“What?” Panicked, he hit the brakes. “Deer? Bear?”
“No. Sign.”
His eyes followed to where Dee pointed. The GOLDEN MOTEL sign shone in all its neon glory, every letter lit to perfection. The nugget blinked on and off as if cheerfully winking. The sign’s golden light illuminated Serena and Elmira.
Jeff screeched into the parking lot. Dee hopped out before the car even came to a full stop. She dashed over to the women. “What . . . I . . .” She couldn’t form a full sentence.
“Callan did end up signing some new A-list clients,” Serena said. She stroked the wispy blond hair of her daughter, Emmy, who was currently housed in the baby sling. “I talked him into fixing the sign as a motel-warming present. Elmira helped me find the company to repair it. Funny how quickly people step up when they hear the words ‘money is no object.’ ” Serena delivered this with a sly grin.
“Ooh!” Dee threw her arms around Serena, then did the same to Elmira. Jeff hugged Serena, lingering until Dee gently pried him off.
“There’s champagne and a charcuterie board in the lobby,” Serena said.
“And I brought a big box of brookies,” Elmira added, “but Serena bumped into me and the box went flying out of my hands and onto the ground.”
“My bad. The board was heavy and I lost my balance.” Serena exchanged a knowing look with Dee and Jeff.
“Let’s go toast.” Dee hooked one arm with Serena and the other with Elmira. “To friendship. And the Golden’s bright, sparkly future.”
Jeff pulled out his harmonica and attempted a triumphal run. The others winced at the off-key notes. “I gotta find a good tutorial.”
Laughing, the four went inside Dee’s apartment.
The forest fell silent. Then there was a crunch of leaves under a heavy foot. Followed by another. And another.
A pair of beady black eyes peered out from between the trees. Then a large black bear lumbered out of the woods.
The bear picked up one of Elmira’s fallen brookies and happily chomped down on it. He instantly spit it out. He huffed a few annoyed bear grunts, turned around, and lumbered off until he disappeared completely.
ROAD TRIP TIPS FROM ELLEN
Freeze water bottles. They’ll serve as ice packs until they melt, after which you’ll have refreshing ice-cold water.
Always travel with several empty gallon-sized plastic zip-lock bags. You never know when they’ll come in handy. We couldn’t refreeze our water bottles on a recent trip, so when we stopped for lunch, we filled two of our empty bags with ice from the soda machine, turning the bags into impromptu ice packs.
Always travel with a paper map. GPS is great for point-to-point travels, but a paper map gives you an overview. Plus, if you’re traveling in a remote area, there’s no guarantee you’ll even have reception. A paper map could be a literal lifesaver in that case.
When locals make a face and say a road you’re about to travel is very curvy . . . believe them.
COWBOY CASSEROLE
Ingredients:
1 T. olive oil
1 lb. ground turkey, beef, or veggie substitute
1 small–medium onion, diced
1 T. minced garlic
1 28 oz. can baked beans, any style
2 15 oz. cans corn, drained
1 15 oz. can creamed corn
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese, divided
26 oz. tater tots, thawed
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Heat up the oil in the bottom of a Dutch oven or cast-iron pot on medium heat. Add the diced onion and sauté until tender. Add the garlic and cook together briefly.
Add the ground meat to the onion and garlic mixture, breaking it up as it cooks into small pieces. Once it’s cooked, lower the flame slightly and add the baked beans, stirring to combine. Turn off the heat and remove the pot from the burner.
In a medium bowl, combine the creamed corn and regular corn.
Spoon the meat-bean mixture into a greased 9 x 11 baking pan or casserole dish. Top it with the corn mixture, gently spreading the corn to cover the meat-bean mix. Sprinkle 1½ cups of the grated cheese over the corn. Arrange the tater tots in a single layer on top of the cheese.
Bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle the rest of the cheddar cheese on top of the casserole and bake another 10 minutes.
Serves 8–10.
