Page 21 of Travis

“His name is Greg Tubman. And by ‘legit’, what do you mean?”

He sidesteps his answer. “I just get a bad vibe from him, like I said.”

I hear laughter coming from the barn, and then Kurt and Farley come out, with Greg in their wake.

“I should go.”

“Yeah.” he nods. He lifts his head, and I swear to God he wants to tell me he loves me, as he always did before we parted, with a kiss, too. But he stops himself. “I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah.”

Travis

“Can’t say I have.” Grayson answers to my question. “Don’t know any Tubman in these parts. Did you ask Laura? She’d know better than me on account of her living here all her life.”

“No. Not yet.” I respond. “I didn’t want to bother her anymore. She was on the phone, ordering more Christmas decorations and such.”

“See if y’all can ask the Sheriff.” Kurt suggests. “I’m sure if you bring him a coffee or something, he’ll look and see if the guy’s got a record.”

“Y’all think he’s got a record?” Grayson checks. “Or are you just worried that he’ll put the moves on Becky?”

He's careful when he says this, and I respect him for it. “Both. I’d just like to know what his deal is. If he’s just looking for work, that’s one thing, but a twenty-something guy all decked out like that, looking like he belongs on Wall Street? I got the feeling he’s looking for some prey.”

Lisa walks in with little Quentin. She gives Kurt a quick peck on the lips before kindly busting in on the conversation. We bring her up to speed. “I could ask around, too.” she offers. “My circle’s pretty robust.” “Y’all don’t suppose a guy in his mid-twenties, assuming he’s single and straight, would have anything unchristian on his mind, do ya?” Lisa teases.

“That’s my fear.” I admit. “I told Becky that I was getting a bad vibe from him, but she just thinks I'm jealous.”

“Are you?” Lisa asks honestly.

“No.” I shake my head. “I just can’t figure him out. And I betcha he’s going to laugh in my face the next time he sees me, assuming Becky tells him our story.”

“You think she will?” Kurt asks.

“Probably. It seems to me like she’s not much for holding back, since she’s told everyone she knows already.”

“I don’t take Becky as the gossiping type, though, Travis.” Lisa says.

“And she would know.” Kurt taunts with a good-natured cackle.

She gives him a warning look, but her eyes are dancing. “I’ll see what I can dig up about this guy. In the meantime, she’ll be around here a lot, from what I understand, right?”

I nod.

“Then we can all keep an eye on him.” Grayson adds.

Laura walks into the kitchen from her office. “Keep an eye on who?”

“Greg.” Grayson answers. “Becky’s new assistant.”

“How you find him, Laura?” I ask, knowing that Laura can usually sense, better than anyone, when someone is no good.

Her answer is tentative. “He is a little...odd. I, personally, wouldn’t have hired him. Just on account of his spotty resume. But, then again, most of my positions involve working with expensive and highly specialized, dangerous equipment, and some of my workers live on site.”

“So, did you get a bad vibe from him?” I check.

“Like I said, he’s a little odd, and I worry when a man with that tight of an ass doesn’t have a reason for it.”

Grayson snorts a laugh. “That’s my girl. Tell it like it is.”

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