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He whistles low. “Don’t you look nice,” he says.
I look down at myself. I changed into a pair of black jeans and a new red dress shirt. Keller, on the other hand, is wearing the same jeans he had on this morning and a tan henley, covered by a brown-and-navy plaid flannel.
I shrug.
He leans over toward me and inhales deeply. “You smell good too.”
“Are you flirting with me, man? Because I’m starting to feel a little uncomfortable,” I quip.
“I’m just saying, you made some extra effort for dinner with my family,” he says.
“I can’t help that I always look good,” I counter.
“Right. It wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact that my cousin is going to be there,” he states.
“Is she?” I ask.
“There’s a good chance,” he confirms.
I grin to myself.
He shakes his head. “I wouldn’t get my hopes up. She’s too sophisticated for you.”
“I’ll have you know, I can stick my nose in the air with the best of them.”
“I didn’t say she was stuck up. I said she was sophisticated.”
“Whatever.”
We find Bob at the outdoor kitchen off the veranda at the inn, manning the grill and smoker.
The aroma of smoked ribs is heavy in the air, causing my mouth to water.
“Something smells delicious,” I say as I rub my hands together in anticipation of the beefy goodness.
“They’re almost ready. I glazed and rubbed them down this afternoon, and they’ve been in the smoker for about four hours. They should be falling off the bone soon.”
“That’s what I’m talking about,” I say.
“What’s on the grill, Pop?” Keller asks.
“Corn on the cob. Willa slathered it with all kinds of butter, cheese, and spices.”
“My favorite,” he states before he walks over to the firepit sitting in the middle of the screened-in area. He tosses a couple of logs from the wood box into the hearth.
He gets a blaze going while I pull Adirondack chairs from the garden up to surround the pit.
“I’m gonna tell Willa we’re here. You wanna beer?” he asks.
“Yeah, thanks,” I reply.
“Pop?”
“Yeah, I’ll have a cold one while the meat finishes.”
He disappears into the back entrance of the inn, and when he returns, Willa, Trixie, and Hannah follow. They are bundled up in coats, scarves, and gloves, and Hannah has a stack of wool blankets in her arms.
Keller passes Bob and me our beverages, and the ladies spread out around the warmth of the fire and cover their laps with the soft throws.
