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Callie cocked her head. “She says she has faith, and she won’t say more than that. Maybe she has it in her head that Lee’s family sent him away to break them up. I don’t know, but seein’ as he hasn’t contacted her, and she’s his girlfriend…” She shrugged. “All I know is I’d have trouble stayin’ optimistic this long if I hadn’t heard from my boyfriend.”
I didn’t have anything constructive to say to that. “I’m sorry.”
“Pretty much everybody in town has one idea or another about him. At first, I liked the story that he’d gone to New York to raise money and buy the distillery, but that only lasted a week or two. Anyway, no worries, but I wouldn’t bring it up with Pris. She’s been through enough.”
“Of course not.” I nodded.
A waitress came by, and Callie suggested sweet tea to drink. “And, Tawny, make it three,” she said. “Pris will be along.” She put down the menu and smiled at me. “Why don’t you choose the appetizer.”
“How’s a nacho plate sound?” I asked.
“Sure.”
“Hot or hotter?” Tawny asked.
“How about medium?” I asked.
Callie raised a brow in warning.
“How about hot or hotter?” she repeated.
I chose the lesser of two evils. “Hot would be great. Thank you.”
“Comin’ right up,” she said.
“Careful there,” Callie said after the waitress was out of earshot. “You don’t want to end up with salt in your sweet tea.”
“Okay,” I agreed. “So no talk of Lee, and don’t question the wait staff. Anything else I should avoid?”
“Probably best to not ask about the feud.”
Now I was lost. “What feud?”
“Her family and the Pollocks.Hateis too nice a word for how they feel about each other.”
“Got it.” This was getting complicated. “Anything else I should avoid?”Like her asshole brothers maybe? I thought.
“Nope.”
“Nice family,” I said. If the cops thought another of her brothers had murdered her boyfriend, that made for quite a crappy set of siblings she had.
“The best,” Callie agreed with a smile. She hadn’t picked up on my sarcasm.
Just then she waved, and I looked to the door.
The girl who waved back strode toward us.
As she got closer, I had no trouble recognizing the grown-up version of Priscilla Benson. Unsure how she felt about me, I took a chance and stood to give her a quick hug.
“My God,” she exclaimed. “When Callie told me you were here, I didn’t believe it. Welcome back.” She stepped back to give me the onceover. “You look great.”
“You too,” I said as we sat.
“I always thought you and my brother were so cute together, and here you are again.”
Unprepared for the emotional buzzsaw of Pris Benson, intelligent words failed me. “Well, that was then.”
“I invited Boone,” she explained to Callie. “But you know him, always an excuse—gotta do this, gotta do that.” She waved fingers at me. “Personally, I’ve never heard him so flustered.”
