“Her shift isn’t over until six.”
I can hear him huff in frustration as he tries to maintain his composure. “Yes, love. I already got that part handled. I have someone coming in to run the bar, permanently. We’ve got too much going on for you to be there like you need to. I hired a new manager, she’ll be there in ten minutes.”
“Okay. Any specific rental you want me to get? Do I need an SUV or is a car good enough?”
“A car will suffice. Get whatever you want, but make sure it’s got enough room for you two, plus your luggage, and a backseat would be ideal in the event someone else needs to ride with you while we’re there.”
“Got it. See you at six. Love you.”
“I love you, baby. Bye.”
He ends the call and I’m left smiling as I process the information I’ve been given.
“Hey, your shift is about to be over,” I tell Mindy.
She stares at me, confusion etched onto her face. “Umm..?”
“Cass hired a new manager. We’re going to leave here in a minute and go pack your bags for a week, go get a rental, then go to my house to pack for me.”
“Where are we going?”
“Oklahoma.”
“Hell yeah. Wait. Is it snowing there?” Mindy asks.
“Maybe?” I shrug.
“I want to make a snow angel!” she squeals, taking this in a direction I wasn’t expecting.
“If there’s snow on the ground, we will make it happen, I promise.”
I open my phone and check the weather in Oklahoma. I don’t know exactly what part we’re going to but if I had to guess, I’d say somewhere around Oklahoma City considering that’s where the charter is.
In Oklahoma City right now, it’s forty-six degrees and sunshining. There is a chance of snow this week though. Great, Mindy will be thrilled.
“You might get lucky while we’re there,” I tell her.
The front door to the bar opens and a short, pudgy lady in her mid-forties walks in. She’s got short brown hair pulled intoa small ponytail, her front teeth stick out a little further than the rest, and she looks cheery enough to be here. As she gets closer, I see that her face is dotted with freckles across the bridge of her nose and covering her cheeks.
“Hi! I’m Kelly. I’m the new manager,” she says, stepping behind the bar and extending her hand to me.
“Hi, Kelly. It’s so nice to meet you. I’m Lilly, Cass’s fiancé, and this is Mindy.”
“It’s so nice to meet you both. I’ve got it from here. Lucy is coming in this evening to show me how you all like your paperwork done, so you can head out whenever you’re ready.”
She doesn’t have to tell me twice. I’m so far beyond ready to get this road trip on the road.
“Thank you! It was great to meet you. I’ll see you in a few weeks,” I tell her, grabbing Mindy’s arm and dragging her toward the door.
“Meet you at your place?” I ask.
Mindy nods and I follow her to the new house she and Linc are renting. I haven’t been here since they moved in last week and I’m pleasantly surprised by the area it’s in. It’s beautiful. There are a few oak trees in the front yard and it’s sitting on at least two acres of cleared land.
“Wow! This is gorgeous,” I tell her as I step out of my car. I follow her inside where she gives me a quick tour of the three bedroom, two bath home, showing me the baby’s room that has paint samples taped to the wall already.
“I think we’re going to make everything a neutral color. I’m leaning toward this pastel green, perfect for either a girl or boy,” she says, touching the paint sample nearest the doorway.
“I think no matter what you do it’ll be perfect and I can’t wait to see it. I’ll even help paint.”
