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“That’s right.” He slid her card into the reader. “The Friday before Valentine’s week brings a lot of tourists to town, thanks to you. Hopefully, we’ll get some locals looking for something to do this weekend.”
They had a romantic comedy showing—one that had just been released. There were typically long lines on Friday and Saturday nights, but that was mostly because there was only one screen and one box office employee selling tickets. Her own kids sometimes headed up the interstate to the multiplex with recliners when they were really excited about a new movie.
“It looks like you’ll have the whole theater to yourself,” Mike said, ripping the ticket in half and passing the stub through the window.
There wouldn’t be an usher or concessions stand worker. That meant Mike would have to jump up from his seat to get her the usual small popcorn and diet soda that were part of her weekly moviegoing ritual.
“Looks like I spoke too soon,” Mike said.
Bobbie grabbed the ticket stub and was sliding it into the front pocket of her purse when Mike’s words, spoken through the low-quality speaker, froze her movements. She looked up, confused, only to see the outline of someone reflected in the window. Whoever it was, the person was standing behind her.
She glanced over, and as soon as he entered her periphery, her heart sped up a little. Gus Knott was looking straight at her, a big smile on his face.
“Looks like we have the same pastime,” he said.
“Gus is a regular here on Fridays,” the voice through the speaker said behind her.
Bobbie turned back around, surprised, as she stared Mike down through the window. “Every Friday?” she asked.
“Every Friday at noon,” Gus said.
It wasn’t noon yet, but the movie started a little after. She always arrived early to purchase her refreshments and get settled well before the trailers even started. She didn’t like trying to creep to her seat in the dark.
“Let me buy this lady’s ticket,” Gus said.
“Too late.” Mike shook his head. “Already bought and paid for.”
“Well, then, I’ll cover your refreshments.”
Gus’s words drew her attention back to him again. Why was he having this effect on her? She’d been married to the same man for thirty-five years. From the day she’d met her late husband, that had been that. She hadn’t looked at another man. Which was what made this sudden zing of attraction so jarring.
“That’s not necessary,” she said. The last thing she needed was to be further indebted to the Knott family. She turned back to Mike. “I’ll see you inside.”
Only once she was in the lobby did the flaw in her plan emerge. The realization made her turn back toward the box office, where Mike was casually chitchatting with Gus while running his credit card and printing out a ticket. She couldn’t buy her popcorn and diet soda before Gus came in because Mike was running both the box office and the concessions stand.
That also meant she wouldn’t be able to rush into the theater and grab her favorite seat, which was far closer to the front than most people liked to sit. Her kids had complained about it for years. She knew the view was better near the back, but she liked to immerse herself in the scene on the screen.
Finally, Mike stood and turned around, reaching down to open the waist-high door that would lead him out of the box office. He closed the door behind him, turning to check that it latched shut, then started toward the concessions stand in that slow, meandering way he had.
Bobbie kept her focus on Mike. Otherwise, she’d be aware of Gus coming through the door behind him.
She let Mike pass her, then followed him, already pulling her wallet out. Maybe if she had her card at the ready, Gus would let her pay for her own.
“The usual?” Mike asked.
He pulled one of the small bags from the shelf beneath the popcorn bin. The bag bore branding for a movie that had been out for at least a year. She wondered how that worked. Did movie studios automatically ship these bags, or did Mike have to request them?
She nodded. “Popcorn, light butter, small diet soda.”
The small was gigantic, but popcorn and soda were essential to the experience. Plus, she knew Mike made most of his money on concessions stand sales, and she wanted to support the guy. Shop local and all.
“You, too?” Mike asked Gus. “The usual?”
Combining their orders meant letting Gus pay for all of it. “You can go ahead and do mine, and I’ll get out of the way,” Bobbie rushed to say.
She held out her credit card. He wasn’t going to take it yet, but she wanted to make a point. Mike looked at Gus, and his smile widened a little as though they shared some sort of secret.
Why was Mike on Gus’s side? Probably for the same reason the guy seemed to run this town, even after her ranch was the most successful of the two. He just had this charisma that made people want to do his bidding.
