The front door jangled, and Jeremiah walked in. “Did I get the time wrong?” A teasing smile lingered on his face.
“No, I’m late. A rancher versus rusty metal incident.”
“Nothing major, I hope?”
“Nope. Normal stuff. Give me a minute and I’ll head up and grab us a couple of beers.” She gathered trash from the stainless steel table.
“How about you finish that, I’ll pop up and grab those beers and meet you out on the bench?”
A sense of relief swept over her. She was very particular about cleaning and was thankful he wasn’t rushing her. “That sounds perfect.” She stepped on the pedal of the trashcan to lift the lid and threw away the wastepaper. By the time she finished, she could hear his boots on the stairs leading to her apartment.
After she washed her hands, Eden turned off the light and stepped outside. It was a beautiful spring evening. She turned on the bug light at the other end of the porch because the mosquitos at sunrise and sunset in South Dakota were big enough to be called vamp-quitos and wear a black cape. They’d drain your blood in a heartbeat. She sat down beside him. Once again, she acknowledged just how big this man was. He handed her a beer, and she took it and took a long drink.
“Bad day?” He leaned back on the bench, turning toward her, stretching his arm along the back of the seat.
She angled toward him and shrugged. “Busy, but that isn’t a bad thing. Keeping my visits up convinces the county to keep paying me.”
“Is it possible that they’d stop?” His brows drew together.
“Always. Times are tough, but I see my regulars. Older patients, parents of my ranchers and of the people in town that are Medicare and Medicaid recipients. It brings in revenue and I’ve survived the chopping block so far.” She wouldn’t stress it. She’d be employable no matter where she went—if she went. The pace and people of Hollister fit her needs now. She sighed and leaned back; her shoulders brushed Remi’s arm that stretched behind her.
“What speaks to you about this town?” He stared down the street, his eyes distant.
She sighed and thought for several minutes before she answered. “There’s no pretense here, or should I say very little. This little town provides for so many even though it’s a small speck built on a road junction. That way leads to Buffalo and that direction to Newell. Bottom line is it serves a purpose. There isn’t any excess here. Just the essentials. It’s like the world stripped this little town down to its best parts.”
“I thought that, too. It’s real.”
The feel of Jeremiah’s fingers playing with the ends of her hair should have coaxed her to move, but instead, she leaned on his arm. The sun was setting, and the small community had matriculated to their homes, the storefronts and clinics darkened for another night. There were massive cumulus clouds on the horizon blocking most of the grandeur of the sunset, but as they moved, rays of orange, red, and gold spilled to the ground, giving the horizon an unworldly feel. “It’s beautiful.” She stared at the sunset and sighed.
He made a noise of agreement. She took another sip of her beer. “Selma, Alabama is a small town. Compared to Hollister it is a metropolis, but I miss nothing.”
“Nothing?” He took a swig from his beer and sent her a glance before his eyes strayed back to the setting sun.
She snapped her fingers. “Sushi.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Not much call for sushi restaurants up here?”
“Remarkably, no. I’m not sure Hollister could sustain two restaurants, and Gen has already won them over with her delicious southern offerings.”
“She’s always loved to cook,” he agreed, still staring at the sunset.
She watched as the last light of the day faded. “Were you able to get all the lumber you needed?”
He snorted and shook his head. The long, dark brown strands settled but he pushed them back off his brow. “I had to special order the risers from a lumber yard in Rapid City. “I’ll work on the landings tomorrow and go down to pick them up the next day. The wood under the landings is solid so I won’t be replacing the framework, just the boards on the top that were exposed to the elements.”
“Sounds like two extensive projects.” She closed her eyes.
“That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Gen has started a to-do list