Quiet Storm, Season 2, Episode 6 (Rising Storm) (2 page)

“Maybe,” she whispered, then drew a deep breath. “Wish me luck,” she told her brother. And though he didn’t answer, it still felt as though he was with her as she walked across the courthouse lawn toward Main Street and the little florist shop on the corner.

A bell jingled over the door as she turned the knob and entered.

“Lacey?”

The male voice was vaguely familiar, and she turned to see Max Marshall grinning at her. The athletic, dark-haired boy had been Jacob’s roommate at the University of Texas in Austin, and just seeing him now after talking to Jacob by the tree made Lacey feel like her brother really was still looking after her.

“Max! Are you here visiting Mrs. Garten again? Is she okay?” Hedda Garten was Max’s grandmother, but he didn’t live in Storm. And seeing him now—when he’d been in town just a few weekends ago—made Lacey worry that something was wrong with the elderly woman.

“No, no. She’s fine. But it’s harder for her to do stuff at work and at the house. So I’m just here for the weekend. Brought my friend Scott again, too. We’re helping out today,” he added, his gesture encompassing the florist shop his grandmother owned as well as the tall, tan guy standing next to him.

“I’m guessing you’re Scott.”

“In the flesh.” He had wide, friendly eyes.

“Scott goes to A&M,” Max said. “But since we grew up together, I don’t hold that against him.”

Lacey grinned. She might not be in college yet, but you couldn’t grow up in Texas without knowing about the rivalry between the two schools. And the Salt family were die-hard Longhorns, with many generations graduating from UT.

“So, what’s up?” Max asked. “Or did you just see my gorgeous face from outside and decide to pop in?”

“I want to get some flowers,” Lacey said, trying not to blush. She’d had a little bit of a crush on Max ever since Jacob introduced them a few years ago. “My mom’s been having a rough time of it.”

Immediately, Max’s expression turned sympathetic. “I know about Dakota and Ginny and the whole mess. I’m really sorry. Like your mom needed that on top of, well, on top of everything.”

Lacey pressed her lips together and nodded. She didn’t want to cry—she’d done enough of that—but she couldn’t fight the pinched feeling that grew inside her every time she talked about it.

“Well, Scott and I are just the delivery boys. And since my grandma’s not here, you need Kristin.” He waved to Kristin Douglas, who was arranging flowers behind the counter.

“Hey, Kristin! Lace wants to get some flowers for her mom. Not my area, so can you help her?”

Weirdly, Lacey had the impression that Kristin had been watching them, even though now she smiled brilliantly, as if she’d just noticed that Lacey walked in.

“Lacey! It’s so good to see you. How’s your dad? I mean, your parents.” Her smile widened. “Anyway, I’m happy to help. What do you need, sweetie?” Kristin had reddish brown hair and blue eyes and a naturally outgoing personality, which is why she was the party planner for the store. Today, though, her effusiveness seemed forced.

Still, Lacey had learned the hard way that people often had problems and secrets they kept hidden. If anything was going on with Kristin, it didn’t have a thing to do with her. Best not to pry.

She explained about the flowers she wanted for the entry and dining area, and though Kristin seemed a little stilted through the whole process, she suggested some lovely arrangements that she promised the boys could deliver later in the day. Lacey took care of the bill, then started to head out. “I’m off to Pink,” she told Max. “I got my favorite tank top there and Sara Jane stole it from me.” She grimaced. “Sisters. I’m hoping they have another just like it.”

“Hold up and Scott can walk with you,” Max said as Scott came over pushing a gray cart topped with four stunning flower arrangements. “Courtney likes an arrangement in both windows, one by the changing room, and one right in the middle on that big table when you enter the store.” He grinned. “Grandma says she’s a great customer.”

“I guess so,” Lacey said. She glanced at Scott. “Ready?”

She held the door for him, and they walked slowly toward Pink, which was on the opposite side of the square. They didn’t talk about anything in particular, just chatted, which was good, because Lacey got totally distracted when she saw Jeffry looking at them from one of the window tables at the Bluebonnet Cafe.

Without thinking, she slowed, but he looked away, and she sighed. Now wasn’t the time to mend fences anyway. But maybe she’d pop back in after she’d done her shopping at Pink—and had more time to think about what she would say. Bottom line, she’d been a bitch and burned bridges, but now she wanted her friends back. Even more bottom line, she wasn’t really sure how to manage that.

In the store, Scott headed toward the owner, Courtney, as Lacey made a beeline for the tank tops. The store had a lot of racks jammed close together so as to get as much inventory as possible, and it was like getting lost in a forest of fashion.

She found a darling pale blue one that would look great on Mallory, and for a moment she even considered buying it. But things were so dicey between them, her former best friend would probably consider the gesture some sort of self-absorbed act on Lacey’s part and not an olive branch.

With a sigh, she put the top back, then forced herself to focus on clothes for herself. Her finger was trailing idly over the line of hangers when her attention was diverted by Scott saying, “You’re Jeffry Rush, aren’t you?”

“Um, yeah, that’s me.” He paused. “I came in to find a friend, but—look, I’m sorry, but do we—I mean, do I know you?”

Lacey held on to a pink tank as she moved around a rack to see Scott and Jeffry talking to each other from across the table near the fitting rooms.

“I’m Scott Wallace, Max Marshall’s friend. I came to your house to see Brittany a few weeks ago. Your grandmother had suggested we all get together and explore the Hill Country. You, too,” he said. “And anyway, I saw your picture in the house. Shame we didn’t meet before.”

“Oh. Yeah. Shame.”

Lacey wondered if the Texas allergies were messing with Jeffry because his voice sounded unusually high-pitched. She moved to join them, but as she did, Jeffry said, “Right, so, um, I have to go. See ya.”

And then there he went, moving out of the store like his ass was on fire. What the heck was that about?

“Damn,” she said, and Scott turned around to face her.

“Lacey, I didn’t know you were there.”

“Sorry to scare off Jeffry,” she said wryly. “I saw that you guys were talking.”

There was a funny twist to Scott’s mouth. “Did you scare him off? I assumed it was me.”

She lifted a shoulder. “You? Hardly. Trust me, I’ve been kind of a jerk lately. And it’s given me a new superpower. I’m Repello-girl. All my old friends scatter whenever I come near.”

“I’m sorry,” Scott said, and he seemed genuinely sympathetic.

“Well, he’s my cousin, too, so it’s not like he’s never seen me be an idiot before. But this time was definitely the worst.”

“Maybe you should be telling him and not me.”

She wrinkled her nose. “You think?”

Scott chuckled, his blue eyes twinkling. “All that matters is what
you
think.”

“Yeah,” she agreed. “And I think you’re right.” She thrust the tank top at him as she flashed a genuine smile. “Would you mind putting this back for me?” she asked. “I think it’s time Jeffry and I had a conversation.”

Without waiting for him to answer, she headed toward the door that led back to the square. And, maybe, to reconciliation.

* * * *

Jeffry was all the way around the corner and halfway up Cedar by the time Lacey stepped outside. She started to call out to him, but since she doubted he’d hear her, she decided to simply go after him.

She saw him step into Cuppa Joe and breathed a sigh of relief.
Easy-squeezy.
She knew how much Jeffry loved a latte and a cookie in the afternoon. By the time she reached the shop, he’d have his snack and be on his way. Which was good, because Lacey wasn’t in the mood to see her old boss, Marisol. She’d never officially quit, and she’d never officially been fired, but after the blowup with Ginny—Marisol’s sister—Lacey had kind of stopped going to work. And Marisol had never made a big deal out of it.

One day, she’d need to clear the air with Marisol. She knew that. But she needed to fix things with her friends first. And that was the mission of the day.

She was just half a block from the shop when the door opened and Jeffry emerged. She started to call to him, but before she could, Mallory and Luis stepped out, too, and they were all laughing and joking around and honestly, it just made Lacey’s stomach hurt.

Then Mallory stopped and turned around, as if she could feel Lacey’s eyes on her. Lacey froze, just froze, as Mallory seemed to look straight through her.

Luis tugged on her arm, and Mallory looked from him to Lacey, and then deliberately turned and started walking away.

Luis gave her a kind of apologetic half-smile, but he didn’t pull Mallory back.

But it was Jeffry’s actions that hurt the worst. He didn’t even look her in the eye. Just glanced at her long enough to see who it was, then dropped his head to study the sidewalk.
Jeffry
. Her own cousin. And not just family, either. Jeffry was the one friend who you could always count on to be there in a crisis. A peacemaker. A genuinely nice guy.

She’d screwed up, all right. Big time.

Not long ago, she’d bumped into Luis and Mallory under the Storm Oak, and they’d said they supported what she was doing for Jacob. Lacey’d actually let herself hope that meant they were on the way back to being friends again.

Apparently, she was too stupid to live.

With a sigh, she watched her friends’ backs disappear down the street. Hot tears welled in her eyes. She missed them. Missed them desperately. And the worst part was that she knew she was the one who’d screwed everything up. But how did she apologize if they wouldn’t even let her get close?

Roughly, she wiped her eyes, then jaywalked over to the courthouse lawn. She should just go straight to her car, but she wanted to see Jacob again, and as she walked around the granite building, she told herself that she’d figure this all out. That somehow it was all going to be okay.

She hadn’t expected Ginny Moreno to be right there on the spot where Jacob’s bench would go.

Lacey halted, a good ten yards from the tree. And, coward that she was, she almost turned away. But unlike her friends, Ginny actually smiled at her. “Hey, Lacey,” she said, and so Lacey had no choice but to cross the rest of the way.

“What are you doing here?” Lacey asked.

“I had lunch with my sister earlier, and I was taking a walk. I—I saw you, and I wanted to talk. I mean, not just talk. I wanted to tell you that I think the bench for Jacob is a great idea. And I’d like to donate.”

“Oh.” It was a ridiculous response, but somehow, Lacey’s tongue was all tied up.

Ginny’s mouth was twisted, like she was trying not to cry, and she held her hands protectively over her very swollen belly. “I—I hope you know how much I loved Jacob.”

Lacey wanted to say that she did know; after all, Ginny used to be like family. And Lacey had treated her like shit right after Jacob had died.

But at the same time she wanted to ask how Ginny could have done something so horrible as sleep with Uncle Sebastian. And then tell such a horrible lie. A lie that had pretty much shattered Lacey’s mom.

Her thoughts were so tangled that in the end she didn’t say anything. She just nodded, then managed to mumble, “Thanks for the donation. That would be great.”

She saw the hurt in Ginny’s eyes, followed by the steel of someone who was learning how to hide her feelings. Then Ginny flashed a gentle smile, turned, and walked away.

Lacey realized that her heart was beating double-time. Everything was building up. The loss of her friends. Her bad behavior toward Ginny. Her mom pulling away.

It was too much. Just too damn much.

And she had no idea where to go from here.

Chapter 2

Jeffry Rush sat on the courthouse steps, trying to decide if he was losing his mind.

So far, the verdict was yes.

Almost an hour had passed since he’d met Scott Wallace in Pink, and he still couldn’t get the guy out of his head. He had the most amazing blue eyes for one thing, as bright and wide as the Texas sky. And even though Jeffry had been a stuttering idiot, Scott had chatted and smiled and seemed genuinely interested.

As in
interested
interested.

Jeffry frowned because he actually wasn’t sure, and he didn’t have a clue how to find out. And, frankly, even if Scott was
interested
, Jeffry had no idea what he should do next. Because honestly, if Scott had actually made clear that he was
that
kind of interested, Jeffry probably would have melted into the floor right then.

It wasn’t that he was ashamed of the fact that he liked guys. It was just that the realization was still so new. Something he’d been figuring out slowly.

Something he damn sure hadn’t yet taken out for a test drive.

Not that he didn’t want to. He did. And lately he’d thought about it a hell of a lot more than he should, and he had come to two inescapable conclusions.

First, he was gay.

Second, his family would lose their shit if they knew.

Well, maybe not Brittany. As sisters went, she was pretty cool. And he was seriously impressed with the way she was standing up to their dad and grandmother lately. They’d been all in her face about dating Marcus Alvarez, and she was holding her own.

For that matter, his mom, Payton was surprising him lately. He wasn’t as certain about her as he was about his sister, but his gut told him that his mom would be not only accepting, but actually supportive. He hoped so, he thought as his stomach twisted. Because the same could not be said of his father or his grandmother. Senator Sebastian Rush would probably try to send him to some camp to “cure” him. Or at the very least threaten him with disinheritance if he ever so much looked at a hot guy.