1. - – Laura
CHAPTER ONE
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LAURA
Small town life isn’t so bad. I hated it back in high school.
I wanted so much more than Gas City had to offer.
Now that I’m back, though, I appreciate the peace of a small town.
Gas City isn’t technically small, but it’s definitely small-town.
You’ll see a tractor drive down Main Street now and then, not to mention the obscene amount of diesel trucks blowing nasty smoke all over town.
Then there’s Ducktail Run in September. I missed the chaos last year, but I’ll be here for it next month.
Claire’s excited to open up the garage and host a big ass yard sale.
I have a bunch of things to get rid of, but I’m not looking forward to how busy every business gets that week.
It is a huge boost to the economy for the town, and maybe my wallet, too.
The rest of the year, Gas City is pretty quiet. Claire and I both work for the local school system. She’s a special needs teacher, and I love substituting in her classroom when her assistant is out.
As for hobbies, Claire and I run a book club with a few other teachers. We meet at the library, discuss smutty books, and then go out for dinner twice a month. We’re reading a spicy romance novel, and the group chat has been very interesting.
Claire almost spit her drink out when Amanda asked if a wooden spoon would work for impact play.
Amanda is the married one in our friend group, and I assume either she or her husband Mark has a wooden spoon-shaped welt on their ass by now. I fight the urge to message her to ask and put my phone down so I don’t accidentally do it.
Claire is in Indy with her family, so I’m just here all alone.
I think a walk to the library sounds good.
I’ve got a book to return, and it’s Tuesday, so that means new releases!
Irah Jean, Claire’s spoiled dachshund mix, snores loudly from on the couch.
We played in the backyard earlier, and all that running wore her and her tiny legs out.
She’ll be in the same spot when I return, with the addition of a puddle of drool.
I tossed the romantasy I finished over the weekend in my bag and locked the door behind me. I make sure Gertrude, the porch goose dressed as a bunny, is still hiding the spare key and head into downtown Gas City. We live right off Main Street, so most things are within walking distance here.