“Hey, what about the rest of us?” Mikey patted his gut and grinned like the rascal he is.
“I know well enough what it is you lot like.” She sniffed and put her nose in the air as she walked away.
“Jonah you old fraud.”
“What Ms. Amanda?” She leaned over and whispered something in his ear that had him going redder, before I pulled her back and down on the seat next to me.
“You’re over here.”
“Boy I’m old enough to be her grandpa.” I knew they wouldn’t miss my show of ownership.
“Uh-huh, fuck if I care.” I squeezed her side to let her know she was fine. My possessiveness didn’t seem to give her any bad moments, which was a good thing because I don’t think I could help that shit.
She batted her lashes at me trying to be cute, but the little byplay had a strange affect on me. I leaned over the rest of the way, and without a care for our audience, kissed her.
I should’ve known better but as they say hindsight is twenty-twenty. As was the norm whenever our lips met, it was instant magic.
It was so good that I ignored the groans and grumbles at the table. “Really Caleb, have you no decency? What would your mother say about you carrying on with the help in such a fashion?” The voice came out of nowhere and of course was loud enough to wake the dead.
You could hear a pin drop, and worst, Amanda froze in my arms. I left her lips to whisper in her ear. “I know you want to get up and run away, but she’s just another bully like he was. We’re through letting them win right?”
She face planted into my chest and I could feel her little body shaking. “But Caleb, all these people...”
“Did I ever tell you that my great- great however many greats grandfather settled this town way back when?
Did you know that most of these people sitting in here works for my family in one-way or another? And did you know that my family is well loved in these parts, and further, did you know that as the eldest son, when my dad hangs it up and decides he wants to put his feet up on his porch rail that I will be the one they’re working for?” I had to talk fast to try to put her at ease.
“So you’re going to ignore me for this, this person that you don’t even know. Wait until my daddy...”
The sound of chairs scraping against the wooden floor was loud in the room as the guys started getting to their feet. They know I avoid confrontations at all cause because the shits never end well.
I gestured with my hand for them to take their seats again, before addressing her.
“Of course I’m ignoring you, what’s going on inside my head is way more interesting than anything you have to say.”
I kept Amanda’s head on my chest as I ran my hand up and down her back and started up a conversation with the boys. Everyone still had their eyes and ears peeled to the goings on at our table, and I knew that I had to handle this right.
As much as I would love to smack her one, that’s not the gentlemanly thing to do, and especially not in front of my girl. But there is more than one-way to skin a cat, as grandma was always fond of saying.
“Give me a second baby.” I kissed her forehead before easing her away a little so I could reach my phone.
“Dad, no dad it’s not a social call, yes tell mama we’ll be out this Sunday, yes dad I know...dad, not a social call. I want you to cancel the Crane contract, and anything else we have doing with them ends today. Yes I’ll tell you when I see you.”
I hung up and hugged my girl as Millie came back with our pie. The loud screech that came from my left was the only sound to be heard before running feet; sounded like heels to me.
The buzz picked back up and I’m sure it wouldn’t be long before the whole town was talking. Did I mention that I had that conversation loud enough that the people at the closest tables could hear?
“You okay baby?” She nodded her head shyly as she sat up to take her spoon to eat her pie. The boys were falling all over themselves to please her and soon she was smiling again.
I fed her pie from my fork and stole as many kisses as I could in between. “Hey Caleb, how’re things on the ranch? Haven’t seen you in town this time of day in many moons.”
Virgil Seals the local judge and one of my grandparent’s closest friends came over to the table. I knew what he was after since his eyes were glued to her face, so I made the introductions. After he’d reminded the boys of their last smash-up and shamed them into promising to behave themselves the next time they went carousing, he went back to his table.
That seemed to open the way for every Tom, Dick and Harry to come ogle my girl. At least that business was long forgotten as I watched the people I’d known all my life go out of their way to make her feel welcome.