Desire and a Bottle of Merlot: (Like Sisters Series Book 5) Chick Lit: A Romantic Comedy Read Free Page A

reconstruction of Dodge City as it had looked in 1876. There was enough time to walk through the Boot Hill Cemetery and have a drink at the Long Branch Saloon. They stepped up to the plank boardwalk and entered through the wooden swinging saloon doors. A long, ornate oak bar was to their left. They walked across squeaky wide plank floors. The copper-painted tin ceiling glistened in the light of the period chandeliers. They sat at the bar, listening to the piano player tap at the keys. The bartender wore a handlebar mustache, waxed and twisted at the ends. He dressed in a starched-white shirt, bow tie, and a vest. Suspenders held up his wool pants. Karen ordered two cold mugs of the Long Branch’s famous sarsaparilla. The timing was perfect, giving them the opportunity to watch a reenactment of two gunslingers’ shooting it out on Front Street before they had to continue on, heading toward Yoder.
    “Kind of fun, right?” Karen asked after they left.
    “It was great, especially the Long Branch Saloon and the gunfight. Thanks for suggesting it. I had no idea we were that close.”
    “Yeah… I remember going there as a teenager with five of my boy cousins on my dad’s side. I was sixteen and driving my dad’s car with all the cousins piled in with me. It’s funny how it seemed like such a long distance, but it was only an hour and a half from Hoisington. Some things just stick in your mind so clearly. I remember driving past miles of stockyards and the awful smell, and buying fake bullet-hole decals that we put on the windshield of my aunt’s car.” Karen laughed. “She thought those bullet holes were real for about ten seconds. Back then, Dodge City wasn’t quite as touristy as it is now, but it was fun seeing it again. It looks like we’ll arrive at Elton and Irene’s just after they sit down for lunch. I guess I should explain the proper etiquette and rules to follow around the Amish.”
    “I have to follow rules? That sucks.” Mario turned the radio down and chuckled. “Okay, I’m listening.”
    “I’m actually serious right now.”
    “Really?” Mario checked the rearview mirror and sped around a tractor riding the shoulder of the road. “Sorry… okay give it to me.”
    “You wish, smart-ass. Anyway, don’t touch the women.”
    “What the hell does that mean?” he asked with a head jerk in her direction.
    “It means don’t shake their hand or hug them. Just politely say hello, or whatever, when I introduce you. You can shake hands with the men, though. That’s okay. I can hug the women, but not the men. It’s their way, and we have to respect it. Also, don’t swear! Just be nice, polite, and courteous, and everyone will get along fine.”
    “Have you ever slipped with the swearing?”
    “No… weird, huh? I guess I never swore until I met Jack. He can cause anyone to curse.” Road signs appeared. “We’re getting close. We only have about nine miles to go.” They turned south on State Highway 96. “Okay, turn left on Mayfield Road.”
    Mario slowed down and made a left-hand turn onto a dirt road that probably wasn’t even wide enough for two cars to pass each other. “Wow, we’re actually out in the middle of nowhere, right?”
    “Not as much as you think. Hutchinson is only ten minutes away, and it’s a decent-sized city. Yoder is tiny, but they have the essentials. Okay, slow down. Their farm is the next one on the right, where the bottoms of the trees are painted white.” Karen grinned, reminiscing about the time she’d commented to Elton about the white paint on each large locust tree at the front of the farm’s property line. He explained that he painted the trees not to show off but because they were hosting a wedding at the farm and he wanted things to look nice. What he didn’t understand was how Karen knew about the trees without being there herself. She explained how she’d typed the farm’s address into Google Earth on her computer and had zoomed in on the farm,