He pressed the phone to his ear. “What’s the matter?”
“That’s some greeting,” Beth grouched.
“For you to call at this hour of the morning, something has to be wrong. It’s too early for class. And you aren’t a morning person.”
“Maybe I’m changing. You know, I’m not a ki
d anymore.”
At least that’s what she kept telling him. On the cusp of nineteen, his sister thought she had all of the answers. Maybe he had felt the same way at that age. It was hard to remember, because for him, it was a different lifetime. As for his sister, he was having a hard time letting go of the image of Beth with pigtails begging him to take her horseback riding when she was supposed to be doing her chores.
He took a sip of coffee, black with a dash of sugar. “So if nothing’s wrong, why are you up so early?”
“I have an exam this morning and I wanted to review my class notes.”
“And how does that translate into a phone call home?”
“I’m getting to it.” She paused. “I’m coming home to take care of you.”
Surely he hadn’t heard her correctly. “What did you say?”
Avery clutched his cell phone to his ear with one hand while he pet Marshmallow with his other hand. They were sitting together in the living room. But his morning coffee was now forgotten as he moved into his guardian mode.
“You heard me,” Beth said. “I’m coming home. Someone needs to take care of you.”
“No, you’re not. I’m fine.”
“If you were fine, you’d still be out on the rodeo circuit.”
He sighed. His little sister was not one to give in easily. She was stubborn and she liked to be right—all of the time. “I just need a little time to heal. Then I’ll be good as new. The doctor said so.”
“And what did he tell you?”
“I’ll be starting physical therapy soon.” He glanced at the hinged black brace that was strapped over his knee. “Don’t worry. It’s not that big of a deal.”
“That’s what you always say, even when you have to get fifteen stitches or have a broken arm. You know, one of these days you’ll be too old for the rodeo. What are you going to do then?”
This would normally be the ideal moment for him to tell her that he was fixing up the house and then signing his portion over to her. Whereas this house fit his stylish and polished sister, it didn’t work for him.
He had no intention of mentioning that the memories of their parents that were enshrined in the house only added to his guilt over the part he’d played in their parents’ deaths. When he was on horseback out on the range, the guilt lightened, but in here it was inescapable—
“Avery?”
“Um…yeah?”
She paused as though considering something. “I’m worried about you.”
On second thought, the conversation about the house could wait. “I told you my knee will be fine.”
“But you’re at home all alone. That isn’t good.”
“I’m never alone. I have Marshmallow.”
“Uh-huh. I still think I should come home. I can arrange to do my class assignments from there—”
“Don’t you dare! You’re going to be the only Wainwright of our generation to graduate from college and that’s not up for debate. Someone’s got to take care of me in my old age.”
“And at the rate you’re going that will be next year.”