GREED(72)
“No way,” he claimed emphatically.
“What do you mean by ‘too much’ then?” I asked, my big brother side coming out full force.
“I just meant that I’m in love with your sister, and I don’t think she feels the same way and that...that eats at me.”
I let the news sink in, feeling a combination of impressed with Jonah, bewildered and confused.
“I think,” I began carefully, “that she may care for you more than you think.”
Jonah’s head shot up, his eyes wide. “Shut up,” he said seriously.
“I’m very serious, Jonah.”
“Oh my God,” he said, sitting up and back on his heels. His hand went to his chest and he turned to sit, as if he couldn’t believe what I’d told him. His head hung low as he studied the tops of his boots. He removed his wool cap, then put it right back on, as if he was unsure of what to do with his hands.
“You okay? I asked.
He smiled, but one corner turned up more than the other, like he was embarrassed. “I think so.”
I cleared my throat. “So, what are you going to do?” I asked, hammering another shingle in.
The noise brought him back to the present and he joined me once again.
“I don’t know. I guess I’m going to have to talk to Bridget.”
“That’s a good idea,” I said but hesitated.
“What?”
“You’re okay with her being pregnant?”
His face softened. “I’m definitely okay with it.”
“How can that be?” I asked, astounded but grateful nonetheless.
“You don’t choose who you fall for, Spencer. Either you do or you don’t,” he said, stunning me.
Bridge had said something strikingly similar to me the day we left.
“Ain’t that the truth,” I chimed in.
“See. I knew you liked my cousin.”
“How do you figure that?”
“Your previous statement, for one. Two, the fact that she comes in the room and not a single one of us can break your attention from her. And three,” he said, “Ethan can’t stand you and Ethan likes everyone.”
The mere mention of Ethan made my skin crawl.
“You know,” he continued, “we all love and respect Ethan like he was part of our family.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I said, starting to get pissed off.
“Wait a minute! We all love him, Spencer, but we also want what’s best for Cricket.”
I regarded him, puzzled. “Speak plainly.”
“I just mean,” he said, finishing up the last shingle, “that sometimes Cricket doesn’t make the best decisions when it comes to herself. She has these ideas of what’s best for her family and friends, and she’s constantly sacrificing herself for them.”
“For example, sticking around the ranch when she so obviously wants to explore the world a little?” I asked.
“That.”
“And staying with Ethan because she thinks it’s what her family wants?”
“Maybe,” he answered.
“And, maybe denying that she’s falling in love with me, even though I know in my gut, in my heart of hearts, that she’s supposed to belong to me?”
He paused. “Perhaps.”
Over the next few days, Jonah and I made that ranch so clean, so organized, so efficient that I couldn’t help but be a little proud of myself and the jobs we’d completed. Faye was so appreciative, by the third day, she was sending home enough baskets of baked goods to feed a small army. We kept trying to insist that it was not a big deal but she would have none of it.
Other ranches had followed our lead and sent hands to help out on the McAllen Ranch. We were all toggling a week at a time, and Jonah and I weren’t due back there for another six weeks. Although, the McAllen’s son suspected they’d have a permanent hand there by then.
The following Friday morning, I had to admit it was nice to wake up and not have anywhere to be but the Hunt Ranch. The day went by uneventfully. I hadn’t seen Cricket or Ethan for more than a week, and the separation from Cricket was a torment, but I was happy for it all the same. I needed to clear my head, and Jonah helped me do that by keeping me busier than I’d ever been in my life.
Before dinner, Ellie dragged Jonah and me over to the old Hunt buildings, the ones Cricket worked out of. I tried not to let that affect me, but being near her sculptures hurt my stomach.
“Here,” Ellie said, prying open a large sliding door to an abandoned-looking barn.
“What are we doing out here, Ellie?” I asked.
“There’s an auction tomorrow evening in Yellow Creek for Amos McAllen.”
I looked at Jonah, addled. What more could they need? I thought.