over at her and grinned. “You just hush. Peanut offered to get lunch and drop it off here for us, so figure out what you want. I told him I’d call him right back.”
When the twins’ focus shifted to food of any kind, all joking was set aside.
Vesta thought for a moment before offering a suggestion.
“What if we all order something from Broyles Dairy Freeze? That way he won’t have to get in and out of the car a bunch of times. He can just go through the drive-through, and if he’ll bring it to the back door and honk, we can go out to get it.”
“That is so sweet of you,” Ruby said. “He just had a flat coming into town and said he was going home to change into dry clothes first. He’ll appreciate your thoughtfulness.”
Vera shook her head. “Bless his heart. A flat in this kind of weather.”
“I think I want a burger, fries, and a vanilla malt,” Vesta said.
“I want the same, except make my malt chocolate,” Vera added, and then tapped her client on the shoulder. “Time’s up, sugar. Let’s go rinse out that perm solution so I can get the neutralizer on you.”
Mabel Jean had already finished the mani-pedi on Clara and walked her to her car, holding an umbrella over both of them. But now she was chilled and nursing a cup of coffee.
“I’ll take one of their chili dogs and a package of potato chips. Thanks to the weather, I’m too cold for a malt, so I’ll stick to coffee.”
“Duly noted,” Ruby said. She’d just finished the shampoo and style on Rachel Goodhope, so she reached for the hair spray and gave Rachel’s hair a quick once-over, then removed the cape and handed her a mirror. “What do you think?”
Rachel took a few moments to check out the back of her hair and then nodded.
“Love it, but then I always do. Thank you, Ruby. I’d better get home. We have someone due to check in at the bed-and-breakfast around 1:00 p.m., so I need to make sure Bud remembered to put cookies in the guest room.”
As soon as Rachel was gone, Ruby texted their lunch orders to Peanut and then went to clean up her station.
* * *
Peanut got the text with their orders and was grateful they’d chosen the Dairy Freeze. As he drove into line at the drive-through, he saw several cars coming in behind him. It appeared everyone had the same idea in this miserable weather.
He’d already called in the order on the way down Main, and when he pulled up to the window, the woman working saw him and smiled.
“Hey, Peanut! We got your to-go ready. Do you need to add anything to it?”
“No thanks,” Peanut said, and handed over his credit card.
He got the card back and his order, and waved as he drove away.
He was just about to drive back out onto Main Street when a small rain-soaked dog ran across the street in front of him.
“Oh crap!” he muttered, wincing when the dog barely missed getting hit by a passing car. Then it dawned on him that he knew that little dog. Everyone in Blessings knew that little red King Charles spaniel. He rolled down his window and whistled.
“Mister! Hey, Mister! Come here, boy!” he called.
The little dog stopped, then turned around and looked back.
Peanut whistled again, and then got out in the downpour and opened the back door to his car.
“Come here, Mister. Come here, boy. Wanna go home? Let’s go home.”
The little dog took off running toward Peanut, and once again, Peanut was soaked, but this time for a good reason. Despite very short legs, Mister cleared the leap in one try, hunkering down on the floorboard, shaking.
“Good boy!” Peanut said. “Good boy, Mister. Sit down, boy. We’re gonna go home.”
The little spaniel was shivering, but his huge black eyes were fixed on Peanut in a grateful and trusting way.
Peanut jumped back in the car, and instead of turning left to go to the salon, he turned right and drove straight to Miss Earline Woody’s house. He pulled up beneath the portico where her 1980 Chrysler was parked and got out. Then he opened the back door and picked Mister up from the floor of the car and carried him up the steps.
Like Miss Earline, the grand old house had seen better days, but it had good bones and Miss Earline came from good stock, which was why they were both still standing.