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Right out of the can will be fine.”
    It was starting to get a little dark out, so as I stepped into the cabin , I turned the porch light on. A minute later, when I came back out, I handed Gina a Miller Lite and sat down beside her. She took a small sip then said with a smile, “So . . . how have you been doing? My Mom told me you’ll be staying all week.”
    Slowly twirling my beer can in my hands , I said, “Yeah, I am. As a matter of fact, I think I’ll be staying for a lot longer than that.”
    “Oh . . . is that so?” she said, opening those magical eyes a little wider, “What do you mean? What are your plans . . . if you don’t mind me asking?”
    “No, that’s fine. For the past few days , I’ve been looking at all the surrounding towns. But I seem to like Mountain Step just the best. I think I just might be settling down here for a while.”
    She looked my face over closely for a moment, nodding in thought. Then she said, “ Oh…really ? Well that’s nice. Where will you stay, here in the cabin?”
    “No, no,” I nodded my head, I’m thinking about buying a place —something small, quiet, with maybe an acre or two. I don’t need anything big and fancy.”
    “Hmmm, let me see . . . I don’t know of many places for sale right now. But let me think here.”
    She then took a sip from her can and looked out into the darkness. “The Simonton’s have their place up for sale, but I don’t think it would be for you. They have three kids. I know it must have at least three bedrooms. Plus, it sits on a small lot. But hey, you know what—my uncle Wally has a big piece of property. And he’s been talking about possibly selling some acreage.”
    She was looking back at me by now, and I shook my head when I said, “I don’t think that would work, even if I liked it. I don’t want to get into building. I need an existing house, cabin or whatever.”
    “Guess what !” she said, her eyes lighting up again, seemingly dancing this time “he has a cabin! It’s small but nice. I mean . . . it’s a lot bigger than this one here. Uncle Wally used to rent it out for the entire summer. The same couple used to come up from Virginia every year. But the husband died a few years back, and the wife, Mrs. Slattery, doesn’t come up here anymore. It’s been just sitting there for three years. My uncle hasn’t bothered to rent it out.”
    “ Is that so?” I said, “Where is it?”
    “Right up Portland Road!” she came back, pointing to the left. “It’s only about two miles from here. There’s a dirt road that runs back into the forest. Uncle Wally lives at the end of it. He likes to tell everybody he’s got a two-mile driveway because other than the cabin I’m talking about, there aren’t any other houses. He lives all the way at the end of the road.”
    “Well . . . I don’t know. How far back is the cabin? And who plows the road when it snows in the winter?”
    “The town does most of it. They plow to the town line which is about a mile and a half back. They’re responsible for that.”
    Gina smiled like a proud little girl then, and said, “Yours truly helps do the rest. My uncle has a plow also, and between the two of us, it’s usually no problem. I give him a hand, and he gives me a few dollars. I also have fourteen driveways I plow, plus the parking lot at the store and the small one at Molly’s Café.”
    “No kidding? You really do all that?”
    “ Well , why not? A girl has to do something in these parts to make a living. Between plowing snow, working at the store a couple of days a week, and a few other things, I manage to do okay for myself and my babies.”
    Again my spirits took a hit. I glanced down at her finger again, still no ring. Quickly, I looked back up at her saying, “Ohhh? I didn’t know you have children.”
    Instead of just looking at my eyes, she now looked into them. For just a second or two she appeared dead serious, as if she were trying to read my thoughts. I