Welcome To Hickville High (Hickville High Series Book 1) (25 page)

He barely said hello as he shed his coat and rolled up his sleeves. He grabbed an apron and headed to the dishwashing area. It was non-stop washing, serving, and cooking. Nobody spoke, except to give and receive orders, but they managed to catch up and stay slightly ahead of the mayhem.

The café normally didn’t close until ten, but at nine-thirty, T-bone emerged from the kitchen and flipped the Open sign over. He looked at Kelsey and groused, “We’re out of chicken fried steak. Time to close.”

If she hadn’t been so tired, she’d have thanked him. Instead she just nodded. Thankfully, the café was emptied by ten. T-bone cleaned the grill and grabbed a bucket to help Kelsey clear the last of the dishes. She shook her head at him. “We’ve got it T.”

“It’s my place, I’ll help.”

Austin stacked plates in Kelsey’s pan. “Seriously, man. Let us take care of it. This is the last load, anyway. You’ve got to be here early tomorrow.”

T-bone sat the pan on an empty table. “You know how to lock up?”

Kelsey smiled, “Yes.”

“All right. I’m calling it a night.” T-bone left out of the back door.

After the dishes were washed, Austin plinked quarters in the jukebox and watched Kelsey wipe the last of the tables. “I’m sorry you missed the dance.”

Kelsey smiled. “Me too. But this was more important. There’s no way T-bone could have handled that crowd alone.”

A slow song came on and Austin held out his hand to Kelsey. “Want to dance?”

She stepped into his arms. “Austin, I’m sorry about the stupid Facebook stuff. I shouldn’t have said those things.”

He gave a half-smile. “They weren’t that bad.” He guided her between the tables. “So—you’re back. I guess this is our own homecoming.”

She smiled. “I guess so.”

He looked into her eyes. “And Drew?”

“I broke up with him.”

Relief, joy, and hope, spread through him all at once. “And?”

“And this.” She rose on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

It was all the encouragement he needed. He lowered his mouth to hers.

*

When their lips touched, warmth consumed her like a hot August day in the Texas sun. He kissed her long and slow, stirring embers that had been smoldering since that night under the stars. Flames ignited inside her, making her want to feel his body against hers. He pulled her tight and she wished they were back at the bluff. All the fear and sorrow over what she’d lost seemed like a distant memory.

He’d made a Texas girl out of her after all.

The town of Batson held a Batson Round-Up in 1903 when all unmarried women were brought to the town square and auctioned off as wives.

Kelsey’s dad had told her not to worry about chores the next day, but apparently all those weeks of getting up at the crack of dawn had reset her internal clock because she was up anyway. And after being away for a couple of days, she was ready to get back to her chickens. She dressed and headed downstairs for a cup of coffee.

She heard her parent’s voices on the front porch. When she stepped out to join them, her face broke into a wide grin. Her mom and dad sat snuggled together in the glider. Whatever was up with them must have been over. Mackenzie sat across from them. But the source of Kelsey’s smile sat in the rocker with a mug cradled between his palms. “Morning, Kelsey. The chickens are fed. Relax and have your coffee.”

“Thanks, Austin. I believe I will.” Kelsey took the seat next to him. She didn’t worry that her face was makeup free and probably had a sleep line or two stretching across it. She was going to enjoy the morning sitting on the porch with her family and Austin. Life just didn’t get much better than this.

She looked at her sister. “Kenzie, have you already run this morning?”

“No. I’m taking today off.”

“Almost all of us are here together—that never happened in Chicago. Where is Ryan anyway?”

Kelsey’s mom answered, “She spent the night with Macey Brown.”

Kelsey shared a look with Mackenzie. Her sister said, “Macey’s not likely to throw a crazy-wild party.”

“You’re right.” Kelsey sat back and propped her feet on the coffee table.

“I see the worry between you two.” Her mom said, “Just so you know, I spoke with Macey’s mom. She seems very nice and guaranteed me it was a girls-only sleepover.”

“I’m not worried,” Mackenzie said. “Are you, Kels?”

“No. I’ve seen how Macey dresses.”

A black Chevy truck rambled down the drive catching everybody’s attention. Austin stood. “What the…”

Kelsey stood next to him. “Who is that?”

“Justin Hayes.”

The truck pulled up to the house and Ryan slid from the cab. She turned toward Justin and Kelsey saw
Hayes
across the back of the football jersey she wore. She gathered her stuff and said, “Thanks. I’ll talk to you later.”

By the time she reached the bottom step of the porch, her mom stood in front of her and her dad was next to Justin’s truck door. “Son, we need to talk.”

Mascara was smeared beneath Ryan’s eyes, and her hair had the just-rolled-out-of-someone’s-bed look. Her Homecoming gown was wadded in her arms with her shoes balanced precariously on top. Water dripped from the dress and plinked onto the porch step. She looked at her mom. “It’s not what you think.”

Thank you for joining the Quinn sisters as they settle into small town life. I hope you enjoyed Kelsey’s story. And now, to find out what really happened to Ryan Quinn, here’s an excerpt from book two,
Hickville Confessions.

Hickville Confessions

By Mary Karlik

Copyright 2015. All rights reserved.

Chapter One

Nobody asked the Purity Club girls to dance.

They stood in the corner looking like painted-up losers and Ryan Quinn was smack dab in the middle of the group.

Relax. New beginning. New town. New group.

New me.

If this had been her old school, she’d have put some fire into this party—

Not true. If this had been her old school, she’d have ditched the party for… no, she wasn’t going there. Being a member of the Purity Club was the perfect way to atone for the sins she’d committed then. As long as her past remained secret, she’d handle being ignored at the dance.

After the king and queen had been announced, the PC girls were ready to leave. That was fine with her. She was bored out of her mind. Things probably weren’t going to get any more exciting at the PC sleepover, but at least she could shed her gown for Soffe shorts and a tank top.

She lagged behind as they crossed the parking lot to Macey Brown’s mom’s Tahoe. The girls whispered, followed by a round of giggles. Were they laughing at her? Nah. She was just being paranoid. They’d included her in all of the pre-Homecoming stuff. She was the one who’d held back, not sure she was ready to open herself up to a new group.

Once they were in the SUV, Macey cranked up the radio—and it wasn’t the Christian rock she usually listened to. They drove around town and sang along to the radio and for the first time, Ryan almost felt like she fit in. Macey parked in front of the courthouse fountain.

“Come on, girls, let’s go.”

Macey and Katie McDonald exchanged one of those looks that said they had a secret. All the girls laughed—they were in on it too. Uneasiness wafted across the hairs on the back of Ryan’s neck. She reminded herself she was being stupid, and forced a grin. “What’s funny?”

Macey flashed a plastic smile. “You’ll see. Ladies—shoes.” They kicked off their heels and climbed out. Katie grabbed a plastic grocery sack with a bottle of dish soap sticking out of the top.

We’re going to soap the fountain. PC girls committing minor vandalism?
This was not in her change-my-life plan. She didn’t need this crap. She should’ve gone for loner status. But that was easier said than done, and being a fringe member of a marginally popular crowd was better than no group at all.

Macey called out to her, “Come on, Ryan. Let’s have some fun.”

So they were soaping the fountain. Even if they got caught, how bad could it be? Harmless fun. This was not Chicago. These were nice girls. And as far as they knew, she was a nice girl too.
Stop holding back. Give them a chance.
Ryan slipped from her strappy sandals and drew a deep breath.

All in.

The girls held up the hems of their dresses and climbed into the fountain, squealing and giggling as the cold hit their legs. Ryan stepped over the stone wall into the water, ignored the cold chill that shot from her toes to her head, and joined in the splashing and giggling.

Macey waded over to her. “Ryan, I have to confess that we brought you here for a purpose.”

The girls moved close to Ryan.

She smiled, but wariness eased its way into her mind. “What? Is this an initiation?”

Katie McDonald and Carle Davis each grabbed an arm.

So, they’re going to dunk me.
Relax
.

Macey looked back at her with cold black eyes. Her sweet Southern smile was replaced by a sneer. “On your knees.”

I can deal. They’re just having fun.
She dropped to her knees, and sucked in a breath as the cold water hit her torso.

The other girls closed in. Britt Stern pulled plastic scouring pads from the bag and passed them to the girls. Macey pulled the cap open on the soap. They had crazed looks in their eyes and despite her bravado, the hairs on the back of Ryan’s neck screamed that this was not good. “What are you doing?”

“We discovered you’ve been a naughty girl.”

Shit. Shit. Shit.
She tried to laugh but all that came out was a nervous giggle. “What do you mean?”

“I’m talking about abusing the temple God gave you. You’ve abused and shamed your body with sex and drugs.”

Her captors tightened their hold. Ryan’s heart raced and she tried to pull away, but then it seemed like a thousand hands were on her. They poured soap over her and scrubbed. She screamed and they pushed her under. When they let her up, she coughed soapy water.

Scouring pads scraped across her skin. She twisted and kicked to get away, but they held her down. Macey straddled Ryan and screamed, “You are soiled by the workings of the devil!” She ran the pad above the scoop neck of Ryan’s gown. Soap bubbles foamed in the water. “You’re evil and unclean.” She scrubbed the pad across Ryan’s face.

The first pass felt like sand, but she kept working that damned pad. Over and over her cheeks, across her lips, down her neck. It felt as though fire raked across her with each angry stroke.

She’s gone batshit crazy.
She turned her face to get away from the torture, but Macey clamped a hand on her chin and dug the nylon deeper into Ryan’s skin with each stroke.

Britt yelled, “Stop it, Macey. That’s too much!” The hold on her right hand was released and Ryan fought to push Macey off. But the other girls were quick to pin down her arm again. A knee dug into the inside of each bicep. They held her legs by putting pressure on her kneecaps. She fought, but they kept her pinned.

Britt yelled again. “Macey, she’s bleeding. Let her go.”

Macey released her chin and looked down on her. The whites of her eyes glowed in the lamplight, giving her a crazy, detached look. She held the scouring pad above Ryan’s face and squeezed.

Soapy water mixed with blood showered down. Ryan clamped her eyes shut and prayed the torture would end.

Macey dropped her voice an octave. “I command the darkness in you to come out.”

A low, deep growl sounded from somewhere. The girls released her and squealed. She heard splashing as they scrambled to get out of the fountain. Ryan’s body shook as she sat up and tried to wash the soap from her eyes. Before she could open them, she heard splashing.

Somebody was slogging through the water toward her.

Following a career as a nursing instructor, award-winning author, Mary Karlik earned an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania. A native Texan, Mary loves horses, dogs, cats, and small town diners. Although she has recently relocated in northern New Mexico, her heart remains in the Lone Star state.