Page 50 of Stranded with the Billionaire
Chapter Nine
On Friday nights in the summer, the ballpark was the place to be. Set in the campground area overlooking the lake, it hosted a small canteen and bar where locals came to play, drink and talk. Sterling decided she might as well let everyone know that she was home, not that the rumor wouldn’t have already circulated that she was back. Small town news flew much faster than city news. Usually the entire population of Pendle knew exactly what was happening within an hour of the event itself, the gossip train was that efficient.
“Do you have any dented ones?” Sterling asked Pete at the bar. Everyone knew that whoever was bartending would keep back any dented cans, selling them at a lesser price than regular ones.
“One left,” Pete acknowledged, setting the Palm Bay on the bar.
“I’ll take it,” Sterling fished in her pocket for the money. It was an extravagance. However, Sterling felt she could nurse it all evening long then just have water which would be free. Turning around, she looked over a sea of familiar faces all gossiping about crop prices and whose child did what at the school play. She nodded and smiled at a number of people who were at the picnic tables. No one appealed to her even as she had plenty of invites to sit down and talk. Scanning the area, she noted Dixby Cooley sitting out on the dock by the lake not far off.
She hadn’t talked to Dixby in years. Making her way over, Sterling carefully lowered herself down on the dock beside Dixby, putting her crutches to the side. It was a little chilly but not bad outside tonight. Looking up, she squinted at the moon through the trees.
“Sterling Denver, back from the city,” Dixby took a sip from his beer. “You staying long?”
Sterling shrugged. “You can stop calling me that. Sterling Denver is just a pen name.”
“It’s what you wanted to be called the last time I saw you,” Dixby had a glance at her.
A smile tugged at Sterling’s lips. “The last time I saw you I had a flare gun pointed at your privates.”
Even in the dark, Sterling could see that Dixby had the good grace to blush a little. “I’ve been meaning to apologize for that.”
“It was a long time ago,” Sterling shrugged at the memory. They’d been in a boat on this very lake, making out and going too far.
“I always wondered what made you spook,” he gestured to the lake with the bottle of beer. “I know I was pressuring you and I’m sorry for that. I was a stupid kid back then. Yet I was backing off just before you pulled out that flare gun.”
“You were talking about forever Dixby,” Sterling said dryly as she studied him. He’d grown into his gangly form and wasn’t that hard on the eyes. Not as handsome as Jake Ramesly though. “We were kissing and you started spouting off on how we could renovate your grandaddy’s house. You wanted to plant a garden, go farming, have me barefoot and in the kitchen. I don’t even cook!”
“At the time, I think I might have put up with your poor cooking,” he grinned at her. “Like I said, I was young and stupid.”
“You would have regretted it,” Sterling assured him. “I didn’t want to be a farm wife. I still don’t.”
“That’s right, you’re a big city writer,” Dixby commented without any ill will.
“Not anymore,” she gave a forlorn sigh. “I’m blacklisted. I can’t get a job. I took the last month’s salary I had and spent it foolishly on a career gamble and lost spectacularly. Since I couldn’t send the money home, we missed the final payments again for the loans on the company and now the bank has shut us down. I came back to try to help support Mom and Dad.”
“SaraLee,” Dixby let the name roll off his tongue. “Everyone here knew it was just a matter of time for Hawkins’ Furniture Factory to close down. We aren’t competitive in a global world, no matter how hard your family tried. The community is grateful for the fact that your family managed to keep it open as long as it could.”
Sterling struggled to keep tears from her eyes. She felt guilty for not being able to help with the payment due this month. She’d been sending money home for years to help out, but it hadn’t been enough.
“Hey,” Dixby bumped her shoulder gently with his shoulder. “Don’t get all sentimental on me.”
She wiped her eyes and took a sip from her can of Palm Bay and decided to change the subject. “I hear you’re engaged.”
Dixby grimaced, fiddling with the label on his beer bottle. “That’s a fine mess.”
“What do you mean?” Sterling frowned as she pondered his reaction. He didn’t seem like he was happy to be engaged.
Dixby sighed. “Your brother isn’t the smartest of men.”
“Care to explain that remark before I go and find another flare gun?” Sterling said dryly.
“Melody loves Brant. Brant loves Melody. She wants to be with him. He’s letting his pride stand in the way of being with her because he believes that he can’t provide for her,” Dixby shook his head. “Why it’s an issue if she’s the breadwinner for a while, I don’t know, except it hurts his pride so he won’t follow his feelings and be with Melody. Shameful, as my momma would say.”
“Then how did you end up engaged to your best friend’s girl?” she raised an eyebrow.
“That,” Dixby growled. “That was a moment of stupidity. We were all the right here at the canteen and Melody started spouting off about how she wasn’t going to wait for Brant anymore. She wanted a family and a home of her own. She was saying that she was seeing someone. Brant didn’t take it too well, yet his pride kept him from declaring himself to Melody. At this point I could see what sort of disaster was happening but the two of them bullheaded friends of mine just kept arguing at each other. Him saying he’d hope she’d be happy, even as it was breaking his heart. Her wishing he’d call her bluff and finally get on with them becoming a couple.
“Melody had hoped to make him jealous. It wasn’t working,” he took a long swallow of beer. “In a moment of absolute genius, and that’s sarcasm if you’re wondering, I stepped up and announced that the fella Melody was dating was me. Brant just about swallowed his teeth. I thought for sure that would get the right reaction out of him. Let him think that Melody wasn’t waiting for him, then instead of digging his heels in and doing nothing about their feelings, maybe he’d finally tell her that he wanted to be her boyfriend or more.”
