Raylen grinned. “As little as the law allows. Holler if you decide to get any of that stuff off the loft. It has to be lowered by rope out the door to get it out of there. Haskell cut them out and painted them right on the spot. I told him once that it reminded me of building a boat up there in the loft. He told me that he’d lower it down with ropes when he got ready to put it outside.”

Liz nodded. She heard what he was saying, but “as little as the law allows” was playing through her mind like a marching band on a continuous loop. Becca was just playing with Raylen. She loved that hired hand with the pretty haircut.

Raylen waved and left her with a plate full of uneaten food and dusty boxes of decorations. She waved back, but wished Becca would suffer a strange virus brought on by roundheelitis that slapped her big, tall butt in bed for at least twenty-four hours on Halloween night.

She pushed all the leftovers into one aluminum tray, turned out the barn lights, and carried the food to the house where she set it on the porch for Hooter and Blister to fight over. She was still muttering about Becca when she went into the house. She turned on the lights and the house phone rang at the same time.

“Hello,” she said.

“Hi, kiddo. How’d your first day at work go?” Uncle Haskell asked.

“It was great. I met Slade and his granny and her sister,” she said.

“Nellie and Ellen. Two great old gals. They’ll talk your ear off and entertain you with their stories. That Ellen was a rounder in her day. Did she tell you the Corvette story yet?” Haskell chuckled.

“No, but she told Gemma and Gemma told me. And there’s this girl named Becca,” Liz said cautiously.

“Don’t worry about that filly. She’s going to flit all around the roses and land on a pile of pure old cow manure one of these days. She’s all flirt and no substance,” Haskell told her. “So, how’d you like Jasmine?”

“She’s great, and I liked Amber but she’s leaving tomorrow morning, so we didn’t have time to be real friends. But I really do like Gemma. I don’t think Colleen is going to be friendly, though.”

“Colleen is a strange one. Gemma is more outgoing. How about Raylen and Dewar?” Haskell laughed.

Liz paused. “Raylen helped me tonight and he’s promised to help put up all the cutout pieces. Then after Thanksgiving, I’m going to help him exercise horses to pay him back. It’s a pretty good business deal. We found all the things you made for Christmas. They are awesome, Uncle Haskell. I’m going to put them all up this year between here and the road. Is there enough power to turn on all the lights?”

“You bet there is,” Haskell said. “I called tonight to tell you all about the yard ornaments. I’m glad you like them, and honey, you will have the gaudiest house in Montague County. So Raylen helped you, did he? I figured Dewar would have offered.”