“I like that, too,” I told her, rubbing her arm. “I really like that, too.”
Epilogue
Vanessa
I gave the couple some time to browse on their own before I went over to ask if they needed any help. They were vacationers, but they seemed really interested in the art. I wondered what their story was as a couple. Then, I grinned to myself. The more pregnant I got — and I seemed to be ballooning bigger and bigger every day — the more I just wanted to know what everyone’s personal story was.
“Can I help the two of you find something in particular?” I asked.
“Oh!” said the wife. “Oh no, we were just browsing.” She glanced over at her husband. “We’re on an anniversary trip, actually. Our fiftieth, if you can believe it! We’re staying at the little B&B up the road, the Berry Hill Farm, and I think it would be really sweet to pick up a piece of art to commemorate our trip with. But Barry here isn’t so sure.”
“Is this all local art?” Barry asked dubiously, peering at a couple of the pieces. “Janet, that’s all that I’m worried about. I know that a lot of these boutique shops import artwork from around the world and then sell it for far more than it’s actually worth. If we’re going to get something that reminds us of this trip, I would at least like for it to be something special and locally-produced.”
Janet rolled her eyes. “But we’re always going to remember that we picked it up here, even if it isn’t locally-produced,” she said exasperatedly. “It will remind us of this trip regardless of what its actual origins are.”
I decided to interject before they could start bickering. “Actually, all of the art in the gallery is locally-produced,” I told them. “What’s more, all of the artwork that you see here in the gallery is done in the local styles. So, for example, this painting that you were looking at is done by a local Chippewa artist, in traditional style. And this beading is all authentic, as well.”
“See, I told you,” Janet said, shaking her head fondly at her husband.
“Well, that is certainly a pleasant surprise,” Barry said. “And, you certainly seem knowledgeable about what you have in here.”
I smiled at him. “I’m the curator of the gallery,” I told him. “It’s a co-op, but I personally select all the artists that we feature in here, and I get a lot of say over which of their artworks we feature, as well.”
The man nodded.
“Let me know if I can answer any questions that you have about specific pieces,” I told them.
I looked toward the door as it swung open, bells chiming merrily, and I couldn’t help but smile as Trethan swaggered in. He was dressed in his Western finest, with a blue checked shirt, jeans, and the oft-worn hat and boots.
“Hey there, missus,” he said to me, swinging me into his arms and kissing me, not paying any attention to the looks that we got from some of the other customers.
I laughed and steadied myself against his arm, my hand coming up to rest against my stomach. “Still trying to get used to having a different center of gravity,” I complained.
“And how are you and John feeling today?” Trethan asked.
I shook my head. “Just as fine as we were at brunch this morning,” I told him. “Did you come by just to check on me?” It wouldn’t surprise me if he had; he had proven nothing but charmingly concerned throughout my whole pregnancy. But usually, he left his checking-in to a daily 10 a.m. phone call.
“Not just to check in on you,” he said. “I just got done meeting with John.”
“Oh,” I said, already knowing what the meeting would have been about. Dad had approached me about the topic a couple weeks ago, tactful and uncertain, much to my amusement.
“You were keeping secrets from me,” Trethan accused. “You already knew that he was planning to hand the Lazy J over to me.”
I smiled at him. “Well, he wanted to ask my opinion first,” I said. “And, he wanted to make sure that I didn’t mind, even though I think I’ve made my opinions on the place pretty clear. I love the ranch, but I don’t see a future for myself there. Anyway, it isn’t really transferring out of my hands anyway, as long as we’re still married.”
“But I would be taking over sole proprietorship for the place, meaning that I’d have a lot of work on my hands.”
“True,” I agreed. “But you’ve already basically been running the place for a few years now, haven’t you?”
“I suppose I have,” said he admitted, shaking his head. “I don’t know why, but it still just came as kind of a shock.”
“It shouldn’t have,” I said softly. “I know you still have a giant chip on your shoulder from everything in your past, but my dad believes you’re a good man.”
“And what do you think?” Trethan asked, but from the way he was smirking at me, I knew he was teasing.
“I think you’re distracting me from work right now,” I said, noticing suddenly that Janet and Barry were both watching our exchange, smiling. They looked like they probably had some questions, though. “How can I help you?” I asked them.
“Sorry, I don’t mean to stare,” Janet said, shaking he