Page 5 of Hammered and Nailed
It didn’t take long for me to locate a chainsaw and soon we were breaking a sweat in the humid summer heat, cutting the offending tree into pieces and stacking the wood against the side of the house for use in the fire pit. It didn’t take too long, and eventually the tree was gone, along with the loose branches, leaves, and other debris. Gone from the outside, anyway. The sun was low in the sky and my stomach snarled with hunger.
"I’m starving." I put the last of the small logs on the pile. The pieces would make great firewood for the fire pit and the debris would be excellent kindling. "It’s been a long day."
Emery groaned, tossing a few sticks on the massive pile of kindling and debris we’d accumulated. "You’re not kidding. I’m ravenous. What do you want to do about dinner?"
I shrugged. "I packed a little food in my cooler. It should get us through the night at least."
Emery sighed in relief. "Good, because the idea of going into town like this was not appealing."
"Like what?"
He rolled his eyes. "I feel disgusting. I’m covered in sweat, grime, and sawdust."
"You’re going to have to get used to that friend," I said with a chuckle. When he flipped me off, I laughed again. "Tomorrow we’ll look into getting running water. How does that sound?"
"Like a dream come true. But I’m still going for a swim after we eat."
"Whatever you say, buddy." I hurried to grab my cooler while Emery started a fire in the fire pit. Once the flames crackled to life, I brought over several long camp forks for us to roast hot dogs and marshmallows.
"So," I started as Emery thrust his hot dog into the flames.
"Yeah?" He raised his eyebrows.
"Sandy’s been texting me again."
Emery’s eyebrows shot up. "She’swhat?"
I nodded. "Yep."
"What the hell does shewant?"
I sighed and stared at the fire for a long time before answering. "We broke up because she said I wasn't the settling-down type. I don't know. It seems like she wants to get back together now."
“You broke up because she cheated on you,” he shot back.
“Either way,” I murmured. “She wants to meet up and talk, she said.”
Emery nodded quietly and turned his fork. After a while, he spoke again. "What are you going to do?"
"I told her I’d moved on. Told her I went on a few dates with Brittany. But… I don’t know. I’m not feeling it with Brittany either."
He scoffed, shaking his head. "How do you do it?"
"Do what?"
"You’re always dating the hottest women out there. How do you convince them to go out with a troll like you?"
I flipped him off, grinning. "Fuck you. I’m a prize, thank you very much." A beat passed, and I was relieved that the moment seemed lighter, less serious than it had before.
"What about you? Any news on the dating front?"
He pulled his hot dog away from the flames to let it cool. "Not really. I’ve been too busy to date. And now, we’re here for at least the next few weeks or so."
"Here we are," I said, putting my hot dog onto a bun. A few minutes passed as we ate in silence.
When we were finished, Emery stood and brushed himself off. "Swim time."
I raised an eyebrow. "Now?"
