“I’m wondering about all those weekends that Macy had plans and Neal had to work,” Sarah said. “Seems really fishy, doesn’t it?”
Audrey came through the back door, out of breath and wide-eyed. “I was trying to message Crystal and the internet went out!”
Beezy opened up her arms. “Come here, baby girl, and give me a big old bear hug. The internet is no big thing. We all lived without it, and you can, too.”
Audrey ran across the room and hugged the older woman. “Did you have a good time on the cruise? I wish you’d have taken me with you.”
“You would have been bored to tears, my child, around all of us old people. It was a senior-citizen cruise, and I got to admit, I was tired of hearing about aches and surgeries by the second day,” Beezy said. “Aren’t you on spring break this week?”
Audrey shot a look over at her mother. “I’m in spring break jail, and just when I thought things couldn’t get worse, I can’t even get into my Facebook page on my computer.”
“She got caught at school with cigarettes and liquor,” Grace said. “Her punishment is that she has to work in the shop during her break, and then she has to go to in-school suspension for a few days when she goes back. It could have been more, but this is her first offense.”
“You do the crime, you do the time,” Beezy told her.
“But they weren’t even my cigarettes and booze,” Audrey whined, “and my friends will all shun me if I get them in trouble.”
“Honey, that kind of people ain’t real friends.” Beezy patted her on the back. “But you have to figure that out all by yourself. If Macy isstill under the weather tomorrow, I could come in and run the register for y’all.”
“Thanks, Beezy, for the offer, but I think we’ve got it covered,” Sarah said.
Audrey heaved another of her dramatic sighs and headed out the door. “I guess I’ll start on my algebra since the internet is down. Did you call up the service and cut it off just to punish me more, Mama?”
“I did not, but that’s a wonderful idea if you do something else that gets you suspended from school,” Grace told her.
Audrey flipped around and started out the door, then stopped as Grace began to tell Beezy about Raelene.
“From what I’ve heard about that girl, she is more like Hilda than Geneva. She’s a sweet kid,” Beezy replied with a nod. “She’s got a kind heart like her grandmother. I’m glad y’all took her in. If I’d known about her, I would have done the same thing, but she’ll be happier in a house with another teenager, I’m sure.”
“Nobody, not a one of them, asked me my opinion about it!” Audrey slammed the door on her way outside.
“I take it she’s not happy with this arrangement.” Beezy giggled. “How are the girls getting along?”
“Not good,” Sarah answered.
“Those new friends of Audrey’s are turning her into a mean girl,” Grace said.
“Leave her alone as much as possible and let her hit bottom. Those girls are just teenage versions of their mothers. Audrey is smart, and she will take off the blinders someday,” Beezy said. “And who knows? They might even be friends by summertime.”
“When pigs fly.” Sarah laughed.
“I’m so glad to get back to normal life,” Macy said Wednesday morning when she reached the shop in time to roll out the last two raisings of dough. “This has been the longest I’ve ever been away from Neal in the four months that we’ve dated. We’ve barely had time to even talk this week. I told him that I was ready to give up my dream wedding with the white dress and go to the courthouse for a quickie marriage.”
“Does that mean that you are selling your half of the business?” Sarah asked.
Grace’s phone pinged. She dried her hands and pulled it out of her hip pocket to see a message from Travis:Good morning. Travis here. We met in your shop when I came in to visit my old friends. Neal Monroe has approached me with the offer to buy half interest in your shop, and the land. He is acting on your cousin Macy’s behalf. Is this true?
Grace sucked in air so quickly that Sarah, Macy, and Audrey all whipped around to look at her. She wondered how Travis had gotten her number but then remembered that it was on the business card in case of emergency.
Audrey turned back to Macy. “You can’t do that. I’ve already picked out my dress.”
“I can and I will. Neal says that he loves me and misses me, but he has to be gone on a trip for his job until late Saturday night, so it’ll be another four days until I see him again. I’m going to tell him I want to go to the courthouse on Monday morning. We’ll be married on his birthday,” she said with a smile. “He shouldn’t have trouble remembering our anniversary that way. I think all this stress of worrying about a dress, the reception, who to invite, and all that is what caused my headache. But I have to admit, the oil that Raelene put on my temples sure took the edge off it. I’m so glad that y’all hired her.”
“Can we go to the courthouse with you?” Audrey asked.
“Of course you can,” Macy answered. “All y’all and Beezy. Neal has no living family, so he will appreciate having y’all there when we say our vows as much as I will.”
Grace’s heart pounded in her chest. Would Travis jump on the opportunity to buy half interest—not even a third, like Macy had told them? What on earth could—or evenshould—she tell him since they had no real proof that Neal was anything but a cheating fiancé?
