They were encouragement. We just—wanted you back here. Right, Luanne?”
“Sure.” Luanne shook her head and rolled her eyes.
Jess took a deep breath. “The money’s gone, Roxie. Don’t bother chasing me for it.”
Roxie whipped the door open, came at Jess like she had a thousand times before. It took everything in Jess’s power not to back up, not to wince. She thumbed the trigger of the pepper spray, ready to use it if she needed to.
“What do you mean, it’s gone?”
“It’s gone. I gave it away.”
“You what?” Jess braced for a slap, watched Roxie’s hand twitch at her side.
Let her try, Jess thought. Let her pull that hand up and send it toward her face. Oh, just let her. This time Jess would slap back. She’d take all the rage she’d been holding inside for all these years, and she’d let her have it.
Roxie seemed to feel Jess’s fury, seemed to sense a change in the landscape. She clenched her fist, took a deep breath, and looked like she was trying to gather herself. “You’re lying.”
“I’m not.”
“You so well off now that you can afford to throw money away? That it? And you’ve never thought to send any home to your poor mama and auntie? Huh?”
Jess shook her head. “I just knew a place that could use it more than me. And definitely more than you.”
Luanne pushed the door open farther. “She’s lying. She just don’t want us to get our hands on the money. How much did he leave you, huh?”
Jess reached into her purse and pulled out a piece of paper with a business name and address carefully blacked out. She handed it to Roxie. “I’m not telling you where it went, or how much he left, because it’s not your concern. But this is the receipt so you know it’s gone. The—charity—I donated it to is a good place with good people who do good things. It was the right thing to do.”
“You threw away twenty-five thousand dollars? Are you stupid? I didn’t raise you like this.”
There was a long pause while Jess tried to come up with a response, and then a voice from behind her almost made her fall backwards.
“Far as I can see, you didn’t raise her at all.”
The next thirty seconds would be burned into Jess’s memory forever, she knew. As her own head whipped around to see Cole standing at the bottom of the steps, Roxie and Luanne just about fell out the door as they clambered to see where the deep, resonant voice had come from.
Before Jess could close her gaping mouth, Cole smiled. “Hey, cowgirl.”
He stepped over an overflowing recycle bin and onto the small porch beside her, putting his arm around her back and settling her firmly against his side. He smiled down at her, squeezing her gently, then turned his gaze on her mother.
“You must be Roxie.”
Roxie reached out her hand, fluttered her eyelashes, and worked up one of her best smiles. “I am. And who would you be?”
“I’m Cole.” He looked at her hand, but didn’t lift his own. Hers fluttered to her side in defeat. “I’m a friend of your daughter’s, and I just wanted to stop by and let you know a couple of things.”
Jess could see the tightness around his mouth that belied his smile, but Roxie was too mesmerized by his eyes, his voice, to notice.
“If you ever, ever try to contact Jess again, I will have the authorities on the phone within three seconds. And if you ever, ever threaten her again, I will come back here and contact every journalist and police officer in this county. And they will know what went on in this trailer for all those years. They will know—and you will pay for what you did.”
Roxie actually looked scared for a moment, but then her customary sneer took over her face. “You talk big, honey, but it ain’t gonna happen. Ain’t nothing ever happened here that anybody would care about, anyway.”
Jess felt Cole’s body stiffen at her words, felt his hand tighten around her. And God, it felt good. It felt good to have him standing here on this porch with her. Felt good to have his arm around her, holding her close, holding her up.
“I care. I care a hell of a lot.” His voice vibrated through her, and she gathered his strength as he held her. “And you’re delusional to think others wouldn’t. What you did is despicable, and criminal. And if Jess ever decides to