Sassafras, Part 41

Rick


When I got to Tanner's I was still thinking about Sneider's phone call. There was somebody in this game I didn't know, somebody that was apparently a bigger threat to Joan than Sneider, and I didn't like it. I walked in and at first I didn’t see her, then I saw her sitting at the bar talking to another man. He stood there, leaning on the bar next to her, one hand resting on the back of her barstool. He said something and I saw her smile and shake her head. What did he ask her? What did she say no to? Did he ask her out, did he ask her if she was seeing anybody, what? Then he put his arms around her and kissed her. I wanted to slam his head down on the bar and tell him to keep his hands off her, but by the time I got to the bar he had walked away and was sitting at a table with some other guys.

She didn’t even notice me until I reached out and touched her elbow. I asked her who he was and she said his name was Steve Majors. They had been in school together. She said they had just been talking about Jenny, but I kept seeing him kissing her, her hand resting on his shoulder, and it was driving me crazy. She said he had just kissed her cheek, that I was jealous, and I realized she was right. It was one thing to know that in a few days she would be gone, back in New York, talking and flirting with other men, but to actually see it happen right in front of me was torture. I kissed her and told her maybe she was right.

I sat down next to her and asked how her day had been. We talked for a minute then moved to a booth. Billy wasn't with her, but she said he was around talking with some friends.

When he finally came over he was full of attitude. I was going to have to nip this in the bud. I gave Joan some money and told her to go play the jukebox.

When she left I looked at Billy. "You don't like me, do you?" I asked him. He just glared across the table at me. "That's ok. A lot of people don't like me. You're not the first and you won't be the last. I'm not too sure I like you, either, but we have something in common. You don't want to go to New York, do you?"

"Hell, no, I don't want to. Why do you care?"

"About you, I couldn't give a rat's ass. If you don't drop the attitude, you're going to be on the next flight out. I'll buy the ticket myself. I just don't want Joan to go back to New York. I think there is a way to get her to stay here, but I can't do it on my own. I think we can convince her to stay, but we have to work together."

He looked like he was thinking it over. "What's your plan?" he asked.

"She said she was going to put your mom's house up for sale, but she's worried about what kind of condition it's in. You know, does the roof leak, does the sewer back up, that sort of shit. If you can make her think the house needs a lot of work, she'll have to stay long enough to get it fixed up. All I need is a couple of weeks and she'll never want to leave town."

"And talk up the town. Don't make it sound like a shit hole. If there's anything good in town make sure she notices it."

"And what are you going to be doing?" he asked.

"Just watch and learn, young man," I said. "Do we have a deal?"

He thought a little more, then nodded his head. "Good," I said. "I'm going to go get your aunt. When we come back, get ready to be charming."

I got up and walked over to the jukebox. Joan was still picking out songs, swaying along with Sweet Home Alabama. I couldn't wait to touch her again, to feel her hair and her skin, smell her perfume. She was driving me crazy. I was having a hard time concentrating on busting Sneider, or finding out who killed her sister, or anything except wanting to be alone with her.

I walked up and put my arms around her, and she leaned back against me, still moving along with the music. We talked for a minute, and she picked out another song. She said she played a song for me, but I had to guess which one it was.

We walked back to the booth and Bill acted like a normal person for a change. He talked about what a great school he went to, how much he loved his classes, how good the football team was. I asked him about the Homecoming game. It had been September 12. That put Sneider with Santos the day he was killed. Now I really needed to know who was that county cop in the picture with them. While we ate I listened to the jukebox, trying to decide which song Joan picked for me. When Lunatic Fringe played I was tempted to say that was it, but when Bad Company started playing I laughed. I knew that was the one she picked. How appropriate. After Bill finished eating he said he was going to walk home. I was glad he decided to work with me instead of causing trouble.

"Thank you," Joan said to me after Billy left.

"What for?" I asked.

"For keeping this night from turning out to be a total disaster. I don't know what you said to Billy, but it worked. Thanks."