I quickly got changed, then we piled into my truck. I drove us into town and took Ava to this hole-in-the-wall diner that made everything from scratch. It was the best place in town to eat, even though the atmosphere was far from fancy. But even though Ava grew up in the family she had, she didn’t strike me as the kind of girl that was impressed with stuff like that.
“Everything’s homemade?” Ava asked.
“Everything. Even the sauces and the bread,” I said.
“I take it they locally source their meat?” she asked.
“Yep. They don’t do business with anyone that doesn’t live within thirty minutes of Kettle,” I said.
“Damn. I can’t eat anything that isn’t within twenty minutes of the town limits.”
Her giggle was phenomenal. All night, we went back and forth like that. We talked about her love of books and how she still wasn’t sure if she wanted to get an education. I told her I felt college was overrated and how someone could get a decent two-year degree now and go on to live fantastic lives. Ava poked at my college memories and I told her stories of my wilder days. Days when I traveled and stayed up until four in the morning drinking with the guys on campus.
She hung onto every word I said.
“This was a wonderful surprise,” I said.
“I’m glad you think so,” Ava said. “I was hoping you would be up for dinner.”
“At first I thought you might’ve been someone from the rival company who had come to intimidate me,” I said.
I watched Ava lock up as her eyes slowly panned up to mine.
“Are they still giving you trouble?” she asked.
“Not since the letter. But our lawyer did draft a harassment lawsuit and send it back to them.”
“What did it say?” she asked.
I was concerned with the questions Ava asked. Up until this point, the only thing she had been concerned about was the destruction of the mountains. But now, she seemed more concerned with pertinent details. I knew who her father was and I knew he owned Breathline Energies, but now I was concerned Ava was a mark.
I was concerned Ava was someone her father had sent.
“Just the basics. Stop now or we file,” I said.
“Did it work?” Ava asked.
“Don’t know. We haven’t gotten a rebuttal or anything.”
I could tell there was something Ava wanted to say. Her eyes screamed it, but she kept her mouth shut. Our food came and we ate in relative silence, the playful banter between us gone. I hated that she had shut off on me. I hated that this invisible wall was between us. Why did this lovely woman have to be from the family that was burying my father into the ground? Why did things always have to be so difficult?
“How are things going with your father?” I asked.
“I’m not really sure,” Ava said.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I mean they are what they are. I’m coming and going as I want, but every time we are in the same room, it’s a collision of forces. My mother’s being pulled in two different directions and my father is trying to regain control of his family. It is what it is.”
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“Not your fault.”
“You look beautiful tonight.”
“You think so?” she asked.
“I do.”