In Too Deep(20)

He did say he's only lived here a few years, I said to myself as I changed clothes for my meeting. Maybe he just doesn't have much of a decorating touch.

I checked out where Winter's pharmacy was on my phone and saw the drive wasn't too bad. In fact, Truth or Consequences had a very logically laid out street plan, the complete opposite of what I'd expected. Getting there was easy, and I pulled up at five minutes to three o'clock. The pharmacy was very similar to what I'd just left in Lima, with aisles of over the counter drugs, beauty treatments, some snacks and other stuff like that, and what you'd find in most typical non-hospital pharmacies. There were two customers inside at the time, an old lady who was looking through the hair coloring aisle, and a young man who was checking out medicated shampoos, most likely for the horrendous case of dandruff on his shoulders.

I found the clerk at the front counter. "Hi, I'm Melina Browder. Mr. Winters said I should drop by?"

"Sure, he's in the back," the clerk said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder. "Just knock before you go in."

"Thanks." I went in the direction the clerk had pointed, down a short hallway to a door that was marked Office. I knocked and heard a voice from inside.

"Come in."

I opened the door and stuck my head inside. "Mr. Winters? Hi, I'm Melina Browder."

Jay Winters was maybe about fifty, with a pot belly that showed well past his belt line, but a lean face and forearms that said he probably did a decent amount of outdoor work or something along those lines. He was wearing a nondescript white button down shirt, and I was beginning to wonder if the entire town of Truth or Consequences did their shopping at the Walmart Supercenter I saw the day before. The land of no name brands. "Come in, Miss Browder. How're you doing today?"

"Adjusting to the weather," I said with a chuckle. "Even the Virgin Islands weren't this hot. I think I'm going to spend most of the rest of the summer getting used to it."

"If you can survive to October, you'll find a few months that are very nice," Jay said with a laugh. He stood up and offered me his hand and we shook. He had a good handshake, not too firm, and certainly not limp-wristed. "So you're the lady that has got everyone talking for the past three days?"

"It couldn't have been that big a deal, was it?" I asked, blushing again. "I mean, it's a good story for cocktail parties or backyard barbecues, but hardly worth calling home about.”

Jay laughed. "This is a small town, Miss Browder, and pretty quiet. When someone like Cam suddenly comes back into town from vacation and not only has some good stories, but calls me and asks if I have any jobs open for a pharmacy tech, and then your appearance at the high school yesterday? It's quiet, but the grapevine around here works pretty well at the same time."

I’m not sure what the part about someone like Cam meant, but I nodded in understanding. "Lima was the same way, even if the city was a bit larger. I'm surprised that people would find Cam a person of interest for the rumor mill, though."

Jay sat back and shrugged, smiling. "He's been a bit of a mystery since he came into town just over two years ago. I mean, here we are, a tiny little podunk town with no real reason for moving to a town like this. He's young, handsome, multi-lingual, a talented teacher and coach by everyone's account. Yet for two years, other than his work and going around town, he's been kind of a mystery man. It seems like he tries to appear average when he most certainly is not, as if he’s hiding from someone. Either way, he’s a good man.”

I nodded. "In any case, I'm glad to be here, even if there is a bit of questioning."

“All right, let me take a look at your resume."

I handed it over, and he read the document quickly. "Not bad. You certainly are qualified, more than my current employees even.”

"I wouldn't want to horn in on anyone's territory," I said. "I understand I'm the new face in town, and that’s not the way to smooth my integration."

"So you're that serious about him, huh?" Jay asked, turning the conversation back to Cam. "That must have been one hell of a two-week vacation."

"Week, actually. There were a few days on each end he was on the island by himself," I corrected him, "but yes, it was. Magical, if you can believe in that."

"I don't, but there's a couple of Indians around the area who'd take that word more seriously. Either way Miss Browder, you can see why I have a conundrum. In the classical business sense, you're overqualified for anything I have open. The best I have is a part time register job that might lead to a pharmacy position later on if one of my current crew decides to leave. I'll be honest, though, the earliest might be a year or more, there's one girl who's got a boyfriend in the Marine Corps. She says that once he's through his training and then gets a permanent posting she's going to move to wherever he is, but I've seen too many relationships like that through the years in this town."

"Lima had it's fair share too," I replied. "Half caused by the person in the military, the other half by the person left at home. Someone can't quite keep it in their pants any longer, and stuff happens. I'll be honest with you Mr. Winters, I would have been surprised if you'd said you had anything, all things being considered. You don't know me, I'm not answering a help wanted ad, and I'm new in a small town. I’m grateful that you’re willing to even have me part-time."