The Moment We Began (A Fairhope New Adult Romance) (24 page)

They have an old computer in the back room, so we
get on and map out all the different big events and festivals coming
up in this area over the next couple of months.

“See, there’s a lot of end-of-summer
events coming up on the bigger beaches,” I say. “With
your license, you should be able to contact them and see if you can
get on as a vendor. If nothing else, you could take your food cart up
there and set up somewhere in town unofficially.”

“You don’t think it’s going to
be a big risk to spend all that money getting the menu together and
gas for the trip and everything?”

“The key is to be smart about what you
serve. Only stick to your simplest, best items,” I say. “A
few things you can make ahead of time and then just heat up on
demand. Things that don’t take too many expensive ingredients.
The kinds of foods that will appeal to people outside enjoying a day
on the beach.”

“Crab cake burgers,” Buddy says. “It’s
one of Delores’ most popular summer dishes. We could freeze the
patties ahead of time and just heat them up on the grill when we get
there.”

I nod. “Exactly. If you can come up with
three or four good items like that where you won’t be wasting
any food if you don’t sell out, you won’t be in danger of
losing any money,” I say. “And at these festivals, you
can charge a premium. One of the problems I see from the menu you
used at that spring break event is that you were really undercharging
for everything. No one charges less than a dollar for a can of soda
at these things. You could probably sell cold bottles of water for a
dollar each and if you get bottles of Coke instead of cans, you could
probably sell those for two dollars each.”

“Two dollars?” Delores asks. She
presses her lips together and settles her hands on her hips. “We
can get those wholesale for less than forty cents a bottle.”

“Right, so every one you sell at two dollars
is major profit,” I say. “Which you desperately need
right now.”

“Well, I don’t want to be screwing
people just to get ahead,” she says.

I want to laugh at how innocent and perfect she
is, but this is a serious matter. “Delores, you aren’t
screwing people. Two dollars is a fair price at an outdoor event like
this. Besides, you’re not trying to just get ahead. You’re
trying to save your diner.”

Her face becomes serious and she nods. “Okay,
what else?”

I go through the rest of the menu with them while
Mason creates a calendar of all the upcoming events along the Alabama
coast for the next two months.

“The more of these you can get to, the
better,” I say. “And when you get a little bit of money,
I want you to spend some of it on flyers you can hand out, telling
people where to find this diner. Trust me, when they taste your food,
they’re going to want to stop by and visit this place. And if
you get ahead, maybe you can invest a little bit of money into having
the floors cleaned up or putting in new tables and such.”

She nods, but I see fear in her eyes.

“Try to keep an eye out for any catering
jobs. Parties, birthdays, that sort of thing.” I put my hand on
hers and squeeze. “It’s going to be okay, Delores. I
won’t let you lose this place.”

“Heaven must have brought you through those
doors to me,” she says, squeezing my hand. “And here I
thought you were just some snooty little tourist when I first met
you, thinking you were turning your nose up at my tap water.”

I laugh. I don’t tell her that’s
exactly what I was doing.

But who knew how much ten days could really change
a person?

I’m kind of starting to like the person I’m
becoming.

By the time I get back from the bank the next
morning, Mason has the whole camp packed up and ready to go.

There’s no sign of Harley at the campgrounds
today, and she’s lucky she didn’t show her face.

“How did it go?” he asks.

“Good,” I say. “I laid out my
ideas and asked him to extend the loan an extra month and see how it
all pans out.”

“And he agreed? Just like that?”

I lift my hands up. “Just like that,”
I say. “He thought the plan had real potential. Of course,
they’re still going to have to pay what they owe, but the bank
wants to see them succeed so they can get their money back. He said
he’s willing to give them the time to turn things around.”

Mason smiles. “I always knew you were
beautiful and smart, but who knew you had such a great mind for
business?”

I roll my eyes. “Not my parents, that’s
for sure,” I say. “I’ve tried bringing up some of
my ideas to my dad, but he always waves me away. He’s always
asking Preston for ideas and Preston could care less. But you know
how it is. The son has to be the one to carry on the family name and
tend the family business. It’s a Southern tradition.”

“It’s bullshit,” he says. “If
your dad can’t see how good you’d be for his company,
he’s blind.”

I climb into the truck and Mason gets behind the
wheel. “It’s okay,” I say. “I’ve been
thinking of taking some time off from school anyway.”

“Why?” he asks. “Because of this
trip?”

“That and some other things,” I say.
“No big deal.”

But it is a big deal. It’s a very big
freaking deal. I’ve been avoiding thinking too far into the
future, but eventually I’m going to need a plan.

I fold the map so that the route from Alabama to
Texas is open on my lap as he pulls onto the road leading out of
town. “I feel like we’ve gone back in time,” I say.
“This is probably the longest either one of us has ever gone
without checking email or using a GPS to get where we’re
going.”

“I know, but that’s part of what makes
it so fun.”

I nod and stare out the window. Thinking about the
future also has me thinking about what’s going on back home.
Are they out looking for us? Is everyone worried about us?

Will my parents ever forgive me for leaving
without talking to them about it first?

For now, Mason and I are living in this little
cocoon. It’s just us and the rest of the world fades away, but
in a few weeks, I’m going to need to go home and face reality
again. When I get home, there are going to be a lot of decisions to
make. For now, though, I’m going to concentrate on making the
most of our time together. If it works out the way I’m hoping,
Mason will be by my side and we’ll be making those decisions
together.

Mason and I take our time on the road. We decide
to play it by ear, stopping at a few different campsites along the
coast on our way toward Texas.

“I’ve never been to New Orleans,”
I say, studying the map at breakfast a few days later. “It’s
only a couple of hours from here and I’ve always wanted to see
it. I doubt there are many places to pitch a tent in the middle of
the city, though.”

He laughs. “No, I imagine they generally
frown on that sort of thing,” he says. “Not that people
probably haven’t tried during Mardis Gras.”

“I bet,” I say. “Can we go? Even
just for the day?”

“Anything you want, baby,” he says.

He’s never called me baby before and for
some reason, it makes me giddy. Other than being the only person in
the world who calls me Pen, Mason has never had a real pet name for
me. I could get used to swapping terms of endearment with this guy.

“Next stop, The Big Easy,” I say. And
just for fun, I throw in, “Sweet cheeks.”

He cocks his head to the side and his eyes narrow
to threatening slits. “Don’t press your luck, missy.”

I stand and toss my dirty napkin at him. “What
would you prefer, then? Sugar-lips? Pumpkin? Love muffin?”

He groans and pulls a few bills out of his wallet.
“Can’t you at least try to think of something a little
more masculine?”

“Hot stuff? Lover boy?”

He’s trying to act annoyed, but his lips
curl up on the corners. “I like Mason,” he says. “Let’s
stick to that.”

I put my hand in his and we walk out to the truck
together. “For now,” I say. “But you can still call
me baby.”

He leans down and kisses me before opening the
door on the passenger side. “You like that, huh?”

“I love it,” I say, wrapping my arms
around him and going in for another kiss. What I really want to say
is I love you, but I hold back. Things are going so well since we
left Little Lake that I don’t want to push my luck.

It only takes us an hour and a half to get into
the city. We park in a public parking lot downtown that only costs
ten dollars for the full day, then walk around, exploring the city
hand-in-hand. We walk around the French Quarter, have lunch and
beignets at Café du
Monde, and spend the rest of the day walking around the St. Louis
Cemetery.

“I know it’s strange to say a cemetery
is pretty, but it is,” I say.

The stone crypts are all above ground. Some are
plain, but others are ornate, decorated with beautiful artwork and
sculptures.

“They’re like little houses for dead
people,” Mason says.

I step around one of the tombs and my foot catches
on a stone. I push my hands out in front of me to catch my fall, but
my hip slams hard against a stone vase. I cry out and clutch my side,
fear rushing through me as I fall hard against the ground.

Mason rushes to my side. “Are you hurt?”
he says.

“I don’t know,” I say, tears
filling my eyes. My hands are trembling and I can’t catch my
breath.

I sit there for a long time, not saying a word.
Terrified I may have hurt the baby, but not able to tell him what’s
wrong.

“Penny, you’re scaring me. What’s
wrong?”

I shake my head and lean against him. “I’m
okay, I think,” I say. “Just a little shaken up.”

He helps me stand and I slide the edge of my
shorts down. There’s a long scrape across my hip and stomach
that’s bleeding a little. It stings, but it’s nothing
serious. At least not from the outside.

I try my best to shake it off and go on with our
day, but it stays in the back of my mind. I can’t stop worrying
about the baby.

After that, the carefree atmosphere of the day is
gone and Mason suggests we get back on the road to find a place to
stop for the night.

When we stop for gas a few miles outside the city,
I get out of the truck and tell Mason I’m going to use the
bathroom.

I go inside the small restroom and shut the door,
then lean back against it, trying to calm myself down. If this baby
could survive a major car accident, surely he can survive a little
fall. I’m sure it’s no big deal, but I can’t shake
the feeling that something’s wrong.

I splash cold water on my face and take several
deep breaths. I’m probably just overreacting.

But when I go to use the bathroom, there’s a
little blood on the tissue.

My heart nearly stops. I’m not going to be
able to go on pretending I’m okay, and there’s no way
I’ll be able to hide my worry from him.

But if I tell him now, I’m afraid it will
ruin everything. I’m not ready yet. I know he cares about me a
lot, but until he tells me he loves me and wants to be with me even
after we decide to go home, I don’t want him to know about the
baby.

I step outside of the bathroom and glance through
the window at Mason. He’s still standing by the truck filling
the tank. I walk to the clerk at the counter.

“Do you have a payphone here?”

He shakes his head. “No, sorry.”

I bite my lip and run a hand through my hair. “I
really need to use the phone,” I say, pleading with my eyes.
“It’s an emergency. Can I use yours?”

He sighs. “Is it long distance?”

“Yes, but it’s really important,”
I say. I search my pockets for cash, but I must have left it in my
bag. The only other thing I can think to do is use my calling card. I
have the number memorized. “I can use a calling card. It won’t
cost you anything.”

He thinks it over, then finally hands me the
cordless phone from under the counter. “Be quick, though, just
in case someone calls the store,” he says. “The owner
will be pissed if he calls in and it’s busy.”

I thank him and glance out at Mason again. I know
I don’t have much time. Using the card goes against our rules,
but we’re just passing through here anyway. By the time anyone
tracked us down, we’d be gone.

My fingers are shaky and I misdial a couple of
times before I finally get it right and the line starts ringing.

When the operator answers, I ask her to connect me
with Dr. Mallory’s office. It’s after five in the
afternoon, but miraculously, he picks up on the second ring.

“Dr. Mallory? This is Penny Wright,” I
say.

“Penny? Oh my goodness, are you okay? Your
mother told me you’d left town and that no one’s heard
from you,” he says. “I’ve been very worried about
you.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t have a lot
of time to explain, but I need to talk to you.” The words are
rushing out of my mouth so fast, I’m stumbling over them. I
tell him about the fall at the cemetery and the spotting.

“I really don’t think you have
anything to worry about,” he says. “Spotting can be
totally normal at this stage in your pregnancy, but it would be best
if you could come in and get things checked out just to be safe.”

“I can’t come in,” I say. “I’m
not even close to home right now.”

“What about a local clinic where you are? Or
even an emergency room? Any place that could do a quick exam or
ultrasound to make sure everything’s okay. That would at least
put your mind at ease.”

I close my eyes. I have no idea how I would pull
that off without Mason finding out. “I don’t know if I
can get in to see anyone right away.”

“Everyone here is very worried about you,
Penny,” he says. “I think it’s best if you come
home as soon as you can.”

I know he’s just trying to look out for me,
but I really don’t want to come home right now. Still, I don’t
want to put the baby at risk either. I stand there, not sure what to
say or do.