The Roundabout

by Gerri Hill

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  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Synopsis

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Other Books by Gerri Hill

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Bella Books

  Synopsis

  Megan Phenix—bar and grill owner in gay-friendly Eureka Springs—is labeled as “playing hard to get” and finds herself the object of much unwanted attention. If only she were seeing someone…maybe the women would leave her in peace.

  Leah Rollins thinks fifty is too young to retire, so instead, she opens a store in the touristy shopping district of Eureka Springs next to the popular Phenix Grill. She soon learns that Megan Phenix is a bit on the grumpy side as they spar over parking spaces and anything else they can find to argue about. When Leah catches the attention of the multitude of single lesbians in town, she searches for a way out. Could the grumpy grill owner next door be the answer to her problems?

  Megan and Leah strike an unlikely alliance and conspire to rid themselves of the unwanted attention by fake dating. Can they pull it off?

  As they pretend to date and convince everyone in town that they really are a couple, the pretense becomes harder to hold on to. But there’s just one problem…they don’t really like each other.

  Or do they?

  Copyright © 2016 by Gerri Hill

  Bella Books, Inc.

  P.O. Box 10543

  Tallahassee, FL 32302

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

  First Bella Books Edition 2016

  eBook released 2016

  Editor: Medora MacDougall

  Cover Designer: Linda Callaghan

  ISBN: 978-1-59493-520-6

  PUBLISHER’S NOTE

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  Other Bella Books by Gerri Hill

  Angel Fire

  Artist’s Dream

  At Seventeen

  Behind the Pine Curtain

  The Cottage

  Chasing a Brighter Blue

  Coyote Sky

  Dawn of Change

  Devil’s Rock

  Gulf Breeze

  Hell’s Highway

  Hunter’s Way

  In the Name of the Father

  Keepers of the Cave

  The Killing Room

  Love Waits

  The Midnight Moon

  No Strings

  One Summer Night

  Paradox Valley

  Partners

  Pelican’s Landing

  The Rainbow Cedar

  The Scorpion

  Sierra City

  Snow Falls

  Storms

  The Target

  Weeping Walls

  About the Author

  Gerri Hill has thirty published works, including the 2014 GCLS winner The Midnight Moon, 2011, 2012 and 2013 winners Devil’s Rock, Hell’s Highway and Snow Falls, and the 2009 GCLS winner Partners, the last book in the popular Hunter Series, as well as the 2013 Lambda finalist At Seventeen. Gerri lives in south-central Texas, only a few hours from the Gulf Coast, a place that has inspired many of her books. With her partner, Diane, they share their life with two Australian Shepherd’s—Casey and Cooper—and a couple of furry felines. For more, visit her website at gerrihill.com.

  Chapter One

  Megan rolled over and groaned, keeping her eyes firmly closed as the pounding in her head echoed loud enough for her to hear it. Her mouth was parched and she tried to swallow. She groaned again as the bitter taste of tequila lingered.

  “Oh, God,” she murmured. She had a vague recollection of holding a bottle of PatrÓn hostage most of the night.

  Then her eyes popped open when she realized she wasn’t alone in her bed. She turned her head slowly, seeing a mass of light brown hair spilled across the pillow.

  Oh. Dear. God.

  Who the hell was in her bed? Julie? Oh, surely not. She couldn’t have been that drunk. Melissa? No, Melissa had dark hair, thank God. Her eyes widened again. Oh, crap. Was it Sarah? Oh, please say it’s not Sarah!

  She closed her eyes tightly. Who else had hair this color? Her eyes popped open again. Mary Beth? Oh, just shoot me if it’s Mary Beth!

  “Good morning, angel,” came a raspy, sleepy voice beside her.

  She turned her head slowly, unable to contain her gasp as she locked eyes with Mary Beth Sturgeon. Several seconds passed before she could find her voice.

  “What the hell are you doing in my bed?”

  Mary Beth smiled at her. “Your bed?”

  Megan sat up as fast as her pounding head would allow. She groaned as she looked around.

  “Oh, God, this isn’t my bedroom.” Then she groaned again. “Christ, I’m naked,” she mumbled as she clutched the sheet to her chest. She looked over at Mary Beth and saw her bare shoulders. Oh. Dear. God.

  She spotted her clothes on the floor beside the bed and she motioned to Mary Beth. “Turn around.”

  Mary Beth’s smile was smug. Too smug, Megan thought.

  “Too late for that,” Mary Beth said. “I’ve already seen every inch of your beautiful body. More than once.”

  “Oh, crap,” she murmured. She bit her lip, then flung the covers off. She quickly reached for her sweater and pulled it on, covering herself as much as possible. She snatched up her undershirt but couldn’t find her bra or underwear in the two seconds she allowed herself to look for them. She yanked on
her jeans, nearly falling as her left foot got stuck in the leg. She danced around, managing to pull them on. She finally zipped the jeans, then grabbed the bridge of her nose, trying to ease the pounding in her head. She looked at Mary Beth and gave her what she hoped was a threatening glare.

  “Not…a…word of this to anyone,” she said as she bent down to pick up her shoes.

  Mary Beth laughed. “Seriously? Half the women in Eureka Springs want to sleep with you,” she said. “You think that I’m not going to tell everyone that you shared my bed last night?”

  Megan stared at her in disbelief. If she was ever going to sleep with someone in this town—and certainly Mary Beth Sturgeon wouldn’t have even made her top twenty—she would at least hope she’d remember it. Instead of arguing, she held up her hand.

  “I’m leaving.” She turned and stormed from the room.

  “I have an extra toothbrush,” Mary Beth called. “And ibuprofen.”

  Megan stumbled out onto the front porch, immediately shielding her eyes from the sun. What in the hell happened last night?

  Well, it was her birthday. She remembered that much. And yeah, Nancy—her sister—had thrown her a party. She nodded. Yeah…at Mary Beth’s house. It was supposed to be a surprise. She hadn’t had the heart to tell Nancy that she’d known about the party for the last three weeks.

  “Tequila? Who the hell brought PatrÓn?”

  She looked around for her car, not seeing the black SUV anywhere on the street, which meant Nancy drove it home.

  “And she freakin’ left me here with Mary Beth Sturgeon? I’ll kill her.”

  She paused on the street, squinting. Mary Beth lived above town, a couple of blocks from the business district. She looked uphill. The house she shared with her sister was four or five blocks away. She sighed and looked down the hill. She wanted coffee. She could walk to the grill for that. But she really wanted a shower and a change of clothes too. She glanced up the hill and sighed again. Two blocks downhill for coffee or five blocks uphill for a shower?

  Downhill and coffee won.

  As she headed down the street, she reached in her jeans pocket for her phone. A moment of panic set in when she couldn’t find it. She couldn’t live without her phone. Was it at Mary Beth’s house?

  “Oh, hell. I don’t need my phone that badly,” she murmured as she continued down the street.

  “Hey, Megan. Great party last night.”

  She looked across the street, seeing Paul waving at her. Or was he laughing at her? She forced a smile to her face and returned the wave. She had no recollection of Paul even being at the party. Of course, she didn’t have much recollection of the party at all. Which, at the moment, was the least of her worries. It was obvious that she was coming from Mary Beth’s house. Paul would tell Michael. Michael would tell Steve. Steve would be on the phone to Carla in a matter of seconds. Carla would tell Susie. And Susie? Susie owned the corner grocery store on Main Street. The store that all the locals used. And Susie was the town’s biggest gossip. If you wanted to know anything that was happening in Eureka Springs, you called Susie.

  “Just freakin’ shoot me already,” she mumbled.

  As the Phenix Grill came into sight, she picked up her pace. She had no idea what time it was but judging by the number of cars, they were already open and the lunch crowd was starting to trickle in. She walked inside, heading straight for the coffee. When Eileen would have spoken, Megan held up her hand and shook her head slowly.

  “Don’t…speak.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” Eileen said. “Tequila is not your friend.”

  Megan glared at her, but it had no effect on the waitress, who only laughed, grabbed the decaf decanter and sauntered off. Eileen had been with them since they’d opened the grill. That was the only reason she didn’t fire her. Well, that, and the fact that she managed the waitstaff and they would be completely lost without her.

  She skirted the kitchen and went directly to the office she shared with her sister. She plopped down in the chair, glaring at Nancy.

  “Well, well. So you are still alive. Good.”

  “Why in the hell did you leave me there? With Mary Beth, of all people.” She shook her head. “Really? What were you thinking?”

  “You were asleep on the sofa, mumbling some nonsense about a circus clown. You told me to leave you there,” Nancy said.

  “The sofa? I woke up in her bed, for God’s sake!”

  “Well, yeah. We didn’t want to leave you on the sofa. The party was still going on,” Nancy said. “Paul helped us get you to her bed. I suggested the spare room, but Mary Beth thought you’d be more comfortable in her king bed.”

  “Oh, God, so Paul was laughing at me,” she murmured as she closed her eyes. “I woke up naked. In Mary Beth Sturgeon’s bed. And she was also naked.” She groaned. “And I couldn’t find my bra and underwear. My favorite bra…that cute little red one.” She covered her face with her hands. “Oh, God. Now Mary Beth has it.”

  Nancy laughed. “Oh, Megan, Mary Beth was just having some fun. Trust me. There was no way you had sex last night.”

  “Fun? I wouldn’t be surprised if there are naked photos of me posted on her Facebook page already,” she said. She grabbed her head. “Oh, God. Mary Beth Sturgeon, of all people.” She again glared at Nancy. “What were you thinking?”

  Nancy waved her hand at her. “You’re being way too dramatic. Mary Beth likes to pretend she’s slept with everyone in town.”

  “That’s because she has slept with everyone in town,” she snapped. “And now they’re going to think I’ve been added to the list.”

  “Everyone knows how you are, Megan. I’m sure they’ll know better. But Susie was at the party…no telling what gossip is going around town already.”

  “Are you trying to make me feel better or worse? And where’s my phone?”

  Nancy reached for her purse and dug inside, coming out with Megan’s phone. “You can thank me later,” she said as she handed it to her. “Do you remember anything that happened last night?”

  Megan frowned. “Well, it was my birthday.”

  Nancy nodded. “Thus the reason for the party.”

  “You do remember that I hate surprise parties, right? And if you’re going to throw me one, why do it this year? I’ll be forty next year. That should be the dreaded surprise party birthday.”

  “Because you would be expecting it at forty. Thirty-nine was a surprise.” She raised her eyebrows. “Right? You were surprised, weren’t you?”

  Megan smiled. “Yes, I was surprised,” she lied. “And paybacks are hell. You’ll be fifty in a couple of years.”

  “Three. And don’t remind me.”

  “So why did you take my phone?”

  “To save you the humiliation you were about to incur.” Nancy pointed at the phone in question. “You do remember the call, right?”

  Megan frowned again. What call? She turned her phone on, going to her recent calls. Her eyes widened.

  “Oh, my God. The Wicked Witch called? What the hell?” She looked at Nancy. “Did I talk to her?”

  “No. I at least stopped you from answering. You did, however, listen to her message.”

  Megan nearly slammed her coffee cup down. “She breaks up with me on my birthday last year—in front of her new lover, no less—and she has the nerve to call me this year and wish me a happy birthday?” She narrowed her eyes at Nancy. “She did call to wish me a happy birthday, right?”

  “In a roundabout way, yes. She was going on and on about how great this last year has been for the both of them and that she hopes you’re finally over her and blah, blah, blah,” Nancy said with another wave of her hand. “Your night went downhill from there. I don’t know why you’re not over her already.”

  “I am so over her,” Megan insisted.

  “Oh, yeah? Then why did you try to drink an entire bottle of tequila by yourself?”

  Megan groaned. “I don’t even like tequila. I don’t ever want to see
tequila again.”

  Nancy rolled her eyes. “You love margaritas, Megan. I’m sure this will pass.”

  “You took my phone. I was going to call her, wasn’t I?”

  “Yes, you were.”

  She sighed. She hadn’t spoken to Erin even once since she’d walked out of her life. Erin had wanted to remain friends. Erin’s new girlfriend wanted to be friends too. Megan wanted to shoot them both. Thankfully, they’d left town shortly after the breakup and Megan was saved from a murder conviction.

  “Thank you. God only knows what I would have said to her.”

  “You’re welcome.” Nancy leaned her elbows on the desk. “Now, what do you think about the bookstore finally selling?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I swear, do you remember anything from last night? It was all the talk.”

  “The bookstore? Next door? It’s been vacant for a few years now,” she said. “Who would buy that dump?”

  “Susie only knows it’s some woman from California. Rumor has it that she’s going to convert the upstairs into an apartment and live there.”

  Megan shook her head. “A plain old bookstore is not going to go over. Nobody reads paper books anymore. When Mr. Carlton owned it, even adding the little coffee bar didn’t help.”

  “No, I doubt it’ll be a bookstore,” Nancy said.

  “Well, I imagine we’ll meet the new owner soon enough,” she said. “And if you don’t need me, I’m going home to take a shower and change clothes.”

  “It’s your turn to close tonight,” Nancy reminded her.

  “Yeah, yeah,” she murmured. “I’ll be back at two.”

  Chapter Two

  Leah led the contractor back downstairs, pleased that he thought he could salvage the plumbing. Many, many years ago, the upstairs had housed two small apartments. The previous owner had gutted it and enlarged his bookstore, making the top floor a reading room. Crazy concept, she thought. No wonder the bookstore had failed. If you could spend a couple of hours sitting up there reading, why bother to buy the book?