Mae Nunn - Texas Miracle

There was a long pause while they each studied the other.

“I’m good with numbers.” Jacqueline bounced a little on the edge of her seat.

“Really?”

“Yes. My ACT score was thirty-one in math. I just prefer words.”

Mac cringed. “Why? Why in the world?”

“Words have so many possibilities. I like to ‘dwell in possibility,’ like Emily Dickinson wrote. But I can also work with certainty, when I have to.” She grinned at him.

“Now I remember why you and Joiner were friends.” Mac snorted, thinking of his brother’s love of literature. “Emily Dickinson indeed.”

“I wonder if we could try it out. You said you need someone now. And I need a job. It might not work out, but it might turn out to be a great fit for both of us. We’ll never know unless we try.”

Clearly, she was good with small talk, which would be a plus with customers. Her computer skills were fine. An assistant who was good with numbers would be a big change from Ella, and Mac was pretty sure she could handle the coffee. As an added bonus, she was drop-dead gorgeous.

The only negative was she probably wouldn’t want to stay very long, and he’d have to go through the process of hiring all over again. But Mac was running low on other options. He shook her hand. “All right, Jacqueline. Let’s give it a try.”

CHAPTER TWO

BUDDY KING, THE real estate agent “King of Kilgore,” kicked a rock with the pointed toe of one of his snakeskin boots. He and Jacqueline stood on the site where Jacqueline’s parents’ school-bus-turned-camper used to be. “I’ll be honest with you. It’s a tough sell.”

“I know the land’s not great for farming,” she said. “My parents found that out. They bought it with plans to move here and live off the land. We nearly starved to death my last two years of high school.”

“Well, it’s a little hilly and rocky for crops or cattle. But someone who knew what they were doing might make it work.”

He seemed totally oblivious to the fact he had just insulted her parents.

“It would be fine for housing,” King continued, “but the market for that in Kilgore is rocky itself right now.”

“What do you suggest?”

He raised his eyebrows, which looked to Jacqueline like two fuzzy caterpillars. “Let’s put it out there at eight hundred dollars an acre and see what happens.”

“How long do you typically wait to see what happens?” Jacqueline wasn’t sure she liked the sound of that.

“As long as it takes, little lady.”

No way was Jacqueline committing to this indefinitely. “I’d like to list it with you for three months and then we’ll reevaluate.”

He smiled, revealing a gold crown on one of his front teeth. “Whatever floats your boat.”

Jacqueline called her mother on the way to Mac’s office. “Mom?”

“Hi, honey!”

“I just met with the real estate agent.”

“Oh. How did it go?”

“He wants to list it at eight hundred an acre.”

“Wow. That’s a lot.”

“It is?”

“Well, compared to what we paid for it.”

“Okay. So you’d be happy with that.” Jacqueline exhaled.

“Yeah, sure. Does he think he can get it?”

“I don’t know. He’s a little weird.”

Her mom chuckled. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, you know, he had on a polyester suit, and wears a toupee, and has a gold tooth.”

“Jacqueline! I can’t believe you’re judging someone by appearance like that. That’s not like you.”

“Oh, Mom. I’m not—I’m just telling you he totally looks the part of some sleazy real estate agent from a small town in Texas.”

“Well, he is from a small town in Texas.”

“I know.” Jacqueline bit her lip. “He also called me little lady.”

“That’s kind of sweet, except that you’re five-ten.”

“I know, right?”

“Why did you choose him?”

“He’s supposed to be the best in town.” Jacqueline exaggerated her words: “The King of Kilgore Real Estate Sales.”

“Sounds like you’re reading a billboard.”

“I could be. That’s what his billboard says.”

“What bothers you about him?”

“He didn’t seem very positive about the land. He was like, ‘We’ll try this and see what happens.’”

“That sounds better to me than someone who overpromises and underdelivers.”

“I guess you’re right. I just hope I can get it sold for you. I know you and Dad need the money.”

“We’re okay.” Her mother sighed. “I appreciate you working on it for us. How are things going for you in your new job?”

“I’m driving there now. And it’s going well. Ella, the lady who is leaving, has been so sweet to me the past two weeks. Today is her last day.”

“Oh. So you’re on your own after this.”

“Yes. But I’m ready. I feel bad getting paid for not doing much of anything but watching her.”

“And how do you like the boss?”

“He’s nice.” Jacqueline blushed at the mention of Mac.

“Jacqueline? You still there?”

“Yes. I was just saying he’s nice. Very professional. Smart.”

“Have you seen his brother, the one you were friends with in high school?”

“Joiner. No, not yet.”

“That might be fun, if you guys could get reacquainted.”

“Yes, I’d like to see him again. But he is married now, so...”

“Oh. I see. Well, maybe his wife would be a good person for you to meet, too.”

“I’m sure she is. I probably won’t be here long enough to really make friends, though.”

Her mother laughed. “How long does it take to make friends?”

“Oh, Mom, you know what I mean.”

“No, I don’t, really.”

Jacqueline sighed. “I don’t want to make a big investment in people I’ll probably never see again once the land sells.”

“I see.” Her mother cleared her throat. “I think I’ll let that one go for right now, but it’s a subject we might need to come back to.”

“It will definitely have to be later, because I’m pulling up at work.” She was glad there wasn’t time to address the subject. It had never been easy for her to make friends as it was for her gregarious mother. She’d always wished she could be more like her mom in that way. But now that Jacqueline was an adult, she’d come to terms that it probably wouldn’t happen, and that was okay.

“All right, sweetie. I love you!”

“Love you, too.”

Jacqueline wheeled her brother’s silver Prius into the parking lot at Lone Star Accounting. He had left it with her parents when he sold all of his other belongings and moved to Kona, Hawaii, to become a part of Youth with a Mission the previous year. It worked out nicely for Jacqueline that she could use it for her time in the States. Checking her appearance in the rearview mirror, she decided she looked presentable enough, even though her hair was a little windblown from walking around on the land. She pulled her camel knit moto jacket around her, adjusted her blue-and-white bandanna scarf and stepped out into the brisk January air.

She greeted Ella seated on her perch at the front desk. After Jacqueline settled her things into her makeshift station, Ella tearfully sent her back to Mac’s office with a cup of coffee. “You might as well do it!” she said, blowing her nose into a starched white handkerchief.

As she walked down the hall to Mac’s office, Jacqueline hoped she hadn’t been wrong to wear jeans to work. At least her embroidered leather boots coordinated with the flowers embellishing her jacket, which she’d left on over the gauzy white blouse. It hadn’t been possible to change in time to get to work after meeting with Buddy King out on her parents’ property.

“Hey there.”