A Hidden Truth
Jaxon stared out the window of the bus as high desert and sagebrush rolled past. He was on his way to Kotter's Folly, Texas. It was a medium size city in Trailbrush County.
In fact, it was the county seat. The city had a community college, a large park with a manmade lake, lots of bars and restaurants, an event center, and a huge fair ground where they hosted the county fair and rodeos.
There were clubs and church groups that helped the community and kept the population involved and interconnected. He missed the sense of community he'd felt when he lived here. It was his childhood home until the age of ten, then his father moved the family north.
Jaxon spent the next thirteen years in Boise, Idaho. Graduated from Boise High School and attended Boise State University for his undergrad. He was moving back to Texas for his master's degree program at the University of Texas in Austin.
Though he was in the comparative literature field, his focus was primarily on late nineteenth and early twentieth century British literature. Jaxon found a deep love for the depictions of class and gender struggles in the material and how each author approached the subjects.
There was a movement in the seat across from him which was reflected in the window, drawing his attention. A young woman, also travelling alone, was staring at him. One of her legs was up on the empty seat next to her and the other settled under her. Jaxon watched as her left hand moved in a familiar motion between them.
She tried hitting on him at the last stop, but she really wasn't his type. Her hair was long and blonde with green and purple streaks, her facial features distinctly Scandinavian. She had tanned skin and wore a skin tight top and a leather mini-skirt.
Her legs were swathed in ripped fishnets and she wore Doc Martens. Jaxon could see at least ten piercings on her face, ears, and tongue, which she had stuck out at him when he refused her advances. The tight top showed there were at least two more piercings lower.
Though he liked blondes, Jaxon preferred the more feminine 'girly' type. The ones that wore pink, had perfect makeup, even if it took them a long time, spoke softly, and had big, innocent eyes. The soft, delicate femininity that made him feel protective and strong.
Jaxon crossed his legs. Just because he wasn't interested, didn't mean he was completely numb to the girl pleasuring herself less than six feet away from him. Her reflection in the window showing her ministrations.
He ran a nervous hand through his shoulder length black hair and swallowed hard. That was exactly the type of girl he should bring home to get his mother off his back about finding a girlfriend.
Her breath quickened as she got closer to her goal. There were only a handful of people on the bus, but they were far enough away, and predominantly wearing earbuds, that they couldn't hear her panting breaths and soft moans. When she finally reached her climax, she practically lifted herself off the seat.
After a few moments, she got up to head to the bathroom in the back of the bus. Before she did, she leaned into his seat and smiled. Jaxon turned to look at her, she was incredibly close.
"Was it as good for you as it was for me?" She giggled and walked away.
Jaxon took a shaking breath. He couldn't wait to get off the bus and be settled somewhere sane. His half-sister, Bobbi would be waiting at the next stop to take him to her house.
She was hosting a barbeque with their other half-sisters and their families. He hadn't seen all of them since he came to visit in the summer between high school and college. Bobbi insisted they had to get reacquainted.
When the bus arrived at the depot in Kotter's Folly, Jaxon gratefully dismounted and grabbed his bags once they were unloaded from the undercarriage. After the bus left, he was waiting for only five minutes before Bobbi got there.
She pulled up in a dark blue sedan and got out. Jaxon was thrilled when she offered him a room for the summer, while he worked at the ranch owned by his oldest sister, Tamsin. He wanted to get used to the climate and social environment of Texas again.
Bobbi was 5'6" with reddish brown hair, light brown eyes, and a soft, curvy figure. She was bubbly, bouncy, and friendly. His father always said Bobbi had never met a stranger. He knew, for all this, she had a terrible temper. It ran in their family. Though it took a lot to bring that temper out, it wasn't one to be trifled with.
"Oh my goodness, Jax! Look at you, all grown up! You're such a handsome young man." She grinned.
"You said that when you saw me four years ago, Bobbi. Please, call me Jaxon. No one calls me Jax anymore." He smiled and wrapped her in a hug.
She was the youngest of his sisters and about seven years older than him. Their father couldn't seem to keep a family for very long when he was younger. His marriage to Jaxon's mother was the longest. Each of his sisters was from a different mother, but they all remained close and included each other in holidays and family events. It made him feel a little lonely.
"I've called you Jax since you were a baby and I'll call you Jax 'til the day I die. Now, get your bag in the trunk. I wanna introduce you to a few people before we get to the house." Bobbi winked and popped the trunk.
With a sigh, Jaxon loaded his two cases into the trunk and slid into the passenger's seat. He buckled his belt and they were on their way. He'd been dreading this part. Matchmaking was a pastime of most married women in town. And Bobbi prided herself on being the best.
At the first business they visited, a sewing shop, he was introduced to three girls around his age. They were nice, but had few interests that aligned with his own. Mostly he heard about football, the weather, their political views, and what crafts or baking they were doing. He made sure to be polite. When they asked about his major, he tried to simplify it, like he did normally, but their questions were aimed at what work he could do with it and how much it paid.
The next was a coffee shop, he was introduced to a few local artists. They were interesting to talk to and told him some great places to go to clear his head while he was in town. A couple of the girls had slipped him their phone numbers and offered to show him around.
They invited him to an art show in a couple weeks at a place called The Painted Wagon. They seemed like fun people, but when he started talking about authors he was fond of in his field of study, their eyes glazed over. It was hard to hold a conversation. He was a bit grateful when he and Bobbi left.
"I need to stop at a friend's house next. You can sit in the car. I just gotta pick up a book." Bobbi smiled.
"You're sure your friend doesn't have a half dozen single nieces looking for a husband? You've tried to pawn me off on enough." Jaxon scoffed.
"This is why I'm not bringin' you in. That attitude. You stay in the car and don't embarrass me. Buck tore up my copy of the book for book club and Juni says she has an extra for me." She told him.
Jaxon sighed and looked out the window. The city faded as they headed to the west side of town. Space between homes became larger. Most of them were down long driveways and couldn't be seen from the road. He wondered what kind of woman Bobbi was friends with in this socioeconomic bracket.
They came to a dirt drive marked by a metal sculpture of a covered wagon. After driving down it for a bit, they arrived at a large gate with wrought iron bars and spikes. Bobbi pulled up to a pile of river rocks that were cemented around the gate access box. She pushed the intercom button.
"Hello?" A soft female voice answered.
"Juni. It's Bobbi. I came to pick up that book."
"Oh. Goodness. Yes, I have it. I'll open the gate. Sorry, things have gotten a little crazy. Hank's headed on a business trip and the house is in an uproar. I'll meet you in the entry. Just knock. Teddy's in the living room; he should hear you." The voice responded.
"Thanks so much!" She chirped.
The gate opened and they drove through. He liked the tree lined drive, it reminded him of the one at his parents' home. When they came to the house, Jaxon was amazed. It was huge. There were at least two stories, with a deep covered porch, and it sprawled like a housecat in the sun.
"I'll be just a sec. I'm gonna leave the engine runnin' for the air." She told him as she exited.
He zoned out and within minutes, Bobbi was getting back in the car and handing him a tattered, well-worn book while she put on her seatbelt. He rolled his eyes and turned the cover over to see what romance novel or self-help book was on the plate of the book club. It took a moment for him to process what he was seeing. It wasn't what he expected at all.
"You're reading 'Sons and Lovers'? Seriously?" Jaxon grinned.
"Yeah. We wanted to read different things. Juni said we might find somethin' interestin' in this and we'd do an easier one next time. She does that for us, like a treat after we read somethin' heavy." Bobbi smiled.
They finally went to the house. It wasn't too far from the mansion they'd been at, but the difference was obvious. Bobbi's house was pretty large, but nothing like the last place.
After they parked, Jaxon retrieved his bags. They were met half way up the sidewalk by Beau, Bobbi's husband. When he'd been young, Jaxon had been a little scared of Beau. He was always teasing the boy.
Beau was just under six feet tall and broadly built. He had sandy blond hair and looked like he'd heard the funniest joke in the world just moments before seeing someone. His laid back nature was at odds with the immense danger vibes he put out. Getting on Beau's bad side was a perilous proposition.
He took one of the bags from Jaxon and escorted him into the house. They went into the kitchen and down to the basement. It was remodeled with a mother-in-law suite that had one bedroom, one bathroom, and a little kitchenette. Beau dropped Jaxon's bag in the bedroom and left without a word.
"He's just a little moody. Don't worry. He'll be better once Red and Trace get here. You get cleaned up and rest for a bit. There's time before everyone gets here." Bobbi said as she was heading out.
"Umm. Bobbi?"
"Yeah, Jax?"
"Thanks for offering me a place. If you want to discuss the book before your club, let me know. I wrote a whole paper on it." He offered.
"Oh, well... maybe. I was almost half done when Buck got ahold of it. Did... did you want to come to the book club meetin' on Friday to talk about it? You might have fun. Most of the members are my age or older, but it might be nice for you to talk about somethin' other than whatever Red and Tamsin are gonna have you doin'."
He smiled. "I might do that. Thanks."
Bobbi left the basement and started preparing for the barbecue. She was hopeful everything would work out. She, Tamsin, and Karen were in charge of this part of the plan. Jaxon was intrigued and would go with her to book club. He wouldn't be able to resist it. She chuckled.
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