29. Zoe
TWENTY-NINE
zoe
The bar was hopping.
Somehow Mazzie found the most incredible musicians every weekend, making Boots and Brews the new place to be. Only open a few months now, it had established itself as a cornerstone of the community, and though there were a few too many tourists on Friday and Saturday nights thanks to its location on Main Street, it had become a favorite for locals too.
“Where did you find this guy?” I asked Mazzie. I was standing at the bar waiting for Nate to come back from the bathroom. Lucas and Charlee were dancing to a lively country western tune. Nate said he’d dance if I wanted him to, but it didn’t seem to be his thing.
“He’s new to the area,” she said. “A friend of a friend.”
“Incredible,” I said, picking up my drink from the bar.
“I’ve been meaning to tell you guys. Gian and I decided on a destination wedding, sort of to honor the place we met.”
“You mean Italy?”
“Sicily, actually.”
“Aren’t they the same?”
Mazzie laughed. “Ask a Sicilian that question, and you’ll get a pretty emphatic no.”
“Hmm. Interesting.”
“Anyway, I want you to come. You, Charlee, Natalie. We’re only inviting about fifty people or so, but you ladies have become like family to me.”
Mazzie didn’t have much of a family to speak of, being an only child with her parents both deceased. “Are you serious right now? Sicily? As if you have to ask twice.”
Mazzie laughed. “We’ll be getting the invitations out soon, but I wanted to give you a heads-up since it’s less than a year out. I’m close to nailing down a date, but it’s looking like mid-May of next year.”
“Sounds amazing. Count me in.”
“Awesome. I hope the others can make it too.” As the song ended, Mazzie said, “Catch you in a bit,” and headed toward the singer. The woman never seemed to stop. She was a hard worker for sure. Then again, when you owned your own business, that was the name of the game.
“Someone looks deep in thought.”
Nate’s slipped his arm around my waist, and he grabbed his beer from the bar.
“I was just dreaming of Sicilian sunsets and aperitifs by the sea.”
Not surprisingly, he looked at me oddly. “Interesting train of thought.”
“Mazzie just told me she and Gian are getting married in Sicily next year, and we’re invited. Can you imagine? I’ve never been as you know.”
“I hear Sicily is beautiful.”
“I guess we’ll find out.”
Our eyes locked. It didn’t feel like a leap to me, assuming we’d be together next May. But since we rarely talked long-term, there was meat on this bone for sure.
“I guess we will.”
His words gave me goosebumps, and I didn’t want to hide it. “It makes me happy to hear you say so.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“And what exactly makes you so happy, Zoe girl?” he asked as the music started once again. This was everything I’d imagined it would be when Nate and I were getting to know each other. A Friday night, three weeks into his homecoming, his arm around me. It just felt. . . perfect.
“You know exactly what makes me happy,” I teased back.
“I have an inkling,” he said. “Bet you’d be happier on the dance floor though. You keep looking at it. Wanna dance?”
“Do you?”
He shrugged.
“Nah, maybe another time. I’d rather just talk about how we’ll be going to Mazzie and Gian’s wedding in Sicily next May.”
He appeared thoughtful.
“What is it?”
“You know, we’re opposite in a lot of ways.”
“The dancing?” Lucas and Charlee seemed to be at it again. The two really were good together.
“One of many things,” he said.
“Well, you know what they say. Opposites attract.”
“Do you believe that?”
“In general? Or with us?”
“Either.”
I shrugged, never really having given it much thought. “I think it’s good to have things in common, but it’s also good to have individual interests, you know?”
“I do.”
“And also to expose each other to new things. Like wine.”
“I don’t know about that one. It’s gonna be a hard sell, I think.”
“What about you?” I asked. “Do you believe opposites attract?”
“I think it could go either way.”
I waited, but he didn’t seem to be ready to offer more. “As always, a man of a few words.”
Nate laughed. “I did warn you.”
“You did, but I found it hard to believe. Maybe I’ll just text you the hard questions.”
“Speaking of texting, I have a feeling we’re going to be doing a bit more of it soon.”
“Whaddya mean?”
“I heard back from the VA. Looks like I have to head home to apply with my bank. They don’t process loans themselves. It goes through a program called Patriot Express, but since I have an account established in Monticello, they advised me to start there.”
“I assume you need a business plan before moving forward?”
“Yeah, I’ve been working on that. The most logical thing, I think, is a place like my uncle’s.”
“But I thought you didn’t want a restaurant?”
“I just don’t know what else makes sense. I thought about a bar, but if I’m staying in Kitchi Falls, that won’t work. Not with this”—he waved his arms—“in addition to KC’s. Plus Grado’s Brewery. Seems as if the area has its fill of bars at the moment.”
“You’re probably right. But I agree that would have been a perfect fit for you. Something like KC’s. A sports-bar type thing. So, when are you thinking of going?”
“I called the bank today and made an appointment for Tuesday. But I know you can’t get away with the Fall Festivities and Pride Week events.”
I was thinking the same thing. “It would be tough. Though I’d love to meet your family.”
“Another time,” he said.
“Yeah, another time.” If Nate pushed, I might have been able to swing it. But he seemed lukewarm on the idea of me going home with him. So, I let it go. Reminded myself he needed time to adjust.
“Do you need my car?” I asked.
“Nah, thanks. I’m gonna rent one so I can bring mine back.”
“But you are coming back, right?”
I wasn’t sure what insecurity prompted me to blurt that out, but I did. Couldn’t take it back now.
“Of course,” he said, looking confused. “That is, if you want me to.”
“We can’t very well be together next May if you don’t come back.”
“True enough. And there’s the whole opening a business here too.”
“So that’s one hundred percent? You’re going to do that here?”
“Are you guys gonna just stand there at the bar all night or do you plan to dance with us?” Charlee asked, rushing up to us, breathless.
“Nate’s not much of a dancer,” I said.
“Get a few more beers in ’em,” Lucas said, sidling his way up to the bar, “and it’s a different story.”
Our more serious conversation dropped for now, I picked up on Lucas’s lighthearted tone. “Yeah? Then how about another round. I’d like to see this drunk-dancing Nate.”
Nate rolled his eyes, but there was laughter behind them.
So, he’d be going home next week. I wondered for how long. Actually, I wondered a lot of things, but pushing hadn’t worked very well with Erik, and I didn’t want to make the same mistakes. It would all work out in time.
Go with the flow, Zoe.
Problem was, I’d never been very good at that. Patience might be a virtue, but it wasn’t one of mine. I supposed this situation with Nate, loving a man who was in a major adjustment period in his life, was going to force a bit of patience on me. Like it or not.
Life lessons. Damn inconvenient little buggers if you asked me.