“Oh, that’s the place that Joyce Riordan helps run, right?” Mitch asked. When Ash nodded, he continued, “The Cask & Larder has made a few donations there,” referring to his shop.
They spoke more about the shelter, then moved on to other subjects as they shared their delicious meal.
After dinner, they all made care packages of leftovers to take home, stashed them in the fridge for the time being, and helped clean up. Then they retired to Muriel’s sunroom for an after-dinner drink and some family conversation.
“Another fine dinner, Mom,” Ash said to Muriel. “Thank you for doing it all.”
“My pleasure, son. I love cooking, and it’s so nice to have everyone together, especially on holidays.”
At one point, Ash felt his pocket vibrate, so he pulled out his phone to check his messages. He wasn’t working, but as a police officer, you never knew when something might happen. It could be a text from Hank, so he always checked. He smiled at his screen, then returned the phone to his front pocket.
“Work?” His brother Mitch asked, sipping his wine. He, Clay, and Finn were standing near the bar, chatting.
“No,” said Ash. “That guy Ker I met at A Helping Hand. Another volunteer. I think I mentioned him earlier. Just asking how my Thanksgiving dinner with family was.”
“Yeah, you did mention him before,” Clay chimed in. “You get a weird look on your face when you talk about him. Is he a ‘person of interest’ to you?” Clay air quoted.
“I love your directness, Clay.” Ash chuckled. “You’d make a great detective.”
“Thanks, but you didn’t answer the question.” Clay looked directly at him.
“He’s got you there, bro.” Mitch laughed.
“Well,” Ash replied, “I think it’s a bit too early to say whether or not something’s going on, but we did go out for dinner several weeks ago, and we’re going to Cuppa Joe’s tomorrow evening for the open mic night. He’s a nice guy. I’m kinda hoping it’ll turn into something good for both of us.”
“Excellent!” Clay was enthusiastic. “We talked about going to Cuppa Joe’s too, so we may see you there. And let me know if you want to double date with Finn and me sometime. It would be fun.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Ash replied, knowing full well that now that Clay knew he and Ker would be there tomorrow night, he and Finn would definitely show up.
CHAPTER
TWELVE
Ash
Friday felt like it would never end. Ash was stoked that he’d get to spend some time with Ker that night, but it seemed that every time he looked at the clock on the squad room wall, the hands had barely moved.
“Going somewhere?” Hank asked.
“Not the way this day is dragging,” Ash moaned.
“Well, maybe if you didn’t glance up at the clock every two minutes and focused on those reports instead, it wouldn’t be dragging so much.” Hank gestured at the stack of papers on Ash’s desk. They’d managed to arrest a couple of guys that they suspected were behind the recent string of robberies in the area, and between that and a couple of other cases, both of them were chained to their desks, wallowing in paperwork.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get my reports done,” Ash said. “Just make sure yours are finished too, ’cause I won’t stay to help you. I’m outta here no later than five thirty today.”
“Why are you so hot to finish work? Meeting one of your brothers for a burger at the Gray Whale or something?” If it were any other Friday night, Hank would’ve hit the mark.
“Actually, I’m meeting someone at Cuppa Joe’s tonight for the open mic night,” Ash said, already anticipating Hank’s reaction.
“Meeting someone as in a date? Get the fuck outta here, dude!” Hank exclaimed. “Oh, wait, with that construction guy? What was his name? Walker, right? Why didn’t you say something earlier in the week?”
“Yeah, Walker, although he seems to prefer Ker. And I didn’t tell you before, because I figured you’d give me shit about it. I’m also not exactly sure if it’s a date or not. We just agreed to go together, that’s all.”
“Well, I’m gonna stay positive and think of it as a date,” Hank said, smiling. “Maybe you’ll get lucky, my friend.” His tone changed, and he waggled his eyes at Ash. “After all, it’s been a while for you, right?”
“Shut up, you dick!” Ash grinned, knowing Hank was just teasing him. “See, this is why I don’t tell you things.”
“Fine. So stop talking and finish your damned reports.”
