Page 9 of Big Daddy Mountain Man

“She’s here for Big Cedar,” Mindy spoke up.

Amber grinned. “How did you know?”

“You’re a Little,” Mindy answered with a wry smile.

“How did you know?”

Mindy shrugged. “I can just tell. Little radar.”

All the women, including Amber, giggled.

“Did you rent a cabin?” Grace asked.

“Well, sorta,” Amber said. She was about to explain further when a buzzer rang out.

Alyssa ran to where her phone rested on a bench, picked it up, and tapped until the buzzer went off.

“Ah, man. We’ve got to go home now,” she said apologetically. “My Daddy said we have to be home for supper. Their Daddies are helping mine grill and we’re all going to eat.” Her eyes grew wider. “Hey, do you want to come? We always have room for one more!”

The invitation warmed her heart, but Amber didn’t want to impose. Plus, if she had to walk to her destination, she wanted to set out on her journey before it got any later. She was alreadyafraid of the prospect of being on those dark roads alone at night. The later it got, the more afraid she’d be!

So, she smiled and shook her head. “No, thank you. I need to get to the place I’m staying. But I don’t know where it’s at. Do y’all?”

She held up the piece of paper with the info and rattled off the address.

“Rural Road 116 is about three miles away,” Grace said. “Just drive east about two miles, turn right when you see the big red barn, and then drive another mile and you’ll hit your cabin.”

Amber thought about mentioning she wasn’t driving but decided against it. She didn’t want the other women to think she was fishing for a ride. She didn’t want to inconvenience anyone. Plus, she was embarrassed.

“Thank you,” she said.

“We hope to see you soon, Amber,” Alyssa called over her shoulder as she skipped away with Grace and Mindy.

“Yeah. Come play with us!” Mindy said. “My Daddy owns the store, and our house is just down the street. It’s the white and blue cottage. Drop by anytime!”

Grace just waved and Amber waved back as she watched the trio get smaller.

She sighed. It would have been fun to have dinner with them, but she didn’t want to impose. She was kind of hungry, though. The tamales were good but had worn off hours ago. She still had some tortillas and fruit left. They would have to suffice for supper. She was thankful to have them. She’d gotten by on a lot less.

She looked east and winced as the road seemed to stretch on forever.

“Two miles that way and then another mile when I see the big barn,” she repeated.

Yikes! That was a long trek. Maybe it would be best to find somewhere to sleep and then start on her journey in the morning. As she took another glance around Big Cedar, though, she realized it wasn’t like Oklahoma City, where she’d spent more nights on the streets than she cared to admit. There wasn’t really a place to curl up and hide. She supposed she could sleep on the playground, but the gate had clicked shut behind her after she’d followed the Littles out. She had no idea what the code was.

It looked like walking was her best option.

Too bad the store wasn’t still open where she could at least buy a flashlight. She had sixty-three dollars left after buying her bus ticket. She’d have to stretch that and make it last until she found a job, but she could easily do that. Assuming there was a grocery store nearby. She could buy some crackers, maybe some cheap hot dogs, and a few cans of food to last her over a week, easily.

Again, she’d gotten by on a lot less.

“Probably good you can’t buy a flashlight,” she told herself aloud. “You need to save your money.” She took one more look down the road. With the sun behind her, it already looked mighty dark ahead. “You’ve got this.”

That’s when an idea hit her.

Were there any rideshares in the area? It was a tiny town, but Southeastern Oklahoma was a huge tourist destination. Surely she could call for a ride. While she didn’t have a phone, maybe they could help her in the diner.

It couldn’t be any more than ten dollars to go three miles.

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