Chapter Twenty-Two
We抮e on the countdown.?Jessica pointed at the clock on the kitchen wall. 揙ne hour until we open. Is everyone as nervous as I am? What if no one comes tonight??
揟hen we抣l open again on Tuesday night and hope they come then,?Wade said. 揥e have advertised in newspapers in every county all around us, and we even bought some airtime on the local radio.?
揚lus, all the controversy that Granny Stella tried to stir up had to give us a little bit of advertisement.?Lily looked up from the last tomato she was slicing. 揊ood prep is all done. Daisy and I are ready to help build burgers and wash dishes when the rush hits.?
揑 just hope there is a rush.?Jessica smoothed down the front of her T-shirt, which was imprinted with the bar logo.
揌ey,?Mary Nell scolded, 搕here will be no bad vibes an hour before we open. We are going to have a full house, and there抯 going to be people outside waiting to get in. The inspector said we can have a max of one hundred people, and we抣l hit that mark by six thirty.?
Zach chuckled. 揧ou dream big, madam.?
Mary Nell shook her finger under his nose. 揇on抰 you call me that, and yes, I do dream big.?
揧es, ma抋m.?Zach nodded, but the twinkle in his eye told Jessica that he was flirting.
揥ell, I抦 proud of everything you kids have done this summer.?Oscar brought out a stack of red plastic cups and a pitcher of sweet tea. 揑 vote that we toast the new bar before we open tonight. Whether one person comes out to our grand opening or we have a million, we have created a family while we抳e been working on making a bar out of this old church building the past few months. That抯 pretty danged awesome in my book. I was afraid a relationship between Jessica and Wade would be a bad thing, but I was wrong, so here抯 to them, too!?
He poured tea for everyone and held his cup up. 揟o the old church family.?
揌ear! Hear!?The rest of the team picked up their cups and held them high.
Wade took a drink, set his cup down, and slipped an arm around Jessica抯 waist. 揗y mama used to tell me that working together makes the best friends. We are proof positive of that tonight. I抦 going to plug enough money into the jukebox at exactly six o抍lock to play six songs to get the night rolling. Anyone have suggestions??
搼Danny Boy?should be playing when the first customers come in,?Haley answered.
揂nd then 慚y Church,挃 Lily suggested.
揑 agree with Lily. Looks like we抳e got our first棓 Risa stopped and pointed out the window above the sink. 揙h, no . . . ,?she stammered. 揗ama is out there. She抯 parking in the middle of the lot and just sitting in her car.?
Daisy rushed over to the window and draped an arm over her mother抯 shoulders. 揥e knew this might happen.?
揂nd there抯 Lulu pulling up right beside her,?Oscar noted.
揑 wonder if they抳e enlisted the whole congregation to come out here and just park so that folks will think we抮e full??Haley asked.
Jessica kept checking on the lot for the next half hour. No one else showed up, and at ten minutes until opening, she began to get really antsy. At first, she抎 thought Stella was just a big bag of hot wind, but maybe the woman had more influence over the town than Jessica had realized.
Then vehicles began to arrive, two and three at a time. Men and women alike who were definitely military got out of trucks and cars and gathered in clusters to talk. Then Stella and Lulu got out of their cars and started putting brochures on windows. A few folks grabbed them, glanced through them in a couple of seconds, and tossed them on the ground.
揕ooks like our job tomorrow after church is going to be cleaning up the parking lot,?Zach said.
揔ind of looks that way,?Wade said with a wide grin. 揙kay, folks, it抯 time, and it looks like the parking lot is full.?
揑 see folks coming down the road,?Haley said. 揟hat means they抮e parking way out there and walking in. We抮e going to have a good grand opening.?
揑n spite of what my mother is doing,?Risa growled. 揧抋ll hold down the fort. I抦 going out there.?
揇on抰 give her the satisfaction,?Haley said. 揝he just wants to get a rise out of you.?
揕et me take care of this one,?Oscar said. 揊rom the way the folks are crowding up to the door, you are needed in here. Man your posts, everyone. Mary Nell, Zach, and Wade need to be behind the bar. Risa and the girls, get ready for a rush. Jessica and Haley will be working the floor, and I抦 going to be everywhere after I come in from the parking lot.?
揃ut . . . ,?Risa started to argue.
Oscar laid a hand on her shoulder. 揥hat I抳e got in mind will work better than anything you could say or do.?
揥e need you too badly around here for you to be thrown in jail,?Risa said.