Grin and Beard It(48)
“I’ll give you three guesses,” I grumbled, drawing a scrutinizing look from Beau.
He pulled out of the lot, and I ignored the smug smile hovering under his red beard. We drove in silence until Beau pulled into our drive, then he gave me the side-eye and said, “Don’t you think it’s time you told us what’s going on?”
“Jess said she and Duane were stopping by the store on the way home. He needs more blueberries for the pancakes,” Cletus answered as though the question had been directed to him. He was also in the back seat and sounded very concerned about our present lack of blueberries. “I hope they’re not sold out.”
“That’s not what I meant, Cletus. I was talking to Jethro.” Beau stopped in his usual spot in front of the house, and I saw Ashley’s truck already parked; Ash and Drew had beat us home. I quickly exited, hoping my brother would drop the subject.
But Beau must’ve guessed my intentions as he swung open his door and jumped to his feet, continuing to poke at me. “Jet, we’re all dying to know what’s going on with you and Sienna Diaz.”
“No one is dying.” Roscoe unfolded from the Pontiac after I pushed my seat forward. He grinned at me as he straightened. “We’re just close to apoplexy.”
“Well, I’m more worried about the blueberries.” Cletus climbed out on Beau’s side and the frown he tossed at me was grim. “Blueberries aren’t in season yet.”
“Would you forget about the blueberries?” Beau hissed.
I spotted Jessica’s Jag kicking up dust as it pulled up our drive. Ignoring Beau, I shut my door and made for the porch.
“I share Cletus’s worry over the blueberries,” I said, just to rankle Beau.
“See? Jethro’s worried, and he’s never worried.” Cletus gestured toward me then pointed at Beau. “You should be worried, too.”
Jess parked next to Beau’s vintage Pontiac, and Duane held up two pints of blueberries as he stood from her fancy Jaguar.
“You can stop panicking, Cletus. I have the berries.”
“Oh, thank God.” Cletus held his chest and stumbled a step backward. “You should have live-tweeted your progress. I was near a fit.”
Beau dogged me, on my heels as I climbed the steps. “You realize you’re with a woman on my celebrity list.”
“Celebrity list? What are you going on about?”
“Come on, don’t you have one?” Beau appealed to my siblings and Jess as I opened the screen door. “A list of women who you’d get a pass on from your significant other.”
“What?” I snapped, not liking the concept or the fact that Sienna was on Beau’s dirty list.
“I have a list.” Jessica nodded toward Beau. “But mine has mostly men on it.”
“Wait a minute, mostly men?” Duane took a shuffling step to one side so he could see his girl, his eyes wide. “Mostly men? Who are the women?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She gave him a saucy grin and a quick kiss, then to me explained, “Everyone has a list, Jethro. But it’s like any fantasy. In theory, the fantasy is fine. But in reality, if I were faced with a man on my list—”
“Or a woman?” Duane put in, teasing her.
She ignored him and continued, “If I were faced with a man on my fantasy list, I wouldn’t cheat on Duane. And if he were faced with a woman on his list, he wouldn’t cheat. It’s just one of those things people talk about. Like, if you could have a superpower, what would it be?”
“I’d like to be able to fly,” Cletus responded as though her question had been asked in earnest.
“Not be invisible? Or read minds? Or be omniscient?” Roscoe suggested.
Cletus shook his head. “Certainly not. That’d be redundant because I’m already all of those things.”
“Then make it rain blueberries,” Roscoe teased.
“My point is,” Jessica put the conversation back on track, “it’s all theoretical. The list is made up of people you admire and—theoretically—would like to know, not just for their looks.”
“That’s true,” Beau agreed. “Sienna is real pretty, and I don’t think that’s a controversial statement. But it’s all the other stuff that pushed her to the number three spot on my list.”
I felt my blood pressure spike and realized I’d curled my hand into a fist as Beau spoke, not liking that he felt free to discuss Sienna like she was public property. Of course, everyone in town had done the same. Why should Beau be any different?
Jessica must’ve taken note of my mood shift, because she placed her hand on my forearm. “Lots of normal people have a list, Jethro. It doesn’t mean any harm. It’s no big deal.”