Page 16 of Herds and Hooves

“Next time? You’re sounding pretty confident.” We stood and pushed our chairs back in just as Andrew returned with his card.

“Thank you, come again,” he said before immediately clearing the table. Stacking plates and glasses like a pro.

“See ya, Andrew,” Keith said and I followed him to the door. We walked down the sidewalk to the bar since it was so close, and I noticed how many people were out.

“This town is busier than I thought it would be.”

“It’s Friday afternoon, they’re trying to get anything they need so they avoid leaving their houses until Monday,” Keith said. He looked both ways before crossing the street, and since there was only one truck that was at least a block away, I thought it must be a habit and not a necessity here. Unlike in Sacramento where you risked your life crossing a street without looking.

“Do you ever think about how different it is here compared to Woodland?”

He grinned before squeezing my finger but not taking my hand. “I think about it every day and I can’t say there’s anything I really miss about living there. Maybe the fast-food chains.”

“This is the first time I’ve eaten out in over a month. I forced Asa to get a pizza last month. He cooks every day.”

“Even after working?”

“Yep, and breakfast too. Nothing fancy but he seems to really enjoy it. I also made him start letting me make lunch, which is usually a sandwich. I’m really not much of a cook.”

“I sometimes worry about some of the older farmers around here. It’s not like they can’t drive into town and get a quick meal, but so many of them are stubborn and would never admit they need help. Then there’s the coffee crowd that hang out in one place or another drinking coffee and talking shit all day.” He glanced at an older woman who was standing with her arms crossed and a look on her face that said she was watching us to see if she could see anything.

I reached out and took his hand. He turned to me startled before laughing and pulling me along to the door of the bar. “Just wanted to make sure they had something to talk about,” I said.

Fourteen

Keith

My view of Bart had been turned on its head so many times lately, I wasn’t sure how he had changed so much in the time he’d been here. When I first met him, he was so far out of his element and I didn’t expect to see him here ever again, but he’d proven me wrong. Now here he was showing Evelyn what he was made of. And I was here for it. “You are full of surprises,” I finally said as we walked into the bar.

Pints ‘n Pool was the local watering hole which just happened to have a couple of pool tables, a dartboard, and a place out back to park your trailer or camper if you needed to. We walked up to the bar where Nate was wiping out a glass with a towel and barely looked up. “Hey, Nate.”

“Keith, what can I do for you?” he asked right to business like always.

“Bart here is new to town, and I thought I’d show him some of the sights.”

Nate looked directly at Bart with his usual stoic and slightly scary glare. “Welcome to Foggy Basin, what can I get you to drink?”

“I’ll have a beer, whatever you choose is perfect,” Bart said, his eyes wide and his cheeks growing pink. Nate had that effect on people. He was intense and very handsome, unfortunately he was already taken.

“Anything for you, Keith?”

“I’ll have a beer too, a wheat if you’ve got it.”

“If I’ve got it? Of course I’ve got it.”

“I need some quarters. We’re going to play a game.” Nate took the bills from my hand and gave me back a handful of change. “Thanks, I think.”

The door opened and Nate looked up as he pushed our beers to us. “If you’re gonna play you better grab a table. These guys like to play all night.”

I raised my glass in thanks before leading Bart to the table in the back. “He’s intimidating,” Bart whispered as we set our beers down on a table.

“He doesn’t take much shit which is good. The locals know they can’t come here and get crazy.”

“I can’t imagine anyone messing with him,” Bart said and looked past me to where Nate was again wiping down the bar. Then Kit walked in, and his features softened before he pulled him in for a kiss. “Whoa.”

“Yeah, one more happy couple,” I chuckled.

“This town is fucking magic,” Bart said.