ow was the ride?” Jen asked as she wove her arm through mine. Matt winked at me over her head and I felt like I’d just become a helpless deer in a lion’s den.
“It was fine,” I murmured.
We began walking through the fair, enjoying the atmosphere and the games. Matt and his brother, much to my dismay, had won Jen over and became a permanent part of our little group for the rest of the evening.
“Oh look!” Jen pointed out a game booth that had some of the fluffiest and best prizes up for grabs.
“Don’t even waste your money,” I said with my hands on my hips. “Everyone knows that game is impossible to win. It’s a scam.”
“Who says it’s impossible?” Hunter asked from behind me.
“Beth does. She has won just about every game there is at any fair, except that one. She’s convinced it’s unwinnable.” Jen grinned when I shook my head. How could she betray all my secrets like that?
“I bet I could win it,” Matt said with a smirk. I snorted and a gleam of competition lit his eyes.
“I’d take that bet.” I said confidently.
“Better be careful, Beth. You don’t know what you’re getting into,” Hunter chimed in, his eyes were riveted on Jen, though. Interesting.
“What would you care to wager?” I asked with a mocking lilt in my voice.
“I bet I can win that game with one dollar and the three rings,” he said confidently. I started laughing, I couldn’t help it.
“Impossible. There’s no way. Just back out now while you still got a little bit of your pride left, cowboy.” Matt stepped forward, his eyes glinting dangerously, and I felt excitement shoot through me.
“What will you give me if I win?” he asked softly.
“Careful, Beth. Don’t let your pride get the best of ya.” Jen laughed.
“What do you want?” I asked, ignoring my best friend.
“Dangerous question, sweetheart.” He grinned and I’m pretty sure my face turned fifty shades of red. I crossed my arms over my chest and tilted my chin in defiance.
“A date,” he said loudly. Jen began giggling and Hunter whistled from somewhere nearby.
“A date?” I asked. “That’s what you want?” He nodded his head. “And if I win?”
“You won’t,” he stated matter-of-factly. I bristled at that. He saw the look on my face and held his hands up in surrender. “But if you do, I’ll get your truck a tune up for free.” I smiled. I liked that, it could definitely use a tune-up before I hit the road again.
“Deal,” I said as I held out my hand. When Matt took it, I had to stop myself from jerking it back out of his too quickly. He’s too good, I kept repeating to myself.
Matt pulled a dollar bill out of his back pocket and we all followed him over to the game stand. He handed the carnie the dollar and was handed three red rings for his money. This is going to be such an easy win, I thought to myself. I began to smile, already tasting the victory of the win.
“How ‘bout we sweeten the deal?” His voice taunted. My mouth popped open slightly. He didn’t know when to quit and he was awfully cocky about winning.
“Sweeten how?” I asked warily.
“When I win …”
“If you win,” I interrupted. He grinned so huge, that I began grinning back, despite the fact that I was trying to be stern.
“If I win and I’m able to choose the one prize you would have chosen for yourself, I get to choose where I take you on the date.” My eyes widened fractionally. I was surprised that he thought he knew me well enough to guess what I would have chosen as a prize.
“Fine. And for the record, Jen would know exactly what I’d choose, so she’ll be the one to tell you if you guessed correctly or not.” I was liking this turn of events, not only was the game impossible to win, but his little side bet was also not as easy as he thought.
“Jeez, Matthew, I’m not trying to rain on your parade or anything, but I don’t think the odds are stacked in your favor.” Jen was staring at the three rings in his hand then glanced over at the rows and rows of large glass bottles. She shook her head and laughed lightly. “Well, good luck, but I’d be getting ready to pay for a tune up if I were you.” Jen clucked her tongue and I began laughing.
“I like my odds.” Matt’s voice lowered and he winked at me just before turning around and tossing the first ring. The ring bounced off several jugs before landing in between them. His jaw clenched and I covered my mouth so I wouldn’t make too much fun of him. I knew guys hated to have their pride wounded publicly.
“It ain’t over yet, buttercup.” Hunter grinned over at Jen, who was also trying very hard not to laugh. Her eyes narrowed and she pointedly turned her attention back to Matt. Matt let the second ring fly and I held my breath when it came too close to hanging around the jug like it was supposed to.
“Oh, so close,” Jen murmured between a giggle. Matt took the last plastic ring between his thumb and forefinger and then blew out a steadying breath. A quick flick of his wrist set the ring flying and I could tell as soon as it left his hand that I was going to lose the bet. When the ring settled around the neck of a bottle dead in the center of the rows and rows of bottles, Hunter began whooping and hollering while patting his brother on the back. A celebratory bell dinged loudly, letting everyone around know that someone had won playing the dreaded ring toss game. Jen stood there with her mouth hanging open and I felt the ground shift beneath my feet. Me and my big mouth.
Matt walked over to me with his eyes shining and a boyish grin plastered on his face, making it impossible for me to be mad about losing.
“You’ve won this before.” It wasn’t a question. Hunter smirked and Matt shrugged.
“A couple of times,” he muttered. My mouth hung open in disbelief.
“A couple of times?” I shrieked. I was angrier about the fact that I had never won the game than about him bamboozling me into a game he had mastered. I shook my head and gazed up into his smiling eyes. “Looks like you’re taking me on a date.” Little butterflies danced in my midsection at the thought of spending time alone with Matt.
“Looks like I am.” His eyes were twinkling and a dimple appeared as he smiled widely. I sighed, sexy dimples were my one true weakness.
“What prize would you like, sir?” The gray haired Carny pointed up to the dozens of huge, fluffy, stuffed animals hanging from his tent, with a toothy smile. Matt glanced back at me and I crossed my arms over my chest as a smile began to work its way across my face. Matt’s eyes widened slightly before he began grinning from ear to ear. My smile quickly turned into a frown and Hunter began laughing behind us. Matt pointed to a prize without his eyes ever leaving mine.
“I’ll take that one.”
don’t know why you’re so upset.” Jen shrugged her shoulders and began laughing … again. She hadn’t stopped laughing since Matt had won the massive six foot long purple snake from the ring toss game at the fair.
“I’m not upset. I just …” I stroked the head of the uber fluffy snake and sighed. “It’s just … how did he know I would go for the snake? I mean, most girls would have gone for a bear, or the ginormous flower, or even the monkey.” I shook my head and tried to get a handle on my feelings. On one hand I was shocked and upset that he could read me so well, but on the other hand I was glad he picked correctly, even if it was just to assure myself that he felt the same connection, wanted or not, that I felt.
“It’s just a date,” Jen chided. “He likes you. I can tell by the way he looks at you.” Jen sat down on the end of my bed, already in her pajamas.
“I know. That’s the problem,” I muttered.
“Why is it a problem?”
“He’s not my type, Jen.” I didn’t know how to explain it very well to her, especially since I knew she wouldn’t understand. “He’s too nice, too perfect, too much of a small town morals kind of guy.” I glanced down into my lap and fiddled with the comforter. “What if he’s like my dad?” I whispered.
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��Beth, he’s not. He’s a good guy and he might have small town morals but he doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who would emotionally abuse and control someone using religion.” Jen’s eyes searched my face and I knew there is truth to what she was saying, but the fear that had always been in the back of my mind and heart was still as fresh as it had been when I was walking out the front door of my house when I’d turned eighteen.
“He’s not your father, Beth.”
“You’re right, Jen. Let’s get some sleep.” Jen sighed as she stood up.
“I guess we should since I have a date with Hunter tomorrow,” Jen muttered. I gasped and narrowed my eyes.
“When did that happen?” I asked. Jen blushed and threw her hands in the air.
“I still don’t know exactly how it happened at all. I may have been a victim of a body snatching alien when I said yes.” Jen’s face was dead serious and I sputtered out laughter.
“So you and Hunter tomorrow night. And then Matt and I in a few days.” I shuddered dramatically and Jen rolled her eyes.
“Oh, don’t pretend … you know you wanna jump his bones.” She winked and left me sitting in my bed with my mouth hanging open. Jennifer Collins, you naughty girl, I thought, fighting a smile. I clicked the lamp off and snuggled under my covers with my snake lying beside me.
“And that’s the problem,” I whispered to myself.
The next morning dawned a sunny, gorgeous summer day with birds chirping outside my window, the scent of fresh coffee brewing, and the lovely sound of Jen’s voice singing softly in the kitchen. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was hoping for some sort of natural disaster so I could get out of going into town with Jen that morning to do grocery shopping. I pulled on a worn pair of cut off jean shorts and a red tank top and jerked on my not-quite-worn-out brown boots, planning to help Jen with the shopping and then perhaps some gardening later to try and rid myself of the nerves that were jittering through my body.
The ride into town was abnormally quiet. Jen was sitting in the passenger side of my truck with her chin resting on her palm as she gazed out the window, not really noticing anything.
“You okay?” I asked softly. She glanced up and blinked a few times before visibly shaking herself out of her thoughts.
“Yes, sorry. Just wool gathering.” A half smile played on her lips, but the effort it took was evident on her face. Something was up.
“Jennifer Anne Collins …” I warned. She smirked at that.
“Oh no, you brought out the big guns.” She laughed and my shoulders relaxed a fraction.
“Oh, I’ve got a lot more than the dreaded middle name in my arsenal,” I promised, with a wink. Her eyes widened and I began laughing as I clicked through my ipod.
“You wouldn’t,” she gasped. I just smiled wider until I found the song I was searching for. Jen groaned out loud when No Diggity blasted through the speakers. It didn’t take long though … a few minutes later we were cruising down the country road with the wind blowing through our hair and both of us singing along with Dr. Dre. We only got a few nasty looks when we pulled into the grocery store parking lot. Jen turned beat red and I curbed in my instinct to turn the music up even louder. I jumped out of the truck and handed Jen the list we had made together before leaving the house.
“I’ll get what we need from the super market, you can pick up the produce from the outdoor market. Sound good?” Jen headed toward the store entrance without waiting for a reply. She knew I’d rather shop for the produce, so I stuck the list in my pocket, saluted her smartly, and headed to the open market down the street.
The little side-of-the-road stand I remembered had changed drastically in the last four years. Mr. Peterson had more than tripled the size of the market, built brand new, brightly colored stands, and expanded the variety of produce immensely. Johnny Cash was playing softly in the background, a few children were running around the perimeter of the market, and in the middle of it all was Mrs. Peterson just as I remembered her. Her gray hair was pulled back into a bun and she wore a white, crisply ironed, half-apron with pockets and a ruffled hem. I smiled as I saw her handing a homemade cookie to a chubby toddler hanging on to the hem of his momma’s skirt near the cash register.
Memories came rushing back … coming there every Saturday morning with Mrs. Collins and Jen to pick up fruits and veggies … but every kid in Salem knew that the best thing about the Peterson Family Market was Mrs. Peterson’s cookies. The little boy was making a proper mess of his face and clothes as his momma pulled him along to leave the market. I grabbed a basket and began picking out fresh fruit and veggies, extremely happy to sample a variety of freshly picked wild berries. I had visions of blackberry cobbler and homemade jam dancing in my head as I bought an unholy amount of the plump berries.
Much to my surprise, Mrs. Peterson remembered me and was glad to ring up my purchases while catching me up on all the town’s upcoming events. There was going to be a barn dance, with a baking and pie eating contest, a small art exhibit at the local high school to raise funds for the new classes that would be offered the following fall semester, and a church meeting for ladies at the local church. I smiled kindly at her and promised to try and make it to some of the events while I was in town. I had even meant it about the barn dance. I was grinning from ear to ear when I left the stand with my overstuffed bags of produce. It only took one person to remind me exactly why I didn’t live in towns like Salem any longer, though.
was putting my bags in the back of my truck when Beau Montgomery whipped his Ford F-150 up next to my truck. I groaned out loud and silently cursed my luck—leave it to Beau to make my good mood evaporate in an instant. I leaned back against my truck, intending to ignore him while I waited for Jen to finish up her shopping. But, just as I figured, he wasn’t going to be able to just leave me alone and go on about his day.
Beau came around his truck and pulled off his sun glasses and hung them on the collar of his red, western style, plaid shirt. A grin cracked across his face, but it wasn’t a friendly, glad-to-see-you grin, it was a cat-cornered-the-mouse kind of grin. I crossed my arms over my chest, aware his eyes were oogling my assets.
“Damn, girl, you are looking fine today.” He whistled and walked over to lean back against his truck directly in front of me, his eyes were leering as they slid over my body, making me feel dirty standing fully clothed in front of him.
“Go away, Beau, I’m not in the mood to be hassled today,” I snapped. I sent a silent plea for Jen to hurry up so we could split.
“Don’t be like that, sweet heart,” he crooned, smiling even wider.
“Don’t call me that. I’m not your sweet heart. I thought I made that clear back in high school, Beau.” I clenched my jaw and glanced over at the store entrance, willing Jen to walk through the doors.
“We both know what you wanted back in high school. Bet you still want the same thing right now, huh?” He grabbed himself to drive his point home. My brain to mouth filtering system malfunctioned when I hit a certain level of anger and right then I was so far past that level that I was surprised I didn’t have a coronary.
“You were a disgusting pig back in high school, Beau. And now it looks like you’ve graduated to a pathetic excuse of a man whore. Congratulations.” My chest was heaving and my heart was pounding when I turned to stomp away toward the store. I was going to go and drag Jen out if I had to, so I could get the Hell outta there. I should have remembered Beau’s anger from the Piggly Wiggly. A large, rough hand clamped down on my bare arm and spun me around, yanking a gasp from my throat.
“Who do you think you are?” Beau’s eyes were wild, his hand held me in a bruising grasp. I tried to yank my arm free, but his grip only tightened more, making me wince in pain.
“Let go of me right now, Beau,” I demanded as calmly as I could, though I was quaking on the inside.
“You think you’re so much better than me?” he asked roughly. “Poor little Beth,” he sneered. “What’s worse I wonder
? Being known as the town whore or the daughter of the town religious freaks?” My hand flew out and the crack of my hand hitting his cheek seemed to echo all around me. Sweet Jesus. What had I done? I thought. His head snapped to the side from the force of my blow and his nostrils flared slightly when he turned back to face me. The look on his face and the dangerous gleam in his eyes chilled the blood in my veins. In a split second, his hand cocked back and swung out in full force and everything seem to happen in slow motion. All I could do was prepare myself for the impact.
Out of my peripheral vision I saw a shadow move just before someone snatched Beau’s hand out of mid-air and pulled him back away from me. I stumbled to the side and landed on my knees on the sidewalk. My ears were ringing from a spike in adrenaline. I could barely hear Jen saying my name through the wad of cotton that had been stuffed in my ears. Jen’s hand was on my arms and she was screaming at someone. I stood up with Jen’s help, and for the first time I noticed that Matt had Beau in a death grip, his body tense and menacing, ready to do bodily harm to the scum who’d put his hand on me. I stepped forward on wobbly legs and put a hand on Matt’s back.
“Forget it, Matt. It isn’t worth it.” Matt stiffened when I touched him. He turned his eyes to meet mine and I realized just how close he was to pounding Beau into the asphalt. His eyes ran over me, taking stock of any injuries. When he saw the marks on my arm, angry and red from Beau’s grip, his jaw clenched and his hand fisted tighter in Beau’s shirt. “Please, Matt. Don’t give him the satisfaction,” I pleaded. I was so tired. I just wanted to go back to Jen’s and forget about everything. The storm in Matt’s eyes clamed fractionally as he slowly loosened his grip on Beau’s shirt and gave him a little shove away. I breathed out a breath of relief and placed my hand on Matt’s still-tense arm. “Thank you,” I said softly. Matt sucked in a sharp breath when Beau let out a nasty laugh. My grip tightened on Matt’s forearm.
Sweet Contradiction Page 4
