RJ and JoJo nodded.
“On Thursday, the rest of their campaign staff will arrive in the afternoon. That day, we’ll provide breakfast for just the two, and we’ll probably provide dinner for the team. I’ll need help in the kitchen and with serving. We still have the usual patrons at the bar to take care of as well. I’m sure after dinner they’ll all want to adjourn to the bar. I might suggest to them that they eat at the bar. That way I can take care of the regular patrons as well as them.”
“That would work out best,” Jake said. “If you have to operate both, I could work the bar while you work the lodge or vice versa.”
“I’m getting better at carrying a tray, or I could make sandwiches,” Max said. “I’ve even mixed a drink or two.”
“I’ve been known to mix drinks as well,” Jake said. “And I’m pretty handy in the kitchen.”
Gunny grinned. “I appreciate it. If you two weren’t here, I’d be hiring some people from Fool’s Gold to come out and beef up our staff. As it is, I think I’ll still hire some additional staffing. I’ve already put the word out for Friday night for help with serving. On Friday morning, Stover will meet with his team in the conference room, and they’re going to spend the day going over his campaign strategy. All we have to do for that in the morning is make sure they have coffee and water. And I’ve arranged for the donut shop in town to have muffins and donuts for snacking. For lunch, we’ll have them go over to the Watering Hole for sandwiches.” Gunny nodded towards Max. “I could use somebody who’s good at making sandwiches, Max.”
Max gave him a nod. “I’ll be there.”
“JoJo and I will manage the bar and serve the tables,” RJ said. “Unless Jake wants to mix drinks—that might help.”
“Count me in,” Jake said.
Gunny continued. “As soon as we’re done in the Watering Hole, we’ll close up for lunch early so we can get started doing the barbecue. I’ll get the brisket smoking early in the morning so it will be done by the time the guests start arriving in the afternoon. We’ll need to have a buffet table laid out. RJ and JoJo can help me set it up. That way, it can be self-serve, and we’ll just have to keep filling the food trays. Stover has hired a band to come out to play, and they’ll do their own set-up. And I’ve cordoned off an area of the barn. We shouldn’t have to be involved in that, just keep the trash bags empty and people fed. That’s the big meet and greet with the public. Got it?”
“Yes,” everyone responded as one.
Gunny shot a glance toward JoJo. “Hopefully, Roy won’t show up. I banned him from the Watering Hole. Maybe, he’ll take that as a sign that he shouldn’t show up at the lodge either.”
JoJo shrugged. “Don’t worry about me. If he shows up, I’ll just stay away from him.”
Gunny nodded. “I spoke to the sheriff today, and he said he’d be out here for the shake and grin, and he’ll probably have a couple of deputies with him just to make sure nobody gets too drunk or too stupid.”
JoJo admired how Gunny got everything squared away. She loved the discipline of the military. That hadn’t been the reason why she’d left the Army. She had left because she hadn’t felt safe within her own unit or her own people. It was one thing to have an enemy that your team pulled together to fight against. It was another to have an enemy within your own team and not know who that enemy was. She had been given the choice to return to her unit in Afghanistan or return to the States. The thought of returning to her unit had terrified her, and JoJo had never been terrified of anything.
RJ nudged JoJo with her elbow. “Hey, are you all right?” she whispered.
JoJo’s mind returned to the table with four pairs of eyes on her. She gave a weak smile. “I must be tired.”
“It’s okay, we’re almost done here,” Gunny said. “Saturday, the candidate wants a team-building exercise. We’re setting them up with a round robin event, taking them over to the short zipline we have, as well as the rope bridge that spans the creek.”
“What about canoe races?” RJ asked.
Gunny nodded. “We’ll also offer canoe races across our little lake. We’ll perform those in the morning, and then we’ll have an ATV tour in the afternoon.”
“What about the Saturday evening meal?” JoJo asked.
Gunny shook his head. “We don’t have to serve dinner that night because they have reservations in Fool’s Gold at one of the local restaurants, but they will be back to sleep. And then Sunday, everyone packs up and leaves, so we only have to feed them breakfast Sunday morning.”
“Sounds doable,” RJ said.
“Does anyone have any questions?” Gunny asked. “I’d like for RJ and JoJo to lead the ATV tour on Saturday. RJ in front, JoJo bringing up the rear. I’d do it myself, but I still have the bar to run for lunch and dinner, and I could use some help there.”
“I can stay back and help,” Jake said.
Gunny nodded. “As for the zipline and the rope bridge, I could use some help on both of those events as well. We’ll do some training that morning before we invite the campaign staff out to the lake. We can divvy up the rest of the duties the morning of the events. Right now though, I need to get back to the Watering Hole. The evening crowd should
