揑抦 at Mama抯 place,?Haley answered, 搕rying to go through all the stuff. I never realized what a hoarder she was. It抣l take all summer, but that抯 all right. It will give me something to do to keep my mind off this adoption thing. I don抰 have to be back at school in Alabama until August.?
揑抦 at home until I find a job,?Mary Nell said. 揇addy has said 慖 told you so?a dozen times since I got here last week, but it抯 the truth, and I deserve it. He told me that if Kevin ever got a contract in Nashville, he would toss me to the curb, and that抯 exactly what Kevin did. But that抯 another of those stories that we抣l talk about later.?
Jessica patted Mary Nell抯 shoulder on the way back to her chair. 揔evin is a jackass for not appreciating the fact that you抳e supported him for twenty years so he could follow his dream.?
揂men!?Risa and Haley both chimed in at the same time.
揘ow, changing the subject.?Jessica pointed toward the church building. 揥hat can I do with that thing? Y抋ll got any ideas??
揧ou could always turn it into a bar,?Wade suggested. 揜iverbend hasn抰 got one of those, and the church is sitting right in the northeast corner of Burnet County, which is a wet county in the middle of a whole bunch of dry ones. Fort Hood is just over the county line, and you抎 get all kinds of business from the soldiers stationed there. They have to go quite a way to find a place to dance some leather off their boots and get a drink.?
揝ounds like you抳e given this some thought.?Mary Nell cocked her head to one side. 揌ave you mentioned the idea to my daddy? He would love the idea of a bar close by so he could sell his moonshine and wine to the owners.?
揘ope, I haven抰 talked to Oscar about it, but the thought has crossed my mind,?Wade said. 揇anny and I used to joke about starting a bar, but he wanted to build a tiki bar on a beach somewhere, and I was thinking about an old western honky-tonk, maybe in Wyoming or Montana.?
揑n a town with a population of eight hundred ninety-three people, a bar would never support itself. And all the churchgoing people would fight you tooth and nail at even suggesting such sacrilege as turning a church into a beer joint,?Risa said.
揂nd Granny Stella would lead the protest march,?Daisy said.
揧ou got that right,?Lily agreed with a nod.
揑f all four of us plus the twins decide to stay here, that would make it eight hundred ninety-nine,?Risa said.
揟hey haven抰 counted me yet敆Wade turned up his bottle and took a long drink棑so that would make it an even nine hundred. I was in a bar over in Mingus, Texas, a few years ago, and that town only has a little over two hundred people in it. It抯 got two bars and all the counties around it are dry, so they flat out do a business on the weekends. You抮e sitting on a virtual gold mine, Jessica. All the surrounding counties except San Saba, and that barely even touches Burnet County, are dry. Folks would come from all around us to have a little fun. Throw in a grill and you could even serve up burgers and fries.?
揑 can already hear Granny Stella抯 screams.?Daisy giggled.
揜ight along with everyone else抯 here in the county,?Haley said.
Jessica was glad to see that Haley抯 tears had finally dried up, and she was sipping on her beer. If nothing else, the old church gave them something to talk about that evening.
揘ot my daddy,?Mary Nell disagreed. 揌e makes moonshine in the barn out back of the house. He抯 even got a license to make and sell it. He would love to see a bar go in this close to town.?
Lily looked up at the sky. 揋ranny Martha is probably talking to God right now, and the two of them are planning to send lightning streaks down to strike all y抋ll dead for even thinking about turning a house of God into a bar.?
Jessica took a long look at the building. Wade was probably teasing, but it was a pretty good idea. She could visualize Uncle Elijah giving her two thumbs up from his grave. The old guy had tried to reform and become a preacher back when she was in middle school, but his church梩he very one she was staring at梙ad failed to bring in enough of a congregation to even pay the electric bills. He had shut the doors a year after he抎 opened them, and then he fell off the wagon again. His liver finally had enough of his drinking and had failed him just last year.
揂 bar sounds like a crazy idea,?Jessica said and wondered if her Uncle Elijah had bought his moonshine from Oscar. 揥hat about a bed-and-breakfast place??
揥ho抎 come to Riverbend??Haley asked. 揑n case you抳e forgotten, this isn抰 a resort area. And did you learn to cook while you were in the service? A bed-and-breakfast would require serving up something fancy every morning at the very least.?
揑 can make toast and pour cold cereal in a fancy bowl,?Jessica answered.