“That pretty much covers it.” She’d stopped short of telling him that she’d been on probation for a year for her part in the car theft. Later, she promised herself, she would come clean about that part of her life.
“W-well, then, that’s not so bad.” He grinned. “You m-made some bad choices, but then, all of us have. It’s the decisions we m-make going forward that are important, Jancy.”
This, too, shall pass. She’d said those words to Vicky, not realizing that Shane would be willing to erase her past. Tears flowed down her cheeks and left wet dots on her bright-red T-shirt. She started to swipe at them, but Shane covered her hand with his and kissed away the tears.
“I can’t stand to see you cry.” His warm breath sent waves of desire through her body. “I promise to never, ever hurt you, Jancy. I’ll always be here for you, and you can tell me anything.”
“Okay, then, please pick me up and take me down that hallway to your bedroom,” she said.
He cupped her face in his big hands and kissed her—long and hard—with so much passion that the whole world stopped moving. She felt as if she floated from the living room to his bedroom, where he laid her ever so gently on a chenille bedspread that covered a king-size bed and then kicked the door shut with his boot.
Jancy awoke with a start and sat straight up in bed when an alarm went off. Shane said something in his sleep, and she heard someone mumbling in the hallway. She quickly jerked her clothing on and slipped out, feeling her way down the dark hallway. When she reached the living room, someone stood up from the sofa.
“Emily!” She wasn’t aware that she could squeal in a whisper.
“Jancy!” Emily gasped.
“What are—” she started.
“Same thing you are, I imagine,” Emily butted in. “Now it’s time to go home and sneak into our bedrooms. I hate this, but it’s Pick and I don’t want—”
“I understand.” It was Jancy’s turn to interrupt.
The only regret she had about the amazing night before was that she couldn’t slam the back door. “Where’s your car?”
“Parked at home. We cross the street, stay on the path through the vacant forty acres, come up behind the house, and go in the back door,” Emily said. “It is what it is, but my sneaking days are over in a couple of weeks. What are you going to do about yours?”
“I don’t know.” Jancy was double stepping to keep up with Emily’s long-legged stride.
“First thing you have to do is set an alarm.” Emily giggled. “And then you have to make yourself get out of that bed and go home. The second part is the hardest. I can’t wait until I can stay in bed with Ryder right up until it’s time to get ready to go to the diner.”
“Aren’t you going to miss walking from the house with Nettie and Vicky?”
“You give up something for every benefit,” Emily said. “Shhh . . . gettin’ to the bedroom without wakin’ up Mama is the hardest part.”
Jancy held her breath all the way from the kitchen to her bedroom and let it out in a whoosh when she eased the door shut. She hurriedly threw off her clothing and jerked on a nightshirt, then turned on her bedside lamp. Pulling the stack of letters from the nightstand, she picked out the one near the top of the already-read stack.
Dear Jancy,
We’ve had the sex talk, and you know about the consequences of playing big-people games with no protection. So when the time comes that you want to do those things, promise me that you won’t until you’ve gone to the clinic and gotten birth control. Babies are wonderful, but even more so if they are planned. I’ve always felt as if I trapped your father into a relationship that he’d rather not have had.
I want you to find a true Prince Charming. That’s what I want for you more than anything. To find happiness, love, and stability. Be sure that when you make your choice, you like the man you’ll be sharing life with as much as you love him—enjoy talking to him, spending time with him, like the way that he makes you feel. Sometimes love blinds a person to like, and although love is important, like is just as much so. There have been many times over the years when I have not liked your father, though I still loved him. Friendship with love is a precious thing. If you find it, hold on to it and never let it go . . .
She finished the letter and tucked it back into the envelope before putting it back into the stack. “I wish you were here, Mama. I don’t know that I could tell you how I feel in person without turning crimson. I slept with Shane last night, and it was amazing. Thank God I’m on the pill. I never quite understood your letter until now. I like Shane. He’s my friend as well as . . . I’m not sure if I should call him my boyfriend. He sure wants things to go that way. After all of this, I think I’m fine with that, even if it’s here in Pick. I never wanted to leave that bedroom.”