As Ford's father settled in the worn leather chair behind his desk, he gave his son a consoling grin. "I came by your house last evening. Thought we might go out to Odell and have some supper. Since you weren't home, I'm hoping you weren't sitting in Rusty’s trying to drink away Meritt."
The pent-up air in Ford's lungs came out in a huff. "I was at the bar, but I wasn't drinking much. You don't have to keep checking on me. I'll be fine."
"Son, your mother and I are well aware that you're all grown up. That doesn't make watching one of your kids hurt any less awful. You don't have to handle this all on your own. We'd like to help."
"Then stop treating me like I'm on suicide watch." The words leapt from his tongue without his permission. He cringed. "Sorry. I...didn't mean it quite like that."
Barrett chuckled. "I suspect you did. All right, I'll try to stop worrying about you so much. Since you called this meeting, what can I do for you instead of worrying?"
Ford cleared his throat and tried to quickly determine the best way to get the information he needed without having to give too much away. "I was just wondering what you could tell me about Abe Monroe."
His father's face displayed his abject confusion. "Of all the things I thought you might ask, that certainly wasn't one of them." He shook his head. "Are you talking about the guy who's living on his ex-in-law’s property out on the county line?"
"Yeah. I heard here and there that he might be in some kind of financial trouble, either him or the Simpkins might be, or something. I met his daughter last night at the bar."
Barrett's confused expression morphed into a grin. "I see. Well, I'm sorry I don't know much about the financial situation of either the Simpkins or the Monroes. I do seem to recall Abe and his wife, Willow, having a falling out more than two decades ago. Willow left with their little girl when she was just a toddler. All the women's circles at church were up in arms over it for a while. I believe your mother took dinner out there a few times. I don't think I ever knew where they moved, but Abe stayed on at the farm. Having a son who just went through a divorce, I honestly can't fathom how Harold and Delphia chose their son-in-law over their own daughter, but that's about all I know. Abe and I don't run in any of the same circles. I don't even remember his daughter's name, honestly."
"Callie," Ford supplied a little too quickly.
His father looked much too pleased. "Maybe you should get to know Callie a little better. Perhaps she could give you some insight into her father's financial troubles."
Still letting his mouth overrun his brain, Ford shrugged. "It's been a long time since I've been on one, but that doesn't seem like the kind of thing to talk about on a date."
His father's smile expanded even further. "When is this date?"
Realizing what he'd just said, he shook his head. "There is no date. Forget I said that. I was just curious if you knew anything."
His father studied him for a beat. "Why is there no date? You're a single man now."
"Dad, I just got divorced yesterday. Let's not put ten carts ahead of the horse."
"The entire town and I are aware of that you're recently divorced. But Meritt has been divorced for much longer than you have. No one can hold a marriage together alone. If Callie interests you, I don’t see any reason for you to go on being miserable."
"What makes you think she can keep me from being miserable?" Somehow Ford suspected Callie was capable of making him smile more, but it made no sense. He barely knew her.
"What makes you think she can't?"
"I don't know anything about her other than she had a rough night last night."
"And you think the financial troubles might've led to her bad night?"
"Maybe. She had a file folder of bank statements with her in the bar."
His father nodded. "If you're mixing whiskey with banking, I'd say it's a safe bet that something is wrong. Let me see what I can find out. If the Simpkins are in some kind of trouble, I'd be happy to see what we can do to help them out."
"By help them out, do you mean that the Holders would acquire their property or that we'll give them money?" Somehow Ford doubted Callie or her grandparents would be okay with either of those scenarios.
"Whatever they need. If I can help, I'd like to. I do have a responsibility to my brothers and to all of you kids to make sure that our interests are protected. You know that. I don't take that responsibility lightly. But if I can help out a neighbor, especially one who has my son attempting to smile for the first time in months, I'm happy to do what I can."
"Thanks, Dad. I'll figure out what's going on myself. I don't want you doing my dirty work for me."
"Being worried about Callie doesn't mean what you're doing is necessarily dirty work, but be cautious. Money is a touchy topic for most anyone. People tend to tie up their self-worth with the amount in their bank account. I'd tread lightly if I were you. Maybe work on Callie trusting you enough to tell you what's going on. You never know what might come of that."
Ford restored his hat to his head. "Yeah, maybe I'll do that." If only he had any idea how to go about getting her to trust him, he'd be in business.