Chapter Eleven

Molly continued to pace through her room after she'd slammed the door shut behind her and slammed the door of her bathroom and walk-in closet for good measure. How dare she? It's not fair! Jake would've come around, she ranted to herself and variations thereof for almost half an hour, before she finally sank to the floor in front of her door in exhaustion. She stared around her room, trying to think her way out of this. She was struggling though until her eyes fell on her old stereo in the corner. Her comment to Jake had been mostly based on Dolly Parton's music, she didn't know much other country. But if he was going to judge her for her lack of country knowledge, well then darn it, she was going to do something about it. 

Grabbing her purse, she jumped up and rushed out of her bedroom. "I'm going into town," she called as she passed the kitchen, realizing it probably diminished some of her claim of her sister ruining her life. But needs must. Molly grabbed her bike from the side of the house and cycled into town as quick as she could. There was no point borrowing her sister's pick up, as she'd probably just get into trouble for wasting petrol and not asking first. It was only a 20-minute cycle to the shops, which she did find herself enjoying every time she did it. 

There was only one record shop in town, but she figured as Pleasanton was 'the home of the cowboy' it would have what she needed. 

And she was right. The shop had several copies of all of George Strait's albums, as well as what felt like every other country artist in existence, including Dolly Parton, Brad Paisley, Granger Smith, Luke Bryan, Faith Hill, Shania Twain, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Dixie Chicks and even Keith Whitley, who hadn't appeared to make any music after the late 1980s. The guy in the shop, who introduced himself as Harvey with a shy smile, told her this was because he died young after just three years of making music. She tried to get some recommendations from him, but he kept trying to ask about her. She'd decided after one glance that the best they could be would be friends, so focused her attention back on the vast array of choice before her. Molly picked up about 7 of George's albums by picking one out of four, the most recent Granger Smith, a greatest hits by the Dixie Chicks, a couple of Brad's, and 1 each of Luke, Faith and Shania. As she flicked through her choice one last time and mentally totted up the price, she gave him her most flirtatious smile, hoping to get some discount to take the sting off it a little. 

"Harvey..." She started, trying not to bat her eyelashes too much. "I got like 16 CDs here, that's a lot. Any chance ye can do it for a better price?" she decided she'd have to lay it out for him, worried he might think she actually wanted a date otherwise. 

"Oh, well I dunno. I mean, that be their price for a reason," Harvey said reluctantly, not wanting to get into trouble with the manager. 

"Come on, Harvey. If I like 'em, I'll come back real quick," she dangled the lure of a) her coming back and b) the prospect of more money coming in soon as she tried to sound a little more Texan. "Please?" Molly smiled now, leaning in towards him on the counter. She was confident enough in her looks that this could work, especially being new to town as well. She was still a mystery. 

"Ah'ite, I'll give ye 20% off, ye can't poke that with a stick," he gave in, which she figured must have meant something like 'take it or leave it', and she wasn't far off. He meant that was more than fair or acceptable so there was no way he'd be able to drop any lower.

"I always draw the best bull, thank ye so much," she beamed at him, remembering one of her dad's favorite ways of saying how lucky he was with his life and his family. She handed him her card to pay after he'd put all her CDs in a paper bag. She managed to fit it in the rucksack she'd brought with her as he ran her card. "I'm gonna go now. See ya around Harvey," Molly smiled again when he handed it back to her. She did feel a little bad, but she'd meant it when she said she'd come back for more if she liked these. 

Molly cycled back in a much more leisurely fashion, feeling much happier than she had just an hour ago. Even seeing Jake turn away from the road on his horse as soon as he spotted her didn't manage to bring her down too much. She spent the rest of the afternoon and evening listening to her new haul, alternating between lying on her bed and staring out the window. 

She had to give Jake some credit – George Strait was pretty good, and the accent wasn't too strong. She liked most of them if she had to be honest. She even annoyed Jennifer by putting on one of the CDs while they had dinner. 

"Are you actually going to do anything productive today or tomorrow, like trying to get a job? Or is listening to music all you'll be doing?" Jennifer asked after she almost had to bribe her sister to do the washing up once they'd finished. 

"Don't get yer panties in a wad," Molly muttered, slipping into her forgotten Southern twang, from the sink where she was up to her elbows in soapy water. "I'll give it a go tomorrow," she said a little louder for her sister to hear. "Have you found anything yet?" she asked curiously, wondering what options she might have. 

"Not yet, which is why any help from you would be appreciated," Jennifer admitted honestly, making her little sister feel a little guilty for having just spent all that money on her new CD collection. Jennifer realized that it might have been easier to find another job back in Phoenix, but at least here the mortgage on the ranch had been paid off and she wouldn't have to worry about paying rent in-between jobs.