Triple B. Baking Co.

by Michel Prince

  “Do I?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.

  Austin placed his hand on her shoulder. “Come on, I’m going in.”

  “You want me to sit with you in the front?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?” He queried.

  The sincerity in his reply made her question her own mind. “Afterwards, can we please find a few minutes? I feel like things aren’t being said and well…you don’t do that and neither do I.”

  “Truer words have never been spoken,” he said kissing her forehead again. They walked to the front and she sat in the front row.

  Austin was flanked in his girls. Her and Trinity. He held both their hands while Rae cut her eyes at the sight.

  The funeral was beautiful as students and family members went up to tell their favorite stories from Mrs. Larsen’s classroom. It made Merryn want to go back in time and actually take chemistry and physics. Even the students who hated science loved her energy.

  Clarence had told Merryn the night before if it hadn’t been for Mrs. Larsen going slow with him during biology, he would have never taken on his father’s funeral home. It had always creeped him out. Between that and people making fun of him for sleeping with dead people, but Harriet had showed him the importance and dignity in his father’s profession.

  When Austin gave his eulogy, she and Trinity teared up. When she pulled out her package of tissues, she saw Brad glaring at his brother. As if it was all a lie or he was pissed at him for some reason. Absently, she passed Trinity a tissue and tried to read Brad’s face. Instead, he turned his rage to her and she felt as if she’d been slapped by a set of eyes. She righted herself and listened to the end of Austin’s speech before the pastor came up and said the final words and the pallbearers walked on stage and then to the hearse outside. Merryn climbed into her car since the limo could only seat six comfortably. After the final words were spoken over the grave, they came back to the school.

  Austin spirited Merryn down the hallway where he’d been with Rae the night before. “Alright, let’s get it all out,” he said.

  “You’re selling the farm.”

  “Is that a question? Because I told you I was, to Hank.”

  “Then were are you living?”

  “I thought maybe my girlfriend would ask me to move in with her.”

  “If your girlfriend hadn’t been the last to know she might of,” she said matching the irritation he had in his voice even though they were fighting on the same side she thought. “Rae said you’re moving to Cedar Rapids.”

  “Rae’s got her own priorities and plans.”

  “That include you moving to Cedar Rapids?”

  “Yes, to be closer to Trinity.”

  “Well, that might be a good idea then.”

  “You want me to move to Cedar Rapids?”

  “I don’t want to keep you from your daughter.”

  “You fucking asshole!” Brad bellowed as he stormed down the hallway.

  “I’m busy right now,” Austin said giving Merryn a confused look.

  “You’re selling the farm. Any chance you were going to consult me?”

  “This is why I don’t talk to people,” Austin griped. “I swear I told one person besides the person I’m selling the farm too, and she blurted it to everyone.”

  “You should have consulted with me.”

  “It’s my farm.”

  “It’s our farm,” he snipped. “And you were just going to sell it from right under us.”

  “I’m sorry, what part of my property do you own?”

  “Mom’s part. It may not be huge, but as her sole beneficiary I own it.”

  “Sole?” Merryn asked the question.

  Austin glared at his brother. “Mom doesn’t have a share of the farm.”

  “Yes, she does. I did her will, you think you can cut me out of something that’s mine?”

  “According to the bank I own it out right and have for years. How long ago did you fake her signing a will?”

  “It wasn’t a fake. Right after I got out of law school.”

  “Well, she sold her last bit of the farm to me probably a year later. You didn’t think to update it?”

  “It was too late, she’d had a stroke.”

  “How exactly did you become the sole beneficiary?” Austin asked. “I can’t see mom cutting Gretchen out.”

  “I took on that burden on society.”

  “You talking about me?” Gretchen asked.

  Brad turned to see his older sister standing there with her arms crossed over her chest. “Who said I needed you to take care of me?”

  “Mom, I think you’d just been kicked out of your apartment, again.”

  “Well, I hope you enjoy your bit of nothing,” Gretchen snarled. “Because I don’t know what else you think you’ll get out of mom’s estate.” She held up quotes for estate.

  “I should go check on the food,” Merryn said nervously as she tried to make an escape.

  Austin caught her gently grasping her arm. “We’re not done, just give me a few minutes to school my brother on a few things.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Austin watched as Merryn walked down the hall and tried to keep focused on the little shit in front of him and not the sexy walk Merryn didn’t even know she possessed. Had they really been fighting because they wanted to be together? Damn, he loved her. “I don’t know how you got mom to sign some bullshit will, but I’m questioning the validity of it.”

  “I didn’t know you knew big words,” Brad snapped.

  “What did we ever do to you growing up?” Austin asked.

  Gretchen nodded thinking he’d made a good point.

  “Did we eat too much of your birthday cake one year or something?”

  “You know you got everything right?” Brad asked. “Dad never even thought of me for the farm.”

  “Could be because you never got up off your ass to do chores,” Gretchen said. “You didn’t even join Four H. The state fair was something you had to go to and usually ran off with mom to avoid the barns.”

  “Just because I didn’t want to raise pigs to be slaughtered didn’t mean I didn’t like the farm.”

  “That’s it isn’t it?” Austin let out a belly laugh remembering Petunia. “Dad told you not to name the damn pigs. And if you did, to name it something practical like bacon or pork chop.”

  “Oh, shit.” Gretchen joined in the laughter. “I forgot about Petunia, damn that was a good cut of ham at Easter.”

  “I know right, we ate her for like a week straight.”

  “You two are disgusting,” Brad gagged. “Petunia was not some dumb ass hog.”

  “They were best friends,” Austin admitted looking at his sister. “Never knew a kid that wanted to walk a pig as much as you did.”

  “Dad would have let you show her at the fair if you wanted to,” Gretchen said.

  “What were you nine or ten?” Austin asked.

  “Seven.”

  “That’s right,” Austin said understanding his brother’s immaturity. “Gretchen was already showing Ham Hock. It would have taken a lot for her to show Petunia too.”

  “What about you?” Brad growled. “You could have shown her. Then maybe dad wouldn’t of… you know.”

  “Ham Hock got a blue ribbon and we still had stuffed pork chops on my birthday,” Gretchen said.

  “And there was no way in hell I was showing a damn pig named Petunia.”

  “It was Porky’s girlfriend. It’s not like I thought she was some damn pretty flower.”

  “So, because we dined on your swine you’ve held a grudge for over twenty years all in the hopes of cashing in when mom died?” Austin asked. “You have some issues.”

  “That’s not the only reason. You guys have hated me since mom brought me home from the hospital.”

  Gretchen and Austin shared a knowing glance. They hadn’t hated the dark haired newly named Larsen, even if they had every right to. He was one and a half and screamed like a new born with a bullh
orn attached to his mouth.

  “You weren’t brought home from the hospital,” Austin said.

  Gretchen’s eyes got wide.

  “It’s funny, everyone in town, but you, knew you were adopted.”

  “From aliens, I remember when you told me that crap. That I landed in a cornfield like Clark Kent, minus the ability to be awesome. Isn’t that the way you put it? As if I didn’t feel like I fit in as it was.”

  “Could that be because you vaguely look like either of us and have hair darker than night?”

  “You guys are assholes. Try to fight mom’s will and you’ll see how good of lawyer I became, not wasting my time in the barn.”

  The two blonde siblings looked at each other and shrugged. Brad would find out soon enough as they went through his mother’s papers, if he didn’t no big loss. He’d been their annoying little brother and no piece of paper would change that.

  “You’re a moron, but we still love you,” Gretchen said as she tried to hug the jackass of the family only to be rebuffed. “Fine, be on your own.” Gretchen left.

  Austin glared at his brother.

  “What?”

  “Nothing, but you owe Gretchen an apology. And me an explanation. This isn’t about a damn pig.”

  Brad’s jaw twitched from biting down so hard. He kicked at the table and it screeched a bit from the motion. Shoving his hands in his pockets, they stood in silence for almost five minutes.

  Even Austin could feel the bile working it’s way up his brother’s throat. Unlike Brad, Austin could stand in silence forever. He just leaned against the wall with his arms crossed at his chest and one foot resting on the other’s ankle.

  “My firm is being sold. I’m going from almost being a partner to being nothing.”

  “Your seniority has to mean something.”

  “Not according to the latest paperwork I’ve seen. I’m not in on negotiations, because it doesn’t directly affect me and they won’t allow any partnership to be granted at this time.” His brother paced running his fingers through his hair. “I’ve brought in some of the biggest clients over the past few years. My billable hours kept that firm running.”

  “And if they had seven of you, they probably wouldn’t be selling to another firm, but they don’t.” Austin could see the stress he’d been mistakenly assuming was hatred on his brother’s face. “This is the reason you’ve had a corncob up your ass for the past year?”

  “You wouldn’t understand the stress I’m under.”

  “Maybe if you would have come to me I could have taken some of it off you, but I need to know, what does this have to do with mom’s will?”

  “I was hoping to branch out, start my own firm. This company we’re being acquired by has people that have been working longer than me to be partner. According to Runyon, I’d be lucky if I qualified in seven years minimum. By then they might have acquired a dozen other firms.”

  “Would they keep the office in Cedar Falls?”

  “Yes, but now I’d have the luxury of moving to one of their twenty four other locations around the country if I wanted to.”

  “Do you?”

  “No, I don’t. As much as I want to get the hell away from this damn town…I don’t. I thought when mom was gone it would be like releasing me from a trap.”

  “Instead, you feel even more drawn to stay here,” Austin said with an understanding he didn’t think he’d ever have.

  “Why are you selling the farm?”

  “I like the town, I hate farming. It’s hard and thankless. I smell like pig shit even when I’ve showered three times in scalding water, it seems. The thought of switching to soybeans or corn doesn’t get me going either.”

  “Then what are you going to do?”

  “Maybe invest in something I believe in, silently of course. And look at the compass I put away almost twenty years ago.”

  “You said you love it here.”

  “I do, and whatever I choose to do, I’ll do it here. The last thing I want to do is move away.”

  “What about Trinity?”

  “She’s fine and happy. Me moving in with Rae, so we can pretend to be a happy nuclear family would only lead to me being resentful and bitter. I love Merryn. Rae just needs to accept she left me, long before Daisy was killed. We tried to struggle through, but we had more bad than good days.”

  “You selling to Zackary?”

  “Nope, Hank. I…like you, am not a fan of conglomerates.”

  “Wait, when you said you planned on investing in something what did you mean?”

  “I mean, don’t be a dick about mom’s place, if we’re able to sell it we’re not going to get much after paying bills off. How about I help you start your own firm?”

  “You’d do that?” he asked in shock. “For me?”

  “You’re my brother.” Austin put his arm around Brad’s shoulder and they both walked toward the gym. “Even though the gypsies got a way better deal than we did on the trade. Way better.”

  “Three pigs and a frog you found living in the ditch, I remember.”

  “I loved that damn frog.”

  * * * *

  Trinity sat on the edge of Merryn’s bed as she pulled out the stack of dresses and lined them up along the trim above the doorjamb. It wasn’t until she’d hung them all up, she saw the ridiculousness of them all. Trinity on the other hand, acted as if she’d died and gone to a sparkly heaven. Sequins, rhinestones and satin dresses ran around the room as she squealed with delight. “I’m afraid to touch them,” she said in a hushed whisper as if they were saints in a church.

  “At one time, I was like that,” Merryn mused as she looked at her Oscar dress from almost a decade before. Still beautiful and stylish. That she insisted on. She wasn’t about to hit the worst dressed on any list. Even though people weren’t sure who she was, she could still land on it. Taking down the SAG dress from seven years ago, she walked to Trinity and held it up to her chin. “See another five inches and it would be perfect.”

  “I’m not sure.” Trinity wrinkled her nose. “I was thinking pink.”

  “Think bigger,” Merryn said as she took down all the dresses not in that hue. “What shade of pink?”

  Trinity scanned the gowns still hanging. “What shade is this?”

  “Carnation if I remember correctly.” Merryn took down the pale pink dress and had to admit she did love it, just not on herself. But with Trinity’s skin coloring that might just be the right one. “Are you going to dye your hair to match?”

  “Maybe,” she smirked. “My mom can’t stand this.”

  “I doubt it.” Merryn caught one of the bits of hair and followed it down to the tip. “It brings out your eyes. But I would go for a pale pink color instead. Now, do you like this style?”

  “Not really,” she said then pulled a picture ripped from a magazine out of her bag. “I was hoping for this.”

  As she unfolded the picture, Merryn looked at the dress worn by none other than Alicia Winters. She covered her lips to hide the smile. “I can get you that dress.” Alicia would wear any designer as long as she got to keep the dress. “It’s a good thing you’re the same size as her.”

  “You think?” she asked cocking her head to the side and as if she could visually measure it.

  “Stand up.”

  Trinity stood and Merryn put her hand on her own head then brought it forward coming to the bridge of Trinity’s nose. “Yep, what size shoes do you wear?”

  “Seven and a half?”

  “Want the shoes to match?” Merryn asked looking at the peep toed ones her sister was wearing.

  “Get out,” she shoved Merryn. “You couldn’t really get me those.”

  Merryn sent a text to her sister to call when she was free.

  “Who do you know? The designer?”

  Merryn went to her bookcase and pulled out her family album. Passing it to Trinity, she opened it to her wedding photo. Pointing to her maid of honor, Trinity’s eyes got huge. “Alicia
’s my sister. I don’t advertise that fact, so you know.”

  Trinity gasped. “You were a gorgeous bride.”

  “Yeah, being twenty can do that to a girl.”

  “How old was your sister?”

  “Fourteen. Not that she looked it.”

  “Does your ex still look like this?”

  “Pretty much, maybe better, it’s a man thing, they always look better as they age.”

  “Then I must be the hottest guy in the room,” Austin said as he looked at the dresses hanging from the trim. “I’m assuming this has something to do with a dance you’re not going to.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Well, I’ll be there to see you off and threaten the boy.”

  “Of course. And Merryn too. She’s getting me a dress.” Trinity held up the picture of Alicia.

  He smiled. “Does your sister like you that much?”

  “You knew,” Trinity blanched at her father. “And you didn’t tell me?”

  “She’s not my sister. I didn’t think you needed to know.” He picked up the picture and gave Merryn the side eye at the plunging neckline. “Your mom is downstairs. She said something about going out to Nat’s farm.”

  “Cool beans.” Trinity gave her dad a kiss on the cheek and Merryn a hug before running downstairs.

  “Everything settled?” Merryn asked when they were alone.

  “For now.” Austin pulled down a peach dress that was see through with appropriately placed appliques. “Were you going to let my daughter wear this?”

  “We were picking colors.”

  “Can you wear this?”

  “Not anymore.” Merryn sighed and held it close to her chest. It had been the one sexy dress she went out on a limb with and she rocked it. Besides feeling faint after days of starvation. “Not then really, but hey being lathered in Vaseline is fun for all.”

  “Sorry I got lost after you said lathered in Vaseline.”

  Merryn smacked his chest.

  He caught her hand. “Tell me something,” he challenged and there was thick tension growing between the two of them. “How much weight can that sex swing handle?”

  “Sex swing?” Merryn asked then remembered the second apartment. “You want to see the other apartment.”