Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Oh gosh. I’d obviously given him that access during better times. Now I felt almost violated. I knew what I’d be doing the minute I hung up. “I gotta run, Noah.”
“Can I call you again?”
“I’m sorry. I’d rather you didn’t.”
Not surprising, Noah hung up without saying goodbye after that. He was never tolerant when he didn’t get his way. It was probably only a matter of time before he started to angry spew, so it was for the best. Plus, I needed to get on the road or I’d be late. Though it would have to wait another minute or two—until I figured out how to stop Noah from seeing my location.
***
“There she is!” Opal engulfed me in a hug the minute the hostess brought me to the table. It was only one minute after seven, but I was the last to arrive. “Let me make the introductions. You already met Bettina at her twin sister Bernadette’s house party. And Frannie here works at the post office, so you know her.”
I nodded to both of them. “Hi. It’s good to see you.”
Opal motioned to the last person at the table—the only face I didn’t recognize. “And this here is Elsie Wren.”
The woman stood and extended her hand. “Lovely to meet you. Your father was a dear friend of mine. I was very sad to hear about his passing.”
“Thank you.”
As soon as we sat, the waiter brought over a bottle of wine. Opal looked to me. “We ordered a merlot. Is that okay with you? If not, they have others by the glass.”
“Merlot is great. Thank you.”
Opal leaned over and whispered, “Heard you had some wine this weekend?”
I was pretty shocked that Fox would share that we went away together. When she saw my face, she cackled.
“No, the big galoot didn’t tell me. Porter started dating a schoolteacher recently. Rita—as in Rita’s Beanery and Bettina here’s little sister—happens to live next door to the woman. Porter told the teacher who told Rita who told Bernadette who told Bettina who told me.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe Porter kept it a secret from me. But anywho…” She patted my hand. “I’m happy for you. Fox is a pain in my ass, but he’s a good, loyal man. I love the grumpy butthead. But don’t you go telling him that.”
I laughed. “I won’t.”
Bettina grabbed a breadstick from the middle of the table and waved it at me. “Did your father ever stop pulling his pants down? I forgot all about him and Tommy Miller’s shenanigans until Elsie just reminded me.”
“Stop…pulling his pants down?” I said.
Elsie chuckled. “When they were about ten, your father and Tommy made a contest out of mooning each other when the other least expected it. Tommy would knock on Henry’s door, and Henry would answer by pressing his butt cheeks up against the storm door. Or Henry would be riding his bicycle behind Tommy, and Tommy would drop his shorts and flash him where the sun don’t shine. It went on for years.”
“I definitely never heard about any mooning before.”
“This one time, half the girls in our grade saw your daddy’s backside. Henry was in the marching band. When it rained, they would practice in the auditorium on the stage. Tommy didn’t play an instrument, but those boys were connected at the hip. So Tommy did the stage lighting and worked the curtains and stuff. One afternoon, Henry thought it would be funny if he was bent over on the stage when Tommy opened the curtains to get ready for practice. He hadn’t anticipated that the girls’ soccer team would walk into the room right before Tommy drew the curtains. With their coach.”
Everyone laughed, and it set the mood for the next hour. Elsie had a million funny stories to share, but the others all interjected little bits and pieces along the way. It made me envious of how they’d gotten to grow up. Sure, people were in each other’s business, but the upside of that was the community felt like one big family. It was the polar opposite of how I’d been raised—going to private school where people were too busy with things like cello lessons and fencing competitions to get to know each other. My sterile house where only the nanny was ever home lacked the warmth the people of Laurel Lake exuded when talking about their childhood. It made me question how I’d want to raise my own kids someday, something I’d never given any real thought.
We were in the middle of ordering dessert when Opal elbowed me. She lifted her chin toward the hostess stand. “Look what the cat dragged in. And it’s not even Tuesday…”
I looked across the room, and my heart skipped a beat. All eyes at our table joined me in looking at the man talking to the hostess.