her now, and he was going tomake her life a misery, just as he'd promised the first night she'd seen him. While she understood his anger ather, she couldn't let things get ugly. If they did, the one person who was totally innocent would be the one tosuffer the most. Nathan.

She glanced downward at her bare feet and red toenails. For the first time, she noticed the perfect fingertipbruises on her thighs. She didn't have to wonder how they'd gotten there. Jack. He'd left his mark on her longafter he'd made love to her.

It was apropos, she supposed. Jack had left his mark on her years ago too, and she didn't mean Nathan. He'dmarked her where no one could see. He'd left an indelible mark on her heart and her soul. One that no mailerhow far away she traveled, how long she stayed away, or how long she hid from it, had not faded nearly asmuch as she'd thought.

Despite his feeling toward her, she was very much afraid that she was falling in love with Jack again. She knewthe signs just as surely as she knew better than to let it happen.

The sooner she grabbed Nathan and got out of town, the better. Jack knew he had a son now. He could call orwrite or visit Seattle sometime in the future. Lily was recovering and would be home soon, but she was still abasket case. Yet, Daisy had problems of her own, and she had to get away before her life fell completely apart.

From half a block away, she heard the unmistakable rumble of Jack's Mustang. She looked up and turned herattention to the black car moving toward her. As she stood, the car rolled to a stop at the curb in front of hermother's house. Jack shut the car off then turned to look at her. From across the distance, their gazes met: Hisangry; hers resigned to his anger. Daisy leaned her head to one side and looked beyond Jack to Nathan. Her sonsat in the passenger seat and kept his attention pinned to his lap. He said something, then the two of them exitedthe Mustang. Both doors shut at the same time, and Jack waited for Nathan at the front of the car. The hot Texassun baked Daisy's shoulders, and it took every ounce of her self-control to keep her feet planted at the bottom ofthe steps and not running toward her son.

The two moved up the walk, their strides keeping perfect time with the other. Nathan's hands swung at his sides;his walk, an I'm-fifteen-and-trying-so-desperately-to-be-cool amble. Yet his blue eyes were guarded; he waswondering if he was in trouble or not.

Jack had one hand buried to his knuckles in the front pocket of his Levi's, the other hung loose at his side. Asalways, he moved as if he were in no hurry to get anywhere in particular.

"Where have you been, Nathan?" she asked when he stopped in front of her. She had to fight the urge to throwher arms around him and tell him everything would be okay. "I've been very worried about you. You know Ihate it when you leave and don't tell me when you'll be back."

"We went for a little drive," Jack told her.

A furrow appeared between Nathan's brows and she asked him, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

But he didn't look okay. He looked tired and upset, and his cheeks were pink from the heat. "Are you hungry?"

"A little."

"Why don't you go inside and have your grandma fix you something to eat."

He turned to Jack. "I guess I'll see you later."

"Count on it," he said. "I'll call you after I talk to Billy."

"Cool." With his pants riding low on his hips, and his dog chains jingling, Nathan moved up the steps.

"Where did you find him?" Daisy wanted to know as she watched her son shut the door.

"At the high school. He was talking to some girl."

"Where did you take him after that?" She turned to face him. The blazing sun penetrated the thick weave of hishat and shot pinholes of light across his nose and mouth.

"Around."

"Around where?"

He smiled. "Just around."

She placed her hand across her brows and shielded her eyes from the sun. He was really enjoying this. "Whatdid you talk about?"

"Cars."

"And?"

"Him working for me this summer."

"Impossible," she said and waved the notion away with her hand. "We have plans."

"Change them. Nathan says he wants to work for me this summer."

She looked up into his green eyes, surrounded by those long dark lashes of his. "Are you going to tell me that hecame up with that all on his own?"

He shook his head and white pinholes of light slid along his top lip. "Doesn't matter who came up with it. It'swhat we both want."

"We can't stay here all summer." She felt a bead of perspiration slip between her breasts. "I've already been herelonger than I intended."

"There's no reason for you stay. In fact, it might be better if you left."

"I'm not leaving my son here with you. You've known him an hour and you've already manipulated him intostaying."

"I simply offered Nathan a job helping Billy tear down a Hemi 426. He jumped at it."

She lifted her hands upward. "Of course he did. The child has slept on NASCAR sheets most of his life and hadhis first car picked out at the age of three. A Porsche 911."

"Jesus!" he swore. "You let my son pick a European piece of shit?"

Under any other circumstance, she might have laughed. "What the heck does it matter?"

"He's a Parrish." He grabbed his hat from his head and rubbed his forehead against his short sleeve. "It mattersto us." He ran his fingers through one side of his hair then jammed the hat back on. "If he'd been raised right,he'd know better," he said in a low grumble.

How dare he criticize the way she'd raised Nathan. She may not have always been the best mother, but she'dalways tried her best. She'd kill anyone who tried to hurt him.

"If he'd been raised right," Jack continued, "he wouldn't have a ring through his lip and dog chains hanging offhim."

Her nerves snapped, and in an instant she forgot all about trying to get along with Jack for Nathan's sake. Sheno longer cared whether Jack had a right to his anger, he'd just crossed the line and insulted her son. "He's agreat kid," she said and poked her finger in Jack's chest. "What's on the outside isn't as important as what's onthe inside."

Jack glanced down at her finger then back up into her eyes. "He looks like a hedgehog."

"A lot of boys where we live look like that." She poked him twice more. "Goat-roper!"

His eyes widened then narrowed. He wrapped his hand around hers and removed her finger. "You've turned intoa Yankee woman with no manners and a bad accent."

Daisy gasped, and this time she went for the kill. She stood on the balls of her feet and said, "I'll take that as acompliment coming from a second-rate grease monkey."

"You conceited bitch." He grabbed hold of her shoulders like when they were ten years old and fighting overwho had the best bike. They cut into each other with words, going at it tooth and nail, and all the while neverraising their voices above a low rumble.

"You always did think the sun rose and set on your scrawny butt," he said.

"And you always thought you were God's gift to a pair of jeans." She put her hands on his chest and shoved, buthe didn't move at all. "But I'm here to tell you on behalf of all women, what you've got in your jeans isn't thatextraordinary."

"You thought so Saturday on the trunk of the custom Lancer. In fact, you burst into tears because you enjoyedwhat I've got in my jeans."

"Don't flatter yourself. It'd been a long time. It could have happened with anyone." She smiled, too angry to beembarrassed. "You could have been Tucker Gooch," she added, knowing full well that Jack had always dislikedTucker.

He laughed. "Tucker doesn't have what it takes to make you bawl like you just had a religious conversion."

The front door opened and Louella stuck her head out. "You're putting on quite a show for the neighbors."

Jack let go of Daisy's shoulders and had the grace to look embarrassed. "Good afternoon, Miz Brooks."

"Hello, Jackson. Hot enough for ya?"

"Hotter than a stolen tamale," he said, taking off his hat and exchanging pleasantries as if to show he'd beenraised right.

"I haven't seen you in a tong lime."

"No, ma'am."

"How's your brother?"

"He's fine. Thanks for askin'."

"Well, tell him I said hello."

"I'll do that. How've you been, Miz Brooks?"

Daisy sat on the second to the last concrete step. She rested her forehead in her hand and waited for her motherto break into a long-winded story about her near heart failure at having seen Bonnie Lingo's ugly baby. And foronce, Daisy was grateful because it would give her time to compose herself.

Instead Louella said, "Well aren't you kind to ask. I'm feeling just fine."

"Glad to hear it, ma'am."

Daisy could almost feel her mother staring a hole in the back of her head. Since she already felt like an idiot forfighting with Jack on the front lawn, she refused to turn around and receive her mother's meaningful glare. "DidNathan hear us?" she asked.

"No. We couldn't hear you inside, but we did see you two going at it."

"Great," Daisy whispered.

She heard the front door shut behind her mother, and she dropped her hand and looked up at Jack. "We have toget along."

He shook his head. Even with bad-hat hair, he managed to look good. "Not going to happen."

"Then we're going to have to fake it. For Nathan's sake."

"Wet I'll tell you something, buttercup," he said as he stuck his hat back on his head. "I just don't think I'm thatgood at lying."

His recent lie about a trip to Tallahassee came to mind. "Right. -A frown wrinkled his brows. "Not as good as you, anyway."

She stood on the bottom step and looked into his face. "Do you think Nathan will want to stay here with youknowing that you hate me?" She didn't wait for him to answer. "He likes to act all grown up. He likes to thinkthat I baby him, but the fact is, he still needs me."

The furrow in his forehead smoothed. "Are you saying you're going to let him stay for the summer?"

She didn't think she had a choice. She'd talk to Nathan, and if he really wanted to work in Jack's garage and getto know him, Daisy wouldn't stand in his way. "If that's what he wants - but I won't leave him here alone withyou. I left him with relatives in Seattle for less than two weeks, and he couldn't handle it."

She let out a deep breath and thought out loud. "He only brought a backpack full of clothes. I have the onesuitcase. Neither one of us would last the summer on what we brought." She was going to have to make a triphome to Seattle to get some of their things.

Jack folded his arms over his wide chest and smiled. He'd won this round and he knew it.

"You have to promise, no more fighting."

"Agreed."

"We have to get along."

"In front of Nathan."

But Daisy wasn't through with him. "You have to pretend to like me."

He tilted his head back and the shadow from his hat slid from his nose, over his lips, to his chin. "Don't pushyour luck."

Daisy added water to the vase of fresh-cut lilies and returned it to the spot on the stand next to her sister'shospital bed. Daisy disliked the cloying scent of lilies. They reminded her of death. "I'm not going to be herewhen you go home tomorrow," she said and reached for the vase filled with peach tulips and white roses.

"Are you and Nathan going home?" Lily asked as she reached for the lime Jell-O on her dinner tray.

"Just me, and just for a few days." Daisy moved to the sink and added water to the vase. "It seems we're goingto stay the summer" Lily didn't say anything and Daisy looked over her shoulder at her sister. She had a whitebandage covering the stitches on her forehead. One eye was black and blue, the other green and yellow. Her toplip was still a little swollen, her left forearm was bandaged and her right ankle and foot were in some sort oftraction cast.

"What happened?" Lily finally asked. "Did you tell Jack about Nathan?"

"Not exactly." She set the vase next to the other and sat in a chair beside Lily's bed. "Nathan kind of told him,"

she answered, then filled her sister in on the rest. "I tried to tell Jack how sorry I am, but he isn't ready to hearit."

Lily turned her head on the pillow and her blue eyes gazed out from all the color on her face. "I'm sorry is justtwo words, Daisy. They don't mean anything unless you really mean them. Ronnie used to tell me he was sorryevery time he cheated, but what he really meant was that he was sorry he got caught again. Sometimes sorryisn't enough."

From outside the room, Dr. Williams was paged to star-line four; inside, Daisy got a real good glimpse intosuffering on the other side, from the person feeling the most pain.

"Yes, I know." She wrapped her hands around the wooden arms of the chair. "That's mostly why I've agreed tostay for the summer. I owe Jack. I may have done things for what I thought were the right reasons, but Ishouldn't have waited fifteen years to tell Jack about Nathan. I have a lot of guilt about that."

"Don't let guilt make you crazy." Lily set her Jell-O back on the fray. "Remember the night we went to SlimClem's?"

"Of course."

"I slept with Buddy Calhoun that night."

Daisy was too stunned to speak.

"He came over after I got home and we hooked up. He was real sweet and the sex was great. But after he left, Istarted to feel guilty, like I was cheating on my marriage. Ronnie had cheated on me for years, left Pippen andme for another woman, and I was feeling guilty" She scratched her forehead next to the bandage. "It was crazy,and I got so mad I drove over to his house. He wasn't home, but I drove up and down his street waiting for him,getting madder and madder. I don't remember much after that, but I guess I got so mad, I drove my car into hisfront room."

"Lily." She stood and walked to the bed. "What are you saying? Not to let guilt make me that insane, or I shouldprobably expect Jack's Mustang to plow through mother's front room?"

"Neither. I don't know. I just know that I want to feel normal again." She pushed the tray away. "Can youscratch my big toe?"

Daisy moved to the end of the bed scratched her sister's toe. Lily's ankle was huge.

"What did you tell the police about the accident?"

"That I was going to see Ronnie about child support and I must have gotten one of my bad migraines andaccidently hit the gas instead of the brake."

"They bought it?"

She shrugged. "I went to school with Neal Flegel. He never did like Ronnie very much. He gave me a ticket forfailure to control speed. My insurance is paying for the damage to the house, but I'm sure the premiums will goso high I won't be able to drive for a while."

Which Daisy figured was probably a blessing.

"Have you given any more thought about counseling? - "Yeah, I've thought about it. Might not be a bad thing."

Lily reached for the controls and lowered the bed. "But I think running my car into Ronnie's put things intoperspective for me."

That sounded healthy.

"No man is worth making me feel so bad about myself. When I'm not being crazy, I'm a pretty nice person."

Daisy smiled. "Dam right."

"Ronnie isn't worth spit, let alone worth me."

"Nope."

"I'm going to concentrate on getting better and raising Pippen. I'm over feeling bad about Ronnie. I don't need aman in my life to make me feel important."

"That's true." Lily really did sound as if she were on the road to complete mental health.

"Why should I base my self-worth on a man who counts his hard-ons as personal growth?"

Daisy laughed. "You shouldn't."

Lily pulled off a piece of tape holding a cotton ball to the inside of her elbow. "Men are the scum of the earthand should be killed."

Well, maybe not complete mental health.