Page 33 of Maid in Heaven

“Casper, actually.”

“Oh, nice. I’ve been there a bunch of times. What brought you to Jackson Hole?”

“The jackalopes,” he said with a straight face.

Ava erupted into a sudden burst of loud laughter, one that turned the heads of nearly every person in the establishment. “Sorry,” she said with the flourish of her hand to the others before covering her mouth with it. She tried hard not to crack a smile. “Jackalopes, huh?”

“Ohhh yeah,” he said with mock seriousness. “They’re good eatin’. Figured if I came here, as long as I could afford ammo, I’d never go hungry a day in my life.”

Ava buried her face in her hands to keep from spooking the other patrons a second time with her laughter.

The infamousjackalopewas the state’s gimmick to earn tourists’ money, stemming all the way back from the 1930s. Taxidermied bunnies with antelope horns glued to their heads remained a common staple at nearly every kitschy souvenir shop and antique dealer in the state.

“I’m obviously kidding.” Will snickered.

“Oh, I assumed you were. Otherwise, this date was about to be over.”

The barista wove her way through tables toward themwith a cup in each hand. She set down Ava’sbrashlybefore placing one delicately in front of Will.

Avoiding Ava’s glare, the barista gave Will a flirtatious smile. “If there’s anything else you need, just let me know.”

“Thanks.” Will nodded.

Avafelt a pang of irritationas shewatched the barista retreat.Women were hungry tonight. It seemedWillwas on the menu.

Will held up his mug to cheers. “Here’s lookin’ at you, kid.”

Ava forced a smile, still a little agitated at the barista, and clinked mugs with him. “Cheers.”

“No, to answer your question…” Will’s voice snapped Ava back into the moment. “I came here because it’s beautiful, and I feel like there’sroom to breathe. I was going to CWC here when I found out we were going to be graced with Starla’s presence. That obviouslychanged my path. I needed money,so I put my degree on hold.Kids are expensive.”

“What were you going to school for?”

“Nursing. I wanted to be a traveling nurse. You know, see the world. Interact with people. I didn’t want to be a doctor. I wanted to know the patientsand actuallyhelp,you know?”

“Ever think you’ll go back?”

“Doubtful, but who knows. I like what I do. It may not be as admirable, but I still feel like, with the cleaning, I’m helpful and serving people, making people’s lives a little better.Now, Starla can have the stability she needs. She doesn’t have to bounce around schools and stuff like she would’ve.”

“Your daughter is very lucky.”

“I don’t know about lucky. It’s been a challenge from time to time. She deserves the world, but at least I’m there when she needs me.”

“That’s more than alotof little girls have.”

“True. Thankfully,I feel like I’m getting a little better at this wholesingle dadthing.”

“Oh yeah? How so?”

“Well,recently, I learned how to iron a pleated dress and do a half-decent ballerina bun.”

Ava smiled at the mental image of Will ironing a dress. “Can I ask why things didn’t work out between you and her mom?”

He sighed, knowing the question was coming. The sting still lingered in his chest.

“We hadn’t been dating longbefore Sarah got pregnant. Something like two months. Starla wasn’t planned. Sarah and Ilikedeach other a lot by then,but thelovepart never came. Years later, Sarah started hanging out with a weird crowd. She started doing a lot of things I didn’t approve of. Acting less and less like a mother and more like a rebellious teenager. She still wanted to go out, see the world, and partyas if she had no obligations.She’d disappear for, like, two days and come back with a hangover from Hell and offer no real explanation of where she’d been.”

Will sighed and looked up at Ava, debating whether to continue. “Eventually, we had to have a come-to-Jesus moment, and I told her I didn’t want to live like that anymore. I mean, last I saw her, she had tract marks all up her arm. She started screwing her dealer not long after that, and a few weeks later,Sarah went completely AWOL. Eventually, I ended up with full custody, and she ended up… who knows where. Haven’theard from her since Starla was about three when she came poking around wanting to see her.” He eyed his drink. “Not everyone is cut out for parenthood.”

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