The Birthday Party
Chapter 3
The unmistakable sound of one of Chester's ditties was audible well before Matt reached the door of the office. "Oh Martha Jean was kinda mean…" Matt opened the door and Chester stopped singing, in mid-sweep with the broom.
"Mister Dillon! You ain't been gone long a'tall. I thought you was gonna get a beer over at The Long Branch."
"So did I," Matt muttered under his breath.
"What?"
"Nothing. Say Chester, I did stop by The Long Branch and was just talking with Doc and Kitty. It seems there has been…well, a misunderstanding about that birthday party."
"What do you mean?" Chester asked with a frown.
"Well, you see…Kitty was only planning on inviting the girls to the party, and…"
"What girls?" Chester interrupted.
"Um…her girls, I suppose. Maybe some others from town that Charlotte has become friendly with. I don't know, it's not my party, and I…"
"Well, that ain't what she said last night. I mean, she didn't say it was just for girls."
"Yes, but…she said she didn't have it all planned out," Matt reminded him, rather proud of his quick thinking. "She must've just decided on it."
Chester was clearly disappointed. "Well, if that's what she decided," he said softly, with a slight pout. "I suppose I could maybe stop by after and give Miss Charlotte her present."
"What present?" Matt asked.
"Oh, I ain't bought nothin' yet," he replied. "But I've got a little money saved up, and seein' how it's her birthday and all…"
"You don't need to do that," Matt hastily interjected.
"Why not?" Chester asked.
Why not? I don't know. Dammit, Kitty! "Because…you see," he began, talking slowly, "I might need you to…run an errand for me on Friday. So there's a good chance you won't even be in Dodge for the party anyway." He was getting almost as good as Kitty at this. Later he would tell Chester that plans had changed and he didn't have to go after all. That would work.
"What kind of errand, Mister Dillon?" Chester asked with obvious surprise.
"Well, you see, there's this gold shipment coming in from Great Bend, and the bridge needs to be checked out by the weekend. I have this…thing to do on Friday, so I was going to send you to do it." Whew.
"What kind of thing?" Chester wondered aloud.
Oh for God's sake, does he ever stop asking questions? I had damn well better get handsomely rewarded for this.
Matt nervously raked his fingers through his dark, wavy mane. "It's business, Chester. Nothing you need to worry about."
"Yes, Sir," Chester answered meekly, sensing his boss's irritation. He looked down and returned to his sweeping.
Matt sighed. Chester was a sensitive soul, and it wasn't exactly his fault that this story was spinning out of control. Matt fished a nickel out of his pocket and handed it to his busy assistant.
"It's been a long day," Matt declared. "Here, go have a beer on me. You've earned it."
Chester quickly turned his frown upside down. "Sure thang, Mister Dillon," he grinned, excited not only at the free beer but the genuine compliment from the marshal. "I mean, as long as you insist…"
"I insist," Matt said with a chuckle as he gestured toward the door. Chester propped his broom against the wall and headed to The Long Branch for his reward.
GSGSGSGSGSGS
Monday Night
The full moon cast a soft glow onto Kitty's bed as she lay in the crook of Matt's arm, twirling his chest hair gently around her fingers. "Do you know how wonderful you are?" she asked, almost rhetorically.
"Well, you made me sound pretty wonderful a few minutes ago," he quipped as she playfully slapped him on the shoulder.
"That's not what I meant," she protested, trying not to laugh. "I'm talking about what you did for me earlier. I know you're not sold on this party, but you know how much it means to me and you're doing me a big favor by going along with it. I appreciate your talking to Chester. You did some pretty quick thinking with that bridge story. I'm impressed."
"Well, I learned from the best," he teased. "Have you figured out how you're going to explain all this when the time comes?"
"Not yet," she admitted. "I'll think of something. I wouldn't hurt his feelings for the world."
"Your heart's in the right place, Honey. It always is," he said, brushing her cheek with his lips and caressing her bare thigh with his strong hand. "I just feel kind of bad that we got Chester involved."
"YOU got Chester involved," she corrected him. "I knew when to keep my mouth shut for once."
"Okay then, I feel bad that I got Chester involved," he repeated with her correction. "I just don't like making up stories."
"I know, Matt," she said apologetically. "But I promise, it's all going to work out. Chester was fine this afternoon after you talked to him. He came in and had a beer and didn't seem upset at all. I'll figure out what to tell him, and then he and Doc and everyone else will have the time of their lives at the party. I finally got the invitations done today. I know a lot of people can't afford a gift, and Doc wouldn't want that anyway. So no bought gifts allowed—I'm asking people to make something or write him a note, just anything that lets him know how lucky we are to have him. I think he'll appreciate that."
Matt pulled her even closer, wrapping both arms around her small frame as she nuzzled her face against his neck. "Do you know how wonderful you are?" he asked in that same rhetorical tone.
"Yes," she cooed as she circled his earlobe with her tongue. "Would you like me to show you again?"
Indeed he did. Matt rolled over on top of her and prepared to enjoy part two of his handsome reward.
TBC
