Page 103 of The Coppersmith Farmhouse (Jamison Valley 1)
I stood from my chair. Having her tower over me wasn’t going to work. I wanted a more equal footing, though even standing, she was a couple of inches taller than me.
Rowen stood too and hid behind one of my legs. I reached back and put my hand on her shoulder, pulling her tight against me.
“You obviously have no clue how much this coat is worth. If you did, you and your kid wouldn’t be treating it like trash.”
Bitch.
I was going to tell her that we didn’t give a damn about her coat and as far as I was concerned, she could shove it up her ass. But I didn’t get that chance because right as I was opening my mouth, my eyes caught movement over her shoulder.
Silas walked right into the middle of our conversation.
“Gigi,” he said.
“Hi, Silas.”
Here I was again: at a funeral dealing with a bitchy blond and trying to calm myself down.
The woman huffed and turned to Silas, her mouth screwed up tight, and even though I couldn’t see her eyes, I imagined they were shooting lasers at him.
“Is she yours?” the woman asked him.
Silas’s glare was fierce. The only time I’d seen him look scarier was when he’d faced off against Wes during the football game. This time wasn’t quite as scary, but it was a close second.
“She’s mine.” Jess’s body heat was at my back.
“Felicity?” Noelle gasped.
No effing way. Had I almost gotten into a verbal smackdown with Jess’s sister?
“Hi, Mom,” Felicity said.
Eff.
Noelle let out a strangled noise and embraced her daughter. For the first time, Felicity’s bitch face softened and she seemed genuinely glad to hug her mother.
They held each other for a minute until Noelle stepped away, wiping tears from both eyes, the smile on her face stretched wide.
I was happy for Noelle. After waiting years, she was finally able to hug her daughter.
I reached back and gave Rowen a little squeeze with my hand.
Silas didn’t say another word. He just spun around and walked away. Obviously he was not a fan of Jess’s sister. But I had a feeling there was a story there. Something had happened between those two and I suspected that whatever it was, it involved Wes.
“There a reason why you didn’t tell us you were coming today? Why we haven’t seen you in fourteen fucking years and you don’t let us know you’re in town? Then when we do see you, you’re being a bitch to my girls?” Jess asked.
He must have heard way more than I’d initially thought because he was not happy.
“Well, hello to you too, big brother.”
“Lissy,” Jess warned in his menacing tone.
If he had spoken to me with that voice, I would have told him anything he wanted to know. But not Felicity. She just stood there, her face blank as his warning rolled by, leaving her completely unaffected. Maybe she wasn’t scared because she had grown up with him. Maybe I’d get used to that tone too and one day I’d be immune.
Felicity turned back to Noelle, taking her mother’s hands in her own, again softening her features before speaking.
“I’ll be here through New Year’s, Mom. I flew in last minute this morning but I arranged for a couple of weeks off work,” she said.
“Are you going to stay at home with me?” Noelle asked hopefully.
