Jameson watched his mother go, giving Alex a sheepish grin. “If you weren’t planning on sticking around, I apologize. The only thing I can say to make up for my mother’s enthusiasm is that she’s making fried chicken tonight, so at least you’ll get a good meal to go along with your suffering.”
Alex chuckled. “Having dinner with your family isn’t suffering.”
“You sure?” his best friend responded with a wink.
Alex was surprised at Jameson’s mood, especially since he’d just laid out some bad news. Then again, Jameson MacAllen had weathered his fair share of storms as the eldest of eight siblings. He was generally even-tempered. He had to be. “Anything would be better than dinner with my family.”
“What’s going on?” Jameson asked, a note of surprise in his voice.
“It’s nothing,” Alex said, pretending to dispel his frustration with a wave of his hand. “Peggy’s still here, for God knows what reason. She hasn’t been back this long since she left. When she and my father get their hooks into something, it can be a bit much.”
Alex didn’t say that what they currently had their hooks into was his relationship with Brenne. Last night at the dinner table, Peggy had wasted no time announcing that she’d had a nice talk with Brenne that day, and she wanted to know what Alex had done to her.
Confused, he’d almost dropped his fork. “I haven’t done anything to Brenne.”
His father had turned, squinting his eyes in Alex’s direction. “I always thought you were a trustworthy boy,” he’d said, frowning. “But it sounds like you’re used to telling stories now.”
“I don’t know what either of you are talking about,” Alex had said, his voice firm. There was a pause that stretched into an uncomfortable silence, and he’d found himself sweating. “What… what did she say?”
Peggy fought a grin. “She said that you and she were working together.”
“Working,” his father said with a snort. “Is that what you’re calling it nowadays?”
“Dad,” Alex had said, his tone sending a warning.
“And she said that she’d never date you, one, because you’re her brother’s best friend, and two, because she isn’t into nerds.” At the last statement, his sister couldn’t hold in a snicker of laughter.
“See!” Alex had said, gesturing with his fork. “Nothing is going on.”
“Methinks he doth protest too much,” his father said around a mouthful of peas.
“Leave the boy alone,” his mother had said at last, her tone stern. “Your brother wouldn’t do that to Jameson. He’s not interested in the MacAllen girl, and it sounds like she’s not interested in him. Stop goading him before it gets out of hand. That’s how rumors get started.”
His father had chewed his peas, his eyes on the table, appropriately cowed. Peggy waited until her mother’s eyes were off of her, and then she’d stuck her tongue out at Alex.
“Your dad still holding his grudge against the mechanic who worked on his old tractor?” Jameson asked, bringing his thoughts back to the present.
“He’ll hate the man until he’s in the ground. Probably after.”
Jameson laughed. “That man sticks to a grudge like a pricker bush thorn sticks to a dog’s hide.” He stood then, stretching his long limbs. “We better wash up or Mama May is going to lay into us.”
Alex followed him down the narrow hallway, wondering if Brenne would be making an appearance at the table tonight. Her oldest brother had called his friend over to discuss the latest news about IG’s takeover of the town.
“I can’t believe it,” he said as he stood outside the small powder room, waiting for Jameson to finish cleaning his hands. “It looks like this thing is really moving forward.”
“It is. Miranda says the advance teams could already be here, figuring out which properties to acquire and double-checking our infrastructure, or lack thereof.”
Alex felt his stomach drop at the thought of the huge company setting up stakes in his town. Having one of the company’s headquarters here would completely remake Whiskey River, and he wasn’t sure he’d like what it became.
He washed his hands, then headed in the direction of the dining room. Standing outside it, he realized it was already filled almost to the brim with MacAllens. The large table could accommodate up to fifteen, and all but two of the seats were filled. One of them belonged to Brenne, who was nowhere to be seen.
“Sadie, where is that husband of yours?” Mama May asked when everyone was seated.
Sadie looked at the empty seat beside her and shrugged. “I almost didn’t make it myself, the clinic was so busy. The last I heard, he was in town, buying scones at the bakery.”
“Evan, buying scones?” Jack asked.
“He likes them with his morning coffee,” Sadie said with a half grin.
“Oh, does he?” Elijah picked up his cup, raising his pinky and forming his fingers into a circle which he held over his right eye to mime a monocle. “He likes his coffee and scones, along with his New York Times and napkin rings.”
Jack shook his head. “What is that voice you’re doing? Are you a pirate or something?”
“I’m a rich man with a monocle, duh,” Elijah replied, offended. His wife beside him dissolved into giggles.
“But napkin rings?”
“Let’s see your impression of a rich man then, Jack, if you know so much.” Elijah crossed his arms and stuck his nose in the air.
“Let’s see…” Jack looked off at the ceiling, and then his hands covered his face. When he moved them, his features were schooled into a haughty expression. “My tech stock has tripled in value this week. I’m going to celebrate with a cruise around the world in a yacht that costs more than a small country. Don’t worry, it’s funded entirely by taxes I didn’t have to pay for thanks to loopholes.”
Alex couldn’t help himself. He laughed, along with most of the rest of the table. Elijah’s face scrunched up into a scowl, and Bill MacAllen, the family’s patriarch, just grunted then dug into his mashed potatoes as if nothing else in the world mattered. Alex couldn’t blame him. The meal was exceptionally good. And so was the company.
“Speaking of rich folks,” Jameson said, “I’ve got some news that I just shared with our friendly veterinarian. Instant Gratification is moving forward with their plan to buy up most of Whiskey River. Miranda Everheart says that advance teams will be showing up soon, if they aren’t already here, to finalize the details.”
Silence descended on the table. Alex could see that everyone’s hearts were as heavy as his was. “They can’t just do something like that, can they?” Mama May asked. “Not if the people of the town don’t want it?”
Jim, the second oldest MacAllen and the one with experience in development, spoke. “The sad truth is, most people would welcome a payout from IG. Even if they wanted to hold on to their land, why would they when they see their neighbors cashing out with a big payday?”
“It’s hard to fight that kind of wealth.” This came from Mark, the youngest MacAllen. He rarely had much to say, so Alex was surprised to hear him speak up. “And Jameson is right, these things tend to have a snowball effect. You don’t want to miss out if everyone else is getting something, and once enough people are gone, the town isn’t the same, so more people decide to sell.”