Beth looked at her shoulders before making a disappointed face. “They’re getting red. I haven’t been in the sun much this year because I’m trying to take better care of my skin.”
Michelle handed Scott the bottle before she spoke again. I didn’t want to say much in front of Jenifer, but have you known Carlie very long?”
Beth scrunched her nose as she considered her relationship with Carlie. “I had seen her around campus for several years but we weren’t really friends. I didn’t know it at the time, but I started going out with her ex-boyfriend. That didn’t last long and we called it quits in February. Then in late March she started being nice to me and we would go places with a group of girls from the sorority.”
Scott knew far more about what happened on the canoe trip than he had let either of them know and was curious about several things. “Was there any special reason Carlie would take you to my tent that night. Was it like some kind of Sorority initiation thing or something?”
Beth was quick to answer. “Our going in your tent had nothing to do with the sorority. I don’t know why she took me there and I would not have gone if I had known.”
“Turn your back to me and let me work my magic.” Scott squeezed the bottle until he had enough lotion in his hand and began to put it on her shoulders. She arched her back as the cold lotion made contact with her skin. The tension in her shoulders and neck was the first thing he noticed. As she settled into her more normal posture, Scott continued to spread the lotion across the top of Beth’s shoulders and shoulder blades.
Scott put more lotion in his hand and let it get warmer before he began to rub it on her lower back. “We need to find out if she knew the guy in the tent.”
Michelle looked at both of them. “Her plan doesn’t make any sense unless she knew who was in the tent. I can’t see any normal girl just picking out some stranger to have sex with.”
Beth was listening, but couldn’t add much to her story. Scott called their attention to another point. “When Beth used my phone this morning, Carlie referred to the mystery man in the tent as the ‘weird guy from the biology department’. She didn’t even call him by name. That doesn’t sound like someone she’s in love with.”
Beth understood his point. “You are not trying to understand why I was in the tent. You want to first know why Carlie was in the tent.”
Scott started massaging her shoulders and neck as he continued to think. “The muscles in your shoulders are tight. You need to relax. I think we need to know what her connection to the guy in the tent was. Was Carlie angry or anything before you got to the campground?”
Beth thought about his question as she closed her eyes. “I remember her being more distracted than angry. There were three of us in the canoe. Cheryl and I would paddle up beside a piece of trash and Carlie was supposed to lean over and pick it up. Several times, we would have to ask her to get the trash. It was as if her mind was somewhere else, but she hadn’t been drinking or anything. She was simply distracted.
Michelle turned her attention to him. “Scott, you are the one who was getting serious with her. What do you think she was doing?”
“Beth may disagree with me, but I think Carlie is at least three different people living in one body. I’m not sure Carlie even knows the real Carlie.”
Scott took his hands off her shoulders and looked at Michelle as he began to put lotion on her shoulders.
After several minutes, Scott was still massaging Michelle’s shoulders when she turned her head and looked at Beth. “I think I could stay here all afternoon and let Scott work his magic.”
He could see Beth smiling as she put her hand on her shoulder. “The pain in my shoulder is getting so much worse. It’s an old football injury and the only thing that helps is a massage.”
Michelle caught on to Beth’s game. “I know what you mean. As a small child, I jumped out of an airplane and my parachute didn’t open. Now, I’m suffering horrible neck and back pain.”
Not to be outdone, Beth changed her story. “I know exactly how you feel. The first time I fell from a plane, I landed on the train tracks before I was hit by a speeding train that knocked me into the highway where I was hit by a bus. I have had back problems ever since.”
Scott reached for the champagne and poured the remainder of the bottle into three glasses, which he handed to them. He put one hand on each of their shoulders to continue their massage. “This should take care of all football and parachute injuries the two of you are suffering through.”
After a few moments, Michelle questioned his plan. “Are you sure you can handle two women at the same time?”
In an arrogant voice, Scott smiled as he kissed Michelle on the neck. “I suppose that would depend on who the two women are and if the two women could handle me.”
Michelle’s mouth opened wide for a moment only to be replaced with a smile. “Excuse me.”
Scott leaned over and kissed Beth and then Michelle’s cheek before he stood up. “Tonight when you are in your beds dreaming of romance, you will be thinking of me.”
Michelle turned her attention to Beth. “Last night, I had one of the most sensuous dreams about Scott that I have ever had. I was in a castle lying in a four-poster bed with a canopy above it and big fluffy pillows all over it. I was wearing a very short see through gown. Scott came in the room four times wearing a tuxedo. First, he brought me a bottle of wine along with a vase of flowers. Then he brought me a fruit salad before he came back with steak and shrimp that was to die for. After that he brought me a bowl of ice cream.”
Scott kept waiting for Michelle to finish her story, but she remained silent. Finally, he pointed out what he thought her story was lacking. “You haven’t told us the sensuous part of your dream yet. You’ve left out the best part.”
She thought for a few moments. “No, I’ve pretty much covered the best part of the dream.”
Scott stood up to leave. “That’s it. I am out of here. I have given you champagne, a massage, and my undivided attention. I can see my talents are not appreciated in this establishment.
“Where are you going?” Michelle asked.
“I’m going out to the beach where the girls are looking for real men instead of waiters in tuxedos.” Scott replied.
Beth also stood up and put her arms around his waist. “That plan should work out great with me on one side of you and Michelle on the other side.”
Michelle stood and put her arms around his neck. “Beth and I are going to tell all your hot little prospective girlfriends everything about you. That should help you get a date.”
They left the Jacuzzi and went to the beach to swim and pick up their belongings. After Beth left to help with the party, Michelle and Scott returned to the house to shower and rest before going out. Having finished his shower first, Scott went to the living room, stretched out on the sofa and went to sleep.
He woke around four-thirty to find Michelle on the deck reading. They left shortly after five o’clock making the thirty-minute drive to Morehead City for dinner. They carried on their typical conversation with little discussion of Jenifer or Beth. He thought their unusual day would have come up in the conversation, but Michelle asked that they wait until they got home to discuss that subject.
Walking along the city streets after dinner, they stopped in several of the gift shops and paused briefly to look at the fishing boats bobbing up and down in the water. Knowing Michelle for most of her life, Scott knew there was something on her mind, yet they went through the motions of a typical night out.
CHAPTER X
On the drive back to Emerald Isle, Michelle suggested Scott go fishing for a few hours while she went to the girl’s night out. He assumed Michelle was ready to have some time away from him and he was ready for a few hours of peace and quiet without drama. Scott had at least an hour or so before dark so he wasted little time getting his rod and reel before heading for the beach.
He waded in the water, casting the line beyond the breaking wav
es before returning to dry land to take his seat in one of the folding chairs. It was still warm but not nearly as hot as it had been during the day and a soft breeze kept the mosquitoes at bay. Usually under these conditions, he might use the time to have deep philosophical thoughts, but today was the exception as his mind was almost blank. Scott assumed he had used up his brainpower dealing with their daylong drama. He simply felt content to take in the sounds of the ocean.
He had been fishing for about fifteen minutes when a voice behind asked if he were catching anything, which as usual, he was not. He turned his head to see Beth standing off to his side looking at him. Her appearance was drastically different then from what he had seen earlier in the day.
Her light brown bangs above her eyes were slightly wind blown, but for the most part her hair was undisturbed. She was wearing a loose fitting dark blue knit shirt with her light brown hair hanging over her shoulders. Beth’s nicely tanned legs stood in contrast to her medium cut white shorts and flip-flops.
Before Scott answered her question, he continued to look at her for a moment thinking how attractive she was. “I never catch any fish, but I still enjoy being out here. Do you want to sit down for a minute?”
She sat next to him before looking out over the water. Without looking at him, she explained her reasons for coming to see him. “Michelle told me you were able to get in touch with your friends. Did you find out anything?”
Scott felt something tug at his line for just an instant but the tugging soon stopped. “I found out several things. I think I can help you piece together what happened if you tell me what you remember about that night. I want to see if what you remember goes along with what Moose told me.”
She thought about her experience for a minute or so, trying to be sure she could remember what happened. “I didn’t have much to eat when we got to camp and I remember we started drinking around eight thirty while everyone was all sitting around the fire. Then we all got up to do that stupid line dance. After that was over, I put my shirt on and sat by the fire for a while. I left to go to the bathroom, came back to the fire, and sat next to Carlie. I took a few swallows of my beer and kept on talking and singing for about fifteen or twenty minutes when I started to feel strange. I didn’t think I had that much to drink because I was holding back knowing I didn’t need to put on any more weight.”
She pointed to the cooler as asked if he had anything to drink, to which Scott offered her a beer. She looked in the cooler and opened one for each of them before she continued. “I told Carlie I wanted to go to bed and she helped me up, but I realized we weren’t going to my tent. I asked her where we were going and she said we were sleeping with you in your tent. By the time we got there, I was lost to the world. I don’t remember anything else that night. I woke up inside a sleeping bag the next morning naked from the waist up and with my shorts unzipped. I was alone in the tent. When I asked Carlie what happened, she just laughed and told me I spent the night giving you a very special birthday present. I don’t know what all he did to me and even worse, I don’t know what I did to him.”
Scott pulled some line from his reel allowing the current to carry the bait a little further out before he turned to face her. “I think I have some good news for you. I talked to several people who were there including Moose, who was with you and Carlie in the tent. Carlie took you in the tent and the two of them undressed you, with Carlie doing most of the undressing. You told them you didn’t want to do anything and to stop. They let you lay down on a sleeping bag while Carlie started taking off her clothes. Moose said he and Carlie went at it hard and heavy for a long time. When it was over, he either passed out or went to sleep. He didn’t know what happened to Carlie because she was gone the next morning before he woke up.”
“So you are telling me that nothing happened to me that night. He didn’t have sex with me or do anything to me? Did I do anything to him?” She asked.
Scott thought he should explain everything he knew. “The short answer is you didn’t do anything to him. You were a perfect little almost naked lady. Other than help Carlie take your shirt off you, he didn’t do anything to you. He has been working two jobs to stay in school so he can finish his master’s degree in biology. He’s smart enough to know not to throw it all away for a night of forced sex. Besides, Moose said he got everything he wanted from Carlie. When you said no, he took you at your word. He admits you were in his tent the next morning, so he really has no reason to lie to me about it.”
“Do you believe him?”
Scott pointed out the obvious. “Historically, guys lie to each other about what they did with a girl. We don’t lie about what we didn’t do with a girl. It makes a lousy story. Can you imagine me saying something like ‘Hey guys, I took Beth to my Jacuzzi this afternoon and we didn’t do anything? That story just isn’t worth telling.”
She started laughing, “You’re right. That’s not much of a story. Let me ask you something else. Would you make up a story like this just to help me feel better about myself?”
Without a moments hesitation Scott nodded his head. “Sure I would. I had already planned to make up a story that would make you an innocent little girl, only I didn’t have to this time. Let me tell you a few other things that might not sit so well with you. He and I both think you were one of the girls who got the drug. He is working in biochemistry and knows what he is talking about when it comes to these type drugs. He doesn’t know this of his own knowledge, but what Moose was told the next morning was that one of the girls in your sorority was spiking the beer with the drug.”
The anger was obvious in her voice. ”That’s sick.”
“Yes it is, but keep in mind we don’t know if it’s a true story either. You may never know who put the drugs in your beer.”
She remained confused and was hesitant as she brought the subject up. “When you talk about Carlie, you talk with almost clinical detachment that’s hard for me to understand. You guys were getting serious about each other and then she hops in the sack with one of your friends. You don’t even seem to be angry with your friend.”
“Moose didn’t know Carlie and I were going out. He was working two jobs and trying to keep up in school. We knew each other and ate lunch occasionally, but we weren’t real close friends. We met each other through the environmental club. After I got sick, I told the club president that if somebody needed my tent they could use it, so Moose took it.”
She was still not satisfied with his answer. “That explains your attitude about Moose, but it doesn’t say anything about your attitude toward Carlie. You just told me she and Moose were going at it hard and heavy, yet you seem to have a casual indifference for what she did to you.”
Scott smiled at Beth. “That subject is locked away in a compartment and is buried on the bottom of the ocean. That’s a good place for us to keep it.”
She had a look and tone of resignation. “I understand, because I have several things buried on the ocean floor too. To be honest, I have several other things that should be buried, but I can’t seem to throw them overboard.”
“Is there anything I can help you box up and send out to sea?” He asked.
She looked somewhat dejected. “You just finished helping me slay my biggest dragon and I don’t know how to thank you enough for that. I was having a hard time dealing with the idea of being raped. I guess I’ve used up my quota of dragon killing for one day.”
Scott began to wind the reel bringing in the hook to check the bait. “It’s still early so if you find any other dragons you need to work on, just let me know.”
Beth was looking out at the breaking waves.” After the way I was yelling at you this morning and accusing you of things, I can’t believe you are being this nice to me. It’s funny that we chose to use the metaphor about slaying dragons because you are acting like my knight in shinning armor.”
Having checked the bait on the hook, Scott stood up ready to try again. He once again waded into the ocean up to his knees befor
e casting his line past the breakers. Scott stood in front of Beth before he sat down. “You said today that you weren’t cheap, but you also weren’t an angel. I understand what you were saying, because my suit of armor has quite a few dents in it. It really doesn’t shine all that bright.”
“If we talk about some of my other dragons, could we keep that conversation just between us?”
Scott had no idea where she was going, but he could think of no good reason to object. “We can talk about anything you want to talk about.”
She wasted no time starting the conversation. “You made me furious this morning. When you were trying to tell me you were not on the canoe trip, you were giving me the once over several times. I wondered how you could deny sleeping with me while you were treating me like eye candy. What were you really thinking when all that was going on?”
Scott started smiling as he looked away. “In one respect I thought it was funny because I knew I wasn’t there. I also felt very sorry for you. Let’s start with the facts. You are very attractive and your swimsuit wasn’t designed for privacy. I shouldn’t tell you this, but I will. There were three thoughts going through my mind. First, if I had been having sex with you, I would damn sure remember it. In addition, I would not have let it be a one-time thing. And I am not going to tell you the third thing.”
Beth was determined to know what he was holding back, so she made an offer. “Tell me the third thing and I’ll let you in on one of my closely held secrets.”
Scott was slow to answer. “I decided that if you were going to accuse me of something, then I wish I had at least gotten the benefit of doing it. I have a feeling it could have been very nice for both of us. So what is your closely held secret?”
She paused as she took a drink of beer. “I’m not sure right now, but I wish you had been in that tent when I came in and I wish I would have been sober. You might have found out what I’m like when I am not being an angel. I really shouldn’t be telling you that.”
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