Hector grabbed a bottle and started doing the same. “This one looks real.” Hector set it to the side before grabbing another bottle. By the time they had gone through the entire crate, they had seven bottles of cheap whiskey and five bottles of the good stuff.
“Well, it looks like they mixed a few bottles of the cheap stuff in with a crate of the bad stuff.” Hector shrugged. “Maybe they were hoping we wouldn’t notice.”
“Oh, we would have noticed the first time we tried to give some of this crap to our more selective customers.”
Hector knew Harvey was right. Most of their customers drank beer. The few who preferred whiskey went into two categories. Those that just wanted to wet their whistle or tie one on, and those who truly appreciated a quality whiskey.
“What do you want to do about this?” Hector asked.
“Take the good bottles to Dixie. Leave the rest with me. I’ll give old man Delany a call and let him know what’s going on. I hate to put this on his shoulders when he’s recovering, but we’ve been customers of his since before I owned the place. I owe it to him to let him know what his kid is doing. Delany’s worked too hard and built too good of a reputation to be fucked over by some greedy little bastard playing with his daddy’s whiskey.”
Hector nodded before gathering up the bottles of good whiskey and carrying them back out into the main bar. He walked behind the counter and set them on the shelf opposite the bar top.
“Dixie, there was an issue with the delivery from Delany’s. These are the only bottles of the good stuff we have until Harvey can figure out what’s up with the delivery.”
“Well, that’s gonna suck tonight when the crowd gets here.”
“I’ll see if Harvey will let us put some of the other stuff on sale. Maybe people will be happy with the cheaper shit if it’s even cheaper.”
Dixie snorted and went back to drying glasses. “The cheaper they can get drunk, they happier they’ll be.”
Hector chuckled. “I know you’re right.” And that right there was one of the reasons he didn’t drink. “I’ll go talk to Harvey.”
“You do that, sugar.”
Hector headed back down the hallway. He knocked on the door. When he didn’t hear the command to enter, he knocked again.
“Hold on!” Harvey shouted.
Hector smiled when he heard a giggle even as a sliver of envy slid through him. He had been here to watch Harvey and Joey fall in love with each other and eventually marry. He was happy for both of them.
The two men were practically inseparable. Just one look at the way Harvey watched Joey and vice versa and Hector could see how much they treasured each other. He just wished he had someone to call his own as Harvey did Joey.
Maybe someday he’d find his own treasure.
Chapter Two
Hector set down the sander he’d been using for the last few hours and stood back to look at his work. He’d had to replace a few spindles on the staircase and repair some of the steps, but it was pretty much ready for staining and lacquer at this point.
Hector didn’t plan on doing that part of the job until he got more of the house repaired. He could just imagine what could happen to it with people and supplies going up and down the stairs.
He swiped his arm over his forehead, wiping away the beads of perspiration that had built up. He’d worked up quite the sweat sanding the banister, but it was really starting to look like a banister should look. He’d taken off so many layers of paint, he probably could have painted the entire outside of the old farmhouse.
Hector headed for the kitchen. He needed to get something to drink. Now might be a good time to take a break and have lunch, as well. If he wasn’t mistaken, he had a leftover sandwich in the fridge. Granted, it was a couple of days old, but it should still be good.
When he opened the refrigerator, he stared for a moment before reaching in and moving a few things around. When he couldn’t find the sandwich he’d put in there earlier, Hector grabbed a bottle of water.
He set it on the counter then went to the pantry and grabbed a few more bottles. He could have sworn he’d had at least five bottles of water in the fridge, but maybe he’d drank them. Of course, he could have sworn he had a sandwich in the fridge, too.
Maybe he was losing his mind. He had been burning the candles at both ends for the last several days. He just wanted to fully move into his new house so bad, he was working on the house during the day and at the bar at night. Sleep wasn’t something he was getting a lot of lately. Which would explain why he didn’t remember eating his sandwich or drinking so much water.
Hector grabbed his bottle of water and walked out of the kitchen and through the house to the front porch. He sat down on the front steps and stared out over the yard. He’d mowed it, what of it he could.
The grass was shorter after he mowed it, but there sure wasn’t a lot of it. Large patches of dirt spotted the yard. This would be another place that needed his attention, but the yard was way down on his priority list. Maybe by next spring.
Hector finished off his water then got up and walked back into the house. That staircase wasn’t going to fix itself, as much as Hector wished it would. He tossed the empty water bottle toward the recycling bucket then picked up the sander once again.
When the phone rang a while later, Hector turned off the sander and pulled his cell out of his pocket. He almost groaned when he saw Harvey’s name on the display. “Hey, Boss. What’s up?” he asked when he answered.
