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“Fir is…” Tomás looked at me uncertainly.
I smile at him. “He’s fucking with me. It’s fine.”
Tomás’s eyes darkened. “I don’t like it.”
“You don’t like it?” Marnin laughed. “Well, if that’s the case, I’ll cease and desist immediately.”
Auden elbowed him none too subtly. “Knock it off.”
Marnin rubbed his side. “What’d you do that for?”
“‘Cause you’re being a dick.”
Marnin sighed, holding up his hands. “Okay, okay. I’ll back off. I was just having some fun.”
“The food is delicious,” Keaton said, sharing a talent for peace-making with his husband.
Grateful for the change of subject, I jumped on it. “Intan outdid herself.”
“The coconut one is my favorite.” York heaped another few spoonfuls onto his plate. “But the satay is also yummy. Actually, I love them all.”
“The concept is called nasi padang,” I said, repeating what Intan had told me. “It comes from the island of West Sumatra, where she grew up. Technically, it’s meant to be rice with all kinds of smaller dishes, but since that’s a lot of work for her, she does bigger portions of fewer recipes. The coconut one is… Let me double-check.” I reached for the printed sheet of paper with descriptions of all the dishes, including ingredients. “Rendang. That’s what it’s called. It’s slow-cooked beef in coconut milk, with added spices.”
“I’d ask for the recipe, but I don’t even cook, so that would be senseless,” York said. “But next time I come here for dinner, I’ll ask her to make it.”
“Deal. Always a bonus when I don’t have to cook, and the boys love it too.”
“Where are they anyway?” Tomás asked. “They could’ve stayed.”
“And hear about Marnin’s sexual adventures? They’re a little young for that, don’t you think? They’re up in their room.”
“Your oldest is what, sixteen? That’s not too young for sex,” Marnin said.
“Maybe not, but I’d like him to wait with doing foursomes if you don’t mind,” I said dryly.
“Fair enough. I didn’t have my first until I was in my twenties.”
“Not sure I needed to know that, but thanks for sharing.”
No one seemed to be in a hurry to leave, which made me happy. At least I wasn’t the only one enjoying myself.
“The campground sold,” Auden said when we had finished dinner, sipping from whiskey. Well, the others were. I’d had one glass of wine and kept it at that.
“I didn’t even know it was for sale,” I said.
“Mike never announced it, but he’d been looking for someone to take over for a few years,” Auden said. “He’s not getting any younger.”
No, he wasn’t, and his heart was about to give out, judging by his latest test results, so I could only applaud him for taking a step back.
“So, who bought it?” Cas asked. “Someone local?”
Auden shook his head. “No, former military dude who wanted solitude. Well, he’s gonna get that on the top of that mountain.”
The Bear Creek Trails Campground was on the top of Bear Creek Mountain, all but inaccessible during the winter unless you had a sturdy Jeep or something. And maybe a snow plow.
“But he’s planning on keeping the campgrounds open?” Cas asked.
“From what I understand, yes.” Auden shrugged. “We’ll see. He won’t be the first out-of-towner who doesn’t make it past his first winter.”
