“Yes, you can,” Jayden told her. “I’ll always be there for you just like I am here, and I’d love for any or all of you to come visit me anytime you can manage it.”

They went on inside, and in a few minutes the lights went out. She could hear them whispering for a little while and then all the noise stopped. Gramps and her mother both had often said that hindsight was twenty-twenty, and Jayden fully understood that old adage that evening. Now that the dust had settled, she felt even more like she’d handled the situation wrong. She would still have told Skyler no about giving her the money, but she wouldn’t have fallen to pieces and felt sorry for her sister afterward. Her sister had made her own bed.

She was still too wound up to sleep, so she went out to the barn and visited with Dynamite for a while. When she started back to the cabin, she saw Elijah heading across the yard, going toward the dining hall.

“Hey,” she yelled out as she got closer.

“What are you doing out here?” he asked.

“I might ask you the same thing, but to answer your question, I went out to the barn to talk to Dynamite. He’s an excellent listener,” she said. “Need a midnight snack?”

“I can always use a snack.” He grinned and held up a thick catalog. “But my real purpose is that I brought these out for you to take a look at. This is our uniform book, and we always get the girls one new one midway through the session to replace the worst one they have. They get stains and rips and tears and, besides, it makes them feel good to have a new one after four weeks. I’m hoping you can figure out sizes for me.”

“Be glad to,” she said.

“After what happened today, would you like a little nightcap?” Elijah asked.

“You got a beer hiding inside that catalog?” She raised an eyebrow.

“Nope, but I know where Henry hides a little bottle of whiskey for special occasions.” He grinned. “How are you holding up now that you’ve had time to think about things?” He held the door to the dining hall open.

“Then bring it out.” She smiled.

He went to the kitchen and got a bottle from the freezer. “Henry hides things very well, and he likes his whiskey cold.”

“I’d love a nightcap.” She nodded.

He poured two fingers in a couple of glasses they used for sweet tea and handed her one.

Jayden took a sip of the whiskey and enjoyed the warmth that flowed all the way down to her stomach. “I’m pretty good, actually. I just gained eight little sisters. I guess that’s almost as good as one big sister.”

“This bunch of girls is finding a lot to bond over, but I’m sorry that your heartache has to be part of it.” He touched his cup to hers and then sat down in the chair beside her. “Here’s to tomorrow. May it be a better day.”

“Amen, but on another note, I couldn’t ask for more love and support through it all. I never expected to make friends with Novalene and Diana. I just thought I’d come here, do my job, and go home, but now I’ve been surrounded by all this love, and I got to tell you, it’s pretty damn nice.” She took another sip of the whiskey, held it on her tongue for a few seconds, and then swallowed. “And that includes you having a drink with me.” She smiled across the table at him.

“You are welcome,” he told her.

She’d never been one to take risks, or to do anything without weighing all the odds. Gramps had said that was because her zodiac sign was Libra. Folks born under that sign had a tendency to think things through and put everything on the balance scales. She wanted to tell him that what had been on her mind since Skyler left was making a brand-new start, but she needed to lay out the pros and cons before she made a decision.

She was eager to write in her journal that evening. Maybe by writing to her mother, her decisions would become clear.

Dear Mama and Gramps,

Skyler came to see me. We thought she was coming to accept a job as counselor, but I was so wrong. She’s engaged to a guy named David, who comes from a lot of money. Her ring is gorgeous, but then we wouldn’t expect anything less. She wanted to show her huge diamond and ask demand that I give her my savings to pay for her wedding. When I said no, she really got ugly—just like always. I felt so guilty when I told her that I wouldn’t give in to her that I cried. She needs help, not for a wedding, but psychiatric help, Mama. She’s probably needed it her whole life. I’m surprised that she ever worked here with young, troubled girls—she’s a school counselor and can’t see her own problems.

On another note, I’m in quite a quandary here. I’ve been offered the job of full-time cook here at Piney Wood, and I’m seriously considering it. I’m not a risk-taker so I keep wondering if I’ll have regrets. I can hear you telling me not to throw away my education. I want to make the right decision, but the way my feelings are all jumbled about you, Skyler, this place, and Elijah, I’m not sure that I can. Maybe I should go back to my school job for a year and sort out this thing with you and Skyler before I dive into a new job or a relationship. Until I get rid of that baggage, I won’t have much to give to a relationship anyway.

Thank you both for listening. I could always depend on y’all.

She yawned and laid the journal aside, but that night she dreamed again of decorating a Christmas tree in the dining hall. When she awoke, she wondered if perhaps that meant she and Elijah might not say a final goodbye at the end of July. After all, she had dreamed that Skyler would marry a red-haired guy, and that had come true. She just might come back for a minivacation in December. Would the girls all join her? Maybe her returning at Christmas would be for them and not Elijah at all. She was taken aback at the disappointment that she felt at the idea. Seeing her girls and maybe even Novalene and Diana would be great—but Jayden wanted to know there was more.

Chapter Thirteen

Sunday morning must be the day for the demons to come out,” Jayden muttered as she listened to her girls arguing in their bedroom. By the time the siren blew telling them to line up for exercises, Jayden was ready to throw up her hands, quit the job, and go back to Dallas as fast as she could run. No wonder Elijah flew up to Fort Worth to get them. Bring them in by air and leave their means of transportation behind. That kept them from getting into their vehicles and getting the hell out of Alpine.

“What’s the problem in here?” Jayden leaned against the jamb of the door into their room.

Ashlyn popped her hands on her hips and said through clenched teeth, “I want Tiffany to cut my hair and she won’t do it. It’s growing out and I look horrible.”

“I’ve got one demerit. I’m not getting another one,” Tiffany declared.

“I read that handbook from one end to the other, and I didn’t find a thing about cutting hair or not cutting hair,” Carmella said. “What do you think, Jayden?”

“I can’t think that if Ashlyn wants her hair cut it would warrant a demerit,” Jayden answered. “Maybe you should both sign a paper saying that Ashlyn wouldn’t hold Tiffany responsible and that Tiffany would do the best job she possibly could. We could put it in your files.”

“We have a file?” Tiffany asked. “What do you do with it when our time is up here?”