Page 44 of A Secret Chance
Chapter 18
BY LATE AFTERNOON,there were a few tipsy Rapidians dancing in front of the band’s stage. From the entrance, Baxter and his team scanned the scene. The beer gardens were packed. “Looks like it’s full,” he said. “Too bad.” He had been looking for an excuse to leave the Winter Carnival ever since he spotted Lauren Bunkman at the ax-throwing contest.
“No way,” Nicole said to nobody in particular, her eyes trained on one section of the crowd. “Just give me a second.” She raised her index finger at Baxter and the executives, “I’ll be right back.” She disappeared into the crowd before any of her colleagues could object. Baxter was annoyed and looked at his watch, seeing it was almost dinner time.
A table of rough-looking locals brazenly looked the group of Caldwell executives up and down before turning back to whisper amongst themselves. Baxter watched as word of their arrival spread through the crowd. More than a few sets of eyes turned to check out the big bad developers. The hatred towards him and his crew was palpable. He knew that not everyone was going to be in support of Caldwell Creek, but he hadn’t expected to be public enemy number one.
Nicole bounded back to the entrance. “I’ve got us a spot,” she smiled.
“We should go,” Baxter said. “I don’t think we’re welcome here.” He wondered how long it was going to take for one of the locals to get drunk enough to start throwing punches.
“My friend Serena is here. It’s all good.” Nicole smiled. She grabbed Barry by his arm. “Come on guys, I haven’t seen her in years.”
“Alright, one drink and then we’re out of here,” Baxter said.
As they followed Nicole to meet her friend, Baxter could feel more than one set of eyes boring holes through his expensive jacket.
“Wait,” Baxter said. “We can’t show up empty-handed. I’ll go get a couple of pitchers for the table.” Peace offerings, he thought to himself.
“Okay,” Nicole smiled. “We’ll be over there.” She pointed to the back-right corner of the roped-off area. “The one beside the fire pit.”
Baxter held his head high as he wove through the crowd. He wasn’t going to get run out of town, but he also didn’t like being persona non grata. He wished he knew a way to win over the locals. While he waited in the beer line, he watched the band play, the lead guitarist was a John Mayer doppelganger, not just in looks, but in skill as well. He wore fingerless gloves and his fingers flew over the strings of his acoustic guitar. There were some people dancing, and it struck Baxter that he’d never been in a place with so much laughter. When they weren’t shooting him death stares, almost everyone in the entire place was smiling and laughing.
“What can I get you?” The bartender, a young guy with a beard, asked.
“I’ll take three pitchers of whatever you recommend.”
“Roger that.” He filled up the jugs and set them on the folding table. “That’ll be thirty.”
A steal of a deal, Baxter thought to himself. No wonder everyone’s getting plastered. He handed over his black credit card. The young man raised his eyebrows as he read the card. “Wait a second,” Baxter said, stopping him before he could punch in the amount. “What’s your name?”
The young man paused and looked up through raised eyebrows. “Charlie.”
“Charlie, put everyone’s drinks on that card. Can you do that?”
“Really? For how long?” He asked.
“The rest of the night,” Baxter said firmly.
“Are you serious?” He tapped Baxter’s card on the back of his hand.
“As a heart attack, Charlie.” Baxter smiled and winked. He saw the lumberjack’s tough façade crack. “Is it going to be a problem?”
Charlie shrugged his shoulders and shot him a genuine smile, “I don’t see why it would be.”
Baxter picked up the pitchers of beer. “I’ll leave that card with you and I’ll be back to sign off on it.”
