Twenty-Three

Hudson

As soon as the door closed behind Jack I looked around and drew in a deep breath. The smell of motor oil and years of dust permeated the place, but the longer I was here the more I liked it and wanted to make it officially mine.

This was the first time I'd been here alone since I'd asked to take over Nuts and Bolts, and it felt good—and a little daunting.

The bell on the door jangled as a customer walked in. It was a woman, and I wasn't sure how I knew her, but she looked familiar. "Let me know if I can help you," I called out.

"Is that you Hudson Carter?" she asked after standing there staring at me long enough to be uncomfortable.

"That's me. I'm sorry but I can't place where I know you from." I knew she was a local, but everyone looked different to how I remembered them being. I suppose that's the problem with leaving a place where time seems to stand still for most things.

"Evelyn, I worked at the post office when you were little," she said with a grin. I took a hard look at her silver hair that was styled more like something from the sixties and tried to imagine what she looked like twenty years ago but came up short.

"Oh yes, how have you been?" I asked, and hoped she didn't ask me something too specific about the time she knew me.

"Oh, I'm fine, I just need to get a new latch for my back gate. My dog keeps jumping against it and knocking the gate open."

"I'm sure we have something that will help." I led her to where I hoped a latch would be and the two of us glanced around the section before I finally spotted them. "Here we are. Which would work better for you?" I asked and took three different styles down from their hooks.

She put on her glasses that were hanging from a chain around her neck and examined each one, before deciding on one that would go on the top of the gate so her dog wouldn't be able to open it. "This'll do," she said, and I carried it to the cash register for her.

"So, I hear you're dating that young man, Jack Hulbert," she said and narrowed her eyes, no doubt hoping to draw the truth out of me.

"Is that right? That'll be four ninety-nine," I said and took out a bag to put it in and hoped she didn't ask anything else I didn't want to answer.

"So, are you? Dating him I mean. He's a lot younger than you. I remember when you graduated and that was a long time ago. Don't you think he's a little too young for you?" She rambled while peering over the top of her glasses. I took her money and gave her back her change while handing her bag to her.

"He's been a big help to me here and I'm thankful to have him. Jack's a hard worker." She took the bag from me and smiled like she'd been gifted some information that might be valuable.

"I bet he has," she mumbled under her breath. "Well good luck to you and welcome back to Foggy Basin," she said and left without another word.

A few more customers stopped by and in between I tidied up areas we hadn't gotten to yet. There was still so much that needed to be done, and the more I found, the more obvious it became that Dad had let things slide for years. I felt bad that Jack had been thrown into all this mess, but he'd clearly made sure it was stocked and as neat as he could make it.

I pictured myself owning the store and I couldn't imagine running it without Jack by my side, but then I worried what would happen if we continued the way we were, and our relationship got even more serious. "This job means the world to him, I don't want him to ever worry about losing it," I said to myself as I locked the front door. Turning the lights off, I walked toward the back door, took out the key I'd found at home, and locked it up for the day.

The sun was setting as I walked to my car and then drove down the main street toward my parents' house. I still couldn't believe I was back here after swearing I'd never live in Foggy Basin again. But now things were different.

My phone rang and I answered just as I was pulling up to the house. "Hey, Dad, how's the road trip?"

"Hudson, how's it going?" His voice was so full of happiness, and in that moment, I understood why he wanted to close the store. He was tired, and it wasn't making him happy anymore.

"It's going good. I'm just pulling up to the house. Where are you?"

"We've been in Oregon exploring Bend and getting ready to go to Portland. We should reach Washington by the weekend, but if we don't that's okay too. How's everything there?"

"It's good. Jack and I have been cleaning and organizing. We have a few ideas that we're trying out." He didn't need to know Jack and I were getting to know each other better and I worried what he'd think of that.

"So, what do you think? Are you still interested in running it?" he asked.

"I am. The longer I'm here the more I appreciate it, and everything is so different than when I lived here. I didn't realize there were so many new businesses downtown."

"Most of them have been there for a few years, but they have new owners which has been great for bringing in new customers. People actually stop on the way to the lake now." Dad chuckled.

"I ordered some rocking chairs to put out front. Mr. Atkins wandered in one day and I thought it would be a good idea to give the locals, and people who are passing through, a place to sit and relax."

"I heard you took a box of pastries in to work. No better way to get the locals to not leave than to offer them free pastries," Dad said, and again laughed.

"That's what Jack said too. Well, the chairs came in, so we'll put them out front and see how many we get sitting there."

"I'm glad to hear you're having fun with it. Nuts and Bolts is still a good store, but I haven't been the right owner for a while. It's your turn now." I expected him to sound sad, but he didn't. He sounded resigned to his decision.

"Thanks, Dad. I'll give it my best."

"I know you will. I've got to go, we're on our way to dinner. We'll call in a day or two. Bye now."

"Bye, Dad." I hung up as I walked inside the house, and a weight was lifted from my shoulders. I'd needed to be sure this was what Dad wanted before I fully committed to buying the hardware store; now I had my answer, and my future could really begin.