“Hush, we have all evening. What’s the hurry? This is the charm of a small town. Life is slower, and the nights are longer.”
What could she do? Walk away from him and insult him in public? That would be career suicide. His come-ons weren’t welcome, but at the same time, he could claim he was only being friendly.
Amber’s stomach soured, and she no longer enjoyed the intimacy of the small town festival. People she recognized from the softball game walked by, saying ‘hi’ to both her and Dr. Forster, or Vic, as if they were a couple.
A young couple who looked familiar greeted them, and Dr. Forster was quick to make introductions. “I’m Vic and this is Amber. We’re new here in town.”
“I met you two at the softball game. I’m Mike Wolff, and this is my girlfriend, Penny Barnes,” the young man said. “You work with my cousin, Chad, right?”
Amber nodded and inched away from Dr. Forster’s side, hoping to escape. “Have you seen him around? I kind of lost track of where my coworkers went.”
“I’m surprised he’s not at work,” Mike said, turning to his girlfriend. “Have you seen Chad this evening?”
Penny’s eyes brightened and she pointed at the gazebo. “I think he’s one of the contestants for Festival King. All the cheerleaders are voting for him, and Helen Klitz is going for Festival Queen. She’s a real drama queen.”
“Let’s go cast our votes,” Mike said. “I’m not sure Chad’s going to be happy to be crowned with Helen.”
“Why? What happens to the Festival King and Queen?” Amber asked, as an unpleasant feeling twisted her gut.
“They’re like the ambassadors for Sapphire Falls,” Mike said. “They preside over the activities. They also raise money by taking pictures with the tourists and going on the Ferris wheel with them.”
“I don’t think Chad’s going to enjoy the attention,” Amber said, taking the opportunity to follow Mike and Penny from the wood burning booth while Dr. Forster paid for the artwork.
It was rude to not say anything to Dr. Forster, but she didn’t want to accept a gift from him, especially one personalized with their names as if they were a couple.
What was it going to take to shake the burr loose? Had the scumbag threatened Chad’s job? Said that he was in a precarious position? An unknown quantity?
What if she was endangering Chad by pretending to be his girlfriend? How selfish she was to latch onto him, and use him as an excuse not to let Dr. Forster get closer.
They approached the gazebo where a spotlight was trained on the mayor of Sapphire Falls.
“Welcome to Sapphire Falls!” the mayor’s voice boomed. “I hope you are enjoying our Summer Festival. We’re so happy you’re here and now, we have a special treat for you.”
He paused for the drumroll, then continued. “The Annual Crowning of the Festival King and Queen. Hurry up and get your votes in, and please, no stuffing the ballot boxes. This is Sapphire Falls, for goodness’ sake, and my assistant knows everyone by sight, so no voting twice.”
He stepped back, and the band struck up another tune.
“We need to go vote for Chad,” Penny said, tugging Mike. “I wonder who else is going for Queen besides Helen.”
“You guys go ahead,” Amber said. “I’m going to sit this one out.”
Dr. Forster would be even more jealous of Chad if he were crowned Festival King. Funny thing, now that Amber had gotten to know Chad better, she was no longer jealous of him. The guy was a little clueless, true, but he hadn’t meant anything denigrating about her being asked to assist him. Besides, he was now one of her biggest supporters. She’d run a few ideas by him, and they agreed to informally collaborate on areas of joint interest.
She spotted Dr. Forster scanning the town square with the wood-burned picture tucked under his arm, so she ducked behind the gazebo and snuck over to one of the darker areas in back of the photo booth.
The music stopped a while later, and the mayor took the steps of the gazebo. “Folks, we have the results. This year’s Festival King is a man who doesn’t hesitate to get his hands dirty. He’s a newcomer, but I’m sure you’ve seen his big red truck and heard legends about his mysterious desserts packed inside double and triple plastic bags inside his cooler.”
His comments brought laughter to the crowd, and Amber’s heart swelled with pride at how popular Chad had become.
The mayor continued, “Give a hand to this year’s Festival King, Chad Powers. Ladies, line up to claim your Ferris wheel rides. Anyone who contributes more than ten dollars to the cleanup fund gets to go for a spin with the Sapphire Falls Dung Man!”
“Woohoo!” the crowd hollered. A shout and raised hands flew up near the Texas Barbecue truck, as Harrison and Kiran strong-armed Chad toward the gazebo.
“IAS, IAS, IAS!” Mason and his friends chanted the name of his company, and soon the entire square of people joined in on the chant.
“Geeks rule!” a man hollered.
“Sexy scientist,” another woman squealed. “I wanna spin on the Ferris wheel with you.”
“Revenge of the nerds. Yahoo!” another man yelled.
Chad stepped onto the gazebo and accepted the crown and a banner across his chest, designating him the Festival King.
Once the applause died down, the mayor said, “We have a big surprise for the Festival Queen.”
Amber tuned him out as the mayor quieted down the women paying for spins on the Ferris wheel with Chad. Somehow, Chad had broken through the walls of this small town and had become entirely accepted. Of course, his mother had grown up here, and people had long memories. He was a native son, and his aunt and uncle were also pillars in the community. Good for him.
Loneliness and the feeling of being out of place struck Amber. Where were her sisters and family? Probably at the petting zoo—her nephew and niece’s favorite place. She headed for the corner of the square to look for them.
“We have a surprise winner for our Festival Queen,” the mayor announced. “It looks like a two for two sweep by Mason Riley’s scientists. Our Festival Queen, by a mere margin of one vote, is Miss Amber Myers, another research scientist from IAS.”
Cheers erupted around her, and someone pointed at her. “There she is. IAS. IAS. IAS.”
Friendly hands guided her toward the gazebo. She walked by a group of women with big hair, big busts, and short cut-offs—probably former cheerleaders.
“I demand a recount,” one of the bottle blondes shouted. “I should be up there with Chad Powers, not her.”
“Oh, put a sock in it,” a man standing across from her shouted back. “No one wants to ride the Ferris wheel with you.”
“Oh, yeah?” The blonde charged the gazebo. “Where’s my recount? The polls all showed I’m ahead. This IAS chick is a nobody. No one even knows her.”
“I’m sorry, Helen,” the mayor said. “We counted the votes twice, and Amber is the winner.”
“How many illegal votes did she get?” Helen weaved her way to the gazebo and grabbed the mic from the mayor. “Are people who don’t live in Sapphire Falls allowed to vote? How can you be sure they didn’t vote twice if we don’t know who they are?”
“Helen, this is supposed to be fun.” The big mayor took the mic back. “You were Festival Queen three years in a row. It’s good to let someone else have a shot.”
“Oh, yeah, guys, take your shot at her,” Helen said, sounding slurred. “She’s the town slut. Coming to Sapphire Falls to spread her legs. Disgusting.”
“You’re out of line.” The mayor shielded the mic from Helen’s wildly grasping fingers.
“I have proof!” Helen screamed. “I saw her with that senior scientist guy buying a commemorative plaque, and last night, she was giving Chad Powers a lap dance. At work of all places. And then, she bagged a spot on the Haiti trip because all the scientist guys want a shot at her.”
All eyes turned on Amber like a giant spotlight, and she wished she could sink into the mud or crawl into a hole—on the spo
t. She turned tail and ran, her eyes blurred with angry tears, as she zigzagged through the crowd of faces. Everyone gawked at her and some pointed, while others whispered. Everywhere she turned, she ran into a wall of people who had each other’s backs, who knew each other since preschool, who stood up for each other.
She was but the town stranger, now branded the town slut.
“Amber.” Chad’s booming voice rained down on her as his footsteps drew closer. “Don’t listen to that witch. No one believes her.”
“How did she know about our scene in the lab? Who would have told her?”
“It wasn’t me,” Chad said. He tore off the crown and ripped the banner from his chest. “Let’s blow this town. I’m sick of all the gossip and rumor-mongering. No wonder my mother left.”
“Wait, wait,” a line of women chased after Chad. “We bought tickets to go up on the Ferris wheel with you.”
“Sorry, ladies,” Chad said, stuffing the crown and banner at the woman closest to him. “I’m sure the runner-up will be glad to accommodate you. I’m taking care of my girlfriend first.”
He wrapped his protective arms around Amber and walked with her, holding his windbreaker over their heads, until they reached a dirt lot where his truck was parked.
She clambered into the cab and fastened her seatbelt. For once in her life, she was glad Chad ripped out of the lot at an unsafe speed, leaving clouds of dust in his wake.
Chapter Twenty
Chad stared at the country lanes, driving randomly. He didn’t talk, didn’t comment, and he had no destination in mind.
Amber had been hurt by the shocking remarks spewing out of Helen’s mouth, and he hated that his popularity had cost her so much.
The country roads were quiet and they passed few cars. One of the liberating things about being an American was the ability to get behind the wheel and drive—simply drive as far as he could.
Unfortunately, in this day and age, a cell signal could reach just about anywhere. Once they hit the interstate, Amber’s phone started to chime with text messages and calls.
She shut it off.
“Maybe you should let your family know you’re okay,” Chad said, as his phone jiggled and vibrated in his pocket.
“You’re right. We can never get away,” Amber mumbled.
“They care about you.”
“They’ve heard about me by now.” Amber’s shoulders slumped and she brushed a hank of hair from her face. “I can’t go back and face them.”
“What Helen said was untrue.”
“I know, and you know, but it’s great gossip, and it’ll stick with me forever,” Amber sighed as she rebooted her phone and texted.
Her phone came alive again with chimes and ringtones, and she shut it off again.
“Where shall we go?” he asked as the miles sped by.
“West, North, South, I don’t know. Somewhere no one knows me.”
“Did you tell your sisters you’re okay?” He snuck a peek at her, and his heart contracted. Her spirit was gone—sunk, and her eyes were hollow and she sagged in the passenger seat.
“They know I’m alive, but I don’t know if I’ll ever go back.”
“You’re quitting IAS?” Chad snapped a quick glance at her. “You can’t do that. You’re one of the most promising researchers.”
“Everyone’s going to think the only reason I got on the Haiti team was because of you and Dr. Forster. No one will ever appreciate me.”
“You know the truth. We need you.” Chad blew out a stale, frustrated breath. “None of us can make sense of our research unless we can get a handle on the genome. There’s so much going on that has to do with the population of microbes and the interactions between them. The only way to determine the differences between one group or another is genetics.”
“I know that.” She slashed a hand across her eyes and sniffled. “But after what Helen said, everyone will believe I’m nothing but a pretty face.”
“Maybe we should both go back to our glasses and dorky clothes. I’m kind of sick of all the women who want to go up on the Ferris wheel with me when they don’t know the first thing about me.”
“It’s a plus for you,” Amber said. “Double standard. The more women you have, the more popular you are. For me, it’s a hazard—especially with Dr. Forster.”
“Dr. Forster is a creep and needs to be outed. Meanwhile, what’s wrong with being both accomplished and beautiful?”
“In a perfect world, nothing.” Amber sighed. “I’m tired. Maybe you can drop me off at a motel in the next town and go back.”
“I’m staying with you. We may not be real boyfriend and girlfriend, but I hope we’re at least good friends.” Sweat wet his upper lip and he squirmed, knowing he wanted more, but he couldn’t push—not in these circumstances.
“Won’t that give everyone more to gossip about?” Amber gave him a sidelong glance. “Everyone saw us leaving together.”
“Right, but Mason and everyone at work already think we’ve been together since college,” Chad reminded her of their ruse. “It would be the logical thing for me to do—to take you away from a hostile environment.”
A tear rolled down her face and she wiped it. “I wish I didn’t love our job so much. I was looking forward to the field study and publishing with Dr. Forster. But now, everything’s tainted. Whatever I accomplish will be put down to me sleeping my way to the top.”
“Don’t say that. You know it’s not true.” He put his hand on her knee, but she jerked away from him and covered her face, weeping.
He spotted a sign for a roadside inn and got off the interstate. She was tired and heartsick, and he was going to stick by her side and offer whatever comfort and aid he could.
After checking in, he handed her the keycard and said, “I’ll go hit up a convenience store for some necessities—toothbrushes, bottled water, snacks. Do you need contact solution?”
She shook her head. “I’m not wearing contacts ever again. I’m throwing them away.”
“I’ll get you a case and disinfecting solution. Just sit tight.” He opened the door after she inserted the keycard. “I’ll get you some sweatpants and a T-shirt to sleep in. Is there anything else you need?”
She sobbed and hiccupped. “Nothing. Thanks.”
“Hey, it’ll be okay.” He tucked her in his arms for a quick hug and kissed the top of her head. “I’ll be back as soon as I can get the stuff we need.”
* * *
Amber hated her breakdown. She should be stronger than this. She was a scientist, and she’d always prided herself with being a strong woman.
How had she gone all damsel in distress and allowed Chad to whisk her away to this roadside inn? She plopped herself on the bed and dried her eyes.
She hadn’t paid attention when he registered, but the fact that he got a room with two beds meant he wasn’t going to take advantage of her.
Amber wanted to take a shower, to wash the grime of the day off her and wrap herself in a towel, but she had to wait for him to return with the T-shirt and sweatpants he promised.
She turned on the TV and her cell phone at the same time. It wasn’t right of her to make her family worry, especially since Candi was getting married on Sunday, and her mother and father were flying in from opposite coasts—Mom from San Francisco and Dad from New York.
They barely spoke to each other at her graduation, using her as the messenger. They’d been divorced so long, things should have settled down, but Amber could still feel the pain and grievances emanating from both sides—as if the wounds were still open.
Her cell phone rang and she picked it up. It was Ginger.
“Amber, finally. What’s going on with you?” Ginger asked.
“Are you okay?” Candi’s voice piped in, and Honey said, “You know what they’re saying isn’t true.”
Still, there was that unspoken question mark in all three sisters’ intonations that had them curious. After all, she hadn’t told them the whole truth ab
out Chad.
“I haven’t slept with anyone, if that’s what you’re wondering.” Amber knew she was sounding defensive.
“We know that,” Ginger said. “And even if you did sleep with both of them, it shouldn’t matter. It’s your personal life.”
“Seems like everyone in town has an opinion on my personal life,” Amber spat bitterly. “Why are they picking on me?”
“No one other than Helen and her crew are picking on you,” Candi said. “Ginger and I had words with them.”
“They almost got arrested,” Honey said.
“Arrested? What happened?” Amber sat up straighter on the bed.
“Like I said, we had words with them, and they started throwing punches,” Candi said. “But Ginger decked Helen and gave her a bloody nose.”
“She got my red up.” Ginger referred to her flaming red hair and her go-to excuse for acting up.
“No one believes Helen,” Honey reassured. “Adrianne found us and asked after you. She thinks you and Chad are the cutest couple.”
“What I’d like to know,” Ginger interjected, “is exactly when you and Chad became an item. Something doesn’t add up. I didn’t see you even look his way during graduation.”
“Why were you so upset with him?” Candi asked. “You acted like you didn’t know he was coming to Sapphire Falls.”
“That’s because I didn’t,” Amber blurted, then clapped a hand on her mouth.
“Aha! I knew something was off,” Ginger’s voice rose triumphantly. “You told me you and Chad were dating before graduation, but you obviously didn’t know he was coming to Sapphire Falls. You had no clue who the guy was with the sign-on bonus. I remember you wondering why he got one and you didn’t.”
“I, uh, Chad and I were broken up, so of course he didn’t tell me,” Amber said. “You really have to believe we’ve been together a long time.”
“Why?” Ginger asked as Honey and Candi echoed, “Why? What’s going on?”
“Because it’s the only way for Dr. Forster to not feel like I snubbed him. I need him to know that Chad and I go way back so he doesn’t think he has a chance,” Amber pleaded with her sisters. “Please don’t ask questions.”
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