She couldn’t wait to strap her well-worn tool belt around her hips and get started on framing houses for her uncle. After years of trying to carve out a place in a man’s world, she couldn’t throw in the towel now. Or could she?
“I can’t,” she muttered as she picked up her cell phone, scrolled down to her mother’s name, and tapped the screen.
“Hello, are you settled in?” Darlene asked.
“I took your advice,” Lottie blurted out.
“Praise the Lord!” her mother shouted. “Which of your brothers are you going to work for? Of course, I’d rather it was Ryan since he lives closest to us, but I won’t fuss if it’s Paul or Steven.”
“None of the above,” Lottie said.
“Then what?” Darlene sighed.
“Remember when I was griping about all the guys hitting on me?”
“Yes, I do, and I told you if you had a boyfriend, that wouldn’t happen,” Darlene answered.
“Do you remember Bernie from the Chicken Coop bar over in Ratliff City, Oklahoma, that burned down?” she asked. “It wasn’t far from Duncan, where y’all lived while I was in college. I drank my first legal shot there when I turned twenty-one.”
The mention of Duncan and the Chicken Coop brought memories of her school years—elementary, high school, and college—to Lottie’s mind. The bullying in elementary school because she was taller than everyone else. The ugly remarks in high school and college when no one wanted someone like her in their little clique—boring, they called her.
“Lottie! Are you there?” Darlene yelled into the phone.
“I’m here. Sorry, I was woolgathering.”
“I was saying that my mind is fine,” Darlene snapped. “Of course, I remember Bernie and the Chicken Coop and you drinking there long before you were legal. I’ve kept in touch with Bernie through the years, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out what one has to do with the other.”
“On my way here, the route took me to within a few miles of where Bernie lives now. A little place near the Red River called Spanish Fort. I called her to say hello and invite her to have lunch with me. She insisted that I not only come to see her, but that I spend a night so we could catch up.”
“You don’t have to start with ‘and God created dirt’ to tell me what’s going on,” Darlene said.
“I didn’t… I don’t…” Lottie stammered.
“Yes, you do, but go on,” Darlene argued.
Lottie sucked in a lungful of air and let it out so fast she snorted. “Okay, then, on the sixth day God made dirt and…”
Darlene butted in before she could say another word. “You should have listened better in Sunday school, girl. It was the second day that He separated the water from land, so officially, that was when He made dirt.”
“Do you want to hear this or not?” Lottie snapped.
“Don’t you talk to your mother in that tone. You might be a grown woman, but I can still make you stand in the corner,” Darlene told her.
“Yes, ma’am,” Lottie said in a softer tone. “To get back to what I was saying, Bernie’s place is only about fifteen miles out of the way.”
“And you found a boyfriend at Bernie’s? Did she rebuild her bar, and what have I told you about men you meet in bars?” Darlene asked.
“The bar burned, and she moved to Texas to be near her kinfolks. While I was visiting Bernie, she took me to awedding, and I met this guy. She is kind of an aunt to the groom, and she introduced me to his twin brother, Knox. Imagine my surprise when I learned that he is working with me on this project. So, anyway, I just asked him to be my fake boyfriend a few minutes ago, and he agreed. So, I took your advice and am now in a relationship that’s not real, but no one knows but me, Knox, and now you.”
“Charlotte Diane, you could go to hell for a stunt like that. That is right next door to a lie, and you know how God feels about liars.” Darlene gasped.
“Mama, it’s not a lie,” Lottie protested.
“I’m not going to tell your dad about this new thing you’ve done. He would put you in a convent. You don’t know a thing about this man. He could be a good-for-nothing bum.”
Lottie inhaled deeply and butted in before her mother could catch a breath and go on another rant. “Bernie says all three of the Callahans are good people. His brothers, Tripp and Brodie, are married and living in Spanish Fort.”
“I don’t need to know their histories since the day they were born,” Darlene said. “Just promise me you’ll be careful.”
