Sugar nodded. “To get a buzz going that could draw some major attention, I need to do at least three shows a weekend. If I could get it together by the first week of August and carry it on through October or maybe November, that would be a good run.”
Norma Sue frowned. “This is a problem.”
“Oh, dear,” Esther Mae said. “It certainly is.”
Okay, they’d successfully put a fireball in the pit of her stomach. Sugar looked at Haley, then back at the ladies, waiting for someone to tell her what this problem was.
“You see, dear—” Adela looked at her kindly “—our community center is used for much more than just plays. We have wedding receptions there and various other town activities. For instance, Pete’s Feed and Seed hosted a one-day seminar there last Saturday for all the ranchers. One of the big feed companies was introducing a new grain or something. So if we have your show going on there every weekend, it would displace all the activities we might otherwise schedule.”
Talk about a kink in a good plan. “I hadn’t thought about that.” Sugar’s mind whirled as she contemplated this obstacle. “I should have, though. I just got so carried away with the idea,” she groaned.
“Now, now, don’t give up.” Esther Mae turned serious. “There has to be a way.”
Think, Sugar. Think. “A barn!” she exclaimed, instantly pushing the gloom back into the shadows. “They called summer stock ‘strawhat’ because most of them were performed in adapted barns. So all I need is a barn. And then some cowboys.”
The table erupted with rapid-fire exclamations of relief and agreement. Discussion ensued about what attributes this barn should have. Everyone agreed it needed to be big and close to town. And most important, it couldn’t be one that the owner was using.
“Plus the rent would have to be dirt cheap,” Sugar added. She had to be frugal. “At least until we see how it takes off.” She was going for broke, praying that God was going to work this out for her. She was stepping out in faith, trusting that this was where she was supposed to be. “Better yet maybe I could talk the owner into some kind of partnership.”
Norma Sue frowned. “There aren’t that many barns close to town. The only one I can think of not being used is Ross Denton’s. And that’s not good.”
Esther Mae’s smile faded. “It sure isn’t.”
“Why not? If he’s not using it, then what’s the problem?” Despite their frowns, Sugar felt providence kicking in again. It had to be, because Ross was the only cowboy she’d met so far and just look how he was working into her plan. That couldn’t be a coincidence. It was amazing, actually. But even Haley appeared hesitant. “What?”
“Ross doesn’t want anything to do with entertainment,” Esther Mae said.
“And we let him be.”
More than a little confused, Sugar glanced at Norma Sue. “I don’t understand. He seemed more than pleasant today when I met him.” She thought about the cowboy’s flirting. “Besides, he told me that if there was anything he could do for me, to just call.”
The ladies didn’t seem convinced.
“Haley, what’s up?” Sugar asked.
“I really don’t know everything. He didn’t live here when I was a child. I’d actually forgotten all about his ties to Branson.”
“Ties to Branson!” Sugar exclaimed. “This is just getting better and better.” Why, if he had ties to Branson, he might be able to help her with more than just letting her use his barn.
“But he came here because he was burned out from being in the spotlight,” Adela said, immediately getting Sugar’s attention. “His family on his mother’s side still has a successful show there. Ross was part of that. But you see, he gave it all up six years ago and came here to the ranch his father’s family left him.”
Norma Sue nodded. “He came here wanting nothing to do with singing or performing. All that boy wants to do is ranch, and find a good woman to build a quiet life with here in Mule Hollow. We’ve respected his wishes all these years.”
“That’s right,” Esther Mae interjected. “We feel kind of protective of him.”
Despite what they were saying, Sugar’s adrenaline had started pumping. Two weeks ago, she’d received a rejection for a role in a movie that her agent had thought she was a shoo-in for. It had been the worst day of her life. All the optimism that kept her going had gone up in smoke. The horrible self-defeating voice in the back of her head that she’d been trying to ignore had started up again telling her to lay her dreams down. Lay them down? How could she? And then Haley had called and asked her to take a break and come out to Mule Hollow. At that very moment Sugar had been drowning her sorrows in a bucket of ice cream and watching Paul Newman’s story on the Biography Channel. He’d got noticed by Hollywood while he was in a summer-stock production. Inspiration had hit, and Sugar realized that the tiny Texas town might be just the place God was leading her to go. That it wasn’t God’s voice in her head telling her to forget her dreams. And now here she was, with even more proof that providence had led her here. She smiled from her heart. “Ladies, don’t worry about anything. Just tell me where this perfect barn is and I’ll take care of the rest.”
First thing tomorrow, she’d go out there and see the place. Then she’d give Ross Denton a call. Yes, indeed, things were looking good.
Chapter Three
The sun hadn’t come up yet when Ross walked toward Sam’s Diner the morning after meeting Sugar Rae Lenox. He glanced at the second-story apartment a couple of doors down and wondered if the sliver of light he could see through the curtain meant she was awake. He liked her. Pure and simple. He couldn’t remember the last time anyone had caught his interest so completely, and he wasn’t planning to waste any time before getting to know her better.
Of course, it was too early to go knocking on her door, so he headed on into Sam’s for breakfast. Unsurprisingly, he wasn’t the first customer. Applegate Thornton and Stanley Orr were, as usual, Sam’s first clients of the morning. The two old men were already deep into their morning checkers match. Haley was Applegate’s granddaughter, and Ross didn’t think there had ever been a prouder grandpop. He wondered if App knew Sugar.
“Mornin’, fellas,” he said, heading toward the counter.
“What’s good about it?” Applegate grunted, staring at the board.
“Don’t pay no mind to him,” Stanley told Ross. “He jest has a burr in his saddle this mornin’. ’Cause he’s plain loco.” The last few words were said louder, obviously as a footnote to some conversation they’d been having before Ross walked in.
Both men usually spoke louder than needed, since they both wore hearing aids. There was an ongoing debate among the local cowboys whether either of them really needed a hearing aid, or whether they were using them as an excuse to talk loud whenever they wanted, and listen in on everyone else’s conversations by pretending they couldn’t hear. That lack of hearing sure seemed convenient at times.
Applegate frowned, his thin face drooping into its perpetual cascade of wrinkles. “I’m tellin’ ya it works. I saw this woman on one of them late shows last night, and she was tellin’ all kinds of stuff about body language. It made good sense.”
“It’s all crazy,” Stanley grunted. “You can’t tell me you know just from watchin’ a man pull up his socks that he’s smitten with a gal.”
“This here highfalutin’ woman said it was true. That and some other stuff.” Applegate looked up as Ross sat down at the counter. “Ross,