by T. L. Haddix
“You’ll wear a condom? You won’t get her pregnant?”
When he placed his hand on her shoulder, it took everything in her to not pull away. Knowing other people might be watching though, she held still. “Do you think I want her father over here asking questions?”
Margie shook her head.
“Smart girl. I’ll wear a condom, and I’ll clean her up after I’m done. She won’t have a clue that anything happened.”
She took the pill from him and, two nights later, she crushed it, putting it in a milkshake she made for Lauren. Once her cousin was asleep, she grabbed the bag she’d packed, along with Lauren’s car keys and money, and slipped out. Her father was waiting at the bottom of the stairs.
“She’s out?”
Mutely, she nodded.
“That’s my girl.” He handed her the money and a slip of paper. “That has the name and address of one of my cousins on it. He owes me a favor, and he’s expecting you. He’ll get you a new car that can’t be traced, and he won’t ask questions.”
She looked at the paper, which had an address in Georgia. “Then where do I go?”
He shrugged. “I don’t care. Just go on and get out of here. Don’t ever come back.”
Her emotions frozen, she walked out the door, got in Lauren’s little car, and drove away. She didn’t look back once.
Chapter Two
Thirteen years later…
Lauren Taylor Grant was setting up the snack trays for the Ladies Business League meeting when that month’s hostess, Beth Hudson, rushed into the room, breathless and apologetic. They were holding the meeting in the boardroom at the offices of the Olman County Journal, the newspaper at which Beth worked as a reporter.
“Lauren, thank God. I’m so sorry I’m late. I had an interview that ran over—they just wouldn’t stop talking. What can I do?”
Lauren laughed. “You’re fine. Grab that bag on the table if you don’t mind, and take out the plates and napkins. The utensils should be in there, as well.”
As her friend grabbed the bag and moved to stand beside her, Lauren asked who she’d been interviewing.
“Remember Gus Leroy? He was a few years ahead of you in school.”
“You mean the guy whose parents own the pharmacy?” When Beth nodded, she shrugged. “Vaguely. Didn’t he move away and go to California or somewhere?”
“Yep. He moved back a few months ago to help take care of his parents. Really nice guy, super sweet. He’s a physical therapist now, and he’s opening up a clinic across from the pharmacy. Anyhow, I started interviewing him and things were fine, but then his mom came in and I got stuck there. Cool lady and all, but wow, she can talk.”
They finished setting up the food, and members of the League started to arrive. The Ladies Business League, or LBL, had been established in the late seventies when more women started opening businesses in the community. Before long, it grew into a force to be reckoned with in Olman County, handling a wide variety of functions, including spearheading Leroy’s tourism-oriented revival.
Situated on the Ohio River in southern Indiana, the town had long been known for its annual Fourth of July celebration and, through planning and hard work, semi-annual spring and fall antiques fairs were introduced. Several bed and breakfast inns were opened in some of the older houses, and Highway 7, which ran along the riverfront for much of the length of the town, was named a Scenic Byway.
It didn’t take very long for Leroy and Olman County to become a hot spot on tourist maps. The addition of a weekly farmer’s market in the large park on the town square, as well as a monthly flea market, drew a solid trade from tourists and locals alike.
As the last members of the group came in, Beth closed the door and called the meeting to order. She received quite a bit of ribbing from the older and younger women alike, being well known for her lack of domestic skills.
“Ha ha, very funny,” she said after one remark. “You all had just better be glad Lauren is able to help me out when it’s my turn, or we’d all be eating generic Oreos and drinking Kool-Aid.”
After the meeting was over and the crowd had dispersed, Lauren got a chance to speak to her other best friend, Annie Jameson-Tucker. The owner of Annie’s Arbor, the town’s most popular flower shop, had called her earlier in the day, but it had been during the lunch rush, and she hadn’t been able to take the call. “I got your message, but I didn’t get a chance to call you back. What’s up?”
“Not much. I was just wondering if you were busy Wednesday evening. My cousin Jeff is coming in from Nashville, and I thought it might be fun to do a double date.”
Though she, Annie, and Beth were best friends, the constant matchmaking got a little old. “You’ve been trying to get me to go out with him for how long?” Lauren sighed. “I don’t know, Annie. I’ve got a lot to do.”
Beth walked up, overhearing part of the conversation. She poked Lauren’s shoulder gently. “Aren’t you sans child this week?”
“I am.”
“Go out with the man, then. You might just surprise yourself and have fun. You do remember what that is, don’t you?”
Lauren rolled her eyes. “I seem to remember it, yes. Wednesday night, you said?” she asked Annie.
“Yep, just for a few hours. He has to head out early Thursday, so it’ll be an early night.”
She gave in. “All right. I guess I could use a night out of the house.”
Annie jumped up and down. “Yay! This is gonna be so cool.”
“So who’s your man of the evening going to be?” Beth teased.
“Well, um, I was going to talk to you about that.” She glanced at Beth and then down at her fingernails, inspecting them closely as she mumbled a name.
“Who?” Lauren asked.
Beth shrugged to say she hadn’t understood either, and took her hair down from its clip. The blonde tresses reached halfway down her back. “Speak up, girl. We’ll get old just standing here,” she said as she re-twisted her hair and clipped it back.
“It’s Jason. Jason Hudson, your brother.”
“I know who Jason is. Why do you think that would upset me? Unless you guys are planning on running off to Vegas or something?”
Annie made a face. “Not hardly. It’s just a date between friends. He’s a fun guy, and there’s no chance he’ll want more at the end of the evening. Anyhow, I’ll call you on Monday,” she told Lauren. “I need to head back to the shop. I still have a couple of orders that need to go out.”
“You could do worse for a sister-in-law,” Lauren said as she watched Annie walk away.
“Very true. But they don’t spark. They both deserve someone who makes them spark. I like your haircut, by the way.”
“Thanks.” Self-consciously, Lauren smoothed her hair back behind her ear. She’d changed her hairstyle last weekend after years of wearing it pulled back in a ponytail. The sleek and shiny brown tresses now moved freely around her face, and Lauren was amazed at how much younger she looked with the new cut.
“I told you the classic bob would suit you,” Beth remarked with an impish grin. “You should listen to me more often.”
Lauren laughed, not disagreeing, then looked at her watch. “Crap. I’d better head out, too. I want to hit the library and browse for a while before they close this evening. I’m going to try and catch up on my reading this week while Ava’s gone. What are your plans tonight?”
“I have a late dinner interview with the handsome new doctor, Chad Ormsby. He looks like a young Robert Redford, so I shouldn’t have to suffer too much to get through dinner.”
Lauren smiled. “Who knows? Maybe he’ll be the one who puts stars in your eyes and makes you ‘spark.’” Beth was a serial dater, and sometimes Lauren sometimes worried that her friend would never find the happiness she deserved.
Beth’s mouth twisted wryly. “Somehow, I doubt it. I just don’t think I’m one of those people for whom love is in the cards. Besides, I try to avoid dating doctors. They tend to hav
e an exaggerated opinion of themselves, with a few notable exceptions.” She wrinkled her nose. One of those exceptions was her father, Richard, one of the town’s most respected physicians.
“I’ll still keep my fingers crossed for you. Do you want me to stay here and help you clean up?”
“No, don’t even think about it.” She shooed Lauren out the door. “I may not be able to cook, but I can clean with the best of ’em. I’ll take care of it. Go get some good books to curl up with. Wish I could do that this weekend, but I’m on call, and I would only be interrupted.”
Lauren waved goodbye and left the boardroom, heading down the stairs and through the newsroom to the front door. As she stepped onto the sidewalk, the sound of a woman’s husky laughter caught her attention. Glancing across the street to the park, she saw Charity Vaughn, one of the LBL members, engaged in what appeared to be a flirtatious conversation with a handsome blond man.
Charity had moved to Leroy about three years ago, surprising everyone by opening an upscale art gallery on the town square. Some said Leroy wouldn’t be able to sustain such an endeavor, but the tall, movie star-beautiful redhead had made it a success.
As she watched, Charity tossed her hair back over her shoulder. Another peal of laughter rang out. Lauren smiled and walked to her SUV, unlocking it and getting in. While she waited for a break in the traffic, she glanced back over at the couple and saw that Charity had moved in to lightly touch the man’s chest. Seeing how easily the other woman flirted, she gave a wistful sigh. She didn’t have that sort of confidence with men, even though she had garnered plenty of interest from the opposite sex through the years.
The traffic finally cleared, and she pulled out of the parking spot and headed for the library. Renovated a few years back, the main branch of the Olman County Library was an airy and inviting space, a huge improvement over the facility’s previous institutional feel. The children’s area had been expanded to include a second story, and several interior walls had been removed, opening the space up and letting in natural light from a new bank of windows in the atrium.
Lauren walked up to the circulation desk, returning the stack of books she and Ava had checked out the previous week. As she set the books down, she smiled at Stella Moore, who was on the phone answering a question about genealogy. Stella held up her index finger, indicating that Lauren should stay there. The call finished, she turned away to grab a bundle of books Lauren had placed on hold. She took Lauren’s library card with a tired smile.
“Long day?”
“Long week,” Stella replied as she began scanning the books. “I’m glad I don’t have to come in and work this weekend.”
“I hear that. I’m not working at the shop tomorrow, so I actually get to sleep in a little bit.”
“Are you helping your mom with her booth at the farmer’s market?” Stella asked, referring to the booth of homemade jams, jellies and breads Molly usually set up every week.
“Yep. Dad’s still recuperating from his surgery, so I’m subbing for him.”
“And where is your little munchkin?”
“She’s with her dad.” Ava, Lauren’s seven-year-old daughter, was the light of her life. Though the café-coffee shop-bakery she owned, the Brown Bag, kept her busy, it was Ava who gave her a reason to get up in the morning.
After chatting for a few more minutes with Stella, Lauren took the nearly full book bag and excused herself to head back to the new arrivals section, enjoying not having to rush as she browsed. She was eager to try a couple of new authors, including the works of a mystery writer whose name she kept hearing in the shop. Perusing the titles, she spotted one of the books she was after.
As she read the blurb, she became aware of someone standing behind her. She glanced up and saw that she was blocking the shelf. Moving aside quickly, she apologized, and walked further down the row, making sure she wasn’t in anyone else’s way before she stopped again to finish reading the blurb. Impressed, she decided to give the author a try. Dropping the book into her nearly overflowing book bag, she walked around to the back of the shelf, where more new arrivals were kept. She trailed her finger across the spines of the books before she settled on one that looked interesting and pulled it out.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed another patron come around the far end of the bookshelf, his gaze focused on the books in front of him. Tall and lanky, with dark brown hair that was a little long, he wore faded but well-fitting jeans and a gray t-shirt. His foot moved in time with the fingers he tapped on his denim-clad thigh and, as Lauren watched, he pulled a book off the shelf with a satisfied smile.
Catching her breath, she returned her eyes to the books in front of her, surprised at her reaction. Just proves you aren’t dead yet, old girl, she thought. Reining in her response, she moved down the row, very aware of the man’s close proximity to her. Spying another book she wanted on the bottom shelf, she stooped down and reached for it just as Stella came around the corner, a book in hand.
“There you are, Lauren. This other book you had on hold just came in, and I didn’t want you to leave without getting it.” Standing, Lauren thanked her and took the paperback.
Stella patted her on the shoulder and headed back, smiling up at the man as she passed. “Hi, Charlie.”
He nodded and returned her smile. “Hey, Stella.” As she left, he looked at Lauren, and his smile widened. Walking over, he tilted his head to the side, studying her face.
“You’re Lauren Grant, right? Win and Molly’s daughter?”
“I am.” She shifted her book bag to her left arm. “Do I know you?”
“No, but you’ve probably heard my name. I’m Charlie Clark, your parents’ new neighbor.” Shifting his own books, he held out his hand.
Her jaw dropped. “I thought you were older,” she blurted, making him laugh. As she realized what she’d said, her cheeks burned with embarrassment. She quickly returned his handshake. “That didn’t come out right. It’s just that my dad talks about you as though you’re his contemporary.”
“Don’t worry about it. I was wondering if we were ever going to meet, or if you were a figment of Win and Molly’s imagination and Ava was just some random child who wandered in from time to time.”
Lauren laughed. “I was beginning to wonder myself. You’ve really helped Dad keep his sanity the last few weeks, you know. Having you there to talk to has been a godsend. I hear you’re into RC.” Winston had a passion for remote-controlled vehicles, and he had been thrilled to discover that their new neighbor shared his hobby.
“I do like RC. And if I’ve helped Win, I’m glad. He’s a pretty cool guy. I’ve enjoyed getting to know him.” He gestured toward the book she held in her hand. “Have you read any of her other books?”
Lauren glanced at the book, turning it over to study the cover. “No, this will be the first one I’ve read by her. I’ve heard a lot of chatter around the shop about her books, though, so I’m looking forward to curling up with this.”
“She’s good. I think you’ll enjoy her.” Glancing at his watch, he winced. “I hate to run, but I’ve got to get to work. It’s nice to finally meet you, to be able to put a face to the name.”
Lauren agreed as they walked up to the circulation desk. “Yes, it is. You’re working at the Lighthouse?”
“I am, at least for a few more weeks, until Sonny doesn’t need me any longer.”
“How is he?” The restaurant’s owner had recently undergone bypass surgery.
“Much better than his doctors anticipated.” Charlie handed his library card to Stella, who efficiently scanned his books.
“I’ll see you around?” he asked Lauren. “You have to let me know what you think about that author.”
“I’ll do that.”
He smiled and tipped an imaginary hat toward her and Stella, then turned and headed out the door. They watched him walk away, and the older woman let out a sigh as he disappeared. Lauren looked at her, eyebrows raised.
Stella
shrugged and grinned. “What can I say? I like tall, lanky, dark-haired men. Just because I’m old enough to be his mother doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate the way he wears his clothes.”
Lauren laughed, blushing. “He does wear those jeans awfully well.” She handed Stella the books she’d chosen.
“Didn’t he buy the house next to your parents?”
“Apparently he did, but this is the first time I’ve met him. Between his work schedule and mine, well, we’ve been missing each other for weeks now. You know how that goes.”
“I do know how that goes.” She slid the books back across the counter, and Lauren returned them to her bag.
“Maybe you should make him some home-made cookies or a pie or something,” Stella suggested, waggling her eyebrows.
Lauren shook her head. “Oh, no. I’m not going there. I have Ava to raise and a business to run; I don’t have time for a man.” Wishing Stella a good evening, she headed out the door. As she reached her vehicle, her cell phone rang. Glancing at the screen, she saw that it was her mother.
“Hey, Mom.” She tossed her bag into the passenger seat and got inside.
“Hey, honey. What time are we meeting in the morning? Seven-thirty?”
“That’s what we agreed on. Are you sure you don’t need me to help you load up at the house?”
“No, Charlie helped with most of it today. Thanks for asking, though.”
Lauren squirmed in her seat. “I met him. Mom, why didn’t you tell me he was so young? He’s probably only a few years older than me.”
“You know what they say about making assumptions.”
“Mom! He probably thinks I’m a crazy lady.” Lauren told her about what she’d said. “It was a little embarrassing, to tell the truth. I hope I didn’t offend him.”
Molly laughed. “Don’t worry about it, honey. That won’t offend Charlie. He probably got a kick out of it.”
Lauren snorted, giving in and laughing with her mother. They talked for another minute before hanging up and, as she started the engine and pulled out of the parking space, she tried to forget the way Charlie Clark’s face lit up when he smiled.
