“Yes sweetie?” Emma sipped her beer and leaned with her back against the counter beside her mother. She paused at the heavy silence and caught Emma staring at her expectantly.
“Why are we here in Glen Valley? Three of us lived, settled and happy, in Seattle. Sure we would have had to move, but wouldn’t it have been cheaper and easier for Ben to move in with us?” Ben walked in the front door, which she heard distantly but didn’t falter from her own interrogation. “Why couldn’t Ben leave Glen Valley, so we all had to move here?” Emma thought she had her mother on the ropes from her nervous expression, but then Ben swagger Ed in to the rescue.
“Better opportunities and cheaper cost of living.” Ben winked at his bride to be, instantly calming her. He walked calmly to the fridge and took out a beer. Emma raised a brow and wasn’t impressed when he raised his bottle as if to toast to something with her. “I may be just a sergeant right now, but I’m up for promotion soon and I own this house and the land its on. Handed down from my parents and so not a dime to pay other than utilities.” He sipped his beer and came to stand beside her, also leaning against the kitchen side. Joanna happily let Ben take over as she got busy making her cookie dough. “Got lots of connections here too. The main street bakers just went bankrupt and was bought out by a friend of mine. Savvy for business, but burns toast.” Ben nodded with a proud and adoring smile across at Joanna. “Well I told Mat about my Jo and he was chomping at the bit to put her in charge.”
“In charge?” Emma’s expression softened and she looked to her mother’s dreamy expression for confirmation. “You’re going to be head Baker?”
“Like I’ve always wanted honey.” Joanna beamed and kneaded the dough by hand. “I might not own the bakery, but Mat has given me free reign to run it however I see fit. He has been kind enough to hold the position for me for a month, as we didn’t want to jump the gun with your finals still coming up.”
“But now they are done and we are all here. In a house big enough for us all, hardly any bills to pay, your and Beth’s education on the up and up, and Jo’s dream job just waiting for her floury hands.” He sauntered over and hugged her from behind. “the final piece to my puzzle.” He nuzzled the back of her neck, moving her peppered red hair out of the way to playfully nip her.
Joanna giggled and tapped his nose, getting dough there and in his beard. This made he laugh even. More, and they forgot Emma was there for a minute when they shared a hungry kiss.
“Oh, ew, stop that. I may approve but I don’t need to bear witness.” Emma shut her eyes and swigged at the beer.
Ben put his hands up and took a dramatic step back.
“ahem, so you see sweetie? Moving here was a much better option than Seattle. For all of us.”
“Give Glen Valley a chance Em. You’ll love it here if you do.”
“And the creepy mayor?” Emma didn’t miss the shared worried look they both tried to hide from her. This rosy picture they painted was tainted with that wierdo’s intimidating display earlier. “Do I have to give him a chance too? After he snuck up on me, freaked me out, and then started to grill me like I was guilty of something?”
“Oh Caleb wasn’t trying to freak you out Em.” Ben waved his hands apologetically. “He is responsible for everyone here in Glen Valley and takes his job very seriously. He just wanted to get a feel for who you are now your part of his pack too.”
Suddenly Ben and Joanna tensed, only for a second, but it was long enough for Emma to notice it. “We’re all one big family here in Glen Valley. Hay, I tell you what?” Ben scooped her into his side for a one armed hug and pointed at her with his beer. “By the time we’re all moved in it will be pretty late to go exploring, but we could head on our for a tour of the place tomorrow? You’re not working or studying now you’re on summer break, right? Even the apprenticeship doesn’t start until the fall. So we can finally spend some time together as a family.” He gave her a hopeful squeeze, and Emma felt a polite decline on the tip of her tongue…but she noticed the pleading look her mother was sending her. Joanna even went as far as to put her hands together as she stood back from Ben as to be unseen by him.
Great. emotional blackmail Ma. Very mature. Emma grumbled mentally…but thought of what she said earlier. Ben really was a good guy was he? He wanted to be a good father figure to her? I’m a grown woman. I don’t need another dad at nearly 23 years of age. But the look her mother gave her thawed her usual frostiness.
“Sure.” Emma, still being Emma, lifted his arm up to free herself carefully. “I could use the rest, but if you really want brownie points Ben, show me the best place to hit the track. I’m dying to go for a good run.”
“A what?!” Ben bristled, but Joanna overtly laughed and hugged his arm to sooth him.
“Emma runs with her iPod on most mornings to destress, don’t you sweetie? Did you even pack your trainers?” Joanna busied herself again with her baking tray as she started to line and grease it.
“I always do.” Emma shrugged off Ben’s weird reaction and finished her beer. “I don’t suppose this town has a gym or a park does it?”
“We are surrounded by a beautiful forest Em?” He grinned and sipped his beer. “Why would we waste space and money on a building when we can just step out into nature? I forgot you liked runnin’. Don’t worry.” He patted her shoulder as he walked past her, leaving her with her mother in the kitchen. “I’ll show you all the best places to run.”
Emma watched after him and felt like they weren’t on the same wave length. Something in his amused chuckle spoke of something more than what she was asking. Either way she was happy when he was gone for now, so she could refocus on her mother.
“Happy?” Emma droned, secretly enjoying the delighted look on her mother’s face. It wasn’t that she didn’t want her mother to be happy, as she did. She just wasn’t so easy to win over.
“Deliriously.” Joanna chuckled and pressed her cookie cutter into her chocolate chip dough. “Now why don’t you go and relax while the movers finish up? I’d bet money that Ben is herding them into action as we speak. You just get yourself another beer and take a load off for once.”
“Sure Ma, but I’ll take a water this time.” Emma shook a clear bottle of mineral water at her mother and shrugged. “Day one and drinking all of Ben’s beer? Not a good way to score me some brownie points either.” She rolled her eyes when her mother squealed at her apparent willingness to play family, and kissed her cheeks. “While I’m at it I’ll see what Beth’s up to.” She spoke more to herself than her mother as she set off on her mission. “Barely seen hide nor hair of the pipsqueak since we arrived here.”
She found her in the basement. At home in her new dark room, of course, developing film and grinning from ear to ear. So that’s what she was doing? Taking pictures instead of helping us unpack? Emma pouted as she dropped herself to sit on an old brown leather sofa in the middle of the concrete basement. It wasn’t state of the art, this conversion, but it was understandably bigger than the one Beth turned Emma’s old room into. Red lighting was rigged up to the walls and a long table held four trays and stop baths for developing film. Thin wires were suspended back and forth with little pegs on to dry the photos, and Beth was admiring a black and white photo of the front of the house. Emma squinted through the red light and decided enough was enough. “Hay? Beth? Have you been in your room yet? Or have you just decided to move straight into here for the rest of your life?”
“Tempting.” Beth sniggered and didn’t look away from the picture as she hung it up to dry. “But yes, I’ve moved my boxes into my room.”
“Your…pink room.” Emma sniggered, reclining to lay across the sofa and close her eyes. Mum told me to relax, so I’m relaxing. Nothing destresses me more than my little sister. “Do you think Ma picked the colour?” Beth was much like Switzerland when it came to the Carter household. Neutral and lots of fun, if handled sensibly.
“I’m not going to ask and find out.” Beth sniggered and announced her presence by lifting Emma’s legs up to sit and drop them over her lap. “She’ll ask me what shade. I’ll say the wrong one, like hot pink, and she’ll repaint the whole room to match.” Both sisters laughed at how true that was.
“Well don’t say taffy pink whatever you do.” Emma sniggered and offered the water bottle silently to her sister, which was accepted gratefully. “Otherwise you’re room would match our bridesmaid dresses.”
“No!?” Beth nearly spat out her water. “I know that woman loves frilly lacy pink things, but she’s not going to make us-”
“Oh yes she is.” Emma barked with laughter. “Though, I didn’t get as far as asking about if they were lacy. Oh no!” She feigned horror and sat up to tease her sister more. “I can imagine it now! Hoop skirts and layers of taffy pink! With bows and ribbons everywhere and sparkly tiaras!”
“Nu-ah, no way.” Beth palmed her cheeks and whined. “No amount of super photography and magical editing skills can make that look any less horrific than it sounds!” Their laughter was therapeutic for Emma, who couldn’t shift the sensation of waiting for the other shoe to fall. “So…have you and mum argued over the move yet? Or are you going to give this place a chance?”
“You know what I don’t get?” Emma countered immediately and narrowed her hazel eyes on the doe like ones of her younger sister. “Why I’m 22 and highly suspicious and reluctant to have my life turned upside down and put into someone else’s hands without any notice, and you, the teenager, are just so zen about it.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” Beth shrugged, far to wise for her 18 years. She was so laid back at times it frustrated Emma. “Ben is the closest thing to a Dad I’ve ever had, and he’s great at it. He’s taken me to every museum and art workshop he could find at the weekends in Seattle, bought me so many supplies to support me, and I can pursue my dream of being a top photographer just as well here as any other place.”
“But what about your friends?” Emma pleaded. Being the only one to smell a rat here and resist the bull ride this move felt like was maddening. “What leaving the only home you’ve ever known? What about-”
“Emma?” Beth cut her off and patted her hands on Emma’s shins like they were a pair of drums. “One, I’m an oddball and even the emo kids didn’t want to hang with me at highschool. I’m just glad to have got out of there without gaining too much attention.”
“But-”
“Two?” Beth chuckled at her sister’s deflating look. “You know I’m a go with the flow kind of girl. This is an exciting new place to reinvent myself and maybe find a friend who doesn’t care I’m scatter brained or obsessed with lenses and shutter speeds, rather than shoes and boys. Three?” Beth leaned closer and Emma mirrored her. “Have you seen the swanky new dark room I’m in?”
“Bought! You’re submission has been paid for.” Emma dropped back on the sofa dramatically, making her sister laugh once more. “You are so easy to please. This basement is mostly empty, and you call it swanky.” She shook her head with disbelief.
“Exactly!” Beth shot her arms up and looked around the basement. “I can do so much with it! I’ll have my own studio down here. Set up a back drop area over there-” Beth pointed to the back left. “-and a mini gallery over there-” The back right. “Oh! And you have a point about moving in here. I bet I could get myself a bed and a mini fridge for when I pull all nighters.”
“Nope!” Emma sat up and swung her legs over to press her feet to the floor. “I didn’t let you crash like that in your old dark room, and you’ll not be doing that here. Otherwise we’d never see you.”
“…meh.” Beth shrugged.
“I’ll give you meh!”
Emma playfully tousled her sister’s wavy red hair and enjoyed this time with her. They carried on with small talk and Emma felt like her sister was trying to coax some level of excitement from her about the move, but to no avail. Eventually the conversation came round to Mayor Caleb, and Emma ranted full speed about that jerk. “-like his opinion means anything? I mean, what kind of backward town is this? Where the mayor is a creep who doesn’t look old enough to run the town, never mind that he doesn’t even look like he owns a suit. Oh?” Emma laughed, but she wasn’t amused. By this point she was pacing and Beth was the one reclined on the sofa. “He said that Deloris is like 70 and responsible for all the pregnant women and babies in Glen Valley. On her own?! That has to be a lie, or there is gross misconduct going on. Either in his office, or at least with his knowing! I know I’m not qualified yet, but I know the system well enough that you just can’t have one person responsible for…”
Emma blinked and squinted to check through the red lighting, and then sighed as she shook her head. She smiled and stepped closer to see that her sister had drifted off to sleep and looked very peaceful on the sofa. The site of her like that robbed Emma of her ire and she engaged big sister mode. She took off her jacket and covered Beth with it to keep the chill off her. “…you get 1 hour, missy. Then you’re having a snack and then off to bed if you’re still tired.” Maybe it would be a good idea for Beth to have a bed down here? At least then she wouldn’t get a crick in her back as she slept on the sofa.
Emma left her sister in the basement, for now, and headed back upstairs. Joanna and Ben were giggling and stealing kisses in the kitchen as her mother made dinner, so Emma just smiled and left them to it. She decided to go and unpack her duffle bag, which took all of 10 minutes. It wasn’t long before she was stood at her window, leaning with her forearms along the sill and staring out into her new home. The movers were long gone and most of the houses on the street had drawn their curtains to settle in for the evening. No one was out on the street and only the occasional car drove by. Emma pulled her scrunchie out and ran her hands back through her ginger locks to tame them. Well Glen Valley? I might not have agreed to this, or had the choice for that matter, but I’m here. We’re stuck with each other and I’ve gotta try and make this work if I can. For Ma and Beth’s sake. But… She thought, looking up at the sky as it drew darker. That doesn’t mean I have to go blindly into this. There’s nothing wrong with a back up plan in case this thing with Ben goes south. She nodded firmly and took hold of her cream curtains to close them. I have all summer to earn some money if I can get a job somewhere. That way I don’t have to be dependant on Ben, but I’ll also have some savings if we need to make a quick exit. Just as Emma moved to close the curtains, something caught her eye. What the…?
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