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“Mother.”
“Eleanor, stop it.” My father tries to stop her, but she is on a roll.
“I’m sorry but you are not a young sprite anymore, Jude. You are thirty-six years old. Those swimmers will eventually stop swimming.” Hannah bursts out in a giggle so loud, holding her stomach, gasping for air.
“That’s it. I think you have had too much wine. Let’s go to bed Eleanor.” My father grabs my mother by her elbow and whisks her upstairs. Hannah on the other hand is still laughing, belly rolling, practically on the floor.
“I am glad you find it funny, baby. Let’s see how funny it is when you’re on your knees gagging on this prick.” I lift her over my shoulder and smack her ass.
God, I love this woman.
ChapterTen
Hannah
One Week Later
“Can you believe we are here?” Lavinia hollers over the music that is playing.
“I really can’t. Can you believe we made this happen?” Sadie says, smiling at each of us.
“Hell yeah I can. We rock.” Miriam snaps her fingers and takes a drink of her lemonade.
Laughing, I grab one of the buffalo wings as they say on the menu and moan at the sweet and tangy flavor. “How long do you think the guys are going to give us before they come and whisk us away?” I ask with a mouth full of food.
“Not too long and that is fine by me.” Sadie says, shaking her hips under the table and we all laugh. Well most of us. Concerned, I look at Lavinia and my heart goes out to her. Something is bothering her, but she will not open up to us, so I continue to eat and try to not fret over my sister.
I look around this place and smile, seeing all of the other women with their friends and female family.
Four days ago, my sisters and I came into this Saloon and did something we never would have done.
“Hi. Can I speak to Tobias Mitchell,” I ask the man behind the Saloon counter. My sisters are all here with me, all of us anxious and unsure of ourselves, but also full of confidence thanks to the men who love us.
“I’m Tobias. Let me guess, you are the sister brides who married the first set of suckers.” His growly voice almost makes me want to run, but I hold my ground.
“We are sisters, yes. I am Hannah Blackstone.” He grunts and barely looks at me.
“Why are you here?” Oh boy. Who floured his bread wrong?
“We would like for you to institute a girls night on Wednesdays.” There. Right to the point. He turns and looks at us, a sneer on his face before turning away from us.
“I don’t think so,” he says, not giving it any thought.
“Excuse me, what?” Miriam asks, getting loud. It is early in the day so there is no one inside and no music playing with no television on.
“I said no.” His voice raises and goosebumps begin to form on my skin and not the good kind. I turn to tell my sisters let’s just go, but then Rachel pipes up.
“Do you know that sexual discrimination is illegal in all of the States, including this one? The men have a standing night for themselves where they can come and have a good time. Mayor Hollow is trying to bring this town back to life and that includes bringing women into it. How would he feel if I told him you are refusing to include us as part of your patrons?” My mouth drops open, my eyes blinking over and over making sure it is my sister Rachel, the very one who cried when the robin above our barn, lost one of her chicks.
“Fucking hell,” he mumbles, running his hands through his hair. “Fine. What do you propose?”
For the next hour we sit with him and outline a name, Lady Hollow’s Night Out. We convinced him to put color changing LED lights inside so on ladies night, they could be pink. We asked if the menu could include some salads, vegetarian options, and if all girlie drinks can be non-alcoholic.
With his reluctant permission, we made fliers and posted them in all the businesses and had Geeb place an ad in the paper.
“How did they take it?” Rachel asks. I look up at her and smile knowing she is asking about our husbands. When Sadie, Ada and I told our husbands, they were not happy, to say the least. Mine pouted like a little boy and asked me why I needed a night out without him? I laughed, stroked his ego and then stroked something else with my tongue. When I told him my sisters and I just want a night out to be ladies and enjoy the things we have never gotten to do, he gave up and gave in.
“Lavinia, that dress is gorgeous on you.” I yell over the music. It is true. She is in a red shirt dress that stops above her knees with these cute black ankle boots she bought from Charleston the other day when we went shopping for night out clothes.
