Page 65 of Plentywood
The more I studied Hunter from a distance, the more I wondered what he would taste like, feel like. I liked my men tough and manly. He seemed to fill the bill perfectly. My choice of Rocco was because of the same traits, but Rocco treated me poorly. I doubted, for some strong reason, that Hunter would.
“Time to eat, you two,” Jay hollered, carrying a plate of burgers, some with cheese, toward the patio table.
Hunter stood by the two chairs where his beer and my wine were; I assumed waiting for me to join him. When I got near, he pulled my chair out and waited for me to sit. The act was so foreign to me that I was unsure of what to say. At first, I felt it feminized me, but subconsciously knew that Hunter wouldn’t want to convey that message. He was being a gentleman. It was as simple as that.
“There are a couple of veggie burgers,” Hunt pointed out.
He remembered I was vegetarian, which I wasn’t completely committed to all the time. Particularly today because the burgers looked juicy and smelled amazing. I liked that he’d remembered the conversation from when we’d first met, when I’d told Jill that I was a vegetarian.
“I hope you enjoy the veggie ones,” I stated, grinning at him and reaching for a real burger.
He gave me a sweet grin and lifted the plate for me. “Have two,” he said. “Put some meat on those bones.”
I stuck an elbow gently into his side and we locked eyes until it got uncomfortable. I liked being around Hunter. It was easy and light and he helped me relax. Something I was never good at in front of strangers. Oddly, we felt like we fit.
“Gosh!” Jennie exclaimed, leaning into Jay. “You two are just so cute together.” She gazed at us with the kindest of smiles. “Don’t you think so, honey?” she asked Jay.
He wasn’t prepared for that sort of question and squirmed nervously in his chair. Hunter locked eyes with him and cleared his throat. “This is where you say, ‘Yes, honey,’ Jay.”
Jennie held Jay’s chin and wiped at the corner of his mouth. “Jay thinks I’ve done lost my mind,” she said, setting the napkin she’d used on Jay on her lap. “He says I watch too many of those romance movies on the Hallmark channel. But I can’t help myself,” she added. “I want everyone to have love.”
“You sound like Mark right now,” Hunter said.
“That’s exactly right, Hunt,” she agreed. “We both loved our Hallmark romances.”
Jennie stared at us, hesitating, before giving Jay a look that seemed to ask if she could spill the beans on something she was itching to get to.
“Go ahead and tell them,” Jay said. “She thinks the two of you are like one of her movies,” he said, not waiting for her to speak.
“Well, they are,” she insisted, scooping potato salad onto her husband’s plate. “And I just might send a letter to Hallmark and tell them this exact story.”
I was so taken with the comedy of it all and the sheer sweetness of Jennie that I couldn’t hold my voice in. “Do they do gay love stories?” I asked.
Jennie’s nose scrunched up, and she turned to Jay. “You know what? They actually don’t. I don’t think,” she added. “Mark used to point that out too, Ben.”
Hunter wiped his mouth before speaking. “And he was none too happy about it, Jennie,” he added to the conversation. “Said he thought they might be too churchy.”
The moment Hunt said the words, we all looked at each other. I wondered if bringing up religion in front of his Mormon friends was a bad idea. Hunter suddenly realized what he’d said. Jennie and Jay both looked confused by the hesitation of both Hunt and me.
“I don’t know if they’re churchy, per se,” Jennie said. “But they barely kiss in those movies. I want more steam,” she declared.
“And what did Mark think about the movies, Jennie?” I asked, trying to act as comfortable about the Mark topic so as not to make them feel awkward discussing him.
“He wanted more steam too,” she offered. “And more ghost storylines. Mark was big on the ghosts and the afterlife stuff.”
“That he was,” Hunt added. “And the steam. I agree on the steam.”
Jennie set her burger on her plate and reached across the table, holding one of each of our hands. Both mine and Hunt’s eyes fell to our joined hands before looking at Jennie. I held my breath because I figured we were about to hear a fantastical story.
“That is why Mark came to me,” she whispered, checking with Jay to see if she was overstepping.
Hunter had already told me that Jay had clued him in about Jennie’s beliefs beforehand. And I’d had the talk with Jennie last week at her appointment, so I’d say we were all pretty much prepared for her.
“Easy, honey,” Jay spoke.
“It’s perfectly okay, Jay,” Hunt said. “I, for one, am dying to hear what happened. Aren’t you, Ben?”
“Heck yeah. Anytime a ghost story involves me, I want to know all the details,” I concurred. “Especially ghost stories about love.”
