36. Chapter 36

Chapter thirty-six

"Just steer clear of Captain Jack over there."

G age sat on the edge of the bed. He and Sydney had a very good time last evening. Then they got up and had a late dinner of cereal and milk, some mixed nuts, and two apples. They'd talked until midnight, then went back to bed. It was another hour before they went to sleep, though.

Sydney put a hand on his back. "Where are you going?"

"Someday has arrived."

She raised up onto and elbow. "What do you mean?"

"You and I are going to open Seth's treasure box."

"Are you sure?"

"Get your ass out of bed."

He put on his clothes, then went into the kitchen. They'd finished off the cereal and the few things he had in his cupboard were not suitable breakfast food. When Sydney came in, he shut the cupboard doors.

"We're going to need to raid Mom's kitchen."

"Will she mind?"

"Of course not. In fact, she'll insist on cooking for us."

"She doesn't need to do that."

"She loves feeding her kids."

Sydney laughed. "Okay. I can't argue with that."

"You can't argue with Delaney Calaway about anything. You just say, yes ma'am, and get out of her way." He opened the canister next to the coffee machine. "Man. I don't even have coffee."

"Maybe we should hit the grocery store later."

"Yeah. We definitely need to do that." He smiled. "Will you cook me dinner tonight?"

"Of course. That's one of your perks of me being the mayor's girlfriend."

"Hmm. This girlfriend boyfriend thing is growing on me."

"Well, good. Because I'm not going anywhere."

"Good to know."

Ten minutes later, they left the house and drove to his parents' house. They found Delaney in the kitchen preparing a brisket to marinate for dinner.

"Hey, sweetheart." Gage kissed her on the cheek and she smiled at Sydney. "How nice to see you, Sydney."

"Good morning."

Delaney looked at Gage. "You look hungry."

"Well, now that you mention it."

"Let me finish this and I'll make you both some breakfast." She looked at Sydney again. "My son has yet to learn how to buy groceries."

"I've noticed that."

Gage poured two cups of coffee and handed one to Sydney. Then they sat at the table. "Is that brisket?"

"Your father's favorite. He wants it every Saturday night. But we've compromised at every other Saturday." She glanced over her shoulder at him. "There will be plenty if you want to stay for dinner. Or come back for it. Do you have plans for the day?"

"I'm going to show Sydney around the ranch. She's been here, but I'd like her to see what you don't see on a casual visit."

"You can gather the eggs if you want. I haven't gotten out there yet."

"We'll gather the eggs."

Delaney put the brisket in a plastic bag, then put it into the refrigerator. She took out a carton of eggs and a package of bacon. "Your father and Rand are out with the herd. And Cooper and Cabe rode out to the summer pasture to make sure it's ready for the cows."

Gage nodded. He sometimes felt guilty for not having more interest in the ranch. But it had always been pretty obvious he wasn't destined to be a rancher. No one ever thought he'd be mayor either. They didn't seem surprised, though. He had a very supportive family, and he was grateful.

Breakfast was wonderful, as everything Delaney cooked was. And when they finished, they left the house and headed for the barn. Their first stop was the chicken coop. Gage handed Sydney the basket his mother used to gather the eggs, then held the coop door open for her.

"You want me to do it?"

"It's not hard."

She laughed. "I know. I've just never spent much time around chickens."

"They're harmless. Just steer clear of Captain Jack over there." He nodded toward a big black rooster.

"He looks…terrifying."

Gage grinned. "He can be. Don't worry. I'll protect you." He took her arm. "Just check the nests."

They found fourteen eggs and put them in the basket. Then they left it on the back porch before heading for the barn. "I wasn't much help with the ranch. I did what I was told, of course. But I never really liked it. I love the barn, though. Especially the hayloft." He went to a ladder leading up to the loft above the horse stalls. "Ladies first."

"What's up here?"

"Hay. Thus the name." He smiled. "And a long buried treasure."

He climbed up after her. The loft had standing headroom near the edge, but the barn roof sloped down, making it only five feet near the wall. Gage went to the back corner, hunching down as the roof got lower. Then he knelt and looked at Sydney. "There's a loose board here in the wall." He pushed on the board and it creaked, pivoting to reveal a hidden space. Gage reached in and pulled out a metal lunchbox with Batman on it.

Sydney smiled. "Batman?"

"Batman is cool."

"Right. Of course." He set the box in the hay, then put the board back. Sydney looked at the clasp on the box. "It doesn't lock."

Gage opened the box to reveal a smaller metal box with a padlock on it. "But this does." He took a breath, then opened the padlock. He glanced at Sydney and she put a hand on his knee. He opened the box.

There were three things inside. A red Hot Wheels truck Seth loved because it looked like the one Uncle Rand had at the time. A huge blue marble Seth thought looked like the earth. And an unopened pack of Blackjack gum.

He picked up the gum. "He loved this stuff."

"Did you?"

"No. Tastes like soap." He set it down and picked up the truck. "Uncle Rand had a red pickup. We thought this looked like it, and Seth wanted one just like it when he was old enough to drive." Next, Gage picked up the marble. "And this was his favorite tonk."

"Tonk?"

"An oversized marble. This is a galaxy tonk."

"Because it looks like the planet?"

"Yeah. Remy taught us to play marbles, and we started collecting them. We had a ton of them. I suppose Mom still has them around somewhere. She doesn't get rid of anything. This meant a lot to him. And he gave it to me."

Sydney moved closer and laid her head on his shoulder. "What are you going to do with this?"

He thought for a moment. "Take it home." He closed the box, but didn't lock it, then he returned it to the lunchbox. "It's time the buried treasure found a new home."

They moved to where they had more headroom, and Sydney looked around. "Did you ever bring a girl up here?"

Gage laughed. "No. I'm sure Cooper did, though." They went down the ladder, and once at the bottom, Gage took Sydney's hand. "Thank you for doing that with me."

"You're welcome. Thank you for wanting me to."

"I don't think there is much I want to do without you anymore. Can you handle that?"

"I think I can."

"Have you met all the horses?"

"I haven't met any of the horses."

"It's about damn time you did, then."

They spent thirty minutes in the barn with the horses. Then, after putting the lunchbox in the Mustang, Gage showed her the other animals. When they finished with that, they took a walk across the pasture. When they got to the trees, they turned back.

"This place is so beautiful."

"Yeah. Nothing else quite compares. Although my little nook comes close."

"Your little nook is wonderful."

When they got back to the house, they went inside to say goodbye to Delaney.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay for dinner? Or I can make you some lunch."

"Thank you, Mom. But we're going to go. I have some serious grocery shopping to do."

"I don't want to keep you from that." She looked at Sydney. "Try to convince him to buy something besides beer and cereal."

"I'll do my best."

They left the ranch and headed for town. Gage went directly to the grocery store and parked in the lot. He turned to Sydney. "Get whatever you think we'll need between now and Monday morning. Once we go home, I don't want to leave again."

"I will set us up."

For the first time in his life, Gage went to the cashier with a half-full cart. He was surprised to see Hadley behind one of the registers, and he went to her line. There were only two people in front of him.

Sydney looked at Hadley. "That's your youngest cousin, right?"

"Yeah."

"How long has she been working here?"

"I don't know. Not long."

They reached the register and Hadley smiled at Gage. "Hi there."

"How long have you been working here?"

"A week." She glanced at the other cashier and lowered her voice. "Boring. But Dad said this summer I need to start contributing to Bailey Boy's entrance fees. Once I start winning, I won't need to work."

"Well, you are a winner. So you won't be here long."

"My first rodeo this year is in Canyon City. Will you come watch?"

"I'll see what I can do."

Hadley looked at Sydney. "You too, of course."

"I'd love to watch you ride."

Gage smiled. "This girl is fearless. And she has a hell of a horse."

Hadley finished ringing up the groceries. "Since when do you buy actual food?"

He glanced at Sydney. "Since someone has been kind enough to cook for me."

Hadley grinned. "Oh. I see." She looked at Sydney. "Don't let him take advantage of you."

"I won't. I actually am happy to have someone to cook for."

Gage paid, then picked up two of the grocery bags. "Don't work too hard, Hadley."

"Never. I'll see you Wednesday."

"Is the whole damn family coming?"

"Of course. It's not every day a Calaway is sworn in as mayor."

Gage shook his head. "I suppose that's true. I'll see you Wednesday."

They left the store and put the groceries in the trunk. After Gage closed it, Sydney put her arms around him. "Your family loves you."

"I know." He leaned in and kissed her. "Do you think I'm the first mayor who's kissed his girl in the parking lot of the grocery store?"

"Probably not. But I would guess it hasn't happened in the last eight years."

Gage laughed. "I'd say that's a safe bet."

"I'm sure Mayor Bessler loves his wife."

"Yeah. But I think he loves himself just a little bit more."