Page 25 of The Belle and the Biker

"No, thank you kindly. Just steer me toward your size fourteens. Or the large-slash-XLs."

"Oh! You came here to shop!" She couldn't have looked more shocked. Then she clears her throat and blinks. "I'm sorry, I just always thought you and your mama's taste ran more toward the boutique in Sugar Hill or the shops in Charlotte."

"Well, my mama and I have had a falling out, as you may have heard. And my tastes and hers aren't the same anymore," I say. Neither is my budget.

"Well, this way to the fourteens." She leads me to a rack on the right side of the store.

I wonder why she was sure I wouldn't want to shop here. Have I ever made her feel like her family's store wasn't good enough for us?

"Was I mean to you when I was younger?" I ask her. I don't remember picking on her, but I used to toss casual insults like a litterbug scatters trash, leaving a trail of hurt feelings behind me everywhere I went.

I have much more work to do before earning that halo.

"Mean? No, you pretty much just ignored me and my friends," she chirps. "We didn't really move in the same circles."

"That was no excuse," I say. A pang of guilt stabs me in the chest. At least I didn't say mean things about her. "I am sincerely sorry that I ignored you and your friends."

She cocks her head to the side. "Well, I believe you are, Savannah. Something about being in New York seems to have changed you quite a bit."

I smile wryly. "Oh, you can say it. Something about being humiliated in front of the entire county by my cheating pig of a husband and then being disinherited by my parents changed me quite a bit."

"Oh, that Percy!" She makes a face. "I do not like his latest."

"Word!" Naomi calls out from the back of the store. "That girl should strap a mattress to her back and be done with it."

My ears perk up. Gossip!

"Sofia?" I say hopefully.

"Heavens, no, that was two or three hussies back. Girl, you are behind the times. Let me grab you a can of Cheerwine and catch you up."

I brighten. I remember now that Harper is a talker. They used to say that girl jawed enough for four sets of teeth. I've come to the best place to get caught up on all the town gossip.

She pauses. “You drink Cheerwine?”

"Do I ever," I say gratefully.

She and Naomi join me, and we settle down on three overstuffed armchairs in the middle of the store. They're grouped around a little table, and it's the area where the long-suffering men folk usually sit if their wives drag them along to the store.

In between popping up to help a steady stream of customers, they manage to catch me up on what everyone's been up to. I mean, this is Swampy Bottom County, and there's a lot of ground to cover, but at least I've got the gist of it. Harper and Naomi are also curious about why Harold, the girl-repellent, is suddenly drawing them like manure attracts flies. They only noticed it about a week ago. One day he was dog chow. The next day, a dozen of the prettiest girls in town were fiercely competing for his attention. So far, neither Harold nor the girls will say why.

I accept not one but two entire cans of Cheerwine, and Harper and Naomi put together a dozen cute outfits for me. Then Naomi has to head over to the salon and pats Tiddlywinks before she goes.

"You look cuter than a speckled pup in these outfits," Harper says as she starts folding them and wrapping them in tissue. "I hear you did some modeling in New York. Would you ever model a few of these outfits for me? I mean, we couldn't pay you New York prices, but…"

I love modeling. I perk up, but then I remember that someone in New York wants to kill me. And if I model for a store in Bitter End, I'm announcing to the world where I am staying right now.

"I could do it come spring," I say. I'm sure that the murderer will be caught by then. Please God.

"You mean so you can diet? You don't need to lose weight or anything!" she protests. "I mean unless you want to. But right now, you're just the perfect size for my plus-size clothes. Actually, I've been talking to Sandy Sue, you know, from Sandy Sue's Sewing Studio? And we were thinking of doing a clothing line for fuller-figured Southern ladies like ourselves." She pats her generous hip. "Maybe calling it Hell's Belles. We were going to see if Chase and Daisy would help us promote it."

"Oh, my Lord. That sounds wonderful!" I glance around the store to make sure nobody's eavesdropping. "But right now, I'm trying to lie low."

"Oh! Man troubles?"

Well, in a way. I'm 99 percent sure that the person who wants to kill me is a man. "Something like that."

"I'm sorry to hear that." A fierce look crosses her face. "You need somewhere to hide out?"

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