“Nice wheels.”
I stepped out onto the front porch.
“Glad you think so, ‘cause they’re yours.” She reached out and slapped the keys into my hands.
“Right,” I laughed.
“No, I’m serious,” She held my gaze. “You believed me when no one else did. You didn’t think I was crazy, or at least didn’t tell me I was crazy. You risked everything to get those trucks back. You helped to change everything for me. This morning I called Orby’s Place and resigned. I paid off Grandma Tuttle’s farm. I went to the Chevy dealer and bought me and Hannah a Hummer and you this Camaro. By the way, the salesman says this Camaro will do everything and more than that Jaguar you were lookin’ at, and it will look better doin’ it. And you won’t look like one of them stuffed shirts, no offense,” she said and nodded at my mother’s mansion.
“Hannah can go to college, hell, now I can go to college. We can start a whole new family tree that will be completely different. This wouldn’t have happened without you, Rust. The money you got is payment for a job well done; the car is my way of saying thank you.”
She gave me a kiss on the cheek and sauntered into the house. Mr. Smith smiled slyly as he held the door and then he moved to let Wendy Forsythe through. She followed me down to the driveway.
“Hey, Baby. Wanna ride in my new car?” I said, in my fake Elvis voice.
She took my hand.
“Briana could come, too. Maybe a ride in the new car will help me charm her a little.”
“I asked her to wait inside, so we could talk.”
“Well, honey. Lunch is almost ready. We could go for quick spin, but no afternoon delight."
“Oh Rust, it’s a little late for that,” she said, eyes welling up. “I’m pregnant.”
“Wow.” My knees buckled a little. This was not something I could teleport my way out of. I took Wendy in my arms and held her close.
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Acknowledgements
A huge thank you goes out to my biggest cheerleader on this, Jennifer Sheppard Drummond, who let me know the manuscript made her laugh and gave me courage to proceed. Jennifer also offered some great tweaking and editorial advice with notes. I give specials thanks to Mary Lee Clark (a.k.a Momma), for final editing, advice and notes. Also need to mention my dad, Stan Clark, who had great suggestions and laughed at the manuscript. Thanks to Betsey Peters and Troy Suggs for reading and offering encouragement. Thanks to my kids for the laughter. My deepest gratitude goes to my wife, Kathy, who always stands with me. Your love keeps me going, babe.
About the Author
Robert Lewis Clark writes in Knoxville, TN where he also works as a mortgage executive. He shares his life in Appalachia with his wife Kathryn and beautiful daughters: Emma, Georgia Mae and Abigail.
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