Her room now smelled like smoke from the boxes they’d brought in. Kady needed to get out for a few minutes to clear her head and her nose.
“I?m going to the market to pick up a few things. Is there anything I can get you guys? Kady asked as she grabbed her coat and purse.
“Buy some pop, there’s no pop in the house,” Noah called out from the sofa.
“Don’t buy him soda, it’s bad for him,” her mom yelled back.
She mouthed, ‘okay’ to Noah, and he grinned. It was nice to see him smile.
Kady drove the short distance back into town. She steered her car into one of the nearly vacant parking slots at Rays Cash and Carry Mart. She sat watching the snow fall on the windshield and be wiped away, to gather her thoughts. Kady dashed into the store and then put the groceries in the trunk.
Back in the car, she drummed her fingers on the steering wheel and looked at the clock on the dashboard. It was still early, they wouldn’t miss her for a few minutes.
The neon red and blue lights of The Steer In blinked, beckoning her in the darkness. Kady scooped up her purse and headed across the two-lane main street.
She opened the door and was assaulted with loud jukebox music mixed with the smell of peanuts and the acidic fragrance of hops from beer. She walked up to the bar and took a seat. After a moment, the bartender came toward her.
“What can I get you?”
She opened her wallet and looked at the five and two ones nestled there. Just one drink, she could afford that. “Do you have cherry rum?” she asked.
“Nope,” the bartender answered wiping his hands on a towel. “But, we have rum and we have cherries, would that do?”
“Sure.”
A man slid onto the bar stool next to her. “Fancy seeing you in a place like this.”
The oldest line in the book. Kady rolled her eyes and faced the man. “Listen, buddy, you are trying to pick up the wrong girl tonight. A man is the last thing I need right now. I need a job. I need money. I need a life. Unless you can supply me with any of those things, then beat it.”
Instead of being offended, the man laughed.
“I didn’t mean what I said as a joke,” she said curtly.
“Kady, it’s me, Editon. Man, I must look different because I know that we’re both older, but I recognized you right away.” He smiled making little-crinkled lines form in the corners of his eyes.
“Editon? Editon Rain?” She looked closer. She did recognize him. The dark brown eyes and his part-Native American jet black hair brought back recognition.
“My God, it’s been…what?” He stopped in thought.
“Thirteen years since our senior year in high-school.” The bartender set down the rum with a small cup of cherries in front of her. “Let’s toast to old times.” Kady grabbed the shot glass and downed the rum.
“Okay...” Editon watched her. “Can I buy you another?”
“Sure,” she said, as she let the rum trail in spiral paths to warm her insides.
He motioned to the bartender, who brought the bottle and filled her glass.
“Hanging out at the bar. I guess that’s what people still do for excitement around here?”
“I wouldn’t know.” He shrugged a broad shoulder. “Not really.”
“You’re hanging out here. What are you drinking? I should offer to buy you a drink.”
Those dark brown intense eyes were still watching her. She had to break eye contact and finally look down. It was like he was trying to figure her out.
“You can if you want, but it’s just ginger ale and lime.” He swirled the contents of his glass. “I don’t drink. I’m here because that’s my brother, Nahko.” He motioned to the bartender who waved a hand before going back to talk with a patron. “You probably don’t remember him from school, he’s a few years older. Anyway, I promised I’d hang around the bar cleared out and help him with a broken pipe under the sink.”
“You’re a plumber?”
“I’m kind of a jack-of-all-trades. Call me a handy man. I help where I can.” He leaned an arm on the bar and Kady noticed the Native American tattoos that wound around his bicep. “I heard you were back in town.”
“Yep…so you probably also know that I’m living with my mom and dad.”
“I lived with my mom and dad for a few years until I got some money.”
She drank her second shot, and Editon’s brother filled up her glass again. She downed that too. The light feeling of a buzz closed in and clouded her mind. They sat and listened to the music.
She tried not to think about the rest of her life and enjoy the moment she had.
“Well, it seems that you want to drink in peace. I’ll leave you alone. Let me know when you want to cash out, and I will pay Nahko.”
“You said you would buy me one drink.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it,” Editon said, as he slipped off the bar stool to shoot a round of pool.