Page 78 of Cookout Carnage
‘How you be doing, this fine July day?’ Thad said. ‘And who is your gentleman friend?’
‘Er, ah, um,’ Sherilyn started.
Tristan held out his hand. ‘I’m Tristan,’ he said. ‘I work for the same company as Sherilyn.’
Thad shook it vigorously and a wart fell off his face. ‘Nice to meet you, boy. I’m Thaddaeus P Richard. The third. I’ve known Sherilyn since she was knee high to a grasshopper. How are you finding Midway, son?’
‘I haven’t seen much so far, but it’s exceeded all my expectations.’
‘Have you visited the museum?’
‘The Midway Museum?’
Thad shook his head and another wart dropped to the ground. ‘It’s shut due to the renovations. The other museum. They serve iced tea.’
Sherilyn stood. ‘That sounds perfect in this weather.’ She looked at Tristan, focusing on his forehead. ‘Shall we go there next?’
‘I’ll accompany you young folk, tell you all about my horse,’ said Thad. Half an eyebrow was now hanging off.
‘No, no, you sit down here and rest.’ She pushed Thad to the seat. ‘Come on, Tris, we need to go.’
She heard him say goodbye to Thad as she strode away around the side of the square and down a residential street. Tristan caught her up.
‘So…’ he began. ‘Tell me more about Mr. Thaddaeus P Richard. The third.’
Sherilyn wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. What the fuck had Thad been thinking? And more to the point, what the fuck hadshebeen thinking to agree to this charade?
‘He’s a very sweet man,’ she began. ‘But, er.’ What should she say? ‘He’s a very sweet man,’ she repeated firmly, then pressed her lips together.
They walked in silence down the tree-lined street. In the diner, things had been almost perfect. Now, out in the open, everything was starting to unravel. Still, it couldn’t get any worse. Amy had reassured her that Lucille’s house was all set up to be a replacement museum, and they could kill time there safely out of sight.
Tristan matched her pace, his arm hanging loosely by his side. All she had to do was stop holding her purse to her chest like a newborn and she could easily interlink her fingers with his. But who might be watching?
‘What kind of museum are we going to?’
Sherilyn sped through her memories of Amy’s texts. ‘Um. It’s a private museum about Kentucky’s geological and industrial history.’
‘Ah. My last girlfriend was a geologist.’
Girlfriend? Her head snapped around. ‘What? Er, I mean, oh, that’s nice,’ she said feebly.
‘Yeah, her name was Crystal.’
Jealousy roared through her.
‘But she kept finding faults in me,’ Tristan continued. ‘Cracks soon appeared in our relationship, and we split up.’
Sherilyn wasn’t paying particular attention to his words. Who was this, Crystal? What was she like? Was she pretty?
Tristan sighed theatrically. ‘I think I was just stone deaf to her concerns. After we split, I hit rock bottom.’
‘I’m so sorry.’
He looked like he was trying to keep a straight face. ‘Thank you. I appreciate the sediment.’
Huh?
‘But I think I only had myself to blame. I kept taking her for granite.’
