Page 50 of Hammer and Hops

His mother’s eyebrow arched up—just the left one. I didn’t know how she managed that look, but I immediately knew this was going to be an issue. “Everett, darling. Why would we go there? I’d rather not spend the day schlumping around some peanuts on the floor of a brew house.”

“Oh, it’s not that at all.” I wasn’t about to let her make assumptions about Everett’s hard work. “It’s a very pristine environment. It has to be for a lot of health-code reasons, but more importantly, Everett wouldn’t allow anything less.”

“I see.” She said in a way that told me she didn’t see at all. “That’s not why we’re here, anyway.”

“Then why are you here?” Everett asked. He was hurt by her lack of enthusiasm.

“To see you, of course. And meet this new man of yours.” She held her hand out to me as if I was a specimen.

“But—”

“Everett.” She cut him off like he was four years old, not a grown man. “When you’re through playing country out here, come home and get serious about a career.”

“This is my home. And my career.” He held his hands up as if he’d told her this a thousand times, and I was pretty damn sure he had.

And I’d had enough. When she opened her mouth to say more, I stood. “Mrs. Lundy. You need to listen to Everett. You’re making yourself miserable over this instead of celebrating his success and happiness. Surely, you can see the wedge you’re shoving between yourself and your son.”

Miriam’s mouth fell open, but she only lost her decorum for a second. She stood and smacked her husband’s shoulder. “Come, Daryl. We’re going. Thank you for dinner.”

“Wait.” I hurried to the kitchen and, on a whim, grabbed my mother’s coffee cake that she’d sent us home with. “Here. A little something for breakfast. My mother made it and asked us to pass it on to you.” Okay, that was a little white lie, but Everett didn’t even flinch when I told it. I’d begged for the cake, because I loved it so much. But I wanted to share it with them as a tangible way of showing that our differences could be good.

She took the cake and looked down at it. “Thank you.” Her voice was softer now, so maybe I’d made my point, or at least some point.

Then they left. Everett didn’t even walk them out the door, but as soon as it closed behind them, he visibly deflated. I pulled him to standing and wrapped my arms around him.

He buried his face in my neck. “Thank you,” he muttered against my skin.

“Any time, Ever. I’ve always got your back.” There was nothing I was more sure of.

Chapter forty-one

Grand Reopening – Everett

The day was finally here. The beer was ready to go, and we were celebrating with a Grand Reopening event. We’d invited our friends and family, as well as everyone who’d donated to Cameron’s fundraising page. We’d give tours, and by we, I meant Lukas. He was better at that than I could ever be. During the tours, there would be tastings, including tapping into vats that weren’t quite finished, to give folks a better idea of the process. Then at the end, I’d offer up the finished product along with snacks.

We had an area behind the brewery set up with a bunch of picnic tables that Cameron had called in a bunch of favors to get. They were covered with tablecloths and floral centerpieces that Eddy and Alfred had picked up from a place in Miller’s Point. They had been a huge help in making this occasion successful. Everything looked great as I wandered around, ensuring all was in place.

Eddy nudged me away from one of the tables. “Leave that centerpiece alone and come have a drink with us.”

“I don’t know, I’m probably going to be drinking all day.”

“Yeah, yeah. Pace yourself. But we need a toast before the doors open.” He handed me a small cup of beer, and Brock, Alfred, and Jackie lifted their own. “To an excellent business, and businessman, who is also our dear friend.”

“That’s sappy as fuck,” Jackie muttered and Alfred elbowed him.

“Sappy or not. It was nice.” I took a sip of my beer. It was our medium-gold, with a nice wheat-bread flavor, my hops adding a floral note, and it paired well with most of the snacks we put out. “I, uh, haven’t had a lot of friends in my life, outside of Lukas.” He was currently finishing his tour setup, but I was sure he’d pop in for more toasts soon enough. “I’m kind of a hard person to like sometimes.”

“You can say that again.” Cameron grabbed me from behind, and I squeaked since I hadn’t heard him come up on me.

“Shut up. Where’ve you been anyway?” I had expected him to be here sooner after picking up his folks from Fish Springs. They walked in behind him, greeting me with warm hugs that I hadn’t expected.

“You should be so proud of yourself.” His mom brushed a lock of hair out of my face. “Everything is lovely, and I can’t wait to take the tour.”

Lukas stepped outside and saluted us. “First tour will be in about…” He looked at his watch. “Twenty minutes or so.” Right after the doors opened.

“Um, Ever?” Cameron leaned closer and kissed my cheek. “I have another surprise for you. Are you ready?”

“Okay, sure.” I followed him into the brewery and out the front door.