Secrets
Scott suddenly smiled at her,
and her heartbeat increased to double time. Had she ever really seen him smile like that? No way. His face lit up, his eyes flirted with her, and lord help her if she didn’t feel hot in areas that his smile should
not
have the ability to make her feel anything in.
“I gotta get back to Angie.”
“She’s lucky she has you,” Sarah said as she walked toward the door. He’d already crossed the threshold when he turned back and said, “Thanks for coming today.”
She was six inches from him. Her head was tilted back to speak with him and suddenly there they were staring at each other, the moment perfect and heated. Finally, he was noticing her! He leaned in, and those soft-looking lips that had set her heart racing were hovering over hers.
Without warning, he stepped away, bent down and back up, handing her an envelope as casually as if the moment hadn’t happened. Sarah looked down at the stupid envelope someone had left on her stoop. Embarrassment shot through her like a shot of alcohol, stinging and potent. She had misjudged his sudden leaning.
“Good night, Sarah,” he said, after a moment.
“Good night,” she mumbled as her cheeks turned hot. Did he realize what she’d thought? What she’d about done? She closed her eyes in horror. She’d been a second from puckering up to kiss him.
She slammed the door with perverse delight, now relishing that he was gone.
The Seaclusion Series—POISON
:
“The romance in this book isn’t traditional. It’s realistic. Cassie had a self-destruct personality and John always went the way of least resistance. The harm that these two caused each other due to this was heartbreaking to read. I love finding new authors that bring a fresh and different voice. This is going to be a 4 book series. I look forward to reading the next book in this series.”
~Cindy, Sugar & Spice Reviews (4 stars)
~*~
The Seaclusion Series—NOTORIOUS
:
"Leanne Davis writes such emotional stories...we get to go on the emotional healing journey of two characters. Is that healing a smooth process—no. Do both Kelly and Luke keep throwing up roadblocks to prevent that process—yes. Was it as a reader an incredible journey from start to finish—yes. There are two more books in this series and I cannot wait to see what the author has in store for Sarah."
~Cindy, Sugar & Spice Reviews (4 stars)
Secrets
by
Leanne Davis
The Seaclusion Series, Book Three
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Text copyright © 2014 by Leanne Davis
Originally published by Wild Rose Press
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
Published by AmazonEncore, Seattle
Amazon, the Amazon logo, and AmazonEncore are trademarks of
Amazon.com
, Inc., or its affiliates.
eISBN: 9781503998865
Cover Designer: Debbie Taylor
This title was previously published by Wild Rose Press; this version has been reproduced from Wild Rose Press archive files.
To my sister Marianne.
Thank you for being my “big” sister when I need it,
my best friend every single day,
my help partner in parenting
and my sounding board for all things books.
I am so grateful to you
and all of our endless conversations,
which I never tire of and always need.
I would be lost without you in my life.
~~
And to my nieces, who are also my other two “kids.”
Abbie, you are so special
to me and everyone who ever meets you.
I love you!
And Gracie, oh little Lu,
you will always be our girl on fire.
I adore you!
Acknowledgments
To my editor, Ally Robertson:
You were my first champion, and I will never forget the time you invested in me and
POISON
, when you didn’t have to. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for making my lifelong dream come true. You truly changed my life.
And I will always owe my start to you!
The teenager grabbed a shirt off one of the shop’s display racks and stuffed the silk blouse into her backpack, then turned to leave. Sarah Langston sighed. She resented shoplifters, and even more, hated dealing with them, the confrontation, the denials, and usually the police. Why was it mostly young girls who were the culprits? Young girls such as the one trying to exit her store. She could let the girl go. She could pretend she hadn’t seen the blouse disappear.
As if.
Sarah straightened her spine and walked out from behind the sales desk. Letting this teen go now, without any consequences, would most likely make
Sarah’s Secrets
become the place where shoplifters felt free to plunder.
“Did you really think you were getting away with that?”
The teen stopped. She slowly pivoted on her ratty tennis shoes, raising big, blue eyes to stare up at Sarah. She hunched her shoulders forward in a sign of defeat. What else did the girl think would happen? They were all alone in the shop and Sarah had been standing at the cash register. She was obviously watching the teenager browse. The teen was far from a savvy thief.
“Away with what?”
“Away with the shirt you’ve got stashed in your bag.”
The girl raised her chin a fraction of an inch. “What makes you think that?”
Sarah rolled her eyes and pointed toward the girl’s bag. “I watched you. If you’d like to see, I also have it on security video, and since your car is out front, I already have your license plate number written down. So, leave now with my blouse, and I’ll just get the police. Your choice.”
“There’s no choice.” The girl’s lips trembled as she whispered her feeble defiance.
“Sure, there is. You can deal with me now, or the cops later. At least I don’t go on your permanent record.”
“You’ll just call them anyway.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. But let’s start with you giving me back my hundred-dollar-plus shirt.”
The teen stood there shuffling her feet in obvious distress. She was slightly overweight, with long, blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and acne, which she tried covering with her hair. The girl couldn’t be more than sixteen. Sarah’s annoyance at the girl was nearly smothered by how woebegone the teen looked. Why was this sad little girl shoplifting? And although the girl had argued, her tone was quivering with unshed tears. Judging by how bad she was at shoplifting, the teen likely was not in the habit of stealing.
The girl withdrew the wadded up shirt from her bag and set it on the sales counter. It was in need of a washing and ironing before returning for sale.
Sarah took it and folded it neatly on the counter. She raised an eyebrow as she stared at the girl over the garment. “What’s your name?”
“Angie.”
“Angie, what? I will be calling your parents. I can’t just let you walk out of here like you didn’t try and steal from me. Do you get this is serious?”
Angie nodded, her gaze on the floor. She’d be pretty if she combed back her stringy hair. She was dressed in baggy jeans and a lumpy sweatshirt, making her all around style benign, nearly nerdy. Angie didn’t look like a girl shoplifting to try and add to her wardrobe. What had prompted her stealing today?
“There’s no one home.”
“I need an adult to call.”
“My mother won’t come. She’s at work. Maybe, well, maybe you could call Scott.”
“Who’s Scott? I need the name of a responsible adult.”
Angie nodded. “Scott is my mother’s boyfriend.”
“Is there anyone else?”
She shook her head miserably. “No. There’s no one else. There’s never been anyone but my mom and Scott.”
Sarah sighed. Fine then, her mother’s boyfriend it was. She got Scott’s number from Angie and called him.
“Yeah?”
“Yes, hi, I’m looking for a Scott…” She raised her eyebrows in question at Angie.
“Delano,” Angie mouthed.
“Delano.”
“Yeah, so? Why are you looking for me?”
“My name is Sarah Langston. I own a clothing shop in downtown Seaclusion.”
“Okay…”
“I have an Angie Delano here. She gave me your name and number.”
“Angie? What’s going on?” The rudeness left Scott’s voice. She didn’t have a clue what he looked like, but she could picture him physically straightening up at the mention of Angie’s name. When she told him she had caught Angie shoplifting, he assured her he’d be right there. There was no waffling. He seemed to get that this was serious, but if he didn’t, she would enlighten him.
Angie and Sarah waited in silence. Sarah sat the teen in her office behind the sales desk. Angie stared at the floor, arms crossed over her chest as her hair fell over her face, reminding Sarah of Cousin It from the Addams Family. She was no parent, but even she understood that this girl was acting out in hopes of getting someone’s attention. Whose? Her mother’s? The boyfriend’s?
A man entered her shop twenty minutes later. Was this Scott? She lowered her gaze to keep her startled wonder from being obvious. He wore work clothes, dark boots, jeans, green sweatshirt, and brown jacket. Dark brown work gloves stuck out of his coat pocket. He had auburn hair, hazel eyes, and he stood nearly six foot five. He was about her age. What the hell? This couldn’t be Angie’s Scott, because if it was, Scott couldn’t be more than in his mid-twenties. Did he act as Angie’s guardian or was he merely her mother’s boyfriend? But his reaction to the phone call about Angie was quick and concerned, just like most parents would react, implying he was more than just some man who dated her mother.