AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Right. The tourists are always a little horrified, though.”
“Yeah, they’re sure it’s going to get as hot as it does back in Dallas.” She gave him a comfortable smile, two citizens of Antero, shaking their heads at people who lived beyond the mountains. Her dark hair feathered around her cheeks, framing her face in the twilight. Would it be possible to head for the bedroom before they had any pizza?
Knock it off, Romeo. You’re supposed to be civilized, remember?
He dropped the pizza box on the kitchen table. “Let me find some beer and a couple of plates and we’ll be good to go.”
Fortunately, he had some of Bec’s wheat beer on hand. It had been her first production after she’d restarted the brewery, and it was popular. He’d helped her increase the run, and they’d started up the bottling line again. It had been the first solid indication that they were getting back on their feet.
He set two bottles and glasses on the table, then paused. “Sorry, I didn’t think to ask if you wanted beer or wine. I’ve got some red wine in the cupboard if you’d rather.”
She shook her head. “Beer is fine. Especially Bec’s beer.”
He opened the pizza box and lifted out slices for the two of them. “How’s Peaches doing?”
“She’s ecstatic. So am I. We’re pretty much back to where we were when Honoria was in the kitchen. Maybe better. Honoria was a great cook, but she didn’t do much in terms of experimenting. If you gave her a recipe, she could do it, but she wouldn’t search out the recipe herself. Peaches is always trying stuff, and a lot of it works out. Like, next week we’ll start offering the goat cheese brie in a puff pastry shell that people can warm up at home and serve as an appetizer. Peaches put it together in an afternoon. It’s commercial puff pastry, but it still tastes great.”
“Good for Peaches. She never was that happy in the kitchen at the tavern. She couldn’t bake anything there—not even cookies.”
Ruth frowned slightly as she sipped her beer. “Has Stanton given you any trouble over her leaving?”
“No, not really. He questioned me about it, but he didn’t do anything. Stanton doesn’t know what he’s doing, and his main concern is keeping costs down. If you work there, you get used to it. Which is not to say that you like it, just that you get used to it.”
“Do you have to keep working there?”
He paused. This would be the time to tell her about Park City. And he should do that soon. He just…wasn’t ready to admit he was leaving yet. “I’m going to move on to something else soon, but I sort of like Black Mountain. It’s a great location and it used to be a great bar before Stanton took over the lease this year—lots of people to talk to, lots of action. But the new cook he hired is a disaster. I feel like I’m pushing everything behind the bar just to keep people from walking out.”
“I remember when Black Mountain was the place to be.” She grimaced. “Of course, that was back when I was hitting the scene, somewhere around the Jurassic Period.”
“I remember when you made the scene last month—a memorable night.” The words slipped out before he could think.
Ruth stared at him, her eyes widening slightly. Then she gave him a slow grin. “I remember that, too. And quite a scene it was.”
A dozen different scenarios danced through his mind, most of them ending in the bedroom in record time, but by the time he found his voice again, she was looking away. The shadows in the kitchen etched her cheekbones. “You have a beautiful view here.”
“Hard to have a lousy view in Antero. It’s gorgeous everywhere you look.” She was gorgeous, too, but he wasn’t sure how to say it without sounding like he was trying to get her into bed.
Which he was. But he wanted to show a little finesse.
She nodded. “I know. That’s one of the reasons I couldn’t leave. One of the reasons I hung on through all the crap until the Salty Goat got on its feet.”
He stretched a hand across the table, resting his palm against her fingers. “Can I say I’m glad you did?”
She grinned, her teeth flashing white in the gathering dusk. “Sure. I’m glad we all stuck around—you, me, and Bec. Sort of the new Antero generation.”
