Redemption Song

by Melodie Murray

  “So are you and Brandon going to go out again before he goes back home?”

  At the beginning of her shift, Alaina had wondered who the heck Brandon was. It had taken several conversations before she became accustomed to Ethan’s new alias.

  “I already told you, Gab,” Alaina said, trying hard to not sound annoyed. “We were just having dinner last night. That was all there was to it. If we go out again before he goes home, I’m sure it will just be dinner then, too.”

  “Then why is he here?” Gabby persisted. “Why did Brandon come all the way down here from New York if he just wanted to have dinner with you? How did you two meet anyway?”

  Alaina groaned under her breath. She hated having to lie to her friend, but she had no choice. It’s not like Gabby would believe her if she told her the truth, anyway.

  “Our parent’s were friends. We’ve known each other since we were kids but haven’t gotten to see each other. He just came down to visit and get a little vacation time.”

  “Then why was he holding your hand last night?”

  Shoot. Alaina had forgotten about Ethan holding her hand in the middle of the restaurant.

  “Um, I don’t know. I guess he’s just affectionate.”

  Gabby shook her head and cocked an amused smile. “Oh, Alaina, give it up already! You were on a date! You were on a date with a hot guy and you loved every minute of it!” Gabby paused, studying Alaina’s reddening cheeks. “Girl, you know I’m just giving you a hard time because I want you to be happy, right?”

  Alaina laughed. “That statement kind of contradicts itself, don’t you think?”

  “Maybe a little, but whatever,” Gabby said. “Alaina, I have watched you in this restaurant for the past year and I gotta tell ya, girl, you have less of a life than my grandmother.”

  “You’re right, Gab. That’s very inspiring. Thank you.”

  “You know what I mean,” Gabby continued. “You need to get out and go on dates with hot guys. I’m giving you a hard time so that maybe you’ll realize that it’s okay to have a little fun every now and then. Brandon seemed like a nice guy. What’s the harm in taking advantage of the time you guys have left together? I know he has to leave eventually, but he hasn’t left yet.”

  Alaina remained silent. She continued to keep her focus centered on the pile of silverware that remained to be rolled before she could leave.

  After a moment of silence, Gabby smirked and said, “I wonder what Cam would think about you hanging out with Brandon.”

  This pulled Alaina from her trance and she laughed.

  Cam, short for Cameron Crawford, was a boy from Alaina’s school that she had gone on a couple of dates with before her parent’s accident. Needless to say, things had not ended well. Cam, unlike Ethan, had been extremely pushy. He had wanted Alaina to get much more physical with him than she felt comfortable with, and then had not been very understanding when she objected. Then, to top things off, when her parent’s had been killed in the wreck, Cam had not so much as sent her a text message until months later. It had been very easy for him to be with her when everything was going fine, but the second things got a little complicated in her life, he had bolted. Hence the reason Alaina knew boys were not fans of girls with baggage.

  But recently, Cam had come back into the picture. Not by Alaina’s choosing, but by his own. He called about once a week to apologize, which in the beginning Alaina found a little sweet. That was, until she heard that Cam was still up to his old routines. Saturday nights at the pier drinking and acting stupid with his buddies. Sunday mornings in church with his family. He was as wishy-washy in his spiritual life as he was in his relationships. Alaina didn’t have time for that mess—which was exactly why she politely turned Cam down every time he asked her to go out with him.

  “Oh, c’mon, Alaina!” Cam would plead, taking her hands in his and sending goose bumps up her arms—and not the good kind, but the icky, creeped-out kind.

  She always told him it was because she wasn’t ready to date yet—that with everything going on in her life right now, she just didn’t have time for a relationship. (Especially not the kind of relationship Cam would expect her to be a participant of.)

  Gabby was right. Cam probably wouldn’t be too happy to hear that Alaina had been turning him down for dates for months, but that she had agreed to accompany some other guy to dinner.

  Silverware almost rolled now, Alaina was itching to get out the door. She couldn’t wait to flee the band of questioning and return to her normal routine of grabbing late night dinner in Granny’s kitchen, checking on Ben, and crashing into her bed. Alaina loved Gabby, but she’d had about all she could handle for one day.

  Alaina heard a little jingle come from the tiny bell that hung from the door handle of the restaurant’s front door. She ignored it, figuring it was just Tina returning from making the night’s deposit at the local bank. That’s when Gabby decided to start in again.

  “So, speaking of Brandon . . .”

  Alaina shot up, resisting the urge to slam her fist down on the table. “Gab, seriously, I really don’t want to talk about this all night!”

  “Talk about what?”

  The voice was not Gabby’s.

  A tingle rushed through Alaina and she felt her cheeks turn beat red. She turned slowly.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked when she was facing him. She took a quick look and tried to memorize every little detail of Ethan’s appearance that she could take in at once. He wore a loose fitting pair of faded jeans with brown flip flops and a printed t-shirt. His skin appeared to be a little tanner, which made his bright blue eyes sparkle even brighter than they had before.

  Oh, I was in the neighborhood,” he replied with a sly grin.

  “You were in the neighborhood?” Alaina asked skeptically.

  “Uh . . . yeah . . . sort of . . .” Ethan laughed. “Okay, technically, I drove into the neighborhood on purpose, but I figure it’s all the same in the end.

  “How convenient for you,” Alaina teased. Ethan came closer, only a foot or so separated them.

  “Actually, I have something I want to do and I kind of hoped you’d go with me,” Ethan said quietly.

  Alaina searched his eyes and found a glow of excitement in them. She didn’t know what Ethan wanted to do, but she wasn’t going to miss it for the world.

  “I . . . I’m almost done here,” she said, spinning back around to the few remaining pieces of silverware that lay before her. “Just give me a minute, okay?”

  “Oh no you don’t!” Gabby voiced. Alaina had forgotten Gab was even in room. “You have been here twice as long as I have. You go. I’ll finish this up.”

  “Gab, you don’t have to do that . . .” Alaina started.

  “Yes, I do and I’m gonna, so get out of here.” Gabby walked over to where Ethan stood beside Alaina and looked up to him. “Better take her while you can, babe. Free time for Alaina is a rare commodity. Take advantage of it before it’s too late.”

  Ethan gave a half hearted salute. “Yes ma’am.” He reached down and took Alaina’s hand in his and started pulling her toward the door. “Come on, we’re busting you out of here.”

  Alaina giggled and followed behind. Before going through the door, she turned to shoot a thank you look at Gabby. Gabby grinned, winked, and turned to finish the silverware that Alaina had left behind.

  When Alaina stepped outside, she was met with a cool sea breeze and one of the clearest nights of the entire summer. Ethan continued to lead her down the pier toward the shore. When she reached her vehicle, she pulled her apron off, locked her tips up inside the glove compartment, and turned back to Ethan.

  “Where are we going?”

  “It’s a surprise,” he said.

  “Can you give me a hint?”

  Ethan laughed and put his arm around her waist, pulling her in tightly—a perfect fit—as they walked side by side back toward the edge of town, on the sidewalk running parallel to the beach.
>
  “Um, let’s just say I hope you like bright lights.”

  Chapter 16

  Ethan

  Alaina’s dark hair wisped across her cheeks in the cool ocean breeze as she strolled with Ethan along the enchanting Mobile Bay coastline. Her arm rested gently around his waist and he held onto her, just thankful that she didn’t pull away. Her head rested perfectly inside his arm. Ethan was surprised by how much he had missed spending time with her that day. How was it possible that he had only known Alaina for a couple of days? What had occupied his thoughts before her?

  “You still haven’t told me where we’re going,” Alaina said after they had walked almost a mile.

  “We’re almost there now,” Ethan said.

  “Why didn’t we just drive?”

  Ethan considered her question, and decided that an honest answer was probably best.

  “Because I wouldn’t have been able to hold you for the past fifteen minutes if I’d driven.”

  “Oh I get it!” She gasped, pretending to be insulted. “You think you’re pretty slick, don’t ya, superstar?”

  “I have my moments,” Ethan grinned.

  “Well, I can fix that.”

  In a quick motion, Alaina spun out of Ethan’s arm, playing to put space between them, but Ethan caught her hand by the fingertips before she could get away.

  “Oh, no you don’t.” Ethan pulled her back in. Alaina squealed, trying not to lose her balance, and landed against his chest. She looked up and met his eyes. His arms wrapped around to the small of her back, their noses only inches apart. Alaina relaxed her muscles and fell into his grasp, allowing him to hold her.

  Ethan inhaled deeply, allowing her scent to flow through him, and then let out a slow breath. He could have stayed in that moment forever. Ethan searched her eyes. She looked . . . nervous. The chemistry between them was palpable and all he wanted was to feel her lips against his. Ethan inched closer and closer to Alaina. His hand raised and he ran his thumb carefully along her cheek. The tips of their noses met. His heart raced in time with hers. Ethan’s eyes closed.

  She pulled away.

  Ethan didn’t know what was keeping Alaina from becoming close to him. She acted like she wanted to kiss him, but then she always backed out at the last second. But Ethan didn’t push. He liked Alaina—a lot—and the last thing he wanted to do was make her feel uncomfortable. He peered down at her. She refused to meet his gaze. Ethan ran his fingers through her hair, and pulled her close again. He planted a soft kiss on her forehead, and pulled her back to her original position at his side.

  “C’mon, we’re almost there.”

  They continued on for another quarter mile. The walkway curved around a small hotel up ahead. The sounds of music and laughter drifted through the air as they walked. When they reached the other side of the hotel, a narrow beach—a different beach than the one Ethan had taken Ben to earlier that day—stretched out before them. A festival was being held right there on the sand and there were people everywhere. Carnival rides were clustered in one area of the beach and food and game stands lined their perimeter. A tall Farris wheel circled above their heads and boats lit the waters out on the sea.

  “It’s the Festival of Lights,” Ethan said when Alaina paused to take it all in. “I saw a poster advertising it today when I was with Ben. I figured you already knew about it.”

  “I don’t get out much,” Alaina said blankly. “They have this festival every year, but I completely forgot about it this year.” She turned to face Ethan and lowered her voice. “Are you sure you’re okay with being around all of these people? What if someone recognizes you?”

  Ethan shrugged. “My disguise has worked so far. Besides, I haven’t been to anything like this in years. Well, not unless I was signed to perform at it. I really just want to experience this like everyone else does.” Ethan’s eyes sparkled, excitement rising in his voice. “I want to ride rides, and play games, and eat funnel cakes till I feel like puking!”

  Alaina laughed. “I’m not sure everyone does that.” She paused. “Actually, I’m not sure anyone does that.”

  “Whatever, smarty pants. I’m going to the festival, and considering I just walked you a mile from your source of transportation, it appears that you will be going with me—funnel cakes and all.”

  “And what if I refuse,” Alaina teased.

  “Then I guess I’ll have to beg.”

  “You wouldn’t,” she dared.

  Ethan paused for only a moment before a wide, devious smile spread across his cheeks. He fell to his knees at Alaina’s feet, people walking by on all sides. “Ali, please go to the festival with me! Please! Please! Please!” Ethan folded his hands at his chest, stuck his bottom lip out, and gave her his best possible puppy dog face. People were starting to stare.

  Alaina’s head dropped into her hands and she giggled. “Okay, okay! Just as long as you get up . . . Brandon . . . before people think my new friend is a psycho!”

  Ethan rose to his feet, laughing the whole way. He found his little stunt quite funny. He draped his arm around Alaina’s shoulder and led her toward the carnival.

  “You know, you could’ve had me with a bag of cotton candy and a grape snow cone,” Alaina said. “But I guess that was fun, too.”

  Ethan received his night of normalcy at the Fairhope Festival of Lights. He and Alaina played games and messed with carnies. They rode the Farris wheel four times. Alaina got her snow cone and Ethan ate his funnel cake. In fact, he ate two.

  Eventually, they were getting bored with the crowded carnival and decided to take a walk along the water’s edge. Ethan walked hand in hand with Alaina. He had never had so much fun with any girl . . . well . . . ever. Alaina didn’t spend the night worrying about how her clothes looked or making sure that not even a smidge of make-up wiped from her face. She didn’t show off and talk loudly just so the people around her would take notice of her every move. She was there with Ethan, and that’s all she seemed to care about. There might as well not have been another soul at the entire festival.

  The only person Ethan had seen all night was Ali.

  The world of flashing lights, and screaming fans, and the politics of fame seemed light-years away as Ethan held Alaina firm against his chest; the water cascaded gently over their bare feet. The stars lit the night sky above the black water. Ethan had forgotten how much he loved stars.

  Ethan’s world as he previously knew it was gone. His world was Alaina now. He knew eventually he would have to leave Fairhope, but he would find a way to work that out. There had to be a way. Nothing could feel this right, and not be able to work.

  Alaina stood in front of Ethan with her back to him, facing the ocean. Her head rested tenderly on his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist. Ethan leaned down, and brushed her cheek with his lips, pulling her into a tight embrace. He didn’t kiss her to try to get her to kiss him back. He just did it because he needed to. It wasn’t an embrace of expectation, but one of affection and admiration.

  Alaina turned slowly in his arms and buried her head in his neck, returning his embrace.

  A soft melody floated over the water from a dance being held at the festival down the way. Ethan ran his fingers down Ali’s arm from her shoulder to her fingertips. He intertwined his fingers with hers and began to slowly rock back and forth in time with the music. She peered up to him, a timid smile forming, but soon she fell into step with him. They swayed in the sand as the wind circled around, enveloping them in a tunnel of their own existence.

  It was a moment that Ethan would remember for the rest of his life. It was perfect. It was magical.

  “Well, isn’t that ador . . . adorable.” A slurred voice rudely broke through the flawless moment.

  Alaina stopped in her tracks. Her muscles froze in a tense stance.

  Ethan’s head bolted up and found a group of people coming their way from a campfire lit area underneath a small pier down the beach. Ethan hadn’t even noticed it before. The source of
the comment was a tall bleach blonde guy that appeared to have jumped straight off the cover of a summer addition of a Hollister catalog.

  “Who the heck is that?” Ethan murmured.

  Alaina sighed, obviously embarrassed.

  “That is Cam. He’s a . . . old friend.”

  “Old boyfriend, to be exact.” Cam cocked an arrogant grin as he walked closer, correcting Alaina’s description of him.

  Ethan wasn’t sure how to react. What was with this guy’s attitude? He sauntered through the sand like he owned each individual grain. A part of Ethan wanted to deck the guy until he tasted sand, but another part of him knew that Alaina would find that childish and unnecessary.

  That’s when Ethan’s gaze darted to a gleam coming from something in Cam’s hand which hung down by his waist—a bottle. The source of Cam’s overconfidence. Not only was he arrogant; he was also drunk. Ethan knew the signs from a mile away. He had become all too familiar with them in the past few months of his life. Standing there watching Cam stumble to stay standing upright gave Ethan new found insight. He had never witnessed this kind of behavior without being a partaker in it himself. Had he looked that ridiculous?

  Ethan observed Alaina’s reaction. She had also noticed the bottle. Her eyes darted from Cam to each of his drunken buddies. Her expression was one of disgust. It was obvious that she, in no way, approved of his actions.

  “I don’t believe I’ve met your new friend, Alaina,” Cam slurred.

  “Uh . . . Brandon . . .” Alaina began awkwardly, “this is Cam. He’s an old friend of mine. Cam this is Brandon.”

  Cam lifted the bottle and took a big swig of its contents. “Now see, that’s weird because I’ve never seen Brandon around here before.”

  “He’s a friend of the family,” Alaina said quickly. “He’s not from here.”

  Cam’s eyes shifted up and down Ethan. “Hmm, obviously.”

  “What can we do for you, Cam?” Alaina asked, trying to hurry the conversation along.