Read Heart of Dixie - Tami Hoag (1) for Free Online

example of Clem's fine hand at taxidermy. Three men were seated on vinyl-upholstered, chrome-legged stools at the bar; two elderly ladies occupied a small, round table near the big-screen TV. The booths along the far wall were empty.

    Dixie made a general introduction as she hauled herself up onto a bar stool and motioned for Jake to do the same. "Hey, everybody, this here's Jake Gannon from California. His car broke down and he'll be here till Eldon gets it fixed."

    There were general murmurs of sympathy from the men as a deodorant commercial played on TV. Dixie pointed to each person and gave Jake a name. Bubby Bristol, Joe Dell Ward, Leo Vencour, the proprietor of the establishment. The Trulove sisters, Cora May and Divine, prim Southern ladies with flowered dresses and small clouds of cotton-candy hair. They all nodded pleasantly to Jake. The instant the program came back on, however, their attention went immediately to it.

    A man with buck teeth and a bad toupee was spinning the big wheel. He hit $1,500 and called for an L. The crowd at the bar shouted for him to spin again, but after some debate and a verbal prodding from Pat Sajak, the man announced he was going to solve the puzzle. This brought on groans and boos from the patrons of the Magnolia Bar.

    "Guy's dumber than a red brick!"

    "He left double R's and triple M's!"

    The two white-haired ladies blew loud raspberries. Dixie frowned at them all. "Hey, now, maybe the fella needs that fifteen hundred to get braces for his kid and he didn't dare spin again for fear he'd hit bankrupt and lose it all and his kid would have to go around looking like a big old nutria rat for the rest of his life. Y'all don't know the kind of pressures he might be under."

    Halfhearted grumblings of "I guess so" came from the crowd. They all frowned, eyes downcast into their beer mugs.

    Jake gave Dixie a curious look, a half-smile turning up the right side of his mouth. The sassy tow truck driving lady had a heart like a marshmallow. For some reason that idea pleased him enormously. He wanted to kiss her again. She made an annoyed face at him and thrust a plastic-coated menu into his hands.

    Leo roused himself from his seat and went behind the bar to take their orders. He was a tall, lean man in his sixties with slicked back thin gray hair and a face like a bloodhound. "What'll y'all have tonight, then, folks?" he drawled, adding extra syllables to each word.

    "I'll have the usual, Leo," Dixie said with a smile.

    Jake glanced up from his menu with a dubious look. "Is the turkey on white bread?" Leo beamed. "White as snow."

    Jake grimaced a little, drawing a startled frown from the bartender. "Are the tomatoes organically grown?"

    Leo's brow furrowed. "They're grown in the dirt if that's what you mean."

    Dixie rolled her eyes. "They're grown in Macy Vencour's greenhouse and the worst thing she puts on them is stale beer."

    Jake ignored her impatience and smiled squarely at Leo. "I'll have a light beer and the turkey sandwich, hold the bread, hold the mayo, thanks."

    "It ain't much of a sandwich then, is it?" Leo said. He sauntered off toward the kitchen, shaking his head.

    Dixie sniffed, feeling extra peeved at Jake's fussiness. She hated that particular trait and it galled her no end that she would be wildly attracted to a man who exhibited it. "I swear, you're worse than my Great-aunt Suki, and she had some kind of convoluted gallbladder problem, so she at least had an excuse."

    "White bread happens to be loaded with chemical preservatives," Jake informed her. "The human body is a temple, you know." And you worship at yours every day. Dixie bit her tongue to keep the remark from spilling out. However, she couldn't keep herself from thinking that she wouldn't mind doing a little worshiping at Jake's temple, either. She cursed herself for being both ornery and randy. The two didn't seem like a good combination.

    It was Jake Gannon's fault her feelings were getting all