Broken Like Glass (17 page)

A few weeks later,
I go by Bo’s office, after seeing Chrissy, to talk to him about my case and my daddy. Uriah wanted to come with me, but he had to go to work. He’s started his own business working on houses as a handyman.

Bo ushers me into his office and I have a seat.

“You’re looking good, Lilly. I see the cast is off.”

“Yeah, I got it off a couple days ago. I can’t believe it’s already been six weeks, but I can’t say I miss it.”

“No, doesn’t feel like all that time has passed.”

“Have you heard anything about my daddy?”

“Well, I told you a few weeks ago, Judge Kringle is holding him without bond. He’s got a trial coming up soon, and we’ll know then what’s going to happen to him.”

“You think he’ll go to jail?”

Bo rubs his chin and gives me this confused look. “Honestly? I don’t know. Judge Kringle usually surprises me. I hope he goes to jail. He needs to go to jail.”

“Do you know who’s representing him?”

Bo nods. “Yeah, he’s a good lawyer. Someone out of Denton. I think he’s related to a friend of your dad's.”

I chew on my lip, nervous. “I pressed charges against him. I’m sure he knows it. If he gets out, Bo, he’ll kill me. It’s not a question. It’s a fact.”

“I know that. I just hope the judge thinks so,” Bo says. “If I hear of anything I’ll let you know.”

“What about my case?”

He smiles. “You’re doing good. You’ve got a few sessions left, and then Chrissy will give her report to the judge and he’ll make his ruling from there. If things go like I think they will, you’ll be free.”

I nod. “I wish things could have been different.”

“I know, but things have a way of happening the way they’re supposed to happen.”

Bo smiles at me. It’s not as awkward as it was before, but I don’t know if we’ll ever be where we were. I won’t say never because I’ve thought a lot of nevers lately that didn’t seem to last as long as I thought never would.

I walk out of Bo’s office, and into the late August heat. The sun is beating down and I decide I’ll give Fancy a visit. I haven’t been in a long while and I’ve missed talking to her.

When I get there, I open the door and stale air hits me in the face. I’d almost forgotten how it smelled. Fancy’s standing behind the bar and smiles when she sees me. Those glasses she’s drying don’t seem near as important because she drops them and races over to me, pulling me into a hug and fussing.

“I’m so glad to see you. I wanted to come see you, but I didn’t know if you’d want to see me or not cause of your daddy and all.”

“I wish you had come to see me. I’ve missed you.”

“Have a seat. I’ll get us some drinks and you can fill me in on what’s been going on.”

The seat in the corner is unoccupied. I’m pretty sure my timing has a lot to do with it. One thing I notice is, Mr. Marlin isn’t sitting at the bar. I’ve got my eyes fixed on what I suspect was his usual spot when Fancy returns with drinks.

She looks at me and then back at the bar. “Yeah, I told him he wasn’t welcome no more.”

“Why?”

“I didn’t like his kind,” she says with a wink.

“How did you know?”

“After the last time you were here, the look you two exchanged, somehow I just knew. So, I told him his kind wasn’t allowed in my bar no more.”

“How’d he take it?”

“With some cussing.”

“What did you do?”

“I showed him the Browning I’ve got stowed behind the counter. Apparently, he spoke buckshot pretty well.”

I look at Fancy wide-eyed and we bust out laughing. “I didn’t know you had a shotgun behind there.”

“Course I got a gun behind there. This here is a bar. People and liquor can get mighty stupid.”

“How you been, Fancy?”

“Oh, ‘bout as good as a snapping turtle in a duck pond. You doing okay?”

I look at my drink and play with the straw. “Oh, I guess. I’m only sore every once in a while now as opposed to constantly.”

Fancy laughs. “Girl, you always were a funny one. You hear anything about George?”

“Just came from Bo’s office. He said daddy is being represented by a lawyer out of Denton. Bo says he’s the relative of a friend or something. I don’t care. I just hope he goes to jail.”

“Well, just be prepared. He and Judge Kringle go way back. To tell the truth, I’m surprised he’s in jail.”

“I know. I’ve said the same thing. Uriah and his momma think I’m crazy. They think there’s no way he’ll get out, but they don’t know him.”

Fancy nods. “That man has connections. He knows people. I don’t know who or how or why, but he does. If he gets out, sweetheart, I’m afraid the next time he comes for you, it won’t be with his bare hands.”

“No, next time he’ll come with a gun and he won’t waste his energy. He’ll just shoot me and that’ll be all she wrote.”

“I’ll never understand that man.”

“He said he hated me. Said I reminded him of Will. Daddy said he hated Will and my face reminded him of Will’s.”

Fancy looks at me solemnly and shakes her head. “Brush it off, sweetheart, that man’s always been three fries short. I think all that moonshine he drank rotted his brain.”

“I can try, but it sure doesn't feel good to know your daddy don’t love you.”

“You got other people who love you. Like that Uriah boy. He sure loves you.”

“His momma does too. Did you know she wanted me when I was little? I don’t even remember going to her house or being around her.”

“Oh yeah, your momma couldn’t stand her because you loved on her. Oh, my stars, you loved that woman. It was like the two of you was tied together from the moment you saw each other.”

“Then why didn’t momma just let her have me instead of being troubled with me?”

“Cause your momma didn’t think family should be with anyone but family. She loved you, Lilly. Lula just didn’t love good.”

“You don’t have to tell me.”

“Did Charlene tell you she wanted you?”

“Yeah, she told me. Shocked the tar out of me.”

“Your momma did her best to keep the two of you apart, but when you’d go to church, you’d make a beeline. Now, that’s what your momma would tell me. I wouldn’t know. I’ve never stepped foot in that church. My folks have always gone the town over when we go to church.”

I take a big sip of my drink. The soda feels good going down. The cold hits my stomach and I can feel the fizzle all the way down. “Well, Fancy, I guess I need to get going.”

We stand and she bear hugs me. “Alright, sweetheart, don’t be a stranger, though, okay?”

I smile. “Yes, ma’am. I’ll see you next week, okay?”

She waves as I walk out the door.

The next afternoon,
Uriah and I are eating ice creams cones as we walk around the pond. So, we’re walking, talking, and the clouds are drifting by making the sun blink in and out, and I look at him and realize something I’ve probably known for a while now: I’m happy.

The feeling strikes me as funny because for the longest time I thought my lot in life was to be okay. Not mad or sad or anything, just okay. So to feel happy is new for me. I look at Uriah as he’s walking next to me and I also realize had things not happened the way they did, I may not be standing here next to him. Now, that’s not to say we wouldn't be together, but maybe it wouldn’t be as good as the together we currently have.

I’m watching him, trying to keep the ice cream from melting and running down his arm. He’s wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. The breeze is blowing his hair, making it stand up in places. When he catches me looking at him, he smiles the same gorgeous smile I’ve come to find more endearing than heartbreaker.

“What are you gawking at? You ever see a guy trying to keep an ice cream from melting before he can eat it?” Uriah asks.

I can’t help, but giggle. “I love you, Uriah.” It pops out before I can stop it.

Uriah stops dead in his tracks and looks at me. He’s forgotten about his ice cream cone and it’s dripping into the dirt. “What?”

For a moment, I stand there. I know I’ve said it. I know I mean it. I feel it in every inch of me. I swallow hard and repeat myself. “I love you, Uriah. I love you more than anything on this earth. I love you from the bottom of my heart. I’ve never loved anyone like I love you.”

He pitches the cone to the side of the path and wraps his arms around me. My ice cream slaps him on the back with a smack and he lets out a small yelp.

“I’m getting ice cream on you,” I say.

“I don’t care.”

“I want my ice cream, Uriah.”

“I’ll buy you another on the way home.”

With the promise of a new ice cream, I pitch mine as far as I can throw it and hold on to him. “I’ll keep you to that, ya know?”

“I don’t care.”

He holds me a long time like that. I’m not sure if it was because I said I love you or because he just wanted to hold me. I don’t care either way. I still don’t know how I feel about staying in Foaming Springs. I’ve got a lot of bad memories here. They’re like ghosts jumping out at me everywhere I turn. Things and places reminding me of a bad home life.

Maybe if I stay, though, me and Uriah can create new memories which will wipe out the bad ones.

Uriah eventually lets me go and holds my hand, tangling his fingers in mine. The smile he flashes is goofy and I can’t help but laugh.

“You owe me an ice cream.”

“I know. I’ll get you one on the way home. Right now, I want to walk the pond holding hands with the girl I love.”

I can’t meet his eyes. I’m somewhat embarrassed. I shouldn’t be, but this is the first time I’ve ever told someone I love them. It’s a funny feeling. A good feeling, but funny nonetheless.

We walk the pond a few times and on the way home, Uriah stops for more ice cream. This time, we get some for his momma. I’m not sure how good of an idea it is what with it being so hot, but we manage to get it to his momma with most of it still on the cone. The three of us sit on the porch rocking, talking, and eating ice cream.

It’s an interesting thing, I think, as I sit there with them, to be here. When I left Austin for Foaming Springs, my plan was to stay a few days and then go home. Now, there’s a little bit of me that feels I am home. Uriah and his momma have made it feel like home.

After a while, Mrs. Pendleton goes into the house, leaving me and Uriah on the porch alone together. The breeze has picked up and in true Texas form, a storm has started to brew. The clouds are dark and lightning flashes in the distance as thunder rolls.

“I guess it’s good we came home when we did,” Uriah says.

“Guess so.” The breeze picks up and leaves that have accumulated on the porch swirl and dance. “I like this kind of weather. At the cabin, it was fun to watch all the trees.”

Uriah gets real quiet. I can’t read the expression on his face. He looks out over the yard. “Are you still leaving Foaming Springs when you're done with therapy?”

“I’ve been wondering about that myself. I’ve got my business in Austin, and I’ve got you here.”

“That doesn’t really answer my question.”

“That’s because I don’t know the answer. I’ve got so many bad memories here like ghosts haunting me.” I pause for a moment. Uriah is looking at me, anticipating disappointment. “I love you more than I hate these memories, though. I can’t say it will be easy for me.”

“How about this, I promise I will do all the grocery shopping for as long as you stay here. I promise to protect you from anyone who might do you harm. I promise to hold your hand when you're confused, hold you when you're scared, and love you for as long as I have breath.”

I look at him and he’s smiling my favorite toothy grin. “I think that’s fair, but what do you want in return?”

“You. I just want you.”

“Just me? I think you’re getting the raw end of the deal.”

“I don’t think so.”

Uriah’s made sweet promises to me. Papa, I say in my head, I’m going to make some promises and you’ve got to help me keep them. Uriah may not have been through what I have been through, but his heart is just as tender as mine. “I promise to tell you I love you when the weight of the world is on your shoulders. I promise to be the solid ground you can stand on when it seems like you’re surrounded by quicksand. I promise to be there for you when you think the world is against you. I promise to hold your heart with care and love until I can no longer breathe.”

Uriah stands, pulling me up with him and into a bear hug. “I love you, Lillian James,” he says and kisses my forehead. I love those kisses. I think they’re my favorite kisses in the world. Those kisses say more than I love you. They give soft promises of hope and security.

My pulse jumps when I look in his eyes. I can see the love he feels for me, see it in his face and it’s better than anything I can think of. I’ve kissed men, but I’ve never kissed a man I love before.

I press my lips to his and it shocks him. Uriah pulls me tighter to him and he kisses me back. The lightning booming in the sky hides the hammering of my heart as Uriah holds me and kisses me. It’s like Papa is giving us a visual backdrop for how we feel about each other.

We stand on the porch holding and kissing each other until the rain starts blowing so hard we can't stand there any more.