In Case You Didn’t Know Read online

  Courtney walked across the room and flopped down on the bed with a dramatic sigh.

  That can’t be good, Scarlett thought, but waited her friend out.

  Busying herself with straightening up her room, she mentally prayed her friend would just say what was on her mind.

  “I think I want to move,” she finally said and Scarlett immediately gasped in shock.

  “Wait…why? Where would you go?”

  Sitting up, Courtney flipped her hair over her shoulder and sighed again. “Anywhere. I’m just never going to do anything or meet anyone if I stay here. I’m over small-town life.”

  They’d had this conversation multiple times and for the most part, Scarlett was used to it. Walking over, she sat down on the bed beside her. “Okay, what brought this on? Last weekend we went out and had a great time and I seem to remember seeing you make out with Mike Ryan.” Then she winked. “And I distinctly remember watching you wave goodbye to me as you left with him.”

  Courtney fell back on the bed. “Yeah, and it was good and the sex was good, but…it’s like it’s always the same guys! We’ve been hanging out with the same people we’ve known since elementary school!”

  “That’s not true. We’re heading into the peak tourist season! You know it’s going to be crazy around here for the next six weeks or so. Maybe you’ll meet someone…”

  “You don’t get it, Scar. I don’t want to be the girl the tourists hook up with for a quick weekend fling or the girl the locals pass the time with until they can hit on the tourists! I’m just…I’m ready for a change!”

  “Okay, okay,” she soothed, falling back next to Courtney. “How about this…let’s just go out tonight and grab something to eat and then we’ll pick up some ice cream on the way home and have a mellow night. How does that sound?”

  “Boring,” Courtney said with a pout. “And the exact reason why I’m done with small-town life.”

  “Hey! I’m kind of taking offense to that! I know I’m not the most exciting person in the world, but…” Sitting up, Scarlett immediately bounced off the bed.

  “You’re right, you’re right, you’re right,” Courtney said, standing up. “That was uncalled for.” She gave Scarlett a long hug before pulling back. “I’m just in a funk and I’m bored and…don’t listen to me. I’ll get over it.”

  And the thing was, Scarlett knew she would, but it didn’t mean she could just ignore the situation either.

  “Look,” she began cautiously, “I’m bored too. It’s not like a whole lot of exciting stuff happens around here or that I’ve got all kinds of interesting things going on…”

  “Now that’s not true. You could be doing so much more if you would just share your hobby with…”

  “Lalalalala!” Scarlett cried out before stopping to glare at her friend. “I swore you to secrecy and you promised never to bring it up!”

  Courtney looked around the room in confusion. “Who’s going to hear me? It’s just the two of us!”

  There was a slight chance she was being paranoid, but there was no way she was going to tell anyone other than Courtney what she’d been doing in her spare time.

  “Fine. Whatever,” she murmured. “Can we go grab something to eat now? I’m starving.”

  And yeah, there was a little snap in her voice that she instantly regretted.

  They walked out of the bedroom and Scarlett picked up her purse and keys, then followed Courtney out the door.

  “So not the fun night I was hoping for,” she said under her breath. At her car, she paused and apologized. “I’m sorry I snapped at you. That was wrong of me.”

  Courtney–ever the drama queen–merely shrugged.

  Awesome.

  “You want to go to Café Magnolia or The Sand Bar for burgers?”

  “Ugh…I know their burgers are legendary, but why won’t they change the name of the damn place? It’s not very appetizing to go eat somewhere that has the word ‘sand’ in its title.”

  “So you want to go to the Café?”

  “I didn’t say that,” Courtney was quick to amend. “I mean, we both know a girls’ night requires burgers.”

  “And fries,” Scarlett said with a grin as they climbed into her car.

  The Sand Bar was like most of the businesses in Magnolia Sound–an institution. It had been around for at least twenty years and was in need of a renovation, but business was too good to close down and get it done. When the hurricane hit a little more than eight months ago, it seemed like the logical time to finally freshen the place up. Unfortunately, old Mr. Hawkins simply fixed the roof, replaced a couple of windows and declared The Sand Bar open again just a week after Hurricane Amelia blew through.

  “I’m getting the bacon cheeseburger, fries, and possibly onion rings,” Courtney declared as they drove along Main Street. Turning her head, she grinned at Scarlett. “And I think you should share an order of fried pickles with me.”

  Her stomach hurt just thinking about all the food, but she kept that to herself. Fried pickles definitely weren’t her thing, but she’d eat a couple and move on. “Sure. Why not?”

  The parking lot was crowded, but that wasn’t anything new. The location was prime–on the beach side of the street–and it had indoor and outdoor seating, live entertainment, and a full bar. Honestly, Scarlett never cared much for coming here to drink, though. She was all about the food. Once they parked and started making their way toward the front entrance, she was more than ready to eat.

  Courtney worked her way through the crowd and managed to find them a small booth in the corner.

  “How do you do that?”

  “Do what?”

  “Always find us a place to sit?”

  “It’s my lone superpower,” she said dryly as she flagged a waiter over. Once their orders were placed, Courtney began scanning the room. “I swear, even the tourists are the same.”

  Scarlett looked around and frowned. “How can you tell?”

  “Because we’ve been doing this for what feels like forever. Maybe there will be some different faces at the concert tomorrow. You’re still coming with me, right?”

  Their server came back and placed their drinks down and Scarlett eagerly reached for hers. There was no way she could admit she wasn’t looking forward to the concert, but she still needed a little sweet tea to bide her time.

  “Nice delay tactic.” Courtney knew her too well. With a weary sigh, she asked, “Tell me why you don’t want to go.”

  “I don’t know. The amphitheater is small and the crowds are going to be crazy! We’re going to be up in the nosebleed section and packed in like sardines! And on top of that, it’s going to be ninety degrees out! Call me crazy, but that is not my idea of a good time.”

  “Why are you like this?” Courtney whined. “It’s like you just refuse to have fun!”

  “That’s ridiculous! I have fun all the time! I just don’t find it enjoyable to stand around and sweat when I don’t have to!”

  “You work in your dad’s garage and it’s always hot in there! Every time I’ve ever seen you there, you’re sweating!”

  “And that’s because I have to be there!” she cried with more than a little frustration. “When I’m there, I’m working. I work, because I need money! And sometimes that means working in a building with little to no air conditioning!”

  “Scarlett…”

  “I’m forced to sweat for work so why would I choose to get sweaty on a night out when I’m supposed to be having fun?”

  “Look, we both know you don’t have to work at the garage. You choose to.”

  “I need the income…”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah…I get it. You use the second job to feed your hobby supplies,” she said with a hint of sarcasm. “You work too much and you’re always saving and you live frugally. It’s admirable.”

  “But…?”

  “But…you are way too uptight! No one is thinking about it being hot out, Scarlett! We’re all like ‘Yay! Concert!’ Why can
’t you do the same?”

  “When have I ever simply followed the herd, Court? That’s not me.”

  “Okay, fine. It’s not, but…can’t you just do it this once? C’mon! It’s going to be so much fun! For one night can’t you forget about your jobs and be a little carefree? You might actually enjoy it.”

  So many comments were on the tip of her tongue–most of them snarky–but Scarlett opted to keep them to herself. It was easy for people like Courtney to be carefree and not obsess about finances. And while she didn’t begrudge her friend having a family who always was and probably always would be financially stable, there was also no way for her to fully understand the anxiety that plagued her daily.

  Growing up poor–and knowing that everyone you knew wasn’t–wasn’t something you got over. From the time Scarlett first started school, she knew she was different. Besides never having anything new for herself, she was dressed more like a boy than a girl. Looking back now she could almost laugh about it, but back then, it was beyond painful. Her father had done the best he could and she loved him for it. She just wished someone had stepped in and tried to explain to Dominic Jones that raising a daughter was very different from raising sons. Her brothers were all fine–in their own annoying ways–all three of them. But they were boys who were raised by a strong male role model.

  They’d also had more time with their mother before she died from colon cancer when Scarlett was four. Kandace Jones had fought hard to win her battle with the deadly disease, but it was too much for her. There were days when her memories of her mother were so strong it was as if she were sitting right there with her, and other days it was like she couldn’t remember a thing. Those days were devastating.

  Still, her father had struggled to raise four kids on his own and apparently it was easier to treat them all equally–like boys–rather than figuring out that Scarlett wanted nothing more than to be treated like a girl.

  Something she still struggled with.

  Maybe that was another reason why she couldn’t seem to find anyone she was interested in dating. It was hard to find the balance between being the girly-girl she longed to be and the tough-as-nails mechanic she presented to the world.

  A damn dilemma indeed.

  Although if anyone who didn’t know much about her dared to look in her closet, they’d only see the girly stuff.

  Way too much of it.

  “Hey,” Courtney said with a growing smile. “Just when you thought there were no new faces in the crowd…”

  Scarlett turned her head and tried to see who her friend was talking about. “Who are you looking at?”

  “I don’t think I’ve seen him here before. I mean…I suppose it’s possible, but I always heard he tended to hit bars and restaurants out of town–especially since we graduated.”

  Frowning, Scarlett continued to scan the crowd. “So it’s someone we know?”

  “Oh, good Lord. I think he got even better looking…”

  Now her curiosity was seriously piqued. Still, not one face in the crowd looked familiar and with a huff of frustration, she faced Courtney again. “Who the hell are you talking about?”

  “Mason Bishop,” she replied before taking a sip of her beer. “He’s a little too pretty for my taste, but still, you have to appreciate a fine-looking man.” Putting her drink down, she looked at Scarlett. “What’s with the face?”

  Doing her best to put a relaxed smile on her face, she replied, “What do you mean?”

  “You were practically scowling. Why?”

  With a shrug, Scarlett reached for her own drink and wished it were alcohol. “I really wasn’t.”

  “Yes, you were. Now spill it. What’s up?”

  If there was one thing Scarlett was certain of, it was that Courtney would continue to badger her until she answered her.

  So she did.

  “Guys like Mason? They’re what’s wrong with the world!”

  Courtney’s eyes went wide. “Um…what?”

  Nodding, she looked over her shoulder and glared briefly when she spotted him. When she turned back to Courtney, she explained. “Everything comes easy to guys like him. Like it’s not enough that he comes from one of the founding families here in town, but his folks are wealthy and successful, his sisters are both super nice and pretty, and he looks like a damn model!”

  “Scarlett…”

  “No, I’m serious! Do you remember what he was like in school?”

  “Uh…yeah…”

  “Mr. Popularity! Captain of the baseball team, student body president, homecoming king, prom king…ugh! It was enough to make me sick!”

  “Okay, if I didn’t know him, I’d agree with you. All those things combined are a bit much. But Mason was always a nice guy, so…” She shrugged. “It’s just who he is, Scar. What’s the big deal?”

  Rolling her eyes, she was about to go off on a rant when their server returned with their food. With a muttered thanks, she opted to reach for her burger and take a huge bite instead.

  And damn…as far as distractions went, this was the best one yet. It was almost enough for her to forget what they were talking about.

  “You should probably get to know him before you get so judgy,” Courtney said as she picked up her own burger. “I bet if you spent some time talking to him…”

  “Oh, I know him, Court. Back in middle school we were lab partners for a short time. He was semi-decent and kind of nice, but once high school hit, it was like he didn’t even know me. So…I stand by my earlier opinion, thank you very much.”

  “Look, I get you have issues with people you think lead a privileged life…

  “You have no idea.”

  Courtney gave her a hard stare before she continued. “However, sometimes you have to remember that looks can be deceiving and you have no idea what goes on behind closed doors.”

  Doing her best to appear bored, she reached for an onion ring. “And sometimes it’s all exactly as it seemed. Sometimes shiny happy people are exactly that–shiny happy people with no substance.”

  “Well damn.”

  With a shrug, Scarlett took another bite of her burger and pushed all thoughts of Mason Bishop completely out of her mind.

  Two

  Everything felt weird.

  Mason glanced around and found that their VIP section had what felt like an invisible wall down the middle. His parents were on the far-right side of the section, dancing awkwardly to the rock music that was playing, while he positioned himself on the far left.

  He groaned even as he mentally shook his head. Eventually he’d get over his anger, but right now he felt like a fraud being here. Georgia Bishop wanted the entire town to think all was well and perfect within the family and he was helping her perpetuate that. Luckily, the music was a good distraction and along with the family, there were about twenty-five of their closest friends sitting here–or standing and dancing here–with them. So it wasn’t like he had to directly interact with his parents.

  Finishing off the last of his beer, he grimaced. He could flag down the server who was assigned to their section and simply order another drink, but it was hot and he was distracted and not particularly into being here. The music was great and all around him everyone was having fun, but…he just wasn’t feeling it right now. Glancing around, he saw how the amphitheater was full to capacity and if he wanted to stroll out to the concession area, he could probably do it without having to wait in a long line. However, leaving the security of their little corner of the venue meant leaving the comfort of the fans.

  Do I want a drink more than I want to be cool?

  That was the million dollar question.

  The band was only into the third or fourth song of their set and Mason had to admit, the time was perfect to go and wander around–no crowds, no lines, and he could be back here drinking a cold beer with a fan blowing on him in a matter of minutes. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw their server handing drinks to his cousin Mallory and her fiancé Jake.

/>   You could have your cake and eat it too, dumbass, if you just order your drink here.

  Yeah, yeah, yeah…he could, but for some reason he felt restless and just wanted to get out of the crowd and move around a bit. It was stupid but being here with his family right after finally getting some freedom and distance from them just irritated him. Granted, it wasn’t like he was here with them and only them, but…still. He had a whole grabbing-the-world-by-the-balls attitude because of his new-found independence, so sitting in a specially-sectioned space just for his family seemed to be in direct contrast with that.

  And…I’m going to the concession area!

  His cousin Sam caught his eye and Mason simply motioned that he would be right back. With a wave, he made his way out of their box and up the aisle toward the gate he had originally entered through. About ten feet from the gate, the hot air hit him like a wall, but he chose to ignore it and continued up the aisle.

  He waved at some friends, had more than a couple of women give him a flirty smile and wave, but none of it was enough to make him stop and linger. Being social was the last thing he wanted right now and even though he could admit it, he didn’t feel good about it.

  This was who he was–Mr. Friendly, Mr. Personality, Mr. Everybody’s-Best-Friend…Ugh. It was exhausting. It wasn’t always that way, and for the most part, he was a friendly and sociable kind of guy. He enjoyed hanging out and talking with people. But lately it just took far too much effort and he had to wonder why.

  Probably because his mother’s crazy behavior had him on his guard everywhere he went.

  And even though he was a grown man who was living on his own, this was a small town and everybody knew everybody. There was still a part of Mason that wondered if his mother had people spying on him so she could try to sneak some social-climbing debutante into his path.

  He snorted at his own wild imagination.

  Paranoid much?