20. Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty
H er stomach knotted with nerves.
And yet Maxi kept putting one red strappy heeled sandal in front of the other as she entered the Bluffs restaurant. It hadn’t been so long ago since she’d been there with Owen on a real date. Her heart skipped a beat at the memory.
Aunt Bonnie was supposed to have accompanied her, but she’d come down with one of her headaches. She’d apologized profusely. Maxi totally understood and told her not to worry. She’d check in later.
Maxi looked around at the other ladies in attendance. She glanced down at her outfit and felt a little underdressed. Then again, after spending most of her days in greasy overalls, this was really dressed up for her.
She wore a short white summer dress with large red flowers all over it. It was cute but not over the top. She’d also worn the heart pin. Her fingers moved to her chest just to make sure it was still there. After checking that the pin was secure, she lowered her hand.
The heart pin matched her dress perfectly. It was almost as though it were made to wear with this dress. And it seemed fitting to wear it this evening. After all, Owen had found it for her. And now he’d gone and stole her own heart.
She hadn’t told him she loved him. Not yet. But she was planning to do it before she left the island. She had no idea how they’d make the long-distance relationship work, but Owen seemed to think they’d find a way.
The restaurant was jam packed with people to the point Maxi was certain the crowd must have exceeded the fire code. As she looked around, she saw many of Bluestar’s firefighters in attendance. They must be some of the bachelors up for auction. No wonder they drew such a big crowd.
She wondered if Owen was out and about, socializing. As her gaze scanned the dining room, a bit of disappointment settled over her as she realized he was nowhere to be seen.
With so many people in attendance, it felt like the whole town was there. Though she knew that was impossible, because as big as this restaurant was, it couldn’t come close to holding all of the residents of Bluestar.
The majority of attendees were women. They looked so excited to be there in their fancy dresses while holding a drink in one hand and a canary yellow bid sheet in the other.
It was at that particular moment that Maxi realized she had to hurry if she was going to get registered and find a seat before the event began.
She was heading toward one of the registration tables when Lily caught her eye and waved her over. Maxi held up a finger to let her know that she’d stop by in a moment. Then she turned toward the registration tables.
There were four lines including not only young women but some older ladies too.
Maxi had never been to a bachelor auction.
But the ladies around her were certainly enjoying themselves as they talked and laughed.
Maxi highly doubted any of them had been given a wad of cash to bid on their fake boyfriend.
Wait. Was Owen still her fake boyfriend? She recalled those steamy kisses. Those definitely weren’t fake kisses. Not at all. He was most certainly her boyfriend. The thought brought a smile to her lips.
Her life had changed so quickly. Back in Virginia, she kept to herself. She spent her days working at the garage and her evenings curled up at home, watching her favorite television show. Now she had friends to hang out with and a boyfriend to stroll along the beach with, hand in hand.
The beating of her heart sped up as she thought once more about the kisses they'd shared. It had swept her away into a world where there had only been him and her. She'd never been kissed like that before. And she couldn't wait to feel his lips on hers again.
Someone bumped into her, jarring her from her thoughts. She glanced over to find a tall brunette staring back at her.
"Sorry about that," the woman said. "I wasn't watching where I was going."
Maxi wasn't sure if she believed the woman or not. "No problem."
Maxi was about to turn away, when the woman said, "I’m Regan.”
Regan? The name reverberated in her mind. Surely this wasn’t Owen’s Regan. Of course not. She was long gone.
Maxi forced her mouth to make words. “Hi. I’m Maxi.”
Regan’s eyes widened. “So, you’re Maxi.” She gave her a quick once over as though eyeing up the competition. “Don't tell me that you're here to bid on Owen too."
"Too?" The word slipped past Maxi’s lips before she could stop it.
Regan nodded. "It's time Owen and I caught up. I have a lot to say."
Maxi struggled to hold back her hostile words. It seemed this woman had already heard about her. If so, then she probably heard that Owen and her were a couple. And now this woman had the nerve to flaunt in her face that she was going to make moves on Maxi's guy. Her back teeth ground together.
Maxi leveled her shoulders and tilted her chin upward ever so slightly. "Owen has moved on. He’s in a new relationship.”
The words struck her. Saying the words out loud gave their romance authenticity. She didn’t know where things would lead, but she wanted to find out.
Regan's gaze narrowed. "Why do you think he’s moved on?” Her voice took on a sharp edge. “Is this what he told you? Or is this just wishful thinking on your part?"
Maxi hated that this woman was pushing the subject. "It's what I know. What you had with him is over." She met Regan’s unwavering gaze. In a calm but firm voice, Maxi said, "You need to forget about him and move on."
Regan shook her head. Her straight brown bob brushed over the top of her bare shoulders. "You don't understand. What Owen and I shared was very special. It can stand the test of time."
Maxi struggled not to roll her eyes. This woman was really laying it on thick. "It appears you’re wrong because he has moved on...with me. Now I need to get my bid sheet."
Maxi turned around and saw that the line had disappeared. In fact, there was now a curious crowd encircling them. Maxi was too angry with Regan to pay any mind to the curious onlookers. She moved through the crowd, hoping to leave Regan behind.
"Didn't he tell you?" Regan said from behind her.
Maxi inwardly groaned. What was it with this woman? Didn't she get the hint that it was time to move on?
Maxi glanced over her shoulder. "I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't care."
Maxi faced forward. As the couple of women in front of her moved, she did too. She hated that the woman had gotten under her skin. Secretly, she wanted to know what Regan was talking about, but she refused to indulge her.
"He obviously didn't tell you that he was going to ask me to marry him," Regan said behind her.
The breath caught in Maxi’s throat. He hadn't told her any of this. Maxi didn't want to believe her.
“I can see you don’t believe me, but you should ask him about the ring he bought me. I found it in his sock drawer.”
"Next." The woman sitting behind the table gestured at Maxi.
Grateful for the distraction, she stepped forward. After she'd provided all of the necessary information, she was handed a bid sheet with the number 131. Did that mean that there would be one hundred and thirty other people bidding on bachelors? That seemed like a lot for Bluestar.
As she turned, Maxi noticed more people in line to get their bid sheet, but what caught her attention more was that Regan had finally moved on. Maxi expelled a sigh of relief.
She couldn’t believe Regan had tried to chase her off, but what Regan didn't know was that Maxi wasn't easily deterred. For all she knew, none of what Regan had told her was true.
After all she'd shared with Owen about her past, including her dyslexia and dropping out of school, she thought they'd really opened up to each other. So, if that were the case, why wouldn't he have told her about buying Regan an engagement ring?
No. It isn't true. She didn't believe Regan.
Maxi took her bid sheet and headed back to where she'd seen Lily, who once again waved her over. It wasn't until she neared the table that she found she was seated with Birdie and Agnes as well as two other ladies that Maxi didn't recognize.
After Maxi was seated, Lily leaned over and whispered in her ear. "I'm so glad you’re here. Where’s your aunt?"
“She wasn’t feeling well.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. I hope she feels better soon.”
“Me too.” Maxi glanced around. "Where are your friends?"
"Hannah and Josie are already married. They had no interest."
Maxi nodded. "So, you're here to find a date?"
Lily let out a laugh. "Nope. I'm just keeping my mother and sister company."
Okay. So, that explained who the two women were that she didn't recognize.
She had a feeling that if she stayed on the island a little longer that she would meet all of the locals.
In a little less than a week, she'd already met so many residents.
Her impression of Bluestar was that it was home to some of the nicest people.
She couldn't deny the thought of moving to the island was growing on her.
She gently nudged Lily's arm. "So, if you aren't here to bid on any of the bachelors, why do you have a bid sheet?"
Lily’s gaze moved to the bright yellow paper with a big fifty-three printed in black marker. "It wasn't my idea." She glanced over at the woman next to her. "Right, mother?"
Her mother smiled. "What's the point of coming to the auction, if you're not going to bid?"
Lily sighed.
"She does have a point," Birdie said. "You young ladies should go for it. You could even bid on more than one man."
Maxi gaped at the sweet lady, shocked that she would suggest something that sounded just a little scandalous. "I, uh..."
"Birdie, stop," Lily said. "You've got her blushing."
"Besides"—Agnes spoke up—"she already has her guy."
Birdie's gaze settled on Maxi. "Is that true? Are you in love with Owen?"
Maxi swallowed the wrong way and choked. She couldn't believe she'd been asked that question. She thought the tough part of the evening would be bidding on Owen, not sitting at the table before the auction.
As she continued to cough, Lily patted on her back. Coming here was a mistake in so many ways.
Lily grabbed a glass of water from the table and put it in front of her. "Here. Have a sip."
Maxi took the glass and sipped the ice-cold water. It helped soothe her cough. At the same time, she could feel everyone at the table staring at her. If they expected her to admit to being in love with Owen, they were going to be waiting a long, long… time.
Thankfully, before Birdie could once again ask her most embarrassing question, there was noise on the makeshift stage. Everyone's attention turned in that direction, including Maxi.
Good. At last, they were getting on with things. As soon as she did what Owen had asked of her, she was out of there. She was going home, um... to her aunt's place, and she was going to lie low and forget this evening ever happened.
"Ladies, welcome to Bluestar's very first bachelor auction.
This is such a great idea that I can't believe we haven't done it before now.
" Aster Bell stood on stage in a little black dress that did nothing to hide her pregnancy.
"What do you think? Should we make this an annual event?
" A few in the crowd called out yes . "I don't know. That didn’t seem very enthusiastic.
Let's try this again. Should we make this an annual event? "
"Yes!" The cheer was louder.
"Hmm…" Aster said into the mic. "Let's do this again. Do we want a bachelor auction every year?"
" Yes !!" The response thundered through the room.
Maxi felt as though she were the only one remaining silent. Even Birdie and Agnes were cheering.
Lily lightly elbowed her. When Maxi glanced at her, Lily gestured with her hand for Maxi to join in the cheering.
Maxi really didn't want to, but she also didn't want to hurt her new friend's feelings. And so, she opened her mouth and cheered, although softly. She couldn’t wait until this evening was over.