Page 53 of The Cowboy's Country Charm

“The best.” Score one for him.

***

Smokey’s was much more crowded than it had been that Friday night after the wedding reception, even though it was during the week. And Rusty had been correct. People were dressed in work outfits of jeans, tees, and boots. Some adapted to the warmer temperatures with shorts, but those were mostly the ladies. She blended right in. Only a few tables were open, and Rusty headed for one of the booths. She followed and slid onto the seat across from him, her sweaty limbs sticking to the faux leather. Gratefully, the air-conditioner was running and menus waited on the table. The noise level was high as people settled in for dinner.

She would have liked to have taken a shower, but that would have prolonged things well into the evening, and she needed to get back to her spreadsheets and lists to get organized for the next day. Time was running out to get all the t’s crossed and i’s dotted. She was a stickler for details, and with Marcia on leave, she felt even more pressure to get everything right.

She breathed in the smoky scent of meat and potatoes as she checked the menu selections. Lots of different burger combinations, one more artery clogging than the next. A small section for chicken sandwiches. A small section for traditional sandwiches, like BLTs, grilled cheese, roast beef, and steak. The obligatory salad or two. And then a selection of other beef fare, like pot roast, meatloaf, ribeye, and such. Beef was clearly the menu winner.

The waitress from the other night hustled over to take their order. “Good to see you, Rusty.”

“Glad to be here, Charlene.” He hadn’t even looked at the menu yet. “The Smokey burger is the house special.” Rusty directed the remark to Kristy.

Of course it was. She scanned the list of ingredients. Bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, and BBQ sauce. Sounded yummy, if unhealthy.

“Good for me.” She closed the plastic-coated menu.

“Me too.” Rusty nodded.

“And to drink? Chardonnay for the lady?”

Kristy was flattered the waitress remembered. “Not tonight. Just water. Have to get up early tomorrow.” She would have loved a glass of wine, but she feared that in her exhausted state, she’d fall asleep right there in the booth.

Charlene looked at Rusty, her pencil poised over her pad.

“I’ll have a beer. On tap,” Rusty said.

As Charlene sped to the next table, Rusty leaned forward. “Other than the jail, how are things in general going? And I’m asking as your boyfriend, not a committee member.”

Boyfriend.Well, she guessed that was appropriate, though she still wasn’t used to thinking of them as a couple. More like good friends, though she’d be lying to herself if she didn’t admit her attraction to him. He was a nice guy. A decent man. At least what she knew of him. And not hard on the eyes.

She stared into his blue eyes, which were staring right back at her, assessing her. Yeah, she’d like to get to know him better. Intimately, in fact.

“Pretty good. We could use a few more females to sign up for the bail-out-of-jail event, but we have enough men to make a go of it. And Greta is definitely a score. We haven’t found a chuck wagon that we can afford yet, but…”

Rusty whipped out his phone and scrolled through his contacts. “I know a guy…”

There he was again fixing things for her. “Rusty, please…”

Rusty looked up. “I might be able to get one for you.”

“Ariel has come up with a solution that won’t cost much and will save us some hassle with the setup.”

“Oh.” He looked disappointed.

“Would you like to hear what it is?”

“Sure.” He shrugged.

“Because I’d like your opinion, but just your opinion.”

He frowned but nodded.

“We are going to take a portable bar and add some wagon wheels to the front, and she has a canopy she can hang over the top so it’ll look like a chuck wagon. The wheels were in the storage unit. You might have seen them.” She whipped out her phone from her pocketbook, scrolled through some pictures of the convention space, and found the one she was looking for. She flashed her phone before him. “What do you think?”

Kristy thought it was ingenious and just like Ariel.

***

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