Rebel (Renegades #2)(70)
Author: Skye Jordan

“Wesley?” Her face brightened instantly. “Yes, of course, my little rebel, Wesley. Come, come.” She waved for Rubi to follow and started down the gravel road.

“What…?” Rubi stared after her in confusion. Should she get out and walk? One look around and the answer was a big, fat no. She called after the woman, “Do you want me to drive you?”

“No, no,” she said, still hurrying down the road. “Come, come.”

Rubi let her foot off the brake and eased the car in the old woman’s wake, sure she was going to end up in some crazy man’s basement, never to be heard from again. And… “Wesley?” she murmured, trying to remember if that was his full name or if this woman was just plain-ass crazy.

But Rubi turned a bend in the road, and the trees parted like the red sea, exposing a beautiful two-story, farm-style home surrounded by expanses of grass. “Oh…”

The woman rushed up the porch and wrung her hands as she waited for Rubi. She parked the car and got out but hesitated, not sure if she should follow.

“Birdie?” someone called from inside the house. “Birdie, where are you?”

“Oh my…” The old woman turned toward the voice and opened the front door. “I’m right here, Claudia. Missy is here to take some of my Special K bars to Wesley.”

Whoa. Rubi’s reality warped, like she’d been dragged into a parallel universe. She was prying her hands from the driver’s doorframe to get back in the car when a middle-aged black woman appeared on the porch. She gripped the older woman’s arms, bending to look directly in the shorter woman’s face.

“Birdie, Lord. Where were you? You can’t just go walking around the property alone. You know that.”

“I wasn’t alone. Missy’s here.” Birdie gestured toward Rubi, and the other woman, Claudia, Rubi supposed, glanced that direction, then did a double-take on Rubi. “Now let me be. I have to wrap up some of Wesley’s favorite treat.”

Birdie squirmed from Claudia’s grip, calling to Rubi, “I’ll just be a minute.” Then to Claudia, “Bring the girl in for some pop, Claudia. Where are your manners?”

Claudia came to the edge of the front steps and leaned on the banister. “You’re a friend of Wes’s?”

Relief sagged Rubi’s shoulders. “Wes Lawson. Is he here?”

Please, please, please be here.

“No,” Claudia said. “He’s at the hospital with his brother.”

She was in the right place. But, God, she didn’t want to get back in that car. “Oh. Okay. Is that…um…nearby?”

“No, I’m sorry. It’s in St. Louis.”

Holy. Shit.

Her shoulders sagged again, but this time not in relief. “Do you know when he’ll be back?”

“No. Sorry again. I’m just not much help at all, am I?” Her head tilted. “Is your name…Missy?”

“No, it’s Rubi. I’m not sure why she’s calling me—”

“Claudia,” Birdie appeared behind the other woman and squeezed past. “Don’t talk Missy’s ear off. She’s got to get back to Wesley and Wyatt.” Birdie hustled forward with a brown paper bag and a smile that lit up her face but which struck Rubi as…a little odd. She patted Rubi’s shoulder and offered the bag. “All right, there’s enough in there for all of you. You’d better get back to Wesley now, dear. You know how he worries. Oh…” She lowered her voice into a conspiratorial tone. “I love the color you dyed your hair. Very pretty. Wesley’s always preferred blondes, but you look so beautiful as a brunette, I’m sure he won’t mind.”

“Come on, now, Birdie.” Claudia ushered Birdie into the house and closed the door after her, remaining on the porch. She turned to Rubi again with a smile. “I’m sorry about that. Birdie is…sometimes in a different place and time.”

Rubi nodded, not sure what to say. Completely disoriented.

“Would you like me to call Wes for you? See when he’ll be back?”

“Uh…” Panic bloomed deep in her body. “No. No, thank you. I’ll go see him. Which hospital did you say?”

“The VA Medical Center in St. Louis,” Claudia said. “It really would be best to make sure he’s not already on his way home.”

“I just…wanted my visit to be a surprise.” That wasn’t a lie. The why was really the lie. And the escape route she’d wanted to keep open was looking more and more viable by the moment. Only now, Wes would know she’d been here. Backing out would be messy.

Claudia smiled. “You came all the way from California, didn’t you?” She waved a hand. “I should have recognized your accent, not to mention your car, your clothes, that movie-star look about you.”

“I’m…” she laughed softly, “not in the movie industry.”

“Come on in. Let me call him.”

She held the door open and waved Rubi forward. “Would you like a can of pop or some sweet tea?”

“No, thank you.” Rubi parted her lips to tell them she couldn’t come in, but hell, she was tired and she didn’t know where she was going. So she climbed the stairs, wondering if Wes had grown up here. Then found herself wondering all about his childhood.

The interior of the home was spacious and open, with big rooms flowing together and vaulted ceilings. The kitchen was as modern as Rubi’s—correction, Dolph’s—with granite counters, stainless steel appliances and light wooden, glass-fronted cabinets. The dining and family rooms, all open to the kitchen, were painted different jewel tones, offset by white ceilings and lots of light through the windows. The floors were wide-planked, light wood. The overall effect was sophisticated yet homey.

Birdie stirred something on the stove, and the scent of spices filled the air. “Can you stay for supper, Missy? I know how you love my corned beef. Wesley’s favorite.”

Wes liked corned beef?

Rubi rubbed her forehead. “Thank you, but I’m just going to—”

Claudia held up a finger to her lips, then into the phone said, “Hey, Wes, it’s Claudia.”

The thought of Wes so close made Rubi’s stomach jump and burn. Made her yearn to fall into his arms. The longing itself made Rubi uncomfortable. She was completely twisted.

“Yeah, everything’s fine. Listen, your mama and daddy are still in Kansas City. They’re getting a late start back. Grams is fixing up corned beef. Do y’all think you’ll make it back for supper?” She was quiet a moment. “All right, then. No fuss. Take care now.”