Chapter 1

Beau Dennison sat back in his chair in the office of the bar that he so proudly built from the ground up. The Golden Buckle was becoming the place to be in town; Thursday through Saturday the place was packed. But then again the bar had everything any bar goer could ever need; pool tables, darts, line dancing, and even a mechanical bull that many tried to conquer but few had succeeded. Beau couldn’t be more pleased how much business was brought through the door every night and he thanked his lucky stars that the place was his.

The bar was set apart from others on the strip of the little town of Lake Daniels, Tennessee.  Lake Daniels was known for being a stop through town off Route 57 going west through the state.  Many people stopped for a night, max two, and loved how quaint the town was and loved all the little shops and restaurants that sold trinkets and good southern food. But once their night stay was over, folks picked up and were on their way again, heading west of the town. Some would stay for a weekend, enjoying the lake, 5 miles outside of downtown, for which the town was named. The lake was as smooth as glass at night and as alive as the residents that boated out on weekends to enjoy the warm sun and cool water. The bar was definitely set apart from the quiet town as the music was loud and the crowds were louder.

 These days, Beau did the books in the office or took inventory while his bartenders and managers ran the place out in the front. He trusted his staff and was glad to see they took pride in their work. The loud bass of a popular country song pumped from the speakers out in the bar and make the walls of the office shake. Beau could barely keep his concentration that night and decided to make a rare appearance out in the bar, even though most nights the music didn’t bother him.

As he made his was out of the office and through the kitchen, he stopped several times to check in and make sure everything was running smoothly. Once he stepped out the kitchen doors, the view hit him with such a force he took a step back. Pride made his heart swell at the sight of a full bar. He meandered his was through the crowd toward the bar and his best friend that was tending it. The neon lights of the many beer signs reflected off the bar top as Corey, the bartender and one of Beau’s closest friends, wiped it down. He looked up to see Beau approaching and greeted him with a grin.

“Well, well, well, look what the bull dragged out of the office.” Corey said, laughing as he said it.

“Ha ha, very funny.” Beau said. He walked behind the bar and starting pouring several beers for a customer sitting at the bar rail. He engaged in some small talk and cashed him out for that round of drinks.

“Nice to see you out here. By the way, your sister left a message. Said you’ve been dodging her calls and she would really like you to call her back.”  Corey said, smiling as he poured a round of shots for a group of young college girls. He took the last one with them and they all slammed down their glasses on the bar. Corey smiled to the ladies and said a polite “thank you” for the shot and waved as they headed to the dance floor. He turned to Beau and gave him a puzzling look.  “ I don’t understand why you don’t just call her back and sort everything out. It’s been two years Beau, and I think your big sister would want to know how her brother is doing. Especially since the anniversary is coming up.”

The anniversary. That was the last thing Beau wanted to think about. The two-year anniversary of his brothers’ death. Of him getting killed doing something Beau and JR loved and lived for, bucking bulls.

“I’ll call her later.” Beau didn’t want to talk to his sister about JR. Not yet anyhow. He wasn’t ready to revisit the past and the painful memories that it held. He absentmindedly asked, “How’s the crowd tonight?”

Just as he spoke those words, his favorite Chris Young song came over the speakers. He saw a pretty blonde talking to the DJ and she seemed to be thanking him for something.

She rushed over to her group of friends standing around one of the high top tables fashioned out of old wagon wheels. She gathered her friends and they hit the dance floor. Beau was mesmerized at the way she moved in her tight jeans, olive green tank and tan Araits. She swayed and moved to the music with her back turned to Beau. When she twirled around, she and Beau locked eyes, and a sly flirty smile spread across her gorgeous face.  Beau had never seen a more beautiful sight.

Corey shoved Beau out of the way and proceeded to pour two beers from the taps into plastic cups with the bars logo on the front.

“Dude, if you’re going to stand behind the bar, for all that is holy, would you please help out with the drinks? It’s getting busier and Ginger is swamped with people on the floor.” Corey yelled, speaking of the other bartender.

“Yeah yeah.” Beau said with a chuckle as he began taking orders. The rest of the night passed in a blur of mixed drinks, shots, and beers. He moved with the ease of a seasoned bartender and got into a groove he somehow hadn’t forgotten. Finally, as the night was winding down, he had the time to think of the blonde from earlier in the night. As if she could read his thoughts, she appeared at the bar rail. She looked around, seemly confused, until she locked eyes on Beau. She scooted her way down to where he stood, and placed her hands down on the bar.

“Hi, I was just wondering if you knew the number for a cab company? My friend has had quite a few drinks and I don’t feel comfortable driving home.”

Beau looked at her in admiration. He always had much respect for people who refused to drive, even if they only had very little to drink.

He nodded to her and turned toward the beer cooler where he had magnets of the number for Leo’s cab company. He turned back to the mystery blonde and handed her the magnet.

“Leo is an old friend, he’ll get you girls home safe and sound.”

“Thank you, I really appreciated it.” Mystery girl looked around, leaned in close, and whispered, “My friend here just broke it off with a long time boyfriend and really seemed like she needed to let loose. Looking at her now, I think it was a little too loose.” She smiled a sheepish smile. She held out her hand and spoke firmly, “My mother would think badly of me if I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Callie, and my friend is Lauren. We just opened the new antique and boutique shop over on Main Street. The Vintage Collector.”

Beau had briefly heard of a shop that went in in the old warehouse a little ways off Main. The place used to be an old feed and tack store that had since relocated a further way out of town, most accessible to farmers and the like.

“Yeah, I’ve seen the flyers around town.  Looks interesting.” What was more interesting was the feeling Beau was getting from talking to beautiful Callie with no last name. He hadn’t felt like this is a long time.

“You’ll have to come check us out. We’re really excited about it. Anyway, I should be off calling this Leo fellow you recommended. Nice meeting you and maybe see you around town.” And with that, she was off.

Beau stood still watching her gather up her friend and head towards the door.  Corey bumped him in the back with a load of dirty shot glasses and pushed him out of the way of the dishwasher. The bar was starting to clear out now that last call had been announced. He watched as couples and singles left the dance floor, gathered their things and headed toward the door. The main lights started to shut off and the music was turned down to a minimum to give the waitresses and bartenders some background noise while they cleaned up. Beau dragged a large black trashcan out into the middle of the high top tables and began clearing them off of empty cups and napkins.

Corey yelled over the dishwasher and inquired about the mysterious girl that he had seen Beau talking to. “So what is the skinny on that little thing that you were fawning over?”

Beau threw him an incredulous look. Speaking of the cab driver, “I was not fawning over her, just giving her Leo’s number. She didn’t want to risk driving home so I offered her Leo’s services.  She was just saying thank you and telling me that she just opened a new shop in town. Nothing more, just being friendly and offering conversation.”

“If that’s all you say it is, I’ll leave it. But I bet you $10 that she’ll be in before the end of the weekend,” Corey challenged him.

Seeing as it was a Thursday night and that she might possibly be back in, he didn’t take the bet.

 

Reviews

[S.Diane.L.]

There were a few errors here and there, missing words, etc.
Like here:
As he made his was out of the office and through the kitchen,
Simple mistakes.
But anyway, I loved this. It felt like a real life scene, the imagery was good, a little sparse, but I think it worked out in your favor.

Looking forward to Chapter 2!