Page 5 of When It Burns

“Well Mrs. Sally, you and I both know that Coach Thompson wouldn’t let anyone near those boys that he thought could be dangerous. That’s a pretty big accusation to be making out here in front of God and everybody. Plus, I was in the wrong this morning anyway. It was all just a big misunderstanding. So let’s just leave it there,” I say with the biggest smile I can manage on my face.

Thankfully the waiter chooses that moment to make his appearance with my second margarita, and Mrs. Sally walks off looking somewhat scorned. I have no doubt she’d be starting a rumor that I’m a raging alcoholic in no time, but the woman needs to stop talking. The difference between me and the new fire chief is I have plenty of people to stick up for me in town. And while I’m frustrated with the way he treated me today, I know rumors like Mrs. Sally was starting for an outsider could be career-ending.

I turn back to my book and read a few chapters with only a few interruptions. It is impossible to go anywhere in Springside without running into someone you know. As a town of less than six thousand, everyone knows everyone which makes me even more curious about the town's newest resident.

I just finished speaking to two of my cheerleaders who stopped by on their way out of the restaurant when Hannah blows in the door, running as fast as her legs can carry her. That’s Hannah though. She never does anything slowly or timidly. She is a complete whirlwind, and I love her even more for it.

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry I am late. Leroy got out and started running wild through the pasture. To be such a fat lil booger he can move.”

Leroy is the nine-year-old American Yorkshire pig that Hannah’s grandfather bought her as a teenager. I am obsessed with the six-hundred-pound pig and know from experience that when he is feeling playful, he can run a whole lot faster than most people believe.

Laughing at the mental image, I respond, “It’s no problem. I almost finished my book.”

We immediately launch into a discussion on what we’ve read over the last week as Hannah orders a drink. Hannah’s go to is sports romance while mine is cowboys, but we are both avid romance readers and love to debate the merit of sex positions and meet-cutes.

Just as we are discussing the hot, sexy cattle rancher in my current read, Hannah stops to take a sip of her margarita and exclaims, “Oh my gosh, I love smut and tequila.”

She says it loud enough to gain the attention of a few of the nearby tables, but she sips her drink in content oblivion. If she and I hadn’t been friends for so long, I might have been embarrassed by her outburst, but after being friends for over fifteen years I’m used to it.

I see a girl sitting alone at the bar beside us, and we make eye contact. It’s unusual for there to be anyone in town on a Monday that I don’t recognize. I smile and she timidly walks over to our table.

“Hey, y’all. My name is Margaret. I know this is super random, but I’m new to town. I heard you talking about romance novels, and I’m completely obsessed as well. Just wanted to come over and say hi,” the visitor says with a shy smile.

“WHAT?” Hannah exclaims loudly, once again drawing the attention of everyone in our vicinity. “We never get new young people. Sit with us! Where are you from?! What are you doing in Springside? Are you single? Where are you living? Tell me everything.”

I look over to Margaret who looks like she’s regretting the decision to come over and say hi with each passing moment. “Woah, Hannah. Let the poor girl breathe.”

Margaret smiles thankfully over at me and turns back towards Hannah. “I moved from Birmingham. I am twenty-four and newly single. I arrived today, so I’m still getting the lay of the land, but I bought the empty building downtown. I want to make it into a coffee shop and bakery eventually, but it needs a lot of work.”

“Shut up,” Hannah yells. “Springside is gonna have a coffee shop?!“

“We’ve been dying for one for years! Driving forty minutes for Starbucks gets really old after a while,” I add excitedly.

Margaret’s smile grows. “Oh, it makes me excited to hear that. This is a big step for me, but I have wanted this for so long. I can’t believe it’s really happening.”

Hannah scoots over in the booth. “You have to join us. It feels like Caroline and I have been the only single twenty-somethings in town for as long as I can remember.”

Margaret looks to me as if she’s waiting for me to give her permission so I smile and nod at her. She sits down, and Hannah immediately launches back into conversation as if we’ve been friends for years. She jumps from books to boys to work while we all sip on our peach margaritas and even my head is spinning slightly before she exclaims, “Caroline, I don’t know how I forgot. What the hell happened this morning? All I’ve heard from my kids was that the new fire chief is a major asshole!”

A look of genuine concern covers Margaret’s face as she asks, “Oh my goodness what happened?”

Hannah jumps in before I can get a word out. “We had a fire drill this morning, and the new fire chief completely screamed at her in front of everyone. He also insulted the most beloved man within one hundred miles and was a total ass.”

“Oh, really?” Margaret says with interest, picking up her phone and typing away.

“Well, I don’t think he meant it. My door has been broken to my room, and he’s just doing his job,” I say, unsure of why I am trying to defend the new fire chief from my best friend’s wrath.

“Did he ask you any questions before he started screaming at you?” Margaret asks.

“Well, no,” I say and before I can get a word in, Hannah is off on a tangent again. I notice Margaret texting furiously on her phone, and when she looks up I ask, “Is everything okay?”

She laughs at me and sits her phone down on the table as she takes a big gulp of her margarita, “Oh yes, I’m good. I guess I didn’t tell you my last name. I’m Margaret Johnson, and the new asshole fire chief is my brother. I was just reiterating to him that he truly is an asshole.”

Hannah and I stare at each other, my face blushing from embarrassment and hers breaking into ferocious laughter.

“Oh my God, we’re totally gonna be best friends,” Hannah yells with a laugh.

CHAPTER FOUR

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