bell above the door chimed, and Dennis Urlacher walked into the shop, wearing grease-smeared coveralls printed with the gasoline company’s logo. He operated the one and only filling station in town and was a certified mechanic. Now that she worked outside the house, she saw more of him. That was the good news, and also the bad.
Her relationship with Dennis was a dead end for both of them.
“Was that Jeb’s truck I saw earlier?” he asked.
“Yeah.” In an effort to hide her smile, she headed into the back room, not wanting to confess what she’d done to lure Jeb into town. Dennis followed her, and she automatically poured him a mug of coffee, along with one for herself.
“He didn’t stay long,” Dennis commented.
“He never does.” Then, because she wanted to change the subject, she added, “It’s going to be warm today.”
“It already is.” He sipped from the mug, but his gaze remained focused on her.
“What did Jeb want?” It went without saying that her brother hadn’t come into town on a social call.
Sarah hesitated, wondering if she could say it and keep a straight face. “Coffee.”
“Coffee,” Dennis repeated slowly, and she could see a smile hovering.
“Apparently I forgot it when I brought out his supplies.”
“Sure you did,” Dennis murmured, then grew serious. “You wanted him to meet Maddy, right?” He didn’t wait for her to answer. “Jeb isn’t going to take kindly to you intruding in his life.”
“I know.”
His eyes held hers. “However, I didn’t stop by to talk about your brother.”
Sarah lowered the mug and forced herself to look away. She couldn’t let him continue to hold her gaze, because then he’d know how much she loved him, how hungry she was for his lovemaking. And how damned guilty that made her feel.
“I want you to have dinner with me—”
“I can’t,” she replied, not allowing him to finish.
Dennis scowled. “You could at least let me ask before you turn me down.”
“It isn’t a good idea. I—”
“Sarah,” he said, shaking his head in frustration. “I love you. I know your first marriage was a disaster, and I’m sorry, but I’m tired of having you put me off. If you think your father and Calla haven’t figured out that we’re lovers, you’re wrong. Everyone knows. The only question people ask is when you’re going to get smart and marry me.”
Sarah bit her lower lip. “I… can’t.”
“Okay, if you can’t go out to dinner tonight, when?”
She hesitated, stifling a groan. It wasn’t dinner she referred to but marriage. “Next week,” she murmured, defeated and angry with herself.
Turning, she walked back into her shop.
He sighed loudly, and she glanced in his direction. His jaw was tense, his eyes hard. “Kiss me,” he said.
“Dennis…”
“Kiss me,” he said again, more insistent this time. Apparently unwilling to wait, he reached for her, anchoring her against his chest. Before she had a chance to object, he ground his mouth over hers. The kiss spoke more of frustration than love, more of disappointment than hope. If she hadn’t known better, Sarah would have thought he’d already guessed the truth about her. That he’d long ago accepted she would never marry him and why. How could she, when she remained legally married to a husband who’d forsaken their wedding vows long before she had? Dennis and everyone else in Buffalo Valley assumed she was divorced. Sarah had gone along with the lie, wanting so desperately to believe it herself… and now that lie had taken on the form and substance of some malignant truth.
Two
Minutes for the October 24th meeting of the Buffalo Valley Town Council
As recorded by Hassie Knight, Secretary and Treasurer, duly elected.
The meeting was opened by council president Joshua McKenna with the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. Council members in attendance included Joshua McKenna, Dennis Urlacher, Heath Quantrill, Hassie Knight and Gage Sinclair. Robert Carr (also known as Buffalo Bob Carr), Maddy Washburn and Sarah Stern sat in as observers.
1. In the matter of old business, Joshua McKenna commended everyone for their hard work over the summer months. He declared the downtown clean-up program a great success and praised the council members’ efforts.
2. He also reviewed emergency procedures in case of fire. Jerome Spencer, head of the volunteer fire department, gave the council a readiness report and reviewed the emergency readiness situation in regard to tornadoes and blizzards. Joshua McKenna thanked him for his report and asked that it be distributed to everyone in the area.
3. Under the matter of new business, Joshua officially welcomed Maddy Washburn into the business community. Maddy thanked the council members for the invitation to sit in on the regular monthly meetings.
4. With the sale of the grocery and the departure of Mr. Hansen, one council position was left vacant. Hassie Knight nominated Buffalo Bob Carr to fill that position and Gage Sinclair seconded the motion. Buffalo Bob was voted in unanimously and is now an official member of the town council.
5. It was voted to grant funds to the high school so that the Christmas play can be held a second year. Lindsay Sinclair will address the council next month about the school’s needs.
6. Hassie Knight will place flags at the cemetery for Veterans’ Day.
7. Because of the luncheon being held to welcome both Maddy Washburn and Sarah Stern to the business community, the council meeting was cut short. The meeting adjourned at twelve-fifteen.
Respectfully submitted,
Hassie Knight
Dennis Urlacher studied the menu at Buffalo Bob’s far longer than necessary, seeing that he’d eaten there often enough to have memorized everything on it. The problem was, nothing sounded good.
“Beef stew’s the special tonight,” Buffalo Bob said, standing over him, pen and pad in hand.
Without much enthusiasm, Dennis returned the menu. “I’ll have that,” he muttered. It didn’t help that he’d eaten lunch there following the town council meeting that very afternoon. Of course the real reason for his indifference to Bob’s menu had nothing to do with the food.
“Hey, the stew’s not bad. I had a bowl of it myself.”
Dennis suspected Bob was right. To the community’s surprise, Buffalo Bob had turned out to be a halfway decent cook. Cook and everything else at the 3 OF A KIND. He’d rolled into Buffalo Valley on the back of a Harley-Davidson, with all his worldly possessions stuffed in his two leather saddlebags.
