Bo unlocked the door and motioned for them to come inside. “I’m sorry if you’ve been waiting a long time. I tried to keep a watch out for you, but we were fighting with Aunt Bernie. She’s determined to crawl up on the ladder and hang the garland around the ceiling.”
“Enough said.” Knox chuckled. “Reinforcements have arrived.”
Bernie stood in the middle of the bar floor with her hands on her hips and glaring at Maverick. “I am not so old that I can’t climb a ladder.”
Maverick did not back down an inch from the daggers shooting from her eyes. “I don’t doubt that you can climb this ladder. You could probably figure out a way to hangyour skinny body from a thumbtack, but if you fall and break a hip or, worse yet, hit your head and die, I’ll be to blame. Mary Jane would never forgive me, soyouare staying on the ground.”
“You are not my boss!” she declared as she set one foot on the bottom rung of the ladder.
Knox slipped an arm around her shoulders. “Aunt Bernie, if you fall and die, you will fail your mission in helping me find a wife. You know your soul won’t be at peace until you get that job done. You might have to sit on the steps leading up to the heavenly gates for many years, waiting on me to give up my bachelorhood.”
“Okay, then.” She removed her foot. “But that’s the only reason. It’s not that I’m old and feeble.”
“Of course not.” Knox led her away from the ladder and over to a table. “You know how us guys are all thumbs when it comes to decorating tables. Looks like the boxes right here are full of stuff for that job. Maybe you three ladies could get that done while we put the garland and twinkle lights up around the ceiling and bar.”
She shook his arm away and gave him a double dose of stink eye. “Don’t patronize me, Knox Callahan.”
“I wouldn’t think of it,” Knox assured her.
“Bernie, I’ll be glad to help you get the tables ready. Don’t the doors open for this shindig in less than an hour?” Lottie offered.
“And I’ll go get the boxes of centerpieces from the storage room,” Bo said.
“What are y’all waiting for?” Bernie snapped her fingers and clapped her hands. “Chop. Chop. We’ve got a party to get ready for. When you guys finish the garland, you can go to the storage room and bring out those boxes of cowboy and cowgirl hats. I’ll sit at the table to take tickets or sell to the folks who didn’t already buy them and give out hats to anyone who hasn’t got one.”
She pulled the first tablecloth from the box and turned to Lottie. “I’m glad you are here. You and I never did get that visit on Easter, so while we work, we will have it today. We’ll work together to get these on the tables. Bo can come behind us and fix the centerpieces.”
“Sounds like an organized plan to me.” Lottie ripped open a bag and laid the red plastic cloth on the first table.
Bernie did the same with a table right beside that one. “Okay, now tell me the truth about you and Knox. Is this relationship just a sham or is it real?”
“What do you think?” Lottie asked.
Bernie studied her for a few seconds and then sighed. “I’m of two minds about it. I was sure he had talked you into pretending so that I wouldn’t set him up on blind dates. But there’s something different between y’all tonight than there was at Easter.”
“What is it that’s so different?” Lottie asked another question without answering.
“The glow in your face. You are either having sex with Knox or you are pregnant,” Bernie said.
“Well, I’m definitely not pregnant, but we are reallydating. You really did kind of introduce us since you took me to Tripp and Willa Rose’s wedding, so I suppose you get the credit for us,” Lottie answered truthfully and attempted to change the subject. “We spent last night at his new house. It’s so peaceful out there. You have to come see it.”
“Oh, I definitely will, but I’ve been in that house before. Eula Faye, Roman’s wife, was in our Sunday school poker club and hosted the game a couple of times before she passed away.” Bernie straightened the last disposable cloth.
“Sunday school poker?” Lottie giggled. “I never thought I’d hear those words in the same sentence.”
“Maybe so, but I sure miss those Friday night games.” Bernie pulled out a chair and sat down. “Now, tell me something. Just how serious are y’all?”
“Well, he asked me to help him with this new housing project he wants to build.” Lottie followed her lead and pulled out a chair for herself. “We’ve really become a team in the framing business.”
“Does that mean you’ll be living here when you get done with the job down south?” Bernie asked.
“After the summer”—Lottie paused—“if I take the job. I haven’t given him an answer yet.”
“Well, damn it! That means I might fail in this mission.” Bernie groaned.
“Hey, now, don’t go jumping to conclusions. I’m seriously giving it a lot of thought. I’m kind of committed to help a friend get his construction business off the ground out in El Paso—at least for the summer.” Lottie glanced overher shoulder to see Maverick and Knox both giving her a thumbs-up sign.
Bo set the last jar candles on the table and fluffed out a bit of white illusion with twinkling lights around each one. “I’m so glad that Knox bought that land. We looked at it, but the owner wanted to sell the whole place, not a little piece of it. I squealed when Knox told me that he thought he had the perfect place to build our new house. We’re coming out to the land after church tomorrow to pick out our five acres. We have our house plans ready to go, so we get to be your first new neighbors.”
