He was stunned. She was wearing expensive clothes, he could tell, but she went goo-goo over a truck. He laughed softly.
“What is it?” she asked.
“It’s just a truck,” he pointed out.
“Yes, I know, but I’ve never ridden in one. It’s just super!”
His eyes widened. “You’ve never been in a truck?”
“Well, no,” she said, hesitating. Her face colored. She shouldn’t have admitted that.
He felt guilty when he saw the joy drain out of her. “Listen, don’t mind me,” he said. “There must be dozens of city people who think cars are the only way to travel. But I’m glad you like the truck.” He grinned. “There was this song, about a man who loved his truck.”
She laughed, the joy returning.
She was pretty when she laughed. He had to drag his eyes away.
She didn’t notice. She was on fire with life, with a new beginning, with a sudden feeling of safety and refuge. She took a deep breath and forced her mother’s tragic face to the back of her mind. She had to look ahead. And that meant a job, for the moment.
CHAPTER TWO
The owner of the Gray Dove, Mary Dodd, tried not to gape at the sight of Butch Matthews with a pretty young blond woman. He hadn’t dated anyone since he came home from the war and his fiancée threw him over, so it was something of an occasion. But she was quick to hide her surprise.
“I’ve never done any waitressing,” Esther confessed. “But I’ll work hard, and never complain, and I’ll learn, if you’ll teach me. I won’t even care about salary . . .”
“You don’t have to sell me,” the woman said gently. “I read people pretty well. It’s not as if we have hordes of people rushing in here trying to get work,” she added with a smile. “If you want the job, it’s yours.”
Esther relaxed. “Thank you!”
The owner went on to tell her about uniforms, which would be provided, and working hours. She’d start the following Monday.
Esther thanked her again, with such enthusiasm that Butch had to hide a smile.
They went out together, onto the sidewalk.
“Are there cabs?” she asked suddenly, worried.
“It’s five minutes from the cabin,” he pointed out. “I don’t mind driving you.”
“Are you sure?” she asked, concerned. “I’m causing you a lot of trouble.”
“And if I minded, I’d say so,” he replied softly. “Okay?”
She let out the breath she’d been holding. “Okay.”
“How about riding around with me for a bit?” he asked. “So you get to know the area.”
“I’d like that!” she enthused.
“Yeah, right, you’re not fooling me. All that enthusiasm, it’s just so you can be near the truck,” he drawled.
She burst out laughing. So did he.
“Busted,” she confessed.
* * *
He drove her around town, pointing out the various businesses. There weren’t a lot. Benton had a little over fifteen hundred souls. It was like a big family, he explained. People didn’t mind each others’ business, but they cared about each other.
“That sounds very nice,” she commented softly.
“Isn’t it like this, where you come from?”
She hesitated. Then she shook her head. She sighed and looked out the window. “We lived a lot of places, but none of them was ever home,” she explained. “Mama was, well, adventurous. She was always in love with somebody, and she never chose anybody who was good for her. Darrin was the latest in a long line of horrible men she . . . lived with.”
“What about your dad?” he wondered.
“He died years ago. He was a sweet man. I loved him very much. I loved Mama, too, but . . .” She hesitated. She glanced at him. “She did love me, in her way.”
“I’m guessing that you had to find ways to avoid some of the men, Esther,” he said without meeting her eyes.
She drew in a long breath. She looked out the window again. “Yes.”
What a hell of a life, he was thinking. “Was your mother as pretty as you are?”
“Much prettier,” she replied, smiling sadly. “She never looked her age. I brought a boy home from school one day and he spent the evening with Mama.” She shook her head. “I wasn’t much on boys, anyway. Watching Mama with an endless parade of men sort of soured me, I guess.”
He felt sorry for her. She had a little material wealth, from the look of her, but without love, it wasn’t much.
“How are you going to like waitressing?” he asked quietly. “I’ll bet you’ve never had a job in your