“Andi Ford,” I said, shaking it. “Nice to meet you.”
“Well, Andi Ford, it’s great to meet you, too.”
Red clapped his hands. “All right, now that we’ve got the introductions out of the way, let’s get this place ready.”
“Come on, I’ll show you around.” Norah rested a hand on my shoulder and guided me toward the back room. “You new to Tarnation?” she asked, lifting a case of beer and handing it to me.
“Kinda,” I replied, taking the offered case. It was heavier than I expected, and my knees dipped under the weight. But I recovered quickly. “Just stuck here for a bit thanks to some car trouble.”
“Ah,” Norah said as we carried the cases to the bar. “That’ll do it. So, are you just passing through or…?”
“Something like that,” I answered vaguely.
“Where are you from?”
“Louisiana.”
“Look at us practically being neighbors.” Norah’s eyes lit up as she grinned. “I went to New Orleans a few years back—not for Mardi Gras, though. I’ll give you this…Cajun food’s hard to beat, but I’m loyal to my Texas barbeque. Don’t hold that against me.”
I laughed. “I won’t. But you’re right… Cajun foodishard to beat. The bistro I used to work at had this crawfish étouffée that could bring a grown man to tears.”
Norah let out a low whistle. “Ooo, sounds fancy.”
“Yes and no,” I said with a little shrug. “The atmosphere was on the fancy side, but the people were all down-to-earth—a lot of locals and a few regulars with deep pockets, but mostly just good folks who loved good food.” I set my case down with a softgrunt. “I only waited tables, though. No bartending or anything like that.”
“Eh, don’t worry,” she said, waving me off as she started unloading her case of beer into the ice chest behind the bar. “This place is as no-fuss as they come. Mostly beer, whiskey, the occasional tequila shot. If you can open a bottle and carry a tray without dropping it, you’re halfway there.” She shot me a wink. “So, what brought you out here?”
My asshole ex and shitty navigation skills.But I didn’t say that. Instead, I told her, “The need for something new.” I worked next to her, trying to keep up. “Someplace quiet and a little slower.”
“Girl, you picked the right spot to get stranded in ifthat’swhat you’re looking for,” Norah said, chuckling. “Nothing ever happens in Tarnation. So, how’d you hear about the job?”
“Belle Dawson told me,” I replied, leaning against the bar and heaving a breath. It was embarrassing how out of shape I was, but sitting like a trophy for so long will do that to you, I guess. “She owns the diner across town.”
“I thought those clothes looked familiar,” Norah said with a kind, knowing look, as she deposited the last of the bottles into the ice chest.
“Huh?”
She glanced over her shoulder. “You got those from Belle, right?”
“Yeah,” I said cautiously, but then... “Wait, are you her niece?”
Norah laughed and nodded.
“Oh, wow. I hope you don’t mind,” I said. “I know they were meant for something else but Belle offered them to me. I didn’t really pack for country life.”
“I don’t mind at all. I’m just glad someone’s getting use out of them,” she said and tipped her head for me to follow. “Now come on, let’s get the chairs down before Red throws open the doors.”
Together we worked our way around the room, flipping down chairs and tidying up. By the time we finished, I was already sweating.
“Girls,” Red called from across the bar. “I’m opening up. Norah, can you start the jukebox?”
“On it,” she called back. Then to me she said, “He plays the same song every night.” She playfully rolled her eyes. “Total creature of habit.”
She dropped a coin in the jukebox and pressed G. Hank Williams Jr.’s “All My Rowdy Friends” blared through the speakers just as Red unlocked the doors. People started pouring in almost immediately.
I followed Norah behind the bar, wide-eyed at the crowd already forming.
“Is it always this busy?” I asked over the noise.
