Denise was relieved when the service ended. She was the first person out the door. She made her way back to her cabin, changed her clothes, and went back to Tara's place. She knocked at her door at 11:57.
Tara opened the door with a smile. Sammy whimpered behind her. She opened the door wider. "Be aware, he might try to jump on you. How was the service?"
Denise braced herself as she stepped through the open door. "It was okay, but it felt weird being back there. I haven't been there in so long. Pastor Baker gave me a Bible."
Sammy launched himself at her. His claws dug into her skin. She yelped and slammed into the floor. Tara grabbed Sammy's collar to pull him away. Denise pushed herself off the floor. A clump of golden hair stuck to her. She brushed it off her jeans. Tara let go and he came back over. This time, Denise bent down to pet him.
"Sorry about him, he's excited to see you. Pastor Baker and his damn pity Bibles. I attended there once last year and I was given one too."
"I wasn't expecting to be given anything. I expected to sit there silently throughout the whole service. He called me out when he began his service."
Tara raised an eyebrow. Denise continued to speak. "We did praise and worship and he mentioned he was glad old members showed up. He pointed back to me. Everyone turned around to face me."
"That sounds awful," Tara made a face.
"I know people in this town don't like me, but geez. If looks could kill, I'd be dead. He wanted me to come back for the second service, but I'm not sure if I should."
Tara shrugged, "I think the second service goes with the first one. What was the first one about?"
"Sinning and hell."
"And that means the second one will be about heaven. It's up to you. It's not my place to say. I haven't been back there since last year. The church isn't my thing. I stopped going after my aunt died."
Tara paused for a second. "Oh shit, I forgot about the sandwich." She ran off into another room. Sammy took off after her.
Denise made her way after them. She'd been in Tara's house a few times. When she was younger, Tara's aunt would pay her to babysit. She knew where the kitchen was.
The overpowering smell of something burning hit her nose. The kitchen was a little warmer than the rest of the house. Steam rose over a pan on the stove. Tara cursed under her breath and picked up a frying pan.
She chucked something out of it and into a trash can. Sammy took a few steps toward the trash. "Leave it!" Tara's voice raised an octave. "I burnt it to a crisp, it won't taste good." Sammy whimpered and backed away.
"Can you grab him a bone?" Tara asked. "They're up in that cupboard over there." She tilted her head towards a cupboard. She took a towel and waved it over the pan.
"What made you decide to make grilled cheese?" Denise asked.
"One of the last conversations I had with Jennifer was about you. She was mad because she wanted toast one morning. You used the last of the bread the night before. She mentioned you were going through a grilled cheese phase."
Denise let out a laugh. "Yeah, it was a week-long phase. I didn't mean to make her mad." She opened the cupboard and grabbed a small bone out of a box.
Sammy sat beside her waiting for the bone. Denise gave it to him and scratched behind his ears. The sound of crunching filled the air.
Tara buttered another piece of bread. It sizzled on the frying pan. She leaned over to sprinkle something into the tomato soup. As she stirred it in, the smell of spices filled the air.
"That smells amazing!" Denise's mouth watered. "What did you put it in?"
"A little bit of Basil and Oregano. I'm a measure-with-your-heart type of girl. I think it called for a teaspoon or something." She added another piece of buttered bread to the grilled cheese and flipped it over.
"Jennifer used to tell me you couldn't cook to save your life. It seems like she was wrong."
"Oh, she wasn't wrong. I was terrible at cooking. My aunt made all my meals. I had to teach myself after she died. I couldn't even turn on the stove. Jennifer started to teach me. When she died, I had to figure the rest out myself."
"I'm sorry about your aunt," Denise started.
Tara shook her head. "Don't worry about it, it was going to happen at some point. I wish it would have been later, but that's life."
"Unfortunately, it is," Denise mumbled in agreement.
Suddenly, Sammy sprinted out of the kitchen. His barking could be heard from the front room. Tara spun around and put her hands on her hips. "That's weird, he only does that when someone comes to the door."
"Seems like you have a visitor," Denise suggested.
"Nobody else was supposed to be here. I didn't make plans with anyone else."
Someone knocked on the front door.
"Can you stir the tomato soup and turn down the heat? I've got to see who's at the door. People rarely show up uninvited."
"I can take over from here. Do you want me to set the table too?" Denise asked.
"If you could, that'd be helpful. I'm sorry about this, I'll be back in a minute." Tara left Denise alone in the kitchen.
Denise picked up the wooden spoon Tara was using and stirred the pot of tomato soup. The aroma was more intense up close. It reminded her of her mom. She missed her cooking.
She had a box filled with her mom's most used recipes. She hadn't opened it yet. It had been closed since she took it from their original house. She hadn't had the heart to open it because it was too painful.
"Why are you here?" Sammy had stopped barking. Denise could hear Tara's voice clear as day. "No, you can't come in! Now is not a good time!"
Denise ignored her and placed the spoon on the spoon holder. She walked over to a cupboard and flung it open. The dishes were still in the same spot she remembered them being in. She grabbed two plates and headed back for bowls.
She ignored the approaching footsteps. She couldn't reach the shelf the bowls were on. She leaned up to her tip toes and grabbed two of them.
"Who do we have here?" A voice asked.
"Get your finger out of my soup! I didn't tell you to come inside. Get out!"
Denise spun around to face Daniel Alberg. She almost dropped the bowls she was holding. Daniel's eyes widened, "oh, I didn't know you were here. This is really bad timing."
"Yeah, that's why I told you to leave. You're such an asshole! Get out of my house!" Tara's arms crossed over her chest.
"Didn't Mom text you? She sent me a text message. She said she'd meet us here. She had something important to talk about."
"I don't know, I don't have my phone on. Whatever it is, it can wait. I'm trying to have lunch with a friend."
"You guys have a mom?" Denise blurted out.
Daniel turned to look at her. "It's a complicated situation, but yes. Our aunt was her sister. I'm sorry I'm interrupting your plans. Mom said it was urgent. I thought Tara knew about it."
Tara rolled her eyes and went back to the stove. "Even if I did know, I'm sure I wouldn't have suggested my house as a meeting place."
"I'm sorry about your mom and sister," Daniel spoke to Denise again. "I heard about it, but I didn't stop by. I didn't think you wanted to see me."
"Don't talk to her!" Tara snapped. "You ruined her younger sister's life and I had to help clean up your mess."
"You don't think I'm aware of this?" Daniel scoffed. "It haunts me every day. Not only did I destroy Jennifer, but I also ruined our relationship."
"That's exactly why I don't talk to you unless I have to!" Tara shot back.
Denise blinked trying to take everything in. She hadn't expected to be face-to-face with her younger sister's ex-boyfriend. He didn't seem like the same guy. He had grown into his features more.
His nose, which she always thought was too large, fit his face better. His face was a bit wider. His jawline was slightly sharper. He lost a little weight over the years. The start of a mustache was coming in above his upper lip. He was young and immature when Jennifer dated him. He seemed to have grown up over the past few years.
"Can I have one of those?" Daniel asked. He pointed to a tray with four grilled cheeses on it.
"No, you may not. The shit is right there, make one yourself." Tara grabbed the plates off the table and put two grilled cheeses onto each one.
"Should I go?" Denise asked. "We can reschedule this."
"Stay here, try to ignore the pain in my ass of a brother." Tara grabbed the bowls from her. "Thanks for briefly taking over. You can sit down at the table."
Denise stepped around Daniel and took a seat at the table. Tara gave her a plate of grilled cheese. She had cut them in half. She placed a small bowl of tomato soup near her. "Here you go, eat up."
Denise thanked her and picked up one of the halves. She waited until Tara sat down with her food before she dipped it in the tomato soup. The flavor combination danced on her tongue. "You out did yourself today."
Tara grinned, "I tried my best." She glanced up toward Daniel. "What does Mom want to talk about?"
Denise watched him shrug. He towered over the stove. "Whatever it is, it must be important, she never texts me."
"You never try to talk to her or see her," Tara pointed out.
"Why would I? She left us, Tara! She left us for that douchebag!"
Tara opened her mouth and then closed it. Her shoulders slumped and she took a bite of her sandwich. Denise looked between the two of them. Tara caught her eye and slightly shook her head. Denise gave her a nod.
She wasn't going to question whatever was going on. It wasn't her business. She was going to eat her food, get Sammy, and go back to her cabin. She was still wrestling with the idea of going to the second church service.
Daniel decided to ruin her plans. "I think we should tell Denise the truth."
"Daniel, plea-"
Daniel cut his sister off. "We have a mom. Not sure about our biological dad, but we have a mom. She's currently married to the former sheriff."
Denise couldn't stop her mouth from dropping open. "Your mom is married to him?"
She knew Greg Sullivan was Daniel Alberg's stepdad. She hadn't realized how that all worked out. She didn't take the time to put everything together. Daniel and Tara's mom was married to Greg Sullivan.
Daniel nodded. Tara put her face in her hands. "Can we stop talking about this?"
"He beats our mom. Maybe. At least, that's what I think. She's always covered in bruises. She left us for him. Our aunt got legal guardianship of us."
Once again, Sammy flew out of the room. Tara stood up to follow him. She left Denise alone with Daniel.
"I'm sorry for the way I treated your sister," Daniel spoke again. "I was a stupid kid and she was my first love. I guess I didn't know how to handle my emotions."
"It's okay, it's been a few years. I hope you've learned from it." Denise took another bite of her grilled cheese. "That's all that really matters now."
He sat down at the table with his grilled cheese on a napkin. "I realize what I did was wrong. I wanted to apologize to her, but I didn't want to violate the restraining order."
"I can assure you that she forgave you. She mentioned you now and then. She always talked about how she hoped you learned from it."
A smile appeared on his face. "I did learn from it." He pulled out his phone. "This is my current girlfriend. We've been dating for about a year. She's my everything."
He showed her the phone lock screen. His girlfriend was grinning as he kissed her cheek. The sun was setting behind them. It made Denise's heart swell.
"She's the best thing that's ever happened to me and it's all because of Jennifer. She wrote me a letter and I've kept it. It was an eight-page letter about how I should treat a woman. It made me realize a lot about myself."
"That sounds like something Jennifer would do."
Daniel's face dropped. His eyes focused behind Denise. "What happened to your face?" He stood up from his chair.
Denise turned to see a blonde woman she had never met before. Her cheekbone was an ugly brown and purple color. Her eyes met Denise's before she looked away.
"I'll fucking kill him!" Daniel swore. His hands turned into fists at his side. "I'll murder him!"
A cheshire grin slowly spread over the woman's face. "Don't worry about killing him. There's already a warrant out for his arrest."