One factor of living in a place like Superstition Springs—privacy was not a thing. Of course, Isaiah had set up shop in the middle of Ruby’s where the entire town came through on a daily basis, strictly because he hoped to get some eyes on this project. He couldn’t do it without everyone’s help, so he welcomed curiosity. “A laptop. I’m planning something for the mayor. A party.”
That piqued Lennie’s interest. He shoved off his seat and lumbered over, full coffee cup in hand. “What kind of party?”
Isaiah jerked his head at the bench seat that normally held the other four SEALs but might accommodate one very large antiques dealer. “Take a load off and let me talk to you about it.”
Without hesitating, Lennie plopped down, resting his heavily tattooed arms on the table as he leaned forward as well as his enormous girth would allow, given that he’d barely cleared the opening. “Haven’t been to a good party in a decade. Not sure you’ll change that.”
Well, neither was he. But it was enough of a challenge to have him gearing up to prove differently.
Ruby lifted the coffee carafe in his direction in a silent question as to whether he wanted a refill. He didn’t, but he nodded all the same. She bustled over to pour, her eavesdropping ears wide open, which was exactly the reason he’d asked for more coffee. The more, the merrier.
“What makes a good party?” he asked them both.
“Lots of food,” Lennie answered decisively. “Barbecue. Smoked chicken. Mudbugs.”
Isaiah looked up from his paper where he’d been noting the points. “Mudbugs?”
“Crawfish, honey,” Ruby answered and leaned one hip on the table. “Word to the wise, when Texans talk about barbecue, its beef, not pork. Though we like both.”
This stuff was gold. “I thought crawfish was a Louisiana thing. No?”
And that was enough to get both of the residents off and running. Ruby and Lennie set him straight: sweet tea was a must, Blue Bell ice cream non-negotiable, Tabasco sauce could be traded out for Texas Pete’s but it was safer to have both. Isaiah’s hand hurt from taking notes by the time the lunch crowd started shuffling in, forcing Ruby to abandon ship since she had to go cook.
“Thanks, Lennie,” he said to the man once Ruby had sailed off. “I appreciate a local perspective.”
Lennie shrugged, a grin splitting his grizzled beard. “Don’t you mention it. You’re good people, and that Caleb is doing fine by us as our first mayor. You boys are all a welcome addition to the fold.”
The fold. It had a nice ring to it without adding a l
ot of expectation, as if all Isaiah had to do was let himself be wrapped in the town’s embrace in order to be a part of things here. “Caleb and Havana have a vision. I think this party will help give people a reason to visit. But more importantly, residents can meet some new people in a fun setting who might become paying customers of businesses in town.”
“I never thought about that.” Lennie’s expression grew thoughtful as he mused it over. “I was more on the track of having a good time. But I see the point. You set up a snow cone booth in front of my store and maybe some kids come inside to see what kind of old toys I got.”
“Exactly.”
“I haven’t had any new kids to bake cookies for since Ember brung her Judd to town.” The prospect of making cookies seemed to seal the deal with Lennie, judging by the pleased glint in his eye. “I got a couple of old friends in Austin who do some catering on the side. Lemme make a call, see what I can do on getting you a good price. Least I can do to help since you got me thinking differently.”
Wow. Okay. That was shades of his old self at work there. He’d forgotten how good it felt to leave someone more positive about the outcome of something than they’d been a few minutes ago. “That would be great.”
“They’re good guys who’ll do quality work for you. Served with ’em in the Persian Gulf during the ’80s.”
Dumbstruck, Isaiah stared at the man as he rifled through the data in his head about US military operations during the time and could only come up with one conclusion. “You were in the Navy?”
The Persian Gulf had been the site of one of the largest naval offensives post World War II and had given rise to the conflict that had extended into Operation Desert Storm. Isaiah had long understood that the sacrifices of great men like this one had allowed him to carry on the fight against terrorism two decades later in the Middle East. Until he couldn’t anymore.
“Sure, for a few years,” Lennie said. “Saw some bad stuff. Got out before I lost my way.”
For some inexplicable reason, that pricked at the back of his eyelids. He blinked away the very non-masculine moisture and swallowed. “Yeah, I could see the wisdom in that.”
“Guessing that things didn’t get much better.”
Isaiah glanced up to meet Lennie’s shrewd gaze. Obviously the man’s comments hadn’t been random. How much did he actually know about the reasons the five of them had rolled into town? “Same evil, different country. Let’s just say our separation from the Navy wasn’t entirely voluntary.”
“Figured something wasn’t right. All of you had that shell-shocked look about you when you first came to town, as if you weren’t quite done with the job and weren’t quite sure how you ended up in Texas.”
“You read a guy pretty well,” Isaiah acknowledged with a bemused nod. Of all people to play unlikely therapist… “We still have some fight in us.”
Lennie unlaced his beefy forearms and tapped the table twice for emphasis. “Good. We need that kind of fierce. Saw dedication in Caleb a mile away or we wouldn’t have voted him into a position where he could do damage to what we’ve built here.”