Page 4 of Hammer and Hops

“Ah, no. That gunk is sticky.”

“Sticky-icky sticky?”

“Yeah.”

She ruffled my hair.

“Cameron?” Mom called as she pushed the door open. Busted. “There you are. Now, come help me in the kitchen while your sister gets some more rest. You know she needs her rest. Be a good helper. And go wash your face…” She sighed really big. That meant she was done with me today. And when she got done with me, I needed to be even better so she wouldn’t yell and upset Cassy.

“Yes, Mommy.” I jumped off the bed but turned and hugged Cassidy’s legs. “See you later.”

“Alligator.”

Mom directed me to the kitchen, where I helpeded her with dishes. I held the dustpan for her to sweep the dirt too. She could find millions of things for me to help with. I didn’t mind much. I’d rather play with Cassy, even if she make-upped my face. “Can I help Cassy with somethings?”

“You are. You’re helping her get better by helping me instead of bugging her when she needs to rest.”

I nodded. And was good for Mom. And she never did make me scrub my face.

Don’t ‘member too many good times with Cassidy after that. One day we were making up faces and the next, she had to go to the hospital in the big town.

And she never came back.

Chapter three

The Convention - Everett

The convention center floor was a riot of people, crowding in to look at everything from small kitchen gadgets to giant commercial appliances. One booth even sold giant walk-in freezers. I didn’t need most of that, so I headed toward the back where companies were selling stuff that was geared more toward bars and restaurants, and even some wineries, and what I was after. Brewery equipment.

I looked at the new line of fermentation tanks and found exactly what Lukas wanted. “Can you cut me a deal on these if I buy four of them?”

“Yes, of course.” The salesman was practically salivating. “I can give you thirty percent off.”

“Great and free delivery?” I was going to get everything I could. That’s why we wanted to buy at a convention like this one rather than through other channels. These guys were not only able to get us better pricing, but they also wanted to make as many sales as possible, so they were willing.

“Depends on where it’s going.”

I gave him the address of the giant warehouse space I’d purchased just on the northeastern edge of Foggy Basin, next to the fields where I’d already had the hops growing.

“Mm…no. But I can probably get it reduced. That’s a long distance, and the machinery is bulky.”

“I’m aware. Do what you can for me, though. I’m just a small-town brewery here.” Nope, I was not above pulling the sympathy card. Coming off as the little guy usually helped in situations like this.

“Um…okay. Hold on.” He fiddled with his phone for a minute, probably texting his boss. “I can cut twenty percent off the delivery fee.”

“Twenty-five?”

“Hmm…” We both knew there was another company offering similar equipment a few rows back, and he didn’t want to risk losing the deal to the competitor. Lukas and I had done the research though, and this was the better equipment. At least for us. “Okay. I can cut one of the other fees, which will take it right down to the same mark. How’s that?”

I stuck my hand out. “I’ll take it.”

“Great.” He finished writing up the deal, and I spent a good amount of time reviewing it. I’m sure it was making him sweat a little, and I didn’t mind that, but it wasn’t why I was delaying. I simply wanted to make sure everything we agreed upon was in the deal and did not include any side-door add-ons that would bump the price back up.

It was straight up, though, and I signed and shook his hand again. We agreed on a delivery date, and I moved on. I still had a few other things to find. Quickly, I found the next thing on my list, filter cartridges and housings for the filtration system. I got the salesman to throw in some free extras like O-rings as well. You could never have enough of them.

“Oh, hey.” Someone bumped my shoulder and I looked up.

“Excuse me. Wait. Everett Lundy?” I recognized him right away—Mitchel Harlen. Big, broad shoulders, messy dark hair, and a ten-million-kilowatt smile. He’d been in more than a few of my agricultural classes, and I had crushed hard. Of course, he never noticed me. He had a steady boyfriend who met him after class a lot. I couldn’t have been more jealous, and it proved that I was not his type at all. The boyfriend was a jock through and through, athletic and confident, and just as gorgeous as Mitchel.