Half the town it seems.

It was busier than Spencer remembered it being in a long while when Darcie and he made their way into McClaren’s Tavern. A large group of burley tradesmen-looking guys occupied most of the space around the tavern’s wooden bar. They were dressed in a mix of overalls and other sorts of dirty work gear so it looked like they had come straight off a building site. They seemed to be in good spirits though and Spencer could see that his old school friend Jasmine Hong was rushed off her feet behind the bar serving them drinks. Spencer was just about to suggest to Darcie that they look for a table in the back away from the bar when the broad figure of John Monaghan emerged from the centre of the crowd and swept Spencer in a tight one-armed hug.

“Spencer!” John bellowed and Spencer could smell the beer on his breath already.

“John,” Spencer returned with a broad smile. He was growing to like the big and burly former Irishman. “I guess these are your boys taking over the place.”

John burped and excused himself to Spencer and then told him the reason for the celebration. “Gerry, one of the lads’, missus just had a baby so we're having a toast and wetting the baby’s head.”

“Well congratulations to him!” Spencer spirited just as a glass mug of frothy yellow ale was pushed into his hand by one of John’s workers.

Darcie standing back to watch laughed as John Monaghan hooked a finger under the base of Spencer’s glass and started to lift it up into the air forcing Spence to suddenly start sculling the beer as quickly as he could. Frothy and liquid dripped from Spencer’s chin by the time he had managed to get most of it down his throat without it being tipped up all over him. John and the closest of his workers cheers as Darcie clapped when Spencer brought the now empty glass back down.

“Don’t worry, I won’t leave these animals loose in your pub for too much longer,” John assured Spencer as he then released him back into Darcie’s company. “I’ll see you Monday though for the start of the barn.”

Spencer’s stomach felt like it was sloshing as he made his way to the seated section of McClaren’s with Darcie. The bar’s regular clientele had retreated here away from the Monaghan Construction crowd so free tables were at a premium. Two teachers from the school were seated together and when they saw the new President and Vice-President of the PTA, they beckoned Spencer and Darcie over. Ashley Black was the school’s recently arrived Art Teacher and had Amy in one of her classes. Ashley had straight black hair like her name but her most noticeable feature where her bra-busting bossoms. The other girl Spencer hadn’t met before but when Ashley introduced her, he learnt that she was Cassie Johnston, a fresh-faced student teacher who hadn’t fallen into a fixed subject for teaching yet but cycled through many different ones as the need arose. Cassie's skin was a warm caramel and her dark hair looked to have been straightened.

“Where have you two come from?” Ashley asked when Spencer and Darcie had got seated and comfortable. It didn’t sound like an accusation but a general polite interest.

“We’ve been in Cherryville watching our girls play,” Spencer told Ashely their movements.

“My husband is bringing the girls back so we thought we’d get a drink in,” Darcie added.

“Oh, wonderful. How did they go?” Ashely continued interested.

“They won. Five – three,” Spencer told them the score.

“Fantastic!” The art teacher clapped enthusiastically. “Jessica will be so pleased on Monday.”

“About as pleased as Miss Lynn will be,” Cassie Johnston rolled her eyes.

The more experienced teacher quickly flashed a warning with her eyes to her newer college.

“Jessica and Cindy have a little bit of a rivalry,” Ashley said diplomatically. “Cindy likes to think she is in charge when Miss Winters isn’t around.”

“Cindy’s never around either,” Cassie added before getting another warning look.

Ashley explained this newest grumble, “Cindy was supposed to be showing Cassie around Avonwick to get her settled in but Miss Lynn has an ‘over-active social life’ to maintain. So, Cassie’s got me instead.”

Cassie smiled at Ashley, reaching out to take her hand on the bar table. “And I’m eternally grateful. Us newbies have to stick together.”

From that point, the conversation turned much more pleasant with a discussion of how long each person had lived in Avonwick. Ashley and Cassie were the newest having just moved this year. Spencer was longer having lived there two years. It was Darcie, the resident historian of the town, who had lived in Avonwick for more than 15 years. Before Kimberly was born.

As they spoke a waitress come and took their order. For a moment Spencer thought it was Jasmine coming to see him. The girl was petite just like Jasmine and had nearly as many tattoos down her arms that he could see. Spencer thought she might have given him an appraising once over as she wrote down his order of buffalo wings and another beer to wash them down. It was only after she’d gone to put their meals through the kitchen that Spencer clicked on who she was. It was Tori McAdams. Karen McAdams daughter. Last Spencer knew of her she’d been travelling through Europe but had obviously returned with some new ink additions.

Ashley and Cassie had already eaten but when Spencer and Darcie’s food arrived, he insisted the two teachers help themselves to some of his food. Spencer’s basket was almost entirely bones when he needed to get up and grab some more napkins for himself. McClaren’s was much quieter by that point. Back to its usual Saturday night thrum. Jasmine and Tori were talking together by the servers’ station as Spencer came over.

“Hey Spencer,” Jasmine greeted him affectionately upon seeing him. She ducked in under his arm to give her friend a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Oops, mind the hands. I don’t want to get you dirty,” Spencer warned holding his wrists in the air and hugging Jasmine back with just his elbow.

Seeing the problem, Tori picked up a stack of paper towels and handed them to Spencer so he could wipe them off.

“Do you know Tori?” Jasmine asked Spencer as he cleaned himself up.

“Just that your Karen’s daughter, right?” Spencer said.

“I’m anything but a Karen though,” Tori laughed which made Spencer smile in return.

“Ugh, it was so busy before I had to stick Tori back here. I hadn’t had time to show her how to pull the taps and use the register,” Jasmine spoke freely about her work. “Want to see how it’s done now?”

Tori agreed and the two girls went back behind towards the bar with a quick goodbye and a, “come and see me later,” from Jasmine.

When they were out of earshot, Tori said somewhat lecherously, “he could stick his dirty hand all over me!”

“Tori! You're so bad,” Jasmine laughed. “I’ve known Spencer ever since we went to school together.”

"And you seriously never took your shot with all that?" Tori said with a raise eyebrow that indicated she was unlikely to believe any claims of innocence.

"No. Never. We were just friends. That's all. No come on, lets get back to work," Jasmine finished.

Tori followed the little Asian barmaid dutifully but it didn’t stop Karen’s daughter from turning back to have a look at Spencer’s retreating ass.

An hour or so later Spencer and the three women were still at McClaren’s. Spencer had offered to cover the drinks for everyone, including the meals Ashley and Cassie had ordered before Darcie and Spencer came and sat with them. It had been a pleasant night all around. Spencer learned more about the two new educators and them enjoying having Spencer’s attention mostly on themselves. Darcie was happy to take a relaxed stance with the two competing women. There was no need for any sort of rivalry. Darcie had already had her mouth filled by Spencer. The two girls would have been green with jealousy if they’d known just how much of the handsome dad’s cum she’d swallow on the road back from Cherryville.

Seeing as their current drinks were looking empty, Spencer got up and made his way over to where Jasmine was serving to get another refill. He wasn’t the only one currently at the bar. Spencer was taken aback by the site of Evelyn Malone standing at the bar talking to someone while in full work uniform. Spencer hadn’t intended to intrude on their conversation but still caught the end of it.

“Just don’t go getting completely drunk and trying to drive again. I swear to God Clay, I’ll arrest you and stick you in the drunk tank for the night. I don’t give a fuck what the judge says,” the deputy was trying to keep her voice down but still sounded pissed.

“Have my keys then,” the stranger said holding up a keyring that he dropped forcing Evelyn to catch. “I’ll walk home if it means I don’t have to listen to any of your shit.”

His point made, the strange male with his shaggy hair and bushy beard got up from the stool he’d been sitting in as Evelyn spoke with him and then began a wavering straight line towards McClaren’s front door. Evelyn watched him go, a deep furrow on her brow before sighing and letting her shoulders drop. Relaxed now, Evelyn noticed Spencer for the first time.

“Spencer! Sorry. I didn’t mean for you to witness all that,” the deputy apologised.

“No need to apologise,” Spencer assured. “Someone you’re familiar with I’m guessing?”

“My ex-husband Clay. If you can believe it,” Evelyn admitted.

“Oh! I had no idea.”

“Afghanistan changed him. He came back… different,” Evelyn sighed deeply again.

“At least he came back. A lot of them different,” Spencer offered.

“There’s that. And he’s great with Riley and Logan,” Evelyn said mentioning her kids for the first time.

“That’s good,” Spencer agreed, coming to a halt in conversation, not knowing what to say any further.

“Anyway, I’m glad to run into you Spencer. I need to get my gun back off you. I know from the registry at the station that you don’t have a safe.” Evelyn didn’t want it to sound like she’d been using her sheriff’s deputy powers to go digging into Spencer’s personal life.

Spencer had hidden the pistol in a metal box out in the shed where he kept his canoes. He thought it safest there with the least chance Amy might come across it. “Yeah, I don’t keep any guns in the house normally. What time do you finish tonight? Will you be out my way again on your patrols?”

Spencer knew that Evelyn often parked her cruiser out on the back roads that skirted the town near his farmhouse. He also had a slight inclination that she’d been spending a little more time out that way ever since they’d had sex the day Spencer and John had discovered the old moonshiner’s skeleton.

“I finish at midnight. I wasn’t planning any more rounds out by yours if your thinking of having a few more and then driving on home.” Evelyn joked referencing the argument Spencer had overheard with her ex-husband. “I could come past when I get off and pick it up then?”

Spencer agreed. He would like to have the firearm off his property as soon as possible. They both agreed to message or call the other if their plans changed for the rest of the evening and they weren’t to meet after midnight.

Saying their goodbyes, for now, Spencer waited until Evelyn had left and then nodded to Jasmine that he was there for another round of drinks.

Placing the four different drinks in front of him Jasmine took a moment to chat. “You’re a very popular man Spencer.”

“I’ve got something the deputy needs to get back off me,” Spencer told Jas, not wanting to say it was Evelyn’s gun at his house.

“I wasn’t talking about that but everyone sure wants a piece of you it seems.”

“It isn’t another date. I know Darcie from school. Our daughters are in the same grade,” Spencer explained looking back over to his table with the three women in it. “The other two are teachers there. That’s all.”

“I think Tori would like a slice of you Spencer,” Jasmine said with a wink.

“What? No!” Spencer was flabbergasted. He’d only met Tori McAdams for the briefest moment. That and she was the teenage daughter of someone he considered a friend.

Jasmine laughed freely at Spencer’s prudish fright. “Oh yes! She was very descriptive about what she’d do to your handsome dad-bod.”

Spencer blushed brightly. He hadn’t thought of the tattooed teen girl that way at all. He picked up his drinks in both his hands and went to take them back to his dinner table.

Jasmine had one last comment for him still, “just remember if people are getting pieces of you, don’t forget about any old friends…” The offer was there for Spencer to realise. Jasmine Hong wanted much longer than seven minutes in heaven this time.

Setting the drinks out for each of the women Spencer took a strong sip of his drink hoping the cold fluid would get rid of the redness he felt in his ears. Darcie and the two teachers had been talking while he’d been gone and had something they wanted to raise with him.

“Spencer. Ashley and Cassie were just wondering if you wanted to continue this night somewhere?” Darcie questioned.

“I’ve got a bottle of vodka in the freeze,” the buxom black hair tutor advanced. “Plenty of mixers too.”

Spencer thought of it for a second. Three attractive women, one he’d already been sleeping with, getting tipsy alone together. He also thought of Danielle then and had an excuse already made luckily.

“I can’t unfortunately. The sheriff’s department is calling around my house later,” Spencer informed the three fascinated women.

“We could take the party back to yours…” Cassie suggested instead.

Why did it sound so sexually suggestive when the youngest of the group said it.

{Author's Note: I'm going to need everyone's guidance here. Does Spencer stay strong in the face of multiple temptations? Let me know what you think in the comments.

Thank you too for all the likes these chapters have been receiving lately. I remember when my chapters in School Drop Off would struggle to get half a dozen. It's very much appreciated!}