Country Lovin': Chapter Fifteen

"Call me, country boy." Valene smiled and gave Jessie one last passionate kiss. She placed a hand on his cheek as she pulled back. "Dinner was great. I even liked the dessert." She grinned and patted his cheek.

"Breakfast wasn't half bad either." Jessie grinned and looked her up and down. Her hair was lying on shoulders, her eyes glowing contentedly, she was wearing what she had on when he had picked her up. The skirt, the tank top, and the heels. She looked stunning, and Jessie wished she didn't have to leave.

She grinned and turned and walked off the porch, then stopped and turned back around. "Uh, Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"Uh, I don't have a way home."

Jessie blushed sheepishly. "Yeah, you're right. Let me go get my keys and I'll take you home." He turned and hurried into the house.

Could this day be any more perfect? She felt as if she was on top of the world. She had a man, who was so incredibly sexy, so incredibly perfect in every way, she didn't know how she had managed to live without him. God, how was she going to leave? Could she really leave and head back to New York?

There was a gentle breeze, but nothing to overcome the heat which had gradually built up over the morning. Sand blew over across the road, making soft squiggles on the road. She sighed and turned just to see Jessie emerging from the house. He had put on a t-shirt over his jeans, his boots, and his cowboy hat. She would definitely miss that cowboy hat.

"Ready?" He asked.

"No, but I guess I have to go." She said with a smile.

"Yeah, I don't want you to go either." He confessed as he wrapped an arm around her waist and led her towards his pick-up.

"So, I don't get the royal treatment?" She teased as he opened the passenger side door and helped her up.

"Sorry hun, not this time. Only for special occasions." He grinned and shut the door when she was in.

"Okay." She said, pretending to be glum.

"You're beautiful." He told her. She looked up and smiled. It seemed that every time he told her, she began to believe in it more and more.

"Thank you. You don't know how much it means for me to hear you say that." She told him as he shut the door to the driver side door.

"I'm only stating the truth. You just have to look in the mirror to see your great and undeniable beauty. Me, I have to call and beg you to come over." He grinned when she smiled.

"Lucky me." She said with a smile.

"Yup, lucky you."

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"Do you want to come in for a bit? You can check to see if Aunt Kitty needs some wood." Valene asked as she held Jessie's hand as she climbed down off the truck. She didn't want to see him go yet. Not yet, it was too damn soon.

"All right. For a bit. I don't think it would—"

Jessie was cut off as a hysterical Nadine came rushing out from the house. "Oh Valene! You're home! Oh God, I couldn't find Jessie's number! I don't know the name of the nearest fire department or police department. I...Oh my God, Valene!" Tears were streaming down her face.

"What? What is it? What happened?" Valene asked, her heart thudding more sharply in her chest, she could feel every pain staking pump of her blood through her veins. It felt as if she was breathing ice. Her lungs hurt. She knew something was wrong. Deadly wrong.

"It's Aunt Kitty. She's....she's...."

Nadine didn't get a chance to finish as Valene ran into the house and up the stairs. Jessie followed quickly behind her, Nadine standing at the bottom of the stairs.

Valene ran to Aunt Kitty's room and ran to the bed. "Aunt Kitty....Aunt Kitty...I'm home. Valene's home. Wake up. This isn't funny." Aunt Kitty remained still. Valene didn't know what else to do, her mind was running wild, her heart was beating crazily, confused, as if it didn't know whether to beat or not. She just continued to shake Kitty.

"Valene...stop."

"No. She's just....she's just...." Valene stopped shaking her aunt and just stared at nothing. She stared at the wall on the other side of the bed. Her hands began to shake and she felt her knees go to mush. "No...." Tears stung her eyes as she turned and she tried to take a step, but her knees gave and Jessie wrapped his arms around her, to help support her.

Feeling tears come to his eyes, he rested his chin on the top of Valene's head. Her body shook with her heavy sobs. He ran his hand over her hair, occasionally kissing it. "It's okay." He repeated, not only for her, but for him, to reassure himself that everything would be okay. He loved the old woman. She was the nicest woman he had ever met. Now...now she was gone.

She couldn't find the strength to stand. She clenched onto Jessie's t-shirt, afraid to look around, afraid to be on her own, afraid she wouldn't make it without him.

Wrapping his arms tightly around her waist, he helped her get to her feet. She wrapped her arms around him, to help steady herself. "C'mon Val, lets go back downstairs."

He led her slowly from the bedroom, she grasped the railing when it came into reach, and with Jessie also there for support, she made it down the stairs.

Jessie watched as Valene and Nadine hugged each other, holding each other as if they were each other's only life support. Jessie placed a hand on Valene's hip and rubbed up her side and back down, hoping to bring some comfort. She turned around and smiled weakly, and hugged him again. She remained there, just laying her head against his chest. Her face felt soft and damp against his shirt covered chest.

"I'll go call the morgue and hopefully they can come and take her." Jessie suggested gentley tugging her away.

Valene nodded, as though in some kind of trance. "I'll go sit. I need to sit."

Jessie looked at Valene with sympthy. The way her eyes looked, the way her bottom lip quivered, it made his heart ache. He wanted to take her back into his arms and hold her forever. Instead, he just nodded and watched as she walked with Nadine to the couch and sat down, holding each other, with there heads together.

He went to the phone and pressed a shaky finger to each of the buttons. When a voice came onto the phone, he told him the information that he needed to know and then hung up the phone and walked into the living room, feeling as though this was just some beautiful dream gone horribly horribly wrong.

He sat on the other side of Valene and wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned his head against hers. "Everything will be okay. I'll make sure of it."

"I should've been here. Maybe....if...."

"No maybes and no ifs. It was her time." Jessie explained as he kissed her temple.

"I didn't even get to say good bye. I loved her...oh God Jessie, I loved her!" Valene broke down into tears and Nadine just looked up at Jessie, who's eyes were wide. Jessied held Valene close to him as she cried.

"Shhh, it'll be okay. I am here for you." Jessie consoled, feeling his heart being stabbed everytime a heavy sob wracked through her body. He wasn't sure exactly what to do. He just held his arms around her, kissing the top of her head just to remind her that he was indeed there.

º º º º º º º

It was almost two hours before they had removed Aunt Kitty from her home. A clean, white sheet had been placed over her and she was put into a white van, with the sign, Almira Morgue Service Inc.

Jessie had stayed, even though Valene knew he should've left. He had a farm to take care of. Livestock to attend to, yet he stayed there, his arms wrapped around her, or holding her hand, or just standing next to her. He was always in the same room with her, always keeping an eye on her.

She was so grateful for him. Her heart ached with the love that poured out for him. She felt so vulnerable when she was around him. She felt like she was an open book with her emotions and she had never felt this way around anyone. As she watched the van, carrying her Great Aunt Kitty, back out of her driveway, she sighed, fighting back a sob. Her eyes were still damp, still red, and her bottom lip still trembled, from her attack of tears.

Just when she felt as though the dam was about to burst again, she turned and ran into a solid wall that was Jessie. His arms were around her, and she wrapped her arms around him. The beautiful beating of his heart soothed her tears, made her feel strong, and she squeezed him. "Thank you. Thank you so much." She said softly.

"You looked like you needed a hug." He said softly. "You looked like you were going to cry, and if I saw you cry one more time, I might just cry myself." He explained as he tightened his arms around her.

"I did. I did need a hug. I was about to cry, but thank you so much for holding me. I am so glad you didn't go home. I don't know what I would've done without you here." She told him as she looked up at him.

"I wouldn't have left, Val. You are too important to me." He leaned down and kissed her softly against the lips.

"Thank you, Jess. You mean a lot to me too." And she meant it. Jessie meant more to her than anything ever had and he meant more than she had ever planned for him to.

"Would you like to come to my place? Nadine can come too. I don't want you to to be alone, and in this house." Jessie told her, pulling her against him and leaning his forehead against hers.

"No, I think we should stay here. No matter how much I want to stay at your place, no matter house much I know I would enjoy it. I can't. I feel like I have a duty to be here. I have to clean out her room, and...there is so much I have to do." Valene explained, wishing that she could just screw everything and she could just go and be with him. She would love to jump back into bed with him and be with him all night and all day, but she couldn't. Not only did she really have stuff to do, she felt it would be a sin to sleep with Jessie just after her aunt died.

"Are you sure? You have my number? Right?" Jessie asked.

Valene nodded and almost asked if Jessie would stay. If he'd stay with her through the night, just to hold her, to let her know every thing would be okay, but she knew that being that close to him would be too much for either of them, to just lay there and do nothing.

"Then I am going to go and tend to my farm. If you need anything. Anything at all, don't hesitate to call me."

Valene nodded and stood on her tip toes to kiss him. That single kiss sent shocks throughout her body, right to her hair follicles. She almost felt better just with that single kiss. "Now, go be that cowboy farmer." She smiled and walked to the door with him.

The sun was bright, the weather warm, a soft breeze whispering their newest secret to the leaves. There were few tufts of clouds, slowly flowing by. She held out the door and felt the wind sofly flow through her hair.

"I'm going to come inside like every half hour or so to check my answering machine, just in case. See you later, sweety." He smiled brightly one last time before he jumped into his truck. He honked his horn, and backed out of the driveway.

Valene went inside and walked slowly up the stairs, her hand ran numbly up the railing. She closed her eyes, and immediately saw the face of her Aunt Kitty. She couldn't help it. She suddenly felt the urge for a ciggarette, but didn't have the energy to go back downstairs to her purse. She only had a few left in her pack, and because she hadn't had them in awhile, she wasn't sure even if they were still fresh.

Nadine was sitting on Kitty's bed, holding an old black and white photo of Kitty and her husband Frank. They were so happy. It was when they were young. Kitty had the brown hair, pulled up into a bun on the top of her head. Frank's hair must've been a dirty blonde, because the hair showed up lighter.

"Hey." Valene said with a soft smile as she sat down next to Nadine.

"I was cleaning out her dresser and I saw this and it just made me think of her. I miss her, Val. I really do." Tears formed at the corners of her eyes. "She was so nice, we sat here and talked, and talked. I'm so happy I came down."

Valene smiled softly. "I'm glad you came too. I wouldn't want to do this alone." She wrapped an arm around Nadine's back, laying her hand on her other shoulder.

"You wouldn't have. You'd have Jessie. I know you too are in love. I could tell. He was always in the same room together." Nadine smiled and wiped her cheeks.

"I'm glad I have Jessie, but he has a farm that he has to attend to. He can't stay with me all of the time." Valene told her.

"He would've brought you over to his house and you know it. He'd make sure that you wouldn't have to worry about anything." Nadine said with a smirk. She put the photo behind her on the bed and stood.

"You need a guy, Naddie. Someone to lean on." Valene said, standing and taking Nadine's arm loosely in her hands.

"I don't need a guy. Guys are overrated. They go and pretend that they love you, when all they look for is a good piece of ass to have sex with, then they leave you in a bed, by yourself at three in the morning." Nadine's eyes narrowed. "Guys think they're all big and bad, like they are the creators of everything, and they're not. They're all lower than pond scum."

Valene took a deep breath and released slowly. "I'm not sure what to say about that."

"You don't have to say anything. It's the truth. I never planned to get married, never have a family. I'm not going to get that stupid artificial insemination, because my kids deserve a father like every other kid, to have a family like we did." Nadine explained.

"You don't mean that." Valene said, shocked at her sister's words.

"Yes I do. I mean every damn word, Val. You don't understand." Nadine replied.

"Then make me understand. I don't want to not understand."

"Country Lovin': Chapter Sixteen"