Page 70 of Just This Once

A seriesof bubbles popped up, then disappeared, and popped up again. No doubt that the bomb I just dropped rattled them both.

Royal

The shop’s open. We’ll be able to talk in private if you want to meet here.

Abel

I can find someone to cover the brewery. What time?

I’ll come by after my shift.

Royal

Parking downtown will be nonexistent because of the carnival. Try the alleyway around back. I’ll leave the back door open.

It was probablyparanoid of me to delete the text thread with my brothers, but then again, I was well aware of the power Russell King held. I needed to refocus, and for the rest of the afternoon, I dedicated all my attention to checking and rechecking equipment and performing my duties.

Later a text came through from Emily, and it was the only bright spot in my day.

Emily

Will I see you at the carnival tonight? How did the interview go? I can’t wait to hear all about it!

I smiled downat my phone as I typed my response.

Interview went well. And are you asking me out on a date?

I shiftedmy weight as nerves rolled through me. The carnival would be a very public place to have a date.

Emily

I am! My mom mentioned taking Dad to dinner out of town so I figured you wouldn’t have to worry about your mean old boss knowing our business. I can make an honest man out of you. Well... sort of.

I needed a night away.Time to get my head right, and I couldn’t think of anyone else I would rather spend time with than her.

I could probably be talked into a corn dog and a Ferris wheel ride.

Emily

I’ll wear a disguise.

Things were shifting.Emily and I had agreed to be casual, but being seen together at one of the biggest events in our small town would be the opposite of casual.

Her school year was over, and my interview was done. I couldn’t help but hope that the shift I was feeling was because things were finally clicking into place.

Royal was right,of course. Because of the carnival, parking in Outtatowner was nonexistent. Even at the back of the building, cars were crammed in every available parking space. It took me twenty minutes, but I finally wedged my truck in between Ms. Tiny’s Cadillac and a dumpster.

The tinny, rhythmic beat of carnival music echoed in the air as I walked up the street toward King Tattoo. I offered quiet waves and gentle nods to the families and neighbors I passed along the way. Excitement for the carnival, which was held two blocks from the main thoroughfare in town in an empty field owned by the city, hung in the air.

The two-day carnival had been set up with rides, games, and even a stage for live music. Anticipation of seeing Emily hummed in my blood, but I had something I needed to take care of first.

I had no doubt that discussion about our mother was about to go over like a lead balloon, but I needed answers. When I reached King Tattoo, I held open the door for a pair of college-age-looking girls who were showing off and laughing over their matching best-friend tattoos.

I took in the shining black-and-white checkerboard floor of the tattoo shop. The space was brightly lit with my brother’s artwork framed along the walls. Over time, he had hired other artists, and their work hung alongside his. The King name may be on the building, but my brother valued the artists who worked alongside him.

The hum of the tattoo machines filled the air, and I caught the eye of Luna, the woman who worked the desk and was also the resident piercer. Studs lined the shells of both her ears, and diamonds for dimples winked in the fluorescent lighting.

I pointed to my right cheek. “That one new?”

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