make the drive out to my family’s land. It takes a good twenty minutes to get all the way out there, and I have a knot of nerves in my stomach as we pull onto the wooded road that leads down to the trailers.
Part of the reason I haven’t brought many women out here is that it’s not exactly a typical family home. There’s no white picket fence and big brick house. I’ve been called “trailer trash” more times than I care to remember. A lot of people around here don’t understand why we all live out here in a bunch of rundown trailers and hand-built cabins.
Growing up, we never had much money, but what we lacked in material possessions, we more than made up for in family loyalty and love.
My dad has always been hard on me, but I know he loves me. And I wouldn’t trade my close-knit family for all the gold in the world. I hope Jo loves them.
We pull up to my parents’ trailer, and my mom comes running out, her arms wide open.
I step out of the truck and she throws her arms around me.
“There’s my sunshine,” she says. “Oh, Colton, I’m so glad you’re here. It’s been weeks since you came to visit. I miss you so much.”
She takes my face in her hands and squeezes.
“Happy birthday, baby,” she says, hugging me again.
Jo comes around the other side of the truck, and my mom squeals.
“Honey, get yourself over here so I can hug your neck,” she says.
I laugh as I watch Jo tense and finally give into my mother’s relentless hug.
“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Tucker,” she says.
“Girl, you better call me Carol,” Mom says. “We don’t entertain a lot of formalities out here, as you’ll soon see.”
“Oh, I almost forgot,” Jo says. She rushes back to the truck and grabs the plate of appetizers she made for tonight. “I hope you don’t mind that I brought something for dinner.”
“I’ve been dying to try some of your cooking,” Mom says. “Colton has told me all about your passion for food. We’ve all been crazy to try some of this food. What did you bring us?”
Mom pulls the foil off the top of the plate, and Jo raises an eyebrow at me. I shrug and laugh. If she’s going to spend some time out here, she’s going to learn real fast that my mom wasn’t joking. Other than saying grace before every meal, we don’t have a lot of rules or boundaries in our family. People say what they’re thinking and everyone does exactly as they please most of the time.
It’s part of what I love most about my family.
“Colton, I’m already in love with this girl,” Mom says. “Did you tell her how much I love deviled eggs?”
“I may have mentioned it a time or two, but I had no idea she remembered,” I say.
“When it comes to food, I remember everything,” Jo says with a laugh. “This is my own special recipe, so I hope you like it.”
“I know I’m gonna love it,” Mom says. “Come on, everyone’s dying to meet you.”
As we head toward the house, my brother-in-law Isaac comes out, beer in hand. “There’s the birthday boy,” he says. clapping a hand on my shoulder. “This must be the illustrious Jo we’ve all heard so much about. I’m Cora Mae’s husband, Isaac.”
Jo blushes and holds a hand out to him, but he grabs her into a hug, nearly knocking the plate out of her hand.
She laughs as I take the plate from her. “Nice to meet you,” she says.
“You, too,” Isaac says “The girl who finally tamed Colton has earned a special place in my heart.”
“Well, I don’t know that you can tame a guy like Colton,” she says. “But I’m happy to be along for the ride.”
Isaac raises his beer to me. “I like her already,” he says.
“See, I told you they would love you,” I say in her ear, placing a hand on her elbow and leading her up toward the trailer.
It takes a while to go through all the introductions, and I’m sure she’s feeling overwhelmed, but she seems to be taking it all in stride. She’s much more relaxed than she was the other night at the party, as if she naturally fits here.
My brother-in-law Matt and I go out to get the fire started, and everyone gradually joins us. Luckily it’s a beautiful fall evening, and not too cold out even though the sun’s going