Clara’s smile turned into a frown. “Why do you say that?”
“Think about it,” Bernie told her. “You have declared your independence by coming to Ratliff City to stay with me, haven’t you?”
“Absolutely,” Clara agreed.
“Then this can be your best holiday, even better thanChristmas or Valentine’s Day. And, honey, I do it up right with red, white, and blue everywhere, from sparkling garland to the songs on the jukebox.”
“What are you wearing?” Clara asked.
Bernie pulled out a pair of sequin-covered pants. One leg was blue with stars. The other was red and white stripes. “This and this,” she held up a vest that matched. “I’ll also have a necklace made of stars that light up.”
Clara held up the short skirt and shook a few wrinkles from it. “I’m glad that I’m not as tall as my cousin, Ursula. If I was, this skirt wouldn’t even cover my underwear.”
“You really haven’t been to see your relatives since you were a little girl?” Bernie asked.
“I haven’t ever been to Spanish Fort. Grandma and Mama told Aunt Mary Jane if she moved into an old brothel in a ghost town, they were washing their hands of her. I asked them why they were so against that area since they had lived there back until Mama and Aunt Mary Jane both finished high school. They wouldn’t answer me,” Clara said.
“Vernie Sue and I graduated from the old high school in Spanish Fort,” Bernie said. “She hated that part of Texas because I embarrassed the family so much when the free love movement hit. The talk about the twin sisters—one all sweet and righteous and the other a hellcat on steroids—died down years ago. Most of the gossips of that day are in the cemetery, but the thought of MaryJane moving back there was more than she could handle.”
“When I saw them last, Luna and Endora were cute little blond-haired girls. I think I’m about the age that Rae and Bo are. That was before Aunt Mary Jane got divorced and moved. Grandma shudders when she even says the word ‘Paradise.’ She treats it like a swear word that by uttering it, she is bound for hell on a rusty poker. I guess folks really must have made fun of the house when she was a kid, right?”
“Yep, they did,” Bernie said with a smile.
Clara mimicked her grandmother for a second time. “‘How could my daughter live in a house of ill repute? I moved away from that area to get away from the stigma of living in a town where brothels had been the normal thing, and now she’s moving right back into that den of evil. And worse yet, she has raised her seven little girls in that place?’”
“You sound just like her, and you are funny. If you can do other voices, we could put you on the stage to do stand-up comedy. But speaking of the Paradise, let’s go one afternoon this week.” Bernie chuckled. “Not tomorrow though. We’ll be too tired after all this work. We can spend the afternoon and be home in time to clean up for opening sometime.”
“Aunt Bernie!” Clara exclaimed for the second time in less than an hour. “Do you have a private little plane parked out beyond those trees?”
“Why would I need one of those?” Bernie asked asshe ripped open another box.
“There’s no way we can go to Spanish Fort and back in one afternoon. I drove most of yesterday just to get here, and Aunt Mary Jane lives somewhere back in Texas,” Clara reminded her.
“Spanish Fort is right across the Red River. It’s only a couple hours’ drive from here,” Bernie informed her.
“I would love to go, but didn’t all the cousins move away?” Clara asked.
“You are really behind times.” Bernie began to put centerpieces on all the tables. “Yes, your cousins all moved away. Matter of fact, a couple of them didn’t live so very far from your folks in Fritch. One is a policewoman, and the other is a teacher.”
“They never came to see us, or if they did, Mama never mentioned it,” Clara said.
“They most likely didn’t even know they were close to kinfolks, since your mama and grandma more or less shunned Mary Jane, like they did me. The youngest set of twins, Endora and Luna, are teachers now, and…”—she stopped and pointed to another box—“open that up and take the garland behind the bar. We’ll hang it up above the liquor shelves.”
Clara set her beer to the side and ripped the tape from the box. “You were saying about Luna and Endora.”
“Endora had a very bad breakup with her boyfriend a year ago. A couple of teaching positions came up in a little school south of Spanish Fort, so she and Lunamoved back to the Paradise. She’s had a rough time adjusting. She’s not as tough as you and me. Having company might be a boost for her,” Bernie explained. “I’ll get the ladder out from the storage room. Neither one of us is tall enough to put up the garland without it.”
Nash poked his head in the door. “Hey, what’s going on in here?”
“Decorating for the holiday,” Bernie said.
“Need some help?” Nash asked. “Since I plan to buy this place, I need to learn all the ropes. There’s more to running a bar like this than pouring a double shot of whiskey or drawing up a mug of beer. I can do those things already, but the rest I need to be taught.”
Bernie motioned him inside with a flick of her wrist. “I never turn down help, and youwillhave to dress the part tomorrow. Show him what you are wearing, Clara.”
Clara fought back a blush when she held up the skimpy skirt and shirt. She’d seen Nash only in a glance through a veil of tears the night before. Hershal with his dead goldfish and tiny dog had sat next to her. Now that she could really see Nash in good light and without tears, her heart pitched in an extra beat, and her pulse jacked up halfway to the ceiling.
“Well, then…” He flashed a brilliant grin and combed back his thick hair with his fingertips, “I guess I’ll drag out my patriotic overalls that only come to my knees, and my matching cowboy hat. Shirt or no shirt?”
