haven't looked back.
What do you do?"
"I have a graphic design company. Run it out of my
house"
"So you own a business, too? That's cool. How long have
you been doing it?"
"For almost a year," she said. "I went to Jackson State on
a track scholarship, ran track on the pro circuit for a minute
after I graduated, then injured my knee and had to retire. I
taught high school for a little while, first in Houston, then
here, then took the plunge and started my own company.
And I haven't looked back, either." She smiled.
He smiled, too, genuinely impressed. "That's too bad that
you had to quit running track. But you've definitely kept
yourself in great shape"
"Thanks, I run and work out just about every day. But I
don't miss track competition that much. I love being my own
boss, building something of my own from the ground up. I
know you understand what I'm saying."
"Oh, yeah, I hear ya. People are surprised when they find
out that I'm not a writer, though. They always expect me to
follow in my dad's footsteps"
"Do you plan to write, someday?"
He laughed. "Are you kidding? I love to read, but I can't write worth a lick. That's definitely something that I did not
inherit from my dad"
The waitress delivered their meals: catfish sandwiches,
with coleslaw and french fries on the side. Before leaving,
the waitress peered closely at David.
"You any kin to Richard Hunter?" she said in a thick
Mississippi accent.
"He was my father."
"Willie, I told you!" she shouted at someone behind the
counter. "This here's the Hunter boy!"
David blushed. People turned to look his way. Many of
them nodded and smiled, or only stared as if trying to see the
resemblance between him and his dad.
The waitress clutched his shoulder. "I was awful sorry to
hear about what happened to your daddy. I'm praying for
your family."
"Thanks," David said.
He blew out a pent-up breath when the waitress left and
people looked away.
Nia smiled, amused. "Get used to the attention, sweetie.
Your dad was the only celebrity who ever came from this
town. Everyone is gonna want to check you out"
"Seems like it." He picked up his sandwich and began to
eat. As Nia promised, it was delicious. "What was it like
growing up here?"
She popped a french fry into her mouth. "Wonderful, really. Quiet, safe. Lots of the people who live here have been
here for a long time, so mostly everyone knows one another.
It was a fun place to grow up. I have two older brothers
neither of them live here anymore-and they let me join
them on all kinds of adventures. Fishing, hunting, catching
snakes
"Snakes?"
"Sure. Not poisonous snakes, silly-though we did trap a
water moccasin once. My mama would've had a fit if she'd
known. I still haven't told her." She laughed.
"Growing up in Atlanta wasn't anything like that. The
closest I came to a snake was in the city zoo"
"There's nothing like living in the country, but I love big
cities, too"
"Why did you leave Houston to come back home?"
"I'll tell you, David, another time, I promise. It's something I don't like to talk about. I'd hate to ruin the good time
that we're having."
"Tell me whenever you're ready." We all have issues, he
thought. I'm not baggage free, either. Shoot, this move to Mason's
Corner is so I can work out my problems.
He took another bite of the sandwich. "A couple of people have mentioned the walks that my father would take
around town. Would he go anywhere in particular?"
"He walked through the park a lot, and some of the trails.
He walked Main Street all the time, too"
"He never talked to anyone while he was walking? I read
somewhere that he'd bite your head off if you said anything
to him."
"He kept to himself. I only had a real conversation with
him once, and that was in over twenty years of seeing him
around. But he'd usually say hi to me and people like Vicky
Queen-girls he thought were pretty. Your father was a
flirt. But he was charming about it, not like
What do you do?"
"I have a graphic design company. Run it out of my
house"
"So you own a business, too? That's cool. How long have
you been doing it?"
"For almost a year," she said. "I went to Jackson State on
a track scholarship, ran track on the pro circuit for a minute
after I graduated, then injured my knee and had to retire. I
taught high school for a little while, first in Houston, then
here, then took the plunge and started my own company.
And I haven't looked back, either." She smiled.
He smiled, too, genuinely impressed. "That's too bad that
you had to quit running track. But you've definitely kept
yourself in great shape"
"Thanks, I run and work out just about every day. But I
don't miss track competition that much. I love being my own
boss, building something of my own from the ground up. I
know you understand what I'm saying."
"Oh, yeah, I hear ya. People are surprised when they find
out that I'm not a writer, though. They always expect me to
follow in my dad's footsteps"
"Do you plan to write, someday?"
He laughed. "Are you kidding? I love to read, but I can't write worth a lick. That's definitely something that I did not
inherit from my dad"
The waitress delivered their meals: catfish sandwiches,
with coleslaw and french fries on the side. Before leaving,
the waitress peered closely at David.
"You any kin to Richard Hunter?" she said in a thick
Mississippi accent.
"He was my father."
"Willie, I told you!" she shouted at someone behind the
counter. "This here's the Hunter boy!"
David blushed. People turned to look his way. Many of
them nodded and smiled, or only stared as if trying to see the
resemblance between him and his dad.
The waitress clutched his shoulder. "I was awful sorry to
hear about what happened to your daddy. I'm praying for
your family."
"Thanks," David said.
He blew out a pent-up breath when the waitress left and
people looked away.
Nia smiled, amused. "Get used to the attention, sweetie.
Your dad was the only celebrity who ever came from this
town. Everyone is gonna want to check you out"
"Seems like it." He picked up his sandwich and began to
eat. As Nia promised, it was delicious. "What was it like
growing up here?"
She popped a french fry into her mouth. "Wonderful, really. Quiet, safe. Lots of the people who live here have been
here for a long time, so mostly everyone knows one another.
It was a fun place to grow up. I have two older brothers
neither of them live here anymore-and they let me join
them on all kinds of adventures. Fishing, hunting, catching
snakes
"Snakes?"
"Sure. Not poisonous snakes, silly-though we did trap a
water moccasin once. My mama would've had a fit if she'd
known. I still haven't told her." She laughed.
"Growing up in Atlanta wasn't anything like that. The
closest I came to a snake was in the city zoo"
"There's nothing like living in the country, but I love big
cities, too"
"Why did you leave Houston to come back home?"
"I'll tell you, David, another time, I promise. It's something I don't like to talk about. I'd hate to ruin the good time
that we're having."
"Tell me whenever you're ready." We all have issues, he
thought. I'm not baggage free, either. Shoot, this move to Mason's
Corner is so I can work out my problems.
He took another bite of the sandwich. "A couple of people have mentioned the walks that my father would take
around town. Would he go anywhere in particular?"
"He walked through the park a lot, and some of the trails.
He walked Main Street all the time, too"
"He never talked to anyone while he was walking? I read
somewhere that he'd bite your head off if you said anything
to him."
"He kept to himself. I only had a real conversation with
him once, and that was in over twenty years of seeing him
around. But he'd usually say hi to me and people like Vicky
Queen-girls he thought were pretty. Your father was a
flirt. But he was charming about it, not like
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