Read They Don't Dance Much: A Novel for Free Online Page B

funny to hear her call my name in that soft, sly voice. I could feel my face getting red. ‘How many did you say, Mrs. Fisher?’ I said.
    ‘Fill it up,’ she said. ‘I thought I had enough gas to get to Blytheville, but I decided maybe I’d better not try it.’
    I began pumping up the gas. While I pumped I watched Lola Fisher. She was sitting crosswise on the seat and she was still smiling. It was sort of a nervous smile, I thought, and she kept folding and unfolding her hands. She turned and looked back at me.
    ‘When’d you start working for Smut Milligan?’ she said.
    ‘About a month ago,’ I said.
    About that time Smut came out the door. He was drinking a Coca-Cola and his hair was all rumpled up like he was just out of bed. He saw Lola and held up his hand.
    ‘Hello, Mrs. Fisher,’ he said, and grinned at her.
    Lola unfolded her hands. ‘Hello, Smut,’ she said, and smiled at him just like they were going together again. She opened the door and hung her legs out over the running board. She had a pair of legs to knock your eye out.
    ‘What sort of a hell-hole is this you’re opening up out here, Smut Milligan?’ she said. She reached around with her hands and pulled on the back of her sweater so it would be tighter in front.
    Smut swallowed the last of his drink and put the bottle on the ground for me to pick up later. He grinned and said: ‘The River Bend Roadhouse. Dine and dance. Drink liquor and make love. Slot machines and high dice. Name your sin and your favorite utensils. We’ll have it.’
    Lola looked around her to make sure the coast was clear. Then she looked up at Smut and smiled at him in a way to make her husband have a running fit.
    ‘Sounds interesting,’ she said. ‘But the churches in Corinth aren’t going to like this sort of competition. You think you can get by with it?’
    Smut walked over and sat down on the running board like he’d just decided to buy the car. He picked out a spot pretty close to Lola’s legs.
    ‘Oh, they’ll vilify me from the pulpit,’ he said. ‘But I guess I got a strong enough reputation to stand it.’
    ‘It’s strong, all right,’ Lola said, and they both laughed.
    She gave me a five-dollar bill and I had to go inside to get the change. When I came back out, Smut was still sitting on the running board and they were laughing and talking. Lola had quit twisting her hands and she was leaning back on the cushions like she was comfortable. I gave her the change and went around to look at the new building.
    The building looked the same way it had that morning, but I hung around it till I heard Lola’s car start up. She drove off down the river road in the direction of Blytheville, so maybe she really had aimed to go down there. When I got back to the filling station Smut was sitting on his favorite nail keg on the left side of the door and was smoking a cigarette.
    ‘Hot-looking car Lola’s got,’ he said. I could see he wanted to talk about her.
    ‘First time I ever see her out here alone,’ I said. ‘First time she’s been out here since she married,’ he said. ‘Except for that time a couple of weeks ago when she come out with her husband. Fisher’s been out here several times to get liquor. Generally comes by himself.’
    ‘Looks like he’d buy his liquor by the case and not fool with getting a pint or a quart at a time,’ I said. ‘I don’t think he drinks much,’ Smut said. ‘Still, he could get a better grade of liquor if he bought it where liquor’s legal and he can pick and choose,’ I said. ‘He’s up North a lot, where there’s plenty of liquor stores.’
    ‘Yeah, he’s in New York now,’ Smut said.
    ‘Looks like Lola’d go with him on his trips,’ I said. Smut looked at me like he thought maybe he’d said too much. ‘Does look like it,’ he agreed. He got up and went inside.
    Everything was dull till that week-end. Then things got live enough. The mill ran full time that week for the first time since the