Chapter 21 #2
I’m not sure what I was expecting, maybe for him to deny it, or tease me and change the subject. I definitely wasn’t expecting him to admit it. I don’t know how to respond to that, so rather than saying anything, I turn and start walking, making a beeline to Coffee Shop.
“Where are you going? Restaurant is that way.” Luka calls from behind me.
“I need caffeine, and I need to get away from you!” I call back, without giving him a second glance.
I feel my phone vibrate with a notification before he revs his engine and calls back, “I’ll be back to pick you up after work. Text me if you need anything.” Then he turns the corner and takes off in the opposite direction.
When I pull out my phone, my eyes nearly bug out of my head at the notification.
Luka Kingsley sent you $1000
Luka
For your troubles
“Unbelievable,” I mumble under my breath as I pull open the heavy glass doors. As infuriating as he is, I can’t seem to stay mad at him. I’m not sure how much longer I can take this push and pull between us. Eventually, the rope’s bound to snap.
Despite the rocky start to my morning, being here has started to shift my nerves into something closer to excitement.
It feels a little like the first day of school—only this time, the work ahead of me actually feels exciting.
For once, I’m doing something that makes me feel alive instead of weighing me down.
With a renewed sense of excitement, I pick up my pace, feeling a spring in my step.
The bell above the door chimes as I step inside, and the warm scent of cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla wraps around me like a hug. I inhale deeply, already feeling better.
Hazel greets me from behind the counter with a knowing smile.
“Good morning, Scout. Can I assume by your outfit that you’re starting on the mural today?
You know it’s all everyone’s been talking about…
well, that and…” Her voice trails off as Lucy backs through the swinging door, balancing a tray of fresh scones.
Lucy’s smile grows wide when she sees me.
“Oh, look how cute you look in your little painting outfit! I can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with.
I still have that drawing you made me all those years ago posted on the bulletin board.
” She gestures to the front, and my heart swells when I see the crayon drawing of the shop exactly in the spot I pinned it.
It’s surrounded by doodles on napkins and Polaroid pictures taken over the years.
“You were always so talented. I hated seeing you give up your dreams to go to law school,” Lucy says as she moves the pastries to the display window.
I shake my head at the irony. Only in Ashford Falls would a career in art be more celebrated than as an attorney.
I can’t imagine what my mother would say if she knew this was the kind of advice I’d regularly been given growing up.
I guess it comes with the territory, though.
Much like many others in this community, these women were the trusted adults I needed when my parents couldn’t be bothered.
“She’s certainly got a marital glow about her, now, doesn’t she? No wonder we’ve hardly seen your face around here.” Paige says, popping out from around the corner, carrying a tall stack of books in her arms.
“I’m sorry. I’ve been meaning to come by, it’s just been a little busy, I guess,” I say, hoping my vague explanation will suffice.
“Oh, honey. Trust me, we get it.” Lucy winks as she bumps the display case closed with her hip.
“Oh, now, Lucy. Don’t tease the girl,” Hazel scolds without looking up as she moves around behind the counter. “You know how skittish she can get.”
“We wouldn’t want to spook her,” Paige adds, her voice muffled from behind the stack of books she’s sorting. “If what I’ve heard about those Kingsley boys is true, then the poor thing is probably still in shock.”
I feel my cheeks flush and have to look away. She has no idea how right she is.
Nor do I, for that matter. Not exactly, anyway.
And I certainly didn’t realize it was all of them…
Does everyone know something I don’t? What exactly am I missing?
Thankfully, Hazel slides a drink across the counter, saving me from having to come up with a response. I blink down at the drink, realizing I never even ordered.
I take a cautious sip. The cinnamon-sweet warmth hits my tongue, and a soft smile pulls at my lips. “Hazel, I can’t believe you remembered.”
“Oh, come on now, dear,” she says, handing me a warm pastry wrapped in wax paper. “You really think I’m too old to remember something as simple as chai tea? Now here, get something on your stomach. You’re going to need fuel for all that strenuous work ahead of you.”
I don’t even have to look to know it’s my favorite apple tart.
Before I can reach into my pocket, she’s already waving me off. “It’s on me.”
I start to argue, but there’s no winning this. She’s got that stern look in her eye, and I’m already outnumbered three to one.
“Thank you,” I say, before digging into my delicious treats. My eyes nearly roll back in my head the moment the warm, flaky crust and sweet apple filling hit my tongue. By the look of pride on her face, my reaction must be plenty of payment enough.
I make my way outside, where I find Big Dan waiting for the signal light. “Well, hey there, Scout. You’re up mighty early this morning.”
I give him a polite smile, covering my mouth as I try to swallow the giant bite of pastry I just shoved in my mouth. “Just getting a jump start on the mural, before it gets too hot.”
“That’s not a bad idea at all. You know, Dr. Drizzle says we’ve got some rain in the forecast.” He gestures to the cloudless sky painted in cotton candy blue and pink, then leans in and whispers behind his hand, “The whole meteorology thing is a crock of shit if you ask me. I figure there’s a fifty-fifty chance of them being right, however they predict it.
But you can’t tell my wife that.” He rolls his eyes as if freshly annoyed at the reminder of his apparent competition.
“I think Dr. Drizzle knows what he’s doing, wearing those fitted suits with his ankles peeking out, his hair gelled and styled like a Ken Doll… ”
I have to bite my lip to hold back my grin at Dan’s early morning confession, thinking of Mr. Kingsley’s identical complaint.
If the local meteorologist’s thirst-trapping during his weather reports is your biggest issue in life, maybe things aren’t too bad?
When we get to the traffic light, we each go our separate ways.
“I’ll be seein’ you around, Scout. Good luck today and watch out for that storm!” Dan calls over his shoulder with a chuckle.
“Will do. See you later, Big Dan.” I wave him goodbye as I round the corner, stopping in my tracks when I see the now solid white brick wall that appears to have already been primed. There’s a tarp on the ground with gallons of paint and an assortment of paintbrushes and smaller cups ready to go.
I blink up in confusion just as the phone in my pocket vibrates with a text.
Luka
Thought you could use a head start. Break a leg today.
I quickly text him back.
When did you do this?
Luka
Hank left me a message yesterday telling me he was dropping everything off, so I arranged for Roman and Guy to meet him and get everything set up.
You’re my wife, Scout… Trust me, it’s not a big deal.
I’m your fake wife. And yes, it is!
You made them prep the whole wall, Luka! I can’t imagine how long that must’ve taken…
Luka
Fake. Real. Doesn’t make a difference in how I plan on treating you. So get used to it.
There should be at least two coats of primer, so you should be all set to get started.
I really don’t know what to say…
Luka
How about, “Thanks, Luka, you’re the best husband ever, and I was totally thinking about you when I tried to get myself off this morning…”
And you just ruined it.
Luka
Don’t worry, babe, I know that’s just your sexual frustration talking. Let me know if you need the master to give you another tune-up
All you have to say is: “Luka is a sex God.”
I’m putting my phone up now.
Luka
Your loss
My shoulder aches as I finally finish the paint outline of the giant cartoon Phantom. I can’t be sure just yet, but I think it looks pretty good considering I had to draw it freehand using only the quick grid reference from my sketch.
Ideally a projector would’ve made this easier, but with all the streetlights around here, I wouldn’t have been able to see the outline anyway.
“I thought you were gonna paint it?” Clyde calls from where he’s perched up on the sidewalk below.
“I’m not sure I like the expression on his face,” Fergus adds. “Might be a bit too scary for the children.”
“I hope you paint faster than you outline,” someone else mutters. “If this isn’t finished by the festival, it’ll look no better than the hideous graffiti that used to be there. Still can’t believe Luka would do something so vile to our sweet downtown…”
I glance over my shoulder to find the crowd has doubled in the last hour or so.
I offer them a polite nod. “Nice to see you all so invested in the process. Don’t worry—I’m nothing if not a perfectionist. You’re gonna love it once it’s done. Just trust the process.”
“We’ll see about that,” Clyde says, crossing his arms over his chest like he’s still not convinced.
I grit my teeth and force a smile. I should’ve known this would be a town spectacle the moment I agreed. These people are too nosy for their own good. You’d think they’d have somewhere to be, but I’ve had constant commentary for the last five hours, and the crowd’s only grown larger.
“So, I guess the rumors are true…”
My body freezes at the sound of the familiar voice.
There’s no way… I must be dehydrated or something, my mind must be playing tricks on me.
“How come you never told me that you painted?” he asks, and now I know I’m not hallucinating.
I make my way down the ladder, not wanting to do this in front of an audience. I grab his arm and pull him behind the alley, giving us a semblance of privacy. Jesus, I’m already dealing with enough gossip, I don’t need to add ex-fiancée drama to the mix.
“What are you doing here, Jimmy?”
He flashes me his dimpled smile that’s never seemed to work on me. “I was in the neighborhood. Had to bring your dad some paperwork, and he told me about your little quarter-life crisis… or whatever this is.”
Not buying that excuse for a second, I cross my arms over my chest and blow out a huff. “What do you want?”
He has the audacity to look like he’s wounded and his eyes flash to my ring. “Wow… I guess Luka Kingsley spares no expense…” He scratches the back of his neck and looks down. Even though he’s trying to seem unbothered, I can practically see his skin turning green with jealousy.
“Well, I’m so glad we did this. Now if you’ll excuse me…” I spin around to leave but his hand grabs my arm, stopping me.
“You didn’t sleep with him did you?”
“You can’t be serious,” I say with an eye roll.
Why is it that every single thing always comes back to this? Is that really the most important thing about me?
“You get me kicked out of school after turning in my paper before me… and then you threaten to forge my signature on a marriage license?—”
“That was your dad’s idea, not mine,” he says defensively. As if that reasoning is somehow better.
“—And you have the nerve to ask me if I slept with him? Do you hear yourself right now?”
“All right, look, I get it. It’s none of my business…” He holds up his hands. “And I realize I may have gone about things in the wrong way… But I fucked up and then I panicked…”
It’s the closest thing to an apology I’ve ever heard from this man. Too bad that ship has already sailed.
I lift a brow, curious where he’s going with this.
“I miss you, Scout.” He looks up to meet my eyes and I swear he almost looks sincere. “We’re good together, and you know it.” He takes a step closer and grabs my hand, placing it on his chest. “You and me, we make sense.”
“Are you done? Because I need to get back—” I try to pull my hand away but he holds it tighter.
“Just… take the rest of the Summer and get this out of your system…And know that I’ll be waiting on you when you get back.”
Anger and irritation bubble up as I glare into his impossibly clear blue eyes, not a hint of shadow or guilt to be found.
Why is it so hard for everyone to see the real me?
If they really love me like they say they do, or did anyway, why can’t they see that I’ve been walking around as a shell of myself?
I know it’s my fault for telling them what they want to hear, for playing the part so well, but that was only after I’d spent years screaming for them to see the real me. But if they loved me, wouldn’t they be able to see it was just a mask?
Luka always has…
I don’t know what’s worse… That they couldn’t tell…
or that they didn’t care. Either way, it sucks knowing my happiness comes after whatever version of me that makes them the most comfortable.
Well, I’m tired of being afraid of making them uncomfortable.
Maybe Luka’s right, maybe it’s time for me to be a little more selfish.
“I think you should leave,” I tell him, my voice quiet because for some reason it’s all I can muster. But at least it’s a start.
Jimmy’s eyes widen for just a moment before his face shifts back to a neutral expression.
He clearly wasn’t expecting me to stand up to him.
“Yeah… okay…” He looks a little discouraged, shoving his hands in his pockets as he turns to leave.
I just stand there caught between the sting of guilt and the stubborn pull of pride.
“Hey Scout?” He calls over his shoulder.
“Yeah?”
“Try to keep an open mind about it, okay?”
I’m not sure how to respond to that so I just say, “Yeah… Okay…” I don’t wait for him to round the corner before I make my way back to the mural. And luck must be on my side now because for the first time all day, there’s no audience in sight.
“Finally,” I breathe as I pick up my paintbrush and all my problems begin to fade away.