Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 76759 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76759 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
“Oh my God…” I’ve always known Brock was a player, but I don’t like to think about it.
“I know. She’s living with Brock in the guesthouse behind Joe and Melanie’s. And Callie is living with Donny in the guesthouse behind your parents’ place.”
I nod. “Oh, I know. Their houses are being built. Both of them.”
Maddie sighs. “It’s all so foreign to me. Having the resources to just build a house whenever you want, and the land to build it on.”
“You guys have quite a bit of land here.” I rise from the bed and look out Maddie’s window that faces the backyard. Beyond the vast yard lie the charred remains of the Pike vineyards.
“True. Jesse talks about building a house on our property, but he hasn’t been able to afford it yet.”
A house on our land or on the Pike land—doesn’t matter which—for Jesse and me. He may not be able to afford it, but I can.
“Anyway,” Maddie continues, “we’ll have to table the discussion on the show until we have the schedule from the band.”
“Is Jesse here?” I sit back down on the bed.
“I think he’s in his room, working on lyrics.”
“He’d have the schedule, right?”
“Yeah. But I don’t like to bother him when he’s working.”
“All right.” I let out a sigh. “On to the next thing, then. So we’re going to do all the touristy things, the palaces, the abbeys, Big Ben. We’ll eat pies on Fleet Street and see a show in the West End. What else?”
“We have to have a pint.”
“A pint of what?”
“Of beer, silly.” She punches my arm. “When they order an ale, they ask for a pint. Didn’t you do any research before deciding to go on this trip?”
Uh…no, I sure didn’t. I’m going because Jesse is going. I can’t say that to Maddie, though, so I settle on, “I’m not a big beer drinker, Mads.”
“Okay. You can have whatever you want, but I’m having a pint.”
I pause a moment. “You know what? We’re going for the experience. I’ll have a pint too.”
“Good. That’s what it’s all about, after all. The experience.”
I smile at my friend. “We both gave up our last semester of college, which was going to be full of parties. So yes, Maddie, we’re going to make this an experience neither one of us will ever forget.”
I plan to make it an experience her brother will never forget too.
Chapter Sixteen
Jesse
Christmas Day…
A modest number of wrapped gifts sit under our decorated tree. We didn’t have a lot of money to spend on shopping. Rory and I got our signing bonus for the band, ten thousand dollars each, but we gave most of that to our parents to help with expenses.
They didn’t like taking it, but they did it anyway.
Because that’s what families do. They take care of each other.
Still, we each managed to get one gift for each family member.
We all open our gifts, with Maddie playing Santa, handing them out.
She’s done that since she was old enough to, and since she’s the baby, none of us have ever challenged her on it.
Mom takes a giant trash bag and starts picking up discarded boxes and wrappings.
Brock and Donny are both here, doing Christmas with us this morning. The Steels celebrated on Christmas Eve.
Maddie picks up a small box wrapped in bright-red wrapping with gold dragons and holly etched on it. “Here’s one more gift, but it doesn’t have a tag.”
“That’s strange,” Rory says. “Why don’t you open it, Mads? Maybe we’ll be able to tell who it’s for.”
“Works for me.” Maddie rips the paper from it, and inside is a white rectangular box, like the kind that would hold large jewelry. “Here goes.” She takes off the lid.
Then she gasps.
“What is it?” Callie asks.
“It’s beautiful.” Then she hands it to me. “It’s for you, Jess.”
I raise my eyebrows. “It is? Okay, which one of you forgot to put a tag on your gift?”
“You got all our gifts.” Callie grins. “This must be from a secret admirer.”
I look inside the box. Nestled on cotton is a brass belt buckle with a dragon—one that looks a lot like our Dragonlock logo—etched on it.
“I think this might be for Dragon,” I say, but then I notice the engraving below the dragon.
In block letters. J E S S E.
“Why would anyone leave a present for Dragon here?” Rory asks.
I shake my head. “Never mind. I was wrong. It’s for me.”
“Are you going to show us what it is?” Brock asks.
I pass it around, the buckle still lying on the cotton. My family oohs and aahs over it.
“It’s perfect for you, Jess,” Dad says.
“Yeah. I love it. But who’s it from?”
The box goes to Donny, and he lifts the belt buckle. “May I?”
“I think you already did.”
He turns it over, and then his jaw drops.
“What?”
Don pauses a second before he says, “There’s engraving on the back too.”