The Inn on Harmony Island (Sweet Tea and a Southern Gentleman #1)(11)

Missy turned to look at me. I could see the wheels turning in her head as she nodded. “And I will let you know if I hear anything as well.”

“I’m sure you will,” tumbled out before I could stop it. I clamped my lips shut and glanced up at her to see that she’d knitted her eyebrows together. There was no way that I wanted to get on her bad side. “Because you’re such a sweetheart, making sure everyone knows what’s going on in this town.” My smile felt sickly sweet as I kept it plastered to my face. Missy studied me for a moment before her smile returned.

“If I didn’t, half the town wouldn’t know what’s going on.”

“Exactly.”

She took a sip of her coffee. “Well, I should go. I’ve got things to do at the B&B.”

I nodded. “Of course. See you tomorrow?”

She waved at me. “As always.”

The jingle of the bell on the door marked her departure. With her gone, I let out my breath as I leaned forward and rested my elbows on the countertop. I rubbed my temples and closed my eyes, Missy’s words running around in my mind.

Charlotte Cane’s granddaughter was coming? Even though I didn’t know the situation, if Missy was this concerned, then this granddaughter was going to shake up the town. Which might not be a bad thing.

I drummed my fingers on the counter just as the door opened and a group of construction guys made their way inside. They looked out of place as they stood there, glancing around.

I grabbed my order pad and waved them over. “You guys looking for some coffee?”

They looked relieved as they headed in my direction. “We sure are,” the tall one with a greying beard said as he gave me a quick wink. “And maybe some of those delicious smelling cookies?”

There was a collective mumble of agreement from the other men.

Grateful for the distraction from my thoughts, I jotted down their orders and got started. At least if Harmony Island was about to be shook up, the bookstore would remain unscathed. With all the uncertainty of the past, I was going to rely on the things in my life that were normal.

Normal didn’t seem that bad anymore.





4





SHELBY





I stared at the suitcases strewn across my bed. Half of the clothes in my closet had been pulled out and were either draped over my bed frame, on the chair in the corner of my room, or they were hanging from the open drawers of my dresser.

It wasn’t until this very moment that I doubted my choice in fashion. Everything I owned seemed too fancy for Harmony—which meant I was going to stick out. There was a part of me that thought that wasn’t a bad thing. I needed my old hometown to know I’d been successful—even though I was currently unemployed.

But I couldn’t let them know that. Not when everyone had seemed so sure that little Shelby Sorenson would never amount to anything.

Growing up, I had been all the statistics. Dating the town’s bad boy? Check. Pregnant senior year? Check. Drunken accident that changed the course of my life? Double check.

I can still remember the town busybodies sitting on the black iron patio furniture at the Sunny Side Up Diner, sipping on their iced tea and saying things—without actually saying things—as I passed by.

“Look. Look, look.”

“Honey, I see her.”

“Did you hear?”

“Yeah, I heard. Bless her soul.”

“And so young.”

“Mmhmm.”

“I was going to bring her a Bible last week. Darn shame I didn’t. It may have helped.”

“Aww, you’re such a sweetie. And it would have helped. I know it.”

“Mmhmm.”

The weight in my stomach spread throughout my entire body, making me feel weak. I pushed aside the clothes on my chair and collapsed on the plush velvet cushions.

When I woke up this morning, the events of yesterday seemed like an awful dream. I even got ready for work. But then I emptied my purse to put my lunch in it and found all of my desk belongings.

That’s when the memory of what had happened washed over me. I was heading to Harmony Island for the reading of Gran’s will. And I was jobless.

I spent a good portion of the morning crying in the bathtub while eating ice cream and surrounding myself with bubbles, until I forced myself to get dressed and start packing. I was planning on leaving tomorrow morning, and there was no way I could walk into the minefield of what Gran was going to ask me to do unprepared.

I needed to look successful, high-powered, and determined—even if it was all a lie.

It was the only way I was going to keep my sanity.

“I’m an idiot,” I whispered as I covered my eyes with my arm and allowed the darkness to seep into my soul.

The sound of my doorbell ringing caused me to drop my arm and stare up at the ceiling. I wasn’t in the mood for visitors, and it wasn’t like I had many friends. I wasn’t rich enough to run with the socialites, and everyone around me was hustling like I was. With the cost of rent here, work was all any of us did.

Whoever was pressing the doorbell picked up speed. Realizing they weren’t going to stop, I pushed off the chair and made my way out to the hallway.

“I’m coming. I’m coming,” I said as I unlocked the door and pulled it open.