Sweet Town Love

by Maggie Ryan

  “Well, here’s the thin’: I’m off duty. I’ve ascertained that there isn’t any immediate danger to the general public from foul-mouthed vagrants and there aren’t any ill youn’ ladies in trouble needin’ help. So let’s set up an appointment in my office for— What time do you get off work tomorrow, Nate?”

  “Four-thirty.”

  “Then let’s make it for five o’clock, Miss Kathy. We’ll discuss your situation. You feel free to brin’ someone with you, if you want.”

  “You mean like a lawyer?”

  Will chuckled and shook his head as he stood, swinging his leg free of the chair. “Explain thin’s to her, Nate. I’m headed home to my fiancée.” He winked and strode away.

  “Wait, was he the minder who is now engaged?” Kathy asked uncertainly.

  “I believe that appears to be the case.” Nate shrugged and grinned. “That’s a story I’d like to hear someday. Anyway, what he meant about bringing someone tomorrow is that if you want me to come with you, he’s fine with that. After all, he made a point of setting the time for after I got off work.”

  “I’d feel a lot better if you did come with me. Do you mind?”

  Her question startled a bark of laughter from him. “The question is: Will you mind if I mind?”

  “Huh? I’m sorry, you lost me. But I just want to make it clear that you shouldn’t feel any obligation to help me. I have no right to be asking, but you’ve been so nice, and I’m a little scared.”

  “I’m glad that you think I’m nice, but there’s going to need to be more than that. You are going to have to decide how much you trust me. Because it seems clear to me that there is a very real possibility that if I walk into the sheriff’s office with you tomorrow, you’re going to walk out with a minder.”

  Chapter 3

  Nate hummed absently as he prepared for work; he had to be careful shaving because he kept wanting to break into a big smile. He had enjoyed himself the previous evening and today was going to be a very interesting day, possibly life changing. There weren’t too many times that happened in your life—especially when you realized the potential in advance of the occurrence.

  He was feeling very good about how things were going with Kathy so far, although he was a trifle concerned about how well the relationship would continue to develop. He’d have a much better feel for what the future might hold when they met for lunch. Strange to think that lunch would mark the completion of the first twenty-four hours of knowing each other. There was a connection between them that seemed so natural; it was as if they had been together forever. The reality was that there was still a great deal that he didn’t know about Kathy, and he needed to get a good feel for her personality quickly, especially if he were going to have to make a decision about whether to take responsibility for her.

  Over the course of their drawn out dinner and then slow stroll through town the previous evening as he walked her home, their conversation had ranged far and wide over so many topics that he had never considered to be first date subjects before. Partly that was due to his attempts to give Kathy a good understanding about the dynamics in the town. He was worried that she had intellectually accepted what he told her, but hadn’t fully realized that if she were going to have a happy and successful life in Menton, she was going to have to adopt the behaviors expected of her.

  He had given her three things to do that he had thought were important—one of them crucial. He hadn’t worded anything as an order, except, perhaps, the importance of wearing panties. Over the course of the six hours they had spent together, he had found ways to tell her at least four times that panties were not optional in Menton. Not once had she responded in the affirmative, so he couldn’t really predict if she would amend that clothing preference. He certainly hoped so, as it seemed like she might not truly believe his warnings about behavior in Menton until she was faced with a spanking.

  He felt every muscle in his body tense at the thought of another man touching her like that. His mind rebelled from the thought of Kathy being spanked, but if it were going to happen, it had damn well better be his lap and his hand administering the consequence. And there was the issue. If—when—she was spanked, what would she do?

  Would their relationship be strong enough to survive that sort of test? Or would she decide that Menton was not for her and leave town so fast she could rival the cartoon roadrunner for the cloud of dust her feet raised—just like his mother had? Did he dare allow himself to grow any more attached to her than he already was, before finding out the answer to that question? The stray thought wouldn’t stop popping into his mind that perhaps it would be wise to get that first spanking over with soon. If she decided to run, it would be better for her to do it before the subsequent heartbreak was impossible to survive.

  Kathy smiled as she stretched in her new bed. From the minimal light from the edges of the window shades, she could see that it was early, but still later than she had been able to sleep in years. From the time that she was old enough to hold a job, early every morning she was either off to school or waitressing the breakfast shift at the truck stop. She grinned. It was starting to look like the silver lining from the thunderclouds of her mom kicking her out was even brighter than she had first thought when she decided to make Menton her new home. Here was an opportunity to make the decision to shape her life the way she wanted. Her mother had insisted that she take over the early shift, allowing her to move to the much more lucrative evening hours. But now Kathy could decide that she wasn’t available to work early hours, she could sleep in every day and… Who was she kidding? She sighed. Necessity was a stern taskmaster. She needed a job right away and if the one she found meant continuing to get up at the crack of dawn every day, well, that was nothing new.

  She quickly made her bed, not wanting to take a chance on antagonizing her landlady by having a messy room. Then, gathering her toiletries and clean clothing, she went across the hall to the bathroom and took her shower. Mrs. Donner had told her that it was okay to leave her toiletries on the counter by the sink, since she would be using her own separate bathroom attached to the master bedroom. But again, not willing to take a chance on starting off on the wrong foot, Kathy decided that she would keep her belongings in her room for at least the first few days to make sure that everything went smoothly in the beginning. She was quickly dressed and then careful to wipe everything down after she was finished, leaving the bathroom as clean as she found it.

  When Kathy ventured into the kitchen to make some toast for breakfast, she found her landlady sitting at the table reading the paper as she finished her meal. “Good morning! How are you today?”

  “I’m fine, dear. I didn’t expect to see you so early. I thought young people always slept in. Is everything all right?”

  “Oh yes! I am very happy with my room, thank you so much for renting to me.” She put some of her bread into the toaster and then turned to gesture at the newspaper. “May I look at the jobs section when you are through reading it? That is my big goal today. I’d like to start working immediately.”

  Mrs. Donner smiled. “Of course you can look at it! I want you to feel at home here. But there probably won’t be any jobs in the immediate area listed. Everyone tries to have local employees around here. You are better off just going into places and asking if they are hiring. Do you have a car? The Wal-Mart is probably hiring, but it is half an hour away.”

  “No, I don’t. Not yet, anyway. I need to get my finances in order first.” She realized that her talk about not having any money might upset her landlady. “Don’t worry, I had saved up a good amount before my mom ki—sent me on my way. I can afford to pay rent for at least a month, maybe two, if I’m very frugal. And I should be able to find something in that time. Even if not steady work, I can do odd jobs like babysitting or dog walking or house cleaning. I’m sure that I’ll find something. I just need a start.” Her toast popped up and she spread some grape jelly on it, then brought her plate to the table.

  “Th
e coffee pot is on the stove. Help yourself.”

  “Thank you, ma’am, but I’m fine with just water.”

  Mrs. Donner’s eyebrow rose. “Ma’am, eh? You haven’t used that before.”

  “Nate told me that I had to be mindful of my manners and that I should sir and ma’am everyone older than me. He said that people are a bit old fashioned here.”

  “That is quite an understatement,” her landlady said with a chuckle. “I’d feel more comfortable if you would call me Naomi. But Nate is right, you’d better mind your manners if you want to be welcomed into the community—which is what you will need if you want to get hired. And you should make sure that you dress modestly; instead of those tight jeans you should wear a skirt or dress when you apply for a job.”

  Kathy sighed. “That is going to be a bit of a problem. I wasn’t given much time to pack, so all I have is what I could shove in my backpack. I have the one skirt that I wore last night to dinner and then I have another pair of jeans and a few tops. Is there a thrift or consignment store around here that I can pick up a few things cheaply?”

  “There is. A few of the ladies run a second hand store as a way to raise money for the ambulance fund. It’s in the basement of the community center, but it’s only open on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.”

  “Well, I can get by until tomorrow. What time is it open? I’ll need to make sure that I don’t commit to start working immediately somewhere that will keep me from getting some new clothes.”

  “It opens at nine. Most things in town open then. It gives folks a chance to do their chores at home before going to work.” Naomi laughed. “That’s a carry over from when more people had animals that needed caring for, wood to chop to keep the stove going or gardens to tend. I remember when I was a little girl; I got some money for my birthday and wanted to rush into town to spend it before school. Daddy had to sit me down and explain about that. Now I think we’re just accustomed to a slower pace of life, and there’s not that much business that places need to be open long hours. It’s a nice civilized routine; nine to five, some are open until six, but nearly everything is closed after that. The Blue Bell Diner, the bowling alley and the theater are about the only things in town open later.” She leaned in to whisper. “The men don’t like the women to be out after dark, unless they take them somewhere, and no man wants to run errands. So the shops all close when the women go home to make dinner and stay in for the night.”

  “Nate tells me that his mother was very unhappy here and left as soon as she was of legal age, but it all sounds so nice to me. Everywhere I look, the town appears to be well cared for and the people I’ve met have all seemed pleasant—except for Mr. Collins, but he was upset by my cussing. Nate says that I should apologize to him, explain that I wasn’t myself because I was tired and hungry after a night of feeling sick on the bus. I’ve been debating whether I should write the apology, but I’d need to buy some notepaper, which I’d rather not do until I have money coming in, or if I should just go apologize in person.”

  Mrs. Donner smiled at the number of times Kathy mentioned what Nate said. It seemed that her experiment in sharing her home might be doomed to a short duration. This was a young woman obviously in the throes of a strong attraction to her hero, and he seemed like a deserving young man, who had taken the time to make things clear to the newcomer, giving her some guidance when she made a minor misstep. Plus, any man who brought a woman flowers on their first date was a keeper in her book!

  Nate sat on the same bench they’d shared the day before and checked his watch. He’d warned his uncle that he might be taking a longer lunch than usual—there were some perks for working for family. Bucky was still a little bewildered about why he was there at all, refusing to accept the heart attack as the wake-up call it should have been. He insisted that he didn’t need any help running his garage. Nate had taken the easy road, shrugging his shoulders and explaining that his mother, Bucky’s sister, would never speak to him again if he didn’t settle in Menton and work at the garage. He tried to keep a low profile with his uncle, but always made sure that he was handy to do the heavy lifting and generally take on the jobs that were more difficult for an aging body. He kept an eye on the business decisions his uncle made—just in case—but had seen no reason to interfere with any of them.

  Bucky’s Garage offered the lowest labor prices in at least a fifty-mile radius, because his uncle had never seen any reason to raise them over the years, but they weren’t in any danger of losing money, as parts were invoiced separately. The workload never seemed to lighten, since the townsfolk recognized the good deal. Early on, Nate had suggested that they raise the prices slightly to perhaps take a little pressure off by reducing the waiting list, but Bucky had been shocked by the idea of wanting to reduce the number of eager customers they had. Nate had immediately backed off the idea for fear of instigating another heart attack.

  So, along with taking on as much of the heavy physical work as he could, he’d focused on easing his uncle into a healthier lifestyle. The slower pace of life that was the norm in Menton had helped, as he had insisted that there be no more late hours in the garage, pointing out that they were being paid for an honest day’s work, no more and no less. He tried to eat dinner with Bucky several nights a week to keep the menu healthy and found activities to get his uncle out of his easy chair. Bowling and fishing were regular commitments that he’d never have dreamed would be part of his life at this point. Now he’d need to figure out how to spend time with Kathy without letting Bucky backslide.

  “You’re frowning. Is everything all right?” The woman in his thoughts was suddenly next to him on the bench.

  “Mmm, my day just got brighter with you here.” He accompanied his words by taking her into his arms and welcoming her with a deep kiss, just barely keeping to the line of what was considered acceptable for public displays of affection in Menton. “How has your day been so far?”

  She snuggled happily into the circle of his arms. “I’ve been busy, but I haven’t got much in the way of results to show for it. I got an early start, but since most places don’t open until nine, it didn’t make much difference. I did get to the Blue Bell in time to apologize to the bus driver for not letting him know that I had decided not to continue with him yesterday and thank him for his concern and returning the money my mother had paid him. So that is about the only thing I can completely check off. After the bus left and the rush died down, I was able to talk to Dottie about a job, but she doesn’t need anyone right now. She did say that she’d keep me in mind as a temp if one of the other waitresses gets sick or wants to take some time off.”

  “Good for you for apologizing to Cliff. He’s a decent man and I’m sure that he felt really bad about driving off without you.”

  “Yes, I could tell that was the case and I felt horrible about that.” She sighed. “I tried to see Mr. Collins to apologize but—”

  “You what!”

  She raised her head and looked at him with a confused expression. “You said that I owed him an apology as well as the bus driver. Mrs. Donner told me where he worked, so I went over to the insurance company and tried to see him. But his secretary said that I needed an appointment. I couldn’t make one for the end of the day today because of the meeting with the sheriff. He’s traveling to a convention and not available for the next couple of days, but I have an appointment to see him when he gets back.”

  “I thought that you would write him a note, it didn’t occur to me that you would try to see him in person.”

  “Why not? A note doesn’t really begin to compare to a heartfelt apology in person.”

  Nate tried to calm his racing heart. Kathy still didn’t understand the dynamics of the town and probably wouldn’t completely until she found herself facing a spanking. He pulled away from her slightly and placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her tightly so that he could watch her facial expressions closely. “You’ve shown me that you listened carefully to what I talked about
last night and I’m proud of you for following through so promptly, but what about the thing that I told you was the most important? Are you wearing panties today?”

  Yup, she preened slightly with the praise, but dropped her eyes and blushed as soon as he finished with the question. He felt an instinctual growl of annoyance deep inside, which he barely managed to keep internal. His fingers dug into her soft flesh slightly and he wanted to give her a shake. “I can tell that’s a no. Kathy, sweetheart, don’t you get it?” He shook his head. “Of course not. How could you?” He closed his eyes in frustration as he tried to figure out how to convey the importance, once again, since she just didn’t seem to understand the potential for fiasco.

  “I did go into The Emporium and looked for some. But all they had was gigantic granny panties and I didn’t see any female salespeople to ask for help. I’d already asked Mr. Jenkins for a job and he’d put me off, so I could hardly go back to him and start talking about panties!”

  Nate couldn’t help picturing that conversation and acknowledged the truth of the statement. “Yes, I can see that, and good for you for trying. But, sweetheart, this is getting urgent. Why on earth are you wearing a skirt with nothing on underneath? At least you weren’t in danger of flashing anyone in your jeans.”

  “Mrs. Donner said that I would do better with my job hunting by dressing more conservatively. She said that my jeans were too tight by local standards. I changed after breakfast.”

  “Mrs. Donner doesn’t know about your wardrobe deficiencies, does she?”

  “Not about the panties, no. She did tell me about the thrift shop that will be open tomorrow and I plan to go there first thing.”

  “First thing tomorrow doesn’t help for today. Not that I like the idea of you wearing panties that used to belong to someone else, some things should just be yours only.” He stood and pulled her up with him. “Come on. Looks like we’re going to Wal-Mart. I need to let Bucky know that I’m going to be gone longer than expected and my truck is parked at the garage anyway.” He took her hand and headed down the street in a direction she hadn’t explored yet.