Paradise Valley (Virgin River #7)(45)

Mel jumped up on a stool and said, “Just hang on to him for a second, Jack. Let me have a diet cola and I’ll get these maniacs home. Bring us something of Preacher’s later?”

“Sure, babe.” He deftly drew her a cola, one-handed, his son on his hip. But David wasn’t in the mood to be confined. He was two now and well into the terribles. He was bowing his back, kicking his feet, whining. “Settle down, bud,” Jack said, hanging on to him. It wasn’t a good idea to give him his freedom in the bar and grill. Nothing but trouble and breakage awaited.

“Got any chips or popcorn?” said a voice just a couple of stools down from Mel.

“Yeah, I can rustle some up,” Jack said. “Gimme a minute, huh? I have my hands full of madness.”

Mel turned and saw it was Dan Brady, having himself a beer.

“I thought if you could hand me the progeny, bring us something to snack on, you and your wife could have a minute.” He held out his hands toward David. “I’m checked out. I know how to hang on to a kid wild with the devil.”

Jack’s eyebrow lifted. “Do you now? Aren’t you just full of surprises. I honestly didn’t know you could do anything but grow weed.” He shifted and handed David across the bar.

At first David squealed in annoyance, but Dan grabbed him and brought him onto his lap. “Hey now,” he said, holding him with a firm arm around his waist, bouncing him on his thigh. “Take it easy. Only in a town of six hundred would it be considered normal to have a kid your age right up at the bar. Count your blessings.”

Jack shook out some Goldfish crackers into a bowl. “His favorite,” he explained.

“Perfect,” Dan said. He turned his attention on David. “So, little man, you want one?” He maneuvered the small cracker into David’s mouth. “Now. Give one to me? Please?”

David thought about it a second, then slowly pushed one toward Dan’s open mouth. “Mmm,” Dan said. “Your turn.” And he plucked one out of the bowl and directed it toward David’s mouth, but pulled it back, making the kid laugh. “Oh, you want that? Can you say please?”

David shook his head obstinately, stiffening his back, grinding his fists into his eyes, pushing out his lower lip. Dan took the Goldfish for himself and laughed. “Let’s try that again,” he said, picking up another. “Please?” he coached.

“Pease,” David said in a pout.

“Wonderful,” Dan approved, popping a Goldfish into his mouth.

“You’re gifted,” Jack observed. “He’s been a real ass**le lately.”

“Jack! We were going to try to stop swearing!”

“Yeah, I know. I think I’m doing better at that than you are, by the way. But hasn’t he been?”

“He can’t help it—he’s at the ass**le age. He’ll come around.”

“See?” Jack said, grinning at her. “You have a rotten mouth and you can’t help yourself.”

She grinned back at him. “I never uttered a single curse until I met you.”

Dan focused on David. “Your parents are flirting with each other. You better have another fish. You could be on my lap a long time.”

Jack studied him for a moment. “You got some experience there, pal,” he finally said.

“Some,” Dan answered. Then he looked at David and said, “My turn. Please.” And he opened his mouth for a fish.

“Like with kids,” Jack said. “Nephews and nieces or something like that.”

“Something like that,” he said. And then, to David. “Your turn. Say please.”

“Pease,” he said, smiling and opening his dripping, goopy mouth.

Dan looked at Jack. “How’s the boy? Rick?”

“Aw, I don’t know. Mel and Preacher both say he’s working through the whole thing, but he’s different. He doesn’t reach out, you know? He doesn’t call me, doesn’t call the girlfriend. He was so into that girl, I can’t even explain how much. Nowadays, he avoids her.”

“Having a hard time, I guess,” Dan said, right before he looked at David and said, “Your turn. Say please.”

“Pease!”

“How’s the girl handling that?” Dan asked Jack.

“You know, I didn’t have a real conversation with you for three years and now you’re like a neighbor. No, you sound like a goddamn shrink.”

Dan smiled at him and opened his mouth for a fish. But David shouted, “Pease!”

“She’s trying to understand,” Mel said, answering for Jack. “I think it’s hurting her a lot, but she’s amazingly patient and understanding for a young girl. There’s a counselor she talked to once before who’s trying to help her out. At least there’s that.” She shook her head and kissed Emma’s fat cheek. “She’s only a senior in high school. Just turned eighteen. They fell in love too young.”

Dan looked back at David and said, “Please.” Then it was David’s turn again, but Dan turned to Mel. “Eighteen and… What did you say he was? Twenty? They have a lot of time to get beyond this. It could take a while, but they have a while. They’re just kids.”

“They hurt,” Mel said. “I just hate to see them hurt like that.”