One More Round
Page 22
She stared out the window as they drove down a street lined with cute houses, and again her thoughts drifted.
What was that like? Owning a house? A range of apartments—some shittier than others—were pretty much the only home she’d ever known. Up until a few months ago when she’d found a steal on a house to rent in a cute neighborhood. Unfortunately, the owners needed it back by November when they returned from Arizona. Which meant she’d be back in an apartment, unless she could find another cheap house to rent.
Not likely.
She closed her eyes, letting the exhaustion from the day momentarily sweep over her. Tanesha would nudge her if she drifted off once they got to the casino…
The slight bump and thud of the car had her eyes fluttering open.
Blinking through the grogginess, she struggled to figure out where they were.
“Are we on the Deception Pass Bridge?” Hailey sat up straighter, but her question was answered by the setting sun over Puget Sound. “I thought we were going to the casino.”
“Yeah, that was the plan. But the smoke is bad for Jeanne’s allergies, so we changed party spots.”
The island. They were going to Whidbey Island. There was only one pub that people went onto the island for.
“Where’s the party now?” she had to ask, even as her throat went dry.
Don’t say it, please don’t—
“McLaughlin’s Pub.” Tanesha changed radio stations. “I don’t know why this is such a surprise. It went out in this morning’s email.”
Her heart sank and unease swelled to panicky, debilitating levels.
She hadn’t checked her email since last night. The whole social networking and email thing was something she did after work and before going to bed.
But nobody really emailed her. Facebook had always made her feel more like the awkward kid standing on the outside of the popular circle.
It was on the tip of her tongue to beg Tanesha to turn around and take her back. If she’d known leaving Mount Vernon that this was their destination, she’d never have gotten in the car.
But instead she’d fallen asleep and Tanesha had already put close to a half hour into the drive and they’d be there in about ten minutes.
“You ever been there? It’s a cool pub. You’ll love it. Run by this Scottish family who moved over here like fifteen years ago or something. The place is authentic.”
Oh, she knew exactly how authentic it was, because the McLaughlins were no strangers to her.
Sweat broke out on the back of her neck as they reached the other end of the bridge and drove onto the island. It had been a month since she’d last encountered any of the family, though. And that afternoon would be forever engrained in her head. Her heart.
Guilt roared through her, leaving her to struggle against the lump it left in her throat.
Maybe she could slip into a nearby restaurant or bar. Damn, she was so tempted to not even show up at Wendy’s birthday. How much of a bitch would that make her? Not to mention all the explaining she’d have to do as to why she’d come all the way to Oak Harbor with Tanesha, then not gone to the party.
They pulled into the gravel parking lot and the lump in her throat grew. The parking lot was just over half-full. She recognized most of the cars as being owned by people who worked at the hospital.
Tanesha turned off the engine and glanced over at her. “You look seriously uncomfortable. Just don’t get out to bars much?”
It was an answer given to her on a plate, and Hailey ran with it.
“Exactly. I’m not much for this kind of social scene.” She offered a weak smile. Her heart had yet to slow from its anxious thudding.
Tanesha grinned and opened her door to slide out. “Come on. You may be surprised by how much fun you have.”
“Not going to happen,” Hailey muttered under her breath and followed her friend out of the car.
Not for the first time in her life she found herself wishing for a superpower.
Only instead of superhuman strength, this time it would be a cloak of invisibility.
Drawing in one last breath, as if it would be her last, she stepped inside the pub.
Find out what happens next….
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About the Author
Shelli is a New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author who read her first romance novel when she snatched it off her mother’s bookshelf at the age of eleven. One taste and she was forever hooked. It wasn’t until many years later that she decided to pursue writing stories of her own. By then she acknowledged the voices in her head didn’t make her crazy, they made her a writer.
Shelli is a true pluviophile (lover of rain) and currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two daughters. She writes various genres of romance, but is most known for her contemporary series such as Holding Out for a Hero, The McLaughlins, and A is for Alpha. She’s a compulsive volunteer, and has been known to spontaneously burst into song.
Visit her website at ShelliStevens.com
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