Jesse's Brother

by Wendy Ely

  CHAPTER 20

  The Grill was crowded with locals, both men and woman holding beers or glasses filled with bright-colored liquid. Strobe lights followed couples around the dance floor. Twangy country music bounced off the walls. Dressed in a baby blue colored blouse she’d hardly worn and a mini jean skirt with cowboy boots, she fit right in with the crowd.

  On the ride over, she promised herself tonight she’d be Samantha, the college student. She wasn’t going to allow herself to be responsible, guilty Samantha.

  Tonya bounced up and down toward the back of the bar, trying to catch her attention. She broke into a huge grin when Samantha made her way through the bar.

  “Sorry we have to sit way back here,” said Tonya as she gestured at a huge table that would accommodate six people.

  Samantha took a seat facing the bar. “It’s okay. This place looks great,” she said right before the waitress popped over to their table.

  The woman looked familiar, but Samantha wasn’t sure why. It didn’t matter much to her anyway. Not sure what to order, she let Tonya order her drink first, then ordered the same thing, hoping it tasted good.

  She never had been much of a partier. The fact she’d come to The Grill in the first place was something new. She’d never been in a bar before. While at college, she’d had several guys ask her out on dates, often including trips to the bars for a drink, but she had always turned them down.

  The waitress brought over two chocolate martinis. Tonya took out a twenty and handed it to the waitress. Samantha reached into her purse to pay her share but Tonya put her hand up.

  “First round is on me,” Tonya said with a smile. “I’m glad I got out of the house tonight. I need to enjoy life more.”

  “I hear you. That’s what it’s like for me while I’m in school. Work, school, then more work and school. It gets pretty boring.” She took a sip of the brown drink. It tasted pretty good.

  “I’m glad you’re back in town. In high school I had always wanted to be friends with you, but you guys were like the three musketeers and wouldn’t let anyone else join the club,” Tonya said taking a sip of her drink.

  “I know. I regret that now. I lost out on many friendships. How about we make up for lost time?”

  “I’d like that,” Tonya said with a smile.

  The two women chatted about high school, then about their current lives. By the time they were on their third drink, Samantha was feeling rather tipsy.

  “Hey, ladies, may I join you?” asked a tall cowboy. He wore stylish jeans that were way too tight across his butt, a western shirt and cowboy boots. An expensive-looking cowboy hat completed the outfit, and he looked like every other guy in the bar.

  “Sure,” replied Tonya.

  Samantha had no interest in the guy. There was no need for another man to join the mix, no matter how attractive he was.

  “What are you ladies up to tonight?” It was no secret. The man’s thick southern drawl meant he wasn’t from Alban.

  “It’s a girl’s night out. I’m Tonya. This is my friend, Samantha.”

  He grabbed each of their hands and planted beer-dripped kisses on their palms. Samantha yanked her hand back. The thought of Noah’s kisses flooded her senses. Each time Noah kissed her, shivers rocked her body.

  “Waitress!” she called while raising her hand up to get her attention. “Another drink, please.” Another drink would erase Noah from her mind for sure.

  The cowboy sat between them at the end of the table. “I’m Andrew Lane. I’m probably the luckiest man in this place,” he said before taking a pull of his beer.

  “Why’s that?” purred Tonya.

  Samantha laughed as the waitress handed her the drink. She quickly brought it to her lips, praying it would erase the images of Noah and Jesse.

  “Because I’m sitting with the two prettiest women in the bar,” he said leaning toward her.

  She felt a tap on her shoulder. Another man stood next to her chair.

  “Would you like to dance?” he asked.

  “Sure,” she said as she put her hand in his.

  He led her to the dance floor and the room spun around her.

  Good thing it was a slow song, she thought while his arms wrapped around her waist. She put her head against the man’s bony shoulder. Images of her first date with Jesse flooded her mind and the room began to spin faster.

  Her legs felt weaker from the nausea attacking her. No longer trusting she wouldn’t throw up right there on the dance floor, she pulled away from the stranger.

  “Excuse me… I’ve had too much…”

  “To drink,” he said, finishing her sentence.

  She could only nod as she held the railing that bordered the dance floor. Her dance partner grabbed her and slid his other arm around her waist to guide her back to her table.

  “Do you need help, Samantha?” Tonya asked, jumping up from her spot at the table.

  “I think she needs to go into the bathroom,” her dance partner suggested.

  “Drank too much.” Samantha’s slurred words were much louder than intended.

  “Me too,” Tonya whispered back to her and they both giggled as they bumped their way into the women’s restroom. Samantha flung herself into the stall. She kicked the door shut and instantly was relieved of the bubbling, hot sensation in her stomach. Another good reason to avoid alcohol.

  When she returned to the table, Tonya was back flirting with Andrew. The other cowboy was nowhere to be seen. What a relief. Almost puking on a man was not on her list of favorite things to do, and she actually preferred never seeing the man again. In a town like Alban, it was likely she would run into him the next time she went shopping. The joys of small-town life.

  “How are you feeling?” Andrew asked as she took her place at the table.

  She gave a half-smile and asked the waitress for club soda.

  “I could be better,” she said softly. She watched as the cowboy danced with another woman. The room still continued to spin so she let her head drop into her hands to stop it.

  The song came to an end, bringing the cowboy back to the table. He paused by her chair, reaching for her shoulder, but hit Tonya’s glass of beer instead. The glass crashed against the floor next to her feet. Shattered glass scattered all over the floor, leaving Samantha soaked in beer.

  “Shit!” she yelled, jumping up from her chair and stumbling back to the bathroom. Her feeble attempt at removing the stench from her bare legs wasn’t working very well. The bathroom door opened and Tonya came in to help.

  “I’m really sorry, Samantha.” Tonya yanked more paper towels from the dispenser and helped.

  “I have to go home, Tonya.”

  “Me too.”

  “I don’t think I should drive…” Tears welled in her eyes as they tried to get the beer smell off her.

  “Do you want me to call your family? Do you have a boyfriend I should call?”

  “No! Don’t call anyone, please.” More tears slid down Samantha’s cheeks. She hastily pushed them away.

  “Listen, I’m in no condition to drive either, so let’s walk over to my apartment. It’s down the street. You can stay the night.” She wrapped her arms around Samantha.

  The hug felt good. “Thank you,” she whispered. Why had she missed out on such a good friend? Somehow life would have been different if she had given the teenaged version of Tonya an actual chance way back then.

  * * * *

  Samantha woke to the smell of eggs and fried bacon. She slid out of the double bed, wearing a nightshirt and shorts that must have belonged to Tonya. She had no idea how they had reached the apartment or changed clothes. She glanced over at the dresser, where her clothes had been neatly folded. Tonya sat at the small table in the corner. Her head rested on her hand as she sipped coffee.

  “How are you feeling? I have one hell of a hangover.”

  “I don’t remember coming here last night,” replied Samantha

  “I remember giving you some cl
othes to wear. Want some breakfast? There’s a plate of eggs, bacon, and toast in the microwave for you. Coffee’s in the pot.”

  “Thanks,” Samantha said and flinched at the pain behind her eyes. Would this be the hangover Tonya was talking about? She walked into the small kitchen and pushed the buttons on the microwave to reheat her breakfast. Once the microwave beeped, she joined Tonya at the table.

  “Something’s bothering you,” replied Tonya. “Besides the hangover.”

  “How do you know?”

  “It was obvious you don’t drink often…”

  “Not at all actually,” Samantha corrected before taking a bite of peppered bacon.

  “Want to tell me what’s bothering you?”

  She took another bite of toast before answering. Should she tell her sad story? Samantha opened her mouth and the entire tale from beginning to end came out.

  Tonya sat silent without interruption. Her wide-eyed stare told Samantha she’d understood every horrid detail.

  “So now,” Samantha continued, “I must choose between them.”

  “Which one do you like better?”

  “I don’t know. They’re so different. Noah is so rugged and handsome while Jesse is the opposite. He’s distinguished, has a career and everything going for him. Both treat me very well, and I enjoy their company. Noah fits into my life here while Jesse would be great for when I leave Alban.”

  “What had you planned for your life?”

  Samantha sighed. “I planned on using my degree for a corporate job but I don’t even know about that now. All I can picture is getting married and having children.”

  “Can you picture yourself married to one of them? Think about the future and make your choice then. Your heart will tell you what you need to do,” Tonya said as she got up from the table and walked over to the kitchen.

  The kitchen was divided from the living room by a half wall. Tonya rinsed out the coffee cup and set it in the sink. She wiped down the counters and smiled as Samantha brought her plate into the kitchen. Samantha set the empty plate into the sink, then rinsed her own cup out.

  “Thanks for the advice. I’ll keep all of that in mind when I make the decision.”

  “Do you need a ride to your car?”

  Samantha nodded. She quickly went into the bedroom and replaced the pajamas with the outfit she’d worn the night before. She didn’t want to put the smelly clothes back on but was too shy to ask for a loaner outfit. Besides, Tonya was a few sizes smaller than her.

  “We need to do this again,” she said as they left the apartment. “I mean, get together again. But no more alcohol for me.”

  “No kidding. Is that your car?” asked Tonya as they pulled into The Grill’s parking lot.

  “I feel like I’ve been run over by a bulldozer,” Samantha said, nodding her head.

  “Today’s going to be a long day,” replied Tonya.

  “Call me,” she said as she got out of the truck. She couldn’t wait to take a shower and relax.

  She wished she hadn’t gone overboard with the drinking but was glad she’d gone out and had a chance to spend time with Tonya.

  Tonya had turned out to be lots of fun and a new potential best friend. Besides, getting away from her problems was a god-send. She inhaled deeply before smiling to herself, ready to deal with her problem. The answer seemed clear and she would do it today.

  CHAPTER 21

  The intercom on the desk buzzed. Jesse didn’t want to answer it. He felt out-of-sorts and walked over to the bar to get another drink. “Screw the one drink rule,” he muttered under his breath.

  “Mr. Lincoln?” boomed the speaker on the intercom. With drink in hand, he stomped back to his desk and jammed the intercom off.

  He didn’t care who had an appointment. “I should make a commercial advertising, ‘I don’t care if you are the President himself. If I don’t want to see you, then I won’t,’” he said aloud, words slurring a bit from the alcohol he’d consumed. He let out a harsh laugh as he flopped down into his chair and watched the vodka swirl around in the glass.

  “Samantha,” he said her name slow, sounding out each letter as if he were reading for the first time. He had called her four times over the last two days. She hadn’t taken his calls and it was driving him crazy.

  Was this love he felt for her? He had never been in love with a woman so the feeling was foreign to him. That had to be it. Love.

  “I hate you, Samantha,” he whispered before drinking the last swallow, “for making me love you.”

  He looked at the empty glass. Had he drank all of that? He walked over to the bar and reached for the vodka bottle. Fuck the glass. He twisted the lid off. The rim of the bottle met his lips when the office door flew open. He froze with the bottle still poised.

  “I’ve been waiting fer you fer fifteen minutes!”

  Jesse brought the bottle away from his mouth. “Want a drink, Joe?” he asked. Damn. Joe looked worse than the last time he’d seen him.

  Before Joe could answer, Cindy ran into the office, her face a mixture of fear and shock. “Mr. Lincoln, I told him to wait. I went to…” Her explanation came out in huge gulps of hyper air, but Jesse cut them off.

  “Get your ass out of my office now, Cindy.” He was drunk and didn’t care, not that he’d have treated her any better had he been sober. Cindy ran out of the office and shut the door behind her. With her gone, Jesse picked his glass up to fill it again. He handed Joe a glass before finding his own chair.

  Sitting across from him, Joe undid the flap on the manila envelope and emptied the contents on the desk. Photographs scattered across the desk.

  “You look like shit, Joe, but it’s good to see you.” He watched Joe organize the photos.

  “Thanks. I can say the same ’bout you. Looks like you’ve had too much to drink but hell, who am I to judge?” Joe took a sip of the alcohol and handed him the first few pictures.

  His heart quickened as he viewed the photograph of Samantha. In each of the photos she’d been alone, dressed in a variety of different outfits, and was busy with various activities. One pose was of her on her cellphone in town. She looked happy as she talked. Was it him on the other line, making her smile? He’d never know, so he quickly pushed the thought aside to look at the next picture.

  In the second one, her hair was in a ponytail with curls flying everywhere. She was playing with her horse. The last picture was of her sitting on the front porch swing dressed in red and white, her hair free.

  “She looks beautiful,” he whispered.

  “Hold that thought, Jess.” Joe handed over a packet of papers and some more photos.

  “What are these?” He asked.

  “There’s a man that lives on the farm. Look through those.” Joe pointed at the pictures in Jesse’s hand. “And see for yourself.”

  Jesse’s eyes were glued to the photograph he held in his hand, his mouth opened in disbelief. Was he seeing correctly? Did he have too much to drink? He blinked his eyes and forced himself to look at the man kissing Samantha.

  A sudden burning sensation rushed through his veins like boiling water; so hot, he thought he’d explode. He tore the picture into tiny pieces, opened his hand and watched them scatter like confetti onto the floor.

  Joe sat quietly, seemingly mesmerized. “What’s wrong?”

  Jesse tried to speak, but the words got caught in the back of his throat. He opened his mouth, then shut it again, and stood staring out the window into space. A muscle flickered on his tightened jaw. Shocked beyond belief, he began to pace back and forth, rubbing his hand through his thick hair. If anything was going to sober him, this was it.

  “Jesse, talk to me.” Joe rose to his feet and came up beside him. “Do you know this guy?”

  Jesse kicked the scattered pieces with the toe of his shoe, and snorted like a bull. “Yes. I know the son of a bitch. He’s my brother.” He kicked a few more pieces, then stood by the window, staring, but not seeing anything. “Well, I won’
t have it. He can’t have the woman I love… and I’ll make sure of that.”

  “Want him taken care of, Jess?” That was why he loved the toothless man. Joe was the “do it all” kind of guy.

  “No. I don’t think we need to do anything so extreme. You let me take care of this. That son of a bitch is going to get it where it hurts the most.” He twisted his mouth into an evil grin as he tapped his finger against his chest directly above his heart. “Right here.”