“That’s a great idea. Thank you,” I tell him.
He steps forward and gives me a quick hug and a kiss on the forehead. “We got you, Lou,” he whispers quietly before clearing his throat and turning toward my brothers. “All right, yahoos, let’s bring up her bed, but be careful. The walls in here and the bedroom are wet. You get it all over and you’ll deal with your mother, you hear me?”
Duncan and Waylon both offer a mock salute. “Yes, sir, drill sergeant, sir,” Waylon states.
Dad rolls his eyes. “Why are all my kids smart-asses?”
“Umm…apple? Tree?” Mom states, making everyone laugh.
“I’m gonna run downstairs real quick and check on things,” I say as they prepare to bring up some of my belongings and furniture.
“I’ll come with you!” my sister insists, anxious to see the rest of the building.
We manage to slip down the stairs without getting run over by one of our brothers and make our way to the doorway that leads to the bar. “This is so cool,” Emberlyn announces, taking it all in. “It has this retro vibe I’m digging.”
“Retro because it hasn’t been updated in forty years?” I ask with a giggle.
The music hits me first, which is a welcome change over the musky stale cigarette smoke smell that used to hit me. I recognize several of the regulars at the bar, all chatting and watching a baseball game on television. When my eyes land on Collin, my heart does this weird little leap, like a graceful ballet pirouette in my chest.
“Hey, it’s Lizzie!” Tom hollers, grabbing everyone’s attention, including Collin’s.
I’m greeted with a variety of hellos, as well as a comment from Jarrod, “Who is that lovely young lady?”
“This is my younger sister, Emberlyn. Em, this is everyone,” I state, watching as my sister waves to those sitting at the bar.
“Well, hello, Em. Would you like a drink?” Tom asks, a hint of humor glistening in his dark eyes.
“Are you buying?” my eighteen-year-old sister asks with a big grin.
“Of course! Collin, my good man, bring this young woman a Coke on me.”
I can’t help but laugh, because I’m pretty sure my sister was expecting something with alcohol in it.
Collin looks to my sister, the hint of a grin on his lips as he waits for my sister’s permission. When she nods, he fills a cup with ice and pours Coke from the soda gun. “Thank you, kind sir,” Em says, accepting the drink from Collin and giving Tom a smile. “Okay, show me around.”
She follows me as I start to tell her all about the changes we made, mostly today. “We cleaned the windows and scrubbed the walls. I’m going to paint them too and try to save all the vintage beer stuff hanging up.”
“I love those old signs,” she says, taking it all in.
“Eventually, I’ll get new stools too. The ones here are pretty rough, and some don’t even sit level.”
“But the old bar has a cool retro look,” she tells me, walking over to the corner, away from where the others are sitting and running her hand across the wood before taking a sip of her Coke.
We move around the room, talking about the tables and chairs, the pool table, and additional changes I want to make, including refinishing the floors. Eventually, I’d love to update the lighting too, only because it’s older than I am, and since I live here too, I’d feel better if an electrician came and made a few updates. But that’s down the road for me, after the business starts making money.
“And I love the name. It’s so you,” Em announces after checking out the bathrooms, both of which are on the list for some needed improvements.
“Thank you. Didn’t Aunt Beej do an awesome job on the signage?”
“Of course she did, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from her. Speaking of Aunt Beej, I was wondering,” Em starts, glancing around to make sure we’re alone.
“What’s up?”
“So, do you remember when we were little and talked about getting tattoos together?”
I can’t help but smile. “Of course I do.”
“Well, since I’m eighteen and will be leaving for college in a few months, I was hoping you’d consider getting something this summer, before I go.”
