Free Love Under Construction (The Love Under Series Book 1) by Jody Pardo Page A

refunds. Final sale. Deal with it. You’re welcome.”
    Once Aubrey set her mind to something, she was relentless. I accepted her gift and handed over my auction outfit and new boots for the clerk to ring up. I handed her my bank card and signed the printed receipt. The auction was two days away, and nervousness was already starting to set in. I was not one for surprises, and I had no idea what to expect, but according to Aubrey, I would look cute no matter what happened. 
    We left the western shop with our two big bags of clothes and continued our adventure over lunch.

    We dropped off our haul in Aubrey’s truck and walked across the street to a BBQ place. Beyond the entrance looked like a big barn inside with hay and peanut shells littering the floor. The queue was wooden corrals leading up the register. I looked up at the menu above the heads of the cashiers and was overwhelmed by the options. 
    “This is not a slaughter line, Suzie. Why so serious?”
    “I don’t know what to get. What is the difference between beef flank or side or cheek? Or maybe pulled pork?”
    “It’s all good. What are you in the mood for?”
    I was so used to menus with pictures. I had no idea what the items on the menu were. It looked like a butcher menu.
    “Why don’t you just try the sampler? You will get a little bit of everything.”
    “Sounds like a plan.”
    We placed our ordered, and the cashier placed our orders in a plain brown box in paper baskets lined with butcher paper—no frills barbecue. We grabbed two sodas from the ice barrel adjacent to the counter, and I swiped my bank card to pay. There was no way I was letting Aubrey pay for lunch. It was the least I could do since I had no idea how much she spent on my new wardrobe. 
    We grabbed a roll of paper towels and headed out the picnic benches on the patio. We found a spot with a fresh full bucket of peanuts. A spool of butcher paper was bolted to the end of the table and Aubrey pulled a fresh lining for the table before I set our food down and we sat, ready to eat. 
    Aubrey unloaded the box and handed me my sampler and bowl of baked beans and placed her own food in front of her. “So what are you going to do?”
    “I haven’t decided. The beef looks good, but I want to try the pork.”
    “Not lunch, silly. About Dallas?” she asked.
    “I have four months’ vacation to figure it out. So I have income. I told Kelli I would pay her rent and all. I don’t expect a free ride.”
    “That’s good, but even if you didn’t, that house sits idle most of the time unless a ranch hand needs a place to stay. It’s my place, and I never really cleared it out after we got married.”
    “I like it out there. It’s nice and quiet. I was thinking of getting a job, but I don’t know what. Maybe I could help out Kelli on the ranch.”
    “You gave me a hard time about the clothes, and now you want to help out on the ranch? You know you would be wearing that stuff every day. Say bye bye to yoga pants and sundresses,” she chided.
    “Okay, maybe not. I just can’t sit around all day and do nothing, though. I actually walked all the way to Brewer’s Taps the other night because I was bored. I really have to get my car.”
    “Have you heard from Bill?” 
    Just the mention of his name sent a chill down my spine and made me uneasy. “Yeah, he called the other night.”
    “What did he say?”
    “I don’t know. I didn’t answer the phone, and he didn’t leave a message.”
    “You’re not planning on calling him back, are you?”
    “No. Hell no. Which is why I don’t know what he wanted, and I don’t care to know.”
    “Good. Let’s leave it that way,” Aubs said with determination, and we continued our lunch with just the sounds of country music in the background and our jaws chewing. 
    We headed out with full bellies and stopped by the house so I could change into what Aubrey felt were "appropriate" clothes before meeting Kristi at the auction house. I felt