It was a quiet evening at the Q and A Bar amd Grill in Seville Hills, MO. Thomas Albright sat with two of his friends, Petey Harms and Freddy Kleinschmidt, nursing beer. The hour was just past 8:00. Tom was a relatively young man at 51 compared to his two friends, who were grizzled old men in their 70s. The old men was on furlough from their wives of many years; Tom was a fugitive from his home at Carefree Cove, trying not to think where his lover of the past few days, Michelle Hawkins, might be.
The bar filled to three quarters capacity: the heat was making everyone languid. The band showed up and began to set up their equipment on the tiny stage, and started doing sound checks. At Eight, they began their first set. The pool players kept going; the women danced together; the Scarecrow watched with envy; Petey and Freddy drank beer. Every woman in the place asked Tom to dance, and he obliged most of them, limiting them to one dance apiece.
Suddenly, Michelle walked through the door, followed by Mutt Hayes. Michelle wore a blue wrap around skirt and yellow cover-up over a flesh covered bikini. Her graceful curves made Tom's heart leap: her round hips switched back and forth as she crossed the room, and her breasts bobbed gracefully. Mutt pranced behind her anxiously, eager to pull a chair out for her, seating her facing away from Tom's group. Glancing over her shoulder, he beamed at the old men like a Chesire Cat. Tom slid back into the depths of the booth, staying out of sight.
After seating her, Mutt took his place across from her and listen as she spoke. She was too far away for Tom to hear, and he couldn't tell much from her body language. Petey and Freddy looked at each other, and at the new couple before turning again to their beer. The music played and the evening went on; several women tried to catch Tom's eye, but he avoided them.
In a lull, a piece of the conversation drifted to the secluded booth:
". . .I had a lovely time on the boat this afternoon, Mutt. I never realized the Lakeshore was so extensive."
"You're welcome, my dear. Anytime you're in the mood, let me know and we'll go out again."
"You're most kind."
"How was your trip these past few days?"
Her shoulders sagged. "I don't wish to talk about it," she said in a proud voice.
His eyebrows went down. "As you wish. I hope when you're ready, you'll be able to confide in me."
"Thank you." Mutt took a sip of his beer, his eyes fixed on his companion. Tom's eyes bore through Michelle's back, trying to read her expression through the back of her head. "I wish you'd let me take you somewhere nicer for dinner. The Seville House has excellent prime rib."
"No, thank you. I prefer everyday places like this. I'm just a simple girl."
"Hardly," he snorted. "You're the most interesting woman I've met for years. And the most lovely."
"You're kind, Mutt, but you're married. I was hoping you could help me find a job, not take me on a series of social engagements."
"Nonsense, nonsense," Mutt interjected emphatically. "You've been longing for company and you went with me willingly. Don't play games with me; let's keep things honest."
Petey almost snorted in his beer and Freddie rolled his eyes in disbelief. A rail thin middle aged woman with long, brown hair tried to get Tom's attention and beckoned him over, but he refused to go. She looked at him oddly, then tossed her head in disdain.
Ashley Harms and Maria Garcia came in. Ashley wore a Discovery Channel t-shirt, cutoff and flip flops; Maria a brown top and shorts that almost blended in with her Latina hue. Maria was a tall girl, five nine, and rather chubby, with heavy breasts; she'd put on a few pounds in the past five years. Ashley wore little makeup. The girls came directly over to the table where the men were sitting.
Ashley bent over and kissed her grandfather Petey on the cheek, as Tom sought to squeeze himself tighter in the corner of the booth.. "Hi, Grandpa. Fancy meeting you here."
He embraced her tightly from his sitting position, mashing her right breast into his face. "This is my favorite grandchild. How's it going, sweetie?"
"Fine, Grandpa" she smiled.
Freddie leaned across to speak. "Hello, Maria, how's it going?"
"All right, Mr. Kleinschmidt," Maria said, "just taking a night off from the baby. He kept me up most of last night, but today was better. Getting to be a big boy, and I bet he's going to be walking any day now. Mama's looking after him so I can have a break. The music sounds good."
"Yes, it does."
Petey gestured amicably. "Do you girls want to join us tonight? There's some good music happenin' "
Ashley smiled and shook her head. "Maria and I have some girl talk to catch up on. We'd just bore you old men. We'll take a table over there and if we need help fighting off the hordes of admirers, we'll stand up and scream."
The old men laughed. "All right. Don't be a stranger."
"Bye."
"Bye."
As the girls left and their backsides switched to and fro as they walked, Tom caught the bartenders attention and pointed to indicate these newcomers were on his ticket. The barman nodded, and Tom gave a thumbs up.
The girls sat at a table in the back, behind Mutt Hayes. Mutt grew uncomfortable at their presence, and became more animated talking with Michelle, their conversation lost in another song. After a minute, Michelle started to shake her head in negation. He said more and gestured frantically, however she kept shaking her head. Whipping out her cell phone, she bolted from her seat and walked out the door quickly, dialing en route, while he sat dumbfounded. She looked neither right or left, and didn't notice any of the other patrons in the bar. A slamming door and the beginning of a phone conversation marked her departure. Ten minutes later, the town taxi pulled up to take her away.
Mutt finished his drink, and refused to order an evening meal. Nodding to Petey and Freddy, he went out the door with determination, a new objective in sight.
The men sat around a bit longer, in solemn alcoholic vigil for their friend. After 10:00, the older men drifted out the door, with no news forthcoming.
Sirens flew by in the night, around 10:15PM, several in a row. Tom resisted the urge to look out the window; Ashley and Maria came across the bar to see what they could. "State troopers," Ashley said.
"Lots of 'em" Maria observed. "They haven't heard about my moonshine factory, have they?"
Ashely snorted. "No, I bet it's just a drug raid. Maybe they found a meth lab before it blew up."
"Yeah, that's gotta be it." The girls went back to the table with smug looks on their faces.
The ride home went quickly, and Tom noticed Michelle's lights were still on when he got in. He kept the lights off until the girls were inside. Going to the kitchen where his answering machine was, there was a message from Michelle: "Hello, Tom. Sorry you haven't been around today. I need to talk with you. Call me no matter how late you get in. 'Bye."
The phone was answered on the first ring. "Hello?"
"Hi, it's me?"
"Hi, Tom. How's it going?"
"All right. You?"
"Working things out. It's been a rough couple of days." A profound, expressive yawn came across the receiver. "I want to see you."
"I want to see you, too, but I've had a long day and you sound beat. How about breakfast at your place tomorrow morning?"
"How about at your house?"
"Ah, I've got to spend tomorrow cleaning up around here. Let the place go to pot with Amanda gone with her Grammie. Let me come to your house around 8:30, and I'll bring some fresh rolls."
Another yawn. "All right, I guess I'll take that, but I want you now."
