Last Chance Bride Part 2

"I'm not sleeping with you at the Peach Blossom Motor Court so you can cross that off your to-do list. And I don't want to marry you." She took Stony's high school ring off the chain she wore around her neck, turned in her seat, and hurled it at him. It hit him in the face, and she was glad. He'd wrecked her carefully laid plans. Everything she had been dreaming about was undone. She was going to be in Columbia all on her own. And he wanted to take her to some seedy motel instead of finding a nice, private place where they could actually sleep together. She could almost hear her Mother saying, "I told you so."

"d.a.m.n, Sharon," he said, touching his cheek. "That hurt."

"Good, because you joining the marines without telling me hurt, too. And I don't even want to talk about the suggestion you just made about that seedy hotel."

"Ah c.r.a.p, are we breaking up?"

"I guess so."

CHAPTER 2.

The next day, Sharon had to help at the church paint-a-thon. She wasn't feeling very charitable that morning as she dipped a roller in the pan of paint and vented her emotions on one of the plaster walls in the fellows.h.i.+p hall.

"Hey, quit rolling so hard. You're getting speckles all over the floor," Annie Roberts said. "You're mad at Stone, not the wall."

"I am not angry," Sharon said, dropping the roller into the pan. She grabbed a clean rag and began to blot up the paint speckles. As she worked, the tears she'd been holding back began to leak from the corners of her eyes.

Her world was unraveling at the seams, and she didn't know what to do about it.

In a few weeks, she'd be going off to college in Columbia. Annie would be leaving for Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan. Nick, Annie's boyfriend, had joined the army and was already gone for basic training. Everyone was leaving.

A knot lodged in Sharon's throat, and she swallowed it back. She'd known Annie and Nick and Stony practically all her life. The four of them had been a tight-knit group since middle school. It had been easy to let go of Annie and Nick, knowing that Stony would be coming to Columbia with her. But now he was going off to Parris Island, and his suggestion about that no-tell motel made her so angry every time she thought about it.

"Aw, honey, don't cry." Annie dropped to the floor and put her arm around Sharon. "Stone still loves you, you know. It's not like he broke up with you. You broke up with him."

"He went off and made a life-changing decision and didn't even consult me. Then he made a rude suggestion that really hurt. Nick did the same thing to you." She paused for a moment, searching her best friend's face. "Didn't you feel like your world was unraveling when Nick tried to get you to sleep with him and then left for basic training?"

Annie smiled, her eyes full of empathy. "Nick and I were a habit. And I left him panting at the Peach Blossom on prom night. But you and Stone-that's a whole different story."

"How? He sabotaged me and everything I had planned."

"Well, that was pretty c.r.a.ppy of him."

"It was. And the worst thing about it is that we've been discussing things all summer. You know, about how things are going to be when we get up to Carolina. I've been holding off sleeping with him until we get up there and can have a little more privacy. I didn't want to go with him to that nasty motel."

Annie gave her shoulders a squeeze. "Are you sure he was listening?"

"Who knows. But I had already told him dozens of times that I was never, ever going to the Peach Blossom Motor Court with him. So you can imagine how angry I was when he suggested it. And to use Miriam Randall as an excuse for moving his plans up. That really hurt."

"Right." Annie sighed.

"What? It sounds like you're taking Stony's side."

Annie shook her head. "I guess maybe a little bit. See, everyone is talking about how Miriam Randall has predicted that you and Stone are going to get married. And Stony is going into the marines whether you like it or not. So I'm just putting two and two together, you know."

"No, I don't know. Are you saying I should marry him or sleep with him? I'm only eighteen."

"Yeah, I know. But on the other hand, what if Stone ends up in a shooting war in some G.o.dforsaken place? I just can't shake the notion that if he were married to you, he would be protected in some way. I mean, Miriam Randall is like magic, isn't she? Everyone she matches up lives forever and has lots of kids. Just look at Millie Polk or Thelma Hanks."

Sharon stared at her friend. "You're insane."

"Am I? Miriam Randall never misses. You should be trotting down to the hardware store to forgive Stone. You should tell him you're proud of him. You should marry him, and then he can take you to some nice hotel up in Columbia or something."

"I'm not ready to get married." Sharon pulled her knees up and rested her forehead on them. But she wasn't really ready to give up Stony, either. The idea of being at college, or anywhere, without him scared her to death. Still, she didn't like being put into this cage where she either had to marry him or sleep with him before he disappeared from her life. She didn't want to do either of those things.

A sob rose in her throat. Annie gave her a little hug and patted her back while she struggled to regain control of her emotions.

"You know," Annie said, once Sharon had sniffled back her tears, "it would be a shame if you got so angry or selfish that you missed out on getting married to your soul mate. And the thing is, Sharon, you almost never get angry, and you are the most unselfish person I know."

Sharon straightened up. "I'm not getting married to Stony. I'm not some crusader. I'm just a good Christian. Giving my prize money to Crystal won't change the world. It might help her get better." Her voice wavered again. "And the fact that he joined the marines in secret, without even talking to me about it, suggests that maybe it's a good thing we broke up. I mean, I don't want to be with someone who isn't honest with me. And Stony wasn't honest."

"Sharon Anne McKee, you're being stupid."

"Am I? How many people do you know in this town who are married to cheating husbands?"

"Okay, there are some. But Stone isn't like that."

"He didn't tell me the truth. He let me go on planning our life at college while he knew he wasn't ever going to be up there with me. And then he drops his bomb two weeks before he has to leave. And the thing is, he didn't ask me to marry him. He just used Miz Randall's advice as an excuse for trying to get me to the Peach Blossom. I'm not sure I can ever forgive him."

Stone dealt with all the crises in his life by going fis.h.i.+ng. He reckoned that his fis.h.i.+ng time might be severely limited once he got to Parris Island, and with Sharon on the warpath, along with Momma, Daddy, and Uncle Pete, disappearing seemed like the right thing all the way around.

He paddled his canoe up the Edisto River, dropped anchor, and sat for hours. Since it was hot and late in the afternoon, he didn't catch a blessed thing, but he sure did have time to think. He didn't like Sharon being angry at him. He didn't want to go off to boot camp without knowing that she would be waiting for him. And, yeah, he wanted to sleep with her before he left.

In short, he didn't want to let her go.

But, of course, her mother had filled her head with a lot of c.r.a.p about college boys. He should have figured out that Sharon would break up with him the minute he decided not to get a degree. He stewed over this for a long time and got nowhere. It hurt, down deep. Did she really believe he wasn't good enough for her?

She thought he was selling himself short. And so did Momma. In fact, everyone thought he was selling himself short by choosing the marines.

How could everyone be wrong?

It was late by the time he hauled in his anchor and headed back to the public boat ramp. He had missed dinner, but he didn't care. He was already so deep in the doghouse he would probably never see the light again. He didn't care about much of anything. And the people he loved didn't seem to care about him.

So he was flat-out stunned to discover Aunt Arlene at the boat ramp, lounging in a lawn chair with a beer in her hand and a cooler at her feet. She had a line in the water too, which was typical. Aunt Arlene loved fis.h.i.+ng even more than Uncle Pete, and that was saying something right there.

"Hey," she called, raising her Bud can. "You want one?"

"I'm only eighteen, Aunt Arlene."

She snorted. "Like you haven't ever had a beer." She got up and helped him carry the canoe to the bed of his truck. "I figured you were hungry. I brought some pimento cheese sandwiches."

She gestured to a second lawn chair that was evidently waiting just for him.

"Are you going to bawl me out, too?" Stone asked as he settled into the chair and opened the cooler. He took out a Dr Pepper and a baggie with three cheese-spread sandwiches. Aunt Arlene sure did know what he liked.

"Nope. I wanted to come out here and let you know I'm proud of you."

Stone stopped chewing his bite of sandwich. "Really?"

"Yes, I am. Near as I can tell, you have taken a stand for yourself. I admire that. I can think of a few ways you might have improved your communication skills, but I'm still proud of you for joining the marines. I think you're going to be very successful. And if your momma would stop for just one minute and think this thing through, she'd realize you are not the one she should be sending off to college. Clay would make a better college boy. Tulane's going to grow up to be a mechanic."

"Rocky's the smart one," Stone said.

"She sure is. But so are you."

"No, I'm the child who is an idiot."

"I don't think so." Arlene took a slug of her beer. "But you are the talk of the town."

"I am?"

"Yup. Olivia McKee is delighted that her daughter has thrown you over. This news has also pleased Lillian Bray, who thinks Sharon is too good for you. And, of course, whatever Lillian thinks is sure to be a matter of discussion down at the Cut 'n Curl. Thelma and Millie are on your side, in case you're interested." She snorted a laugh. "Miriam is being quiet, as usual."

"She wasn't quiet yesterday."

"Oh, I know that. She drops her little matrimonial bombsh.e.l.ls, and everyone runs around like headless chickens. Then she just stands back and watches the show."

"Sort of like you."

"Well, that's true. But I don't drop any bombsh.e.l.ls."

Stone leaned back in his chair and stretched out his legs. This was nice. He always enjoyed fis.h.i.+ng with Aunt Arlene. She was one of the most sensible women he knew.

"So I'm dying to know," Arlene asked. "Did you get that bruise on your cheek because Sharon slapped you?"

"No. She brained me with my high school ring."

"Hmmm. I see. She must have been upset."

"She was ticked off."

"Well, I reckon Sharon is sort of like your momma. She had a few dreams about the both of you being up at Carolina this fall."

In the distance, the birds began their twilight serenade. "I guess," he said lamely. "The thing is, Aunt Arlene, I don't see why my going into the marines means she can't go to college. I just thought, well, we could still be together, and each of us could have the future we wanted. I guess I'm just stupid."

Arlene c.o.c.ked her head. "No, that's not it. So did you ask her to marry you?"

The question jolted right through him. "Uh, no, I didn't. I just explained that we could, well, you know..." His voice faded out. He remembered exactly what he'd suggested. Heat crawled up his face.

Arlene studied him for a long moment as she drained her beer. "Son, I have a good idea what you suggested. And to be honest, I don't blame Sharon for braining you with her ring. Honey, if Miriam tells you a woman is your soul mate, then you have to marry her. You do understand how it works, don't you?"

"Sharon doesn't want to get married. She's always talking about how she wants to be independent. And besides, she wants to marry a college man. You know, like her daddy was."

"Oh, I don't know about that. Her momma wants her to marry a college man. And as for her independence, well, she can't run from Miriam's forecast. If there was ever a crusader in Last Chance, I'm thinking it's Sharon McKee."

"We're only eighteen, Aunt Arlene. We can't get married."

"Why not? You're old enough to join the marines and fight for your country. You made that decision all on your own. And from the red on your face, you seem to think you're old enough to do some other things, too."

He didn't answer. He simply picked up Arlene's fis.h.i.+ng rod and cast out into the middle of the channel. He slowly reeled the line in.

Arlene let go of a sigh. "Stone, you've made a man's decision. That makes you old enough to get married. Don't you want to marry Sharon?"

He focused on the bobber at the end of the fis.h.i.+ng line. It danced in the water like something was thinking about taking the bait.

"Stone, are you paying any attention to me?" Aunt Arlene asked.

Yeah, he was paying attention. She wanted to know if he wanted to marry Sharon, and he was thinking about the way Sharon touched him in the dark. The way she kissed him with her entire body. He thought about the way she was always ready to help, the way she made lists, the way she baked cupcakes every time someone died or got sick. He loved the way she laughed. He was so proud of her for giving up her prize money. She was the most determined person he knew. He really loved that about her. The idea of her being someone else's girlfriend made his skin crawl.

The high school ring on his finger seemed to get heavier by the moment.

"I can't imagine being with anyone else," he finally said. "Sharon is my best friend. I... I love her." His voice got kind of wobbly. He stopped talking and reeled in the line. The hook came up empty. The fish had taken the bait.

"Well, then, I reckon you'll need to court her. And you don't have much time," Aunt Arlene said.

He put the rod down on the ground and turned toward his aunt. "Court her? Aunt Arlene, how many beers have you had?"

She laughed. "Not many. I'm as sober as a judge. I'm serious, Stone-you can't just let her walk away. You have to fight for her."

"How? She's got it in her mind that she wants a college boy, not a marine. How do I change that?"

"Honey, this has nothing to do with you being a college boy, so put that out of your mind. This is about trust."

"Trust?"

"Yes. She trusted you, and you didn't play fair. That's a hard thing for a woman to forgive. I'm afraid you're going to have to grovel. So I suggest you get some flowers, and go over there, and tell her you're sorry and that you want to marry her. And while you're at it, you tell her all the things you admire about her-there must be a lot because you were sure doing some heavy thinking just now."

Stone could almost understand what Arlene was saying. Maybe Sharon was just angry because her plans had been upset. And because he'd been an idiot last night about the Peach Blossom Motor Court.

"Oh, and one other thing," Arlene said. "You're going to need a ring."

"A ring? I've got my high school ring."

"No, silly, a ring she can actually wear on her finger. I've got just the thing. It belonged to your great-grandmother. Pete wanted me to wear it, but it's not my style. I think it would do just fine for Sharon, though." She pulled out a little square leather box.

"Uh, Aunt Arlene, I can't-"

"And you'll need to dance with her at the barbecue. You get yourself all dressed up, and you dance with that girl. Ain't nothing makes a girl fall in love faster than a dance with a handsome young man. You're just going to have to sweep her off her feet. And you're going to have to convince her that even if you're halfway around the world, your heart is always where she is."

"Uh, okay." He could do the flowers and the groveling. He could even see himself getting down on one knee and begging Sharon to marry him. But there was no way in h.e.l.l he was going to make himself a laughingstock by dancing with her.