Harper tried to erase the image in her mind of Tommy dragging a deer carcass through the forest, but he saw her face.
“I can’t imagine you ever killing an innocent animal,” she said.
“Hey, don’t shoot,” he said, trying to get her to laugh. When she didn’t, he said, “Look, I promise I never shot at Bambi,” he said. “Besides, all the best conservationists will tell you, it’s good to hunt—it helps manage the population of the deer. And we ate everything we killed. It taught us a lot about responsibility.”
“I’m going to take your word for it, but I’ll just keep pretending that food magically appears on my plate,” Harper said.
“May I ask if it’s strange to live in such a purple state when it comes to politics? Where so many people disagree and every four years each side tries to rip each other apart here?” Dot asked.
“It’s worse than it was when we were growing up. Lots of animosity—but that’s not really how it is in Cedar Falls. Folks mostly get along—even if they don’t agree. Heck, I’m friends with a lot of Democrats,” Jake said.
“Does that mean you’re a Republican?”
“That’s how I vote. Same as these two.” Jake gestured to Tommy and Danny. Dot took that in, confirming her suspicions.
“Does it bother you that we’re Democrats?” Dot asked.
“It should botheryouthat you’re Democrats,” Tommy joked.
Harper nudged him with her elbow. “Watch it!”
“I’m kidding. I don’t give a rat’s behind how you vote. That’s how we were raised. Our mom and dad taught us to be good to everyone,” he said. “If we felt like we couldn’t work or be neighbors with people who had different political views, well it’d be hard to run a business.”
“Or be a cop.”
“Or build them a house,” Danny said, jumping into the conversation.
“But do you ever think the Republicans are... well, that they go too far on some things?” Dot pressed the point.
“Sure—just about as much as the Democrats do,” Danny said. “Here’s my take—there are extremes on both sides. I tune that out. I go about my business. I don’t let politics get in the way of a good time.”
“Speaking of a good time,” Mary said, veering toward a conversational off-ramp.
A platter of desserts arrived, and the Sinatra impersonator took the stage. They applauded as he broke into “Summer Wind.” Mary hummed along, loving the vibe, her bare, narrow shoulders swaying to the beat.
“What’s all this?” Dot asked, looking at the dessert selection. “This could feed a small army.”
“I ordered us a variety. Wasn’t sure what everyone would want. But I know I’m having a bite of that Snickers pie.” Jake used the large serving spoon and heaped some onto his plate. Then he passed spoons around to everyone before taking a bite.
He’d ordered an ultimate sundae, a cherry cheesecake, a vanilla bean custard crème brûlée, a Schaum Torte, which was a mix of whipped cream and fruit in a meringue shell, and the Snickers pie.
Everyone commented on their favorite.
“It’s the cheesecake for me,” Dot said. “Better than Junior’s.”
“I’m with you there.” Danny took another bite as the singer softly sang “Strangers in the Night.”
“But the crème brûlée is hitting,” Mary said as she took another scoop.
“I liked the cheesecake,” Harper said.
“Told ya that you weren’t lactose intolerant,” Tommy said.
“I have to rethink my whole dessert game!”
“What about you guys? What’s so great about living in New York?” Danny asked.
“Oh, I love this question. Give me a second. Let me think of the best thing,” Dot said as she licked her spoon one last time and imagined her walk to work in the morning. “Okay. I love Central Park. I used to walk through the park to get to work and back. In the mornings, all the dogs are there running off the leash, having the best time. It really is the greatest park in the world. And then I’d run there in the evenings and on the weekends. There are people from all over the world there. And you always see something interesting. Or crazy.”