by Sharon Coady
Last One To Know
Sharon Coady
Published by Sharon Coady
ISBN: 978-1523827749
Front Cover Design: Chantel Rhondeau
Copyright © 2016 Sharon Coady
First Edition
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of a brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, please send an e-mail to the e-mail address listed below, subject line “Attention: Permissions Coordinator.”
[email protected]
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, names, events, and places in this novel are used fictitiously or are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to real people, living or dead, or to actual places, businesses, or real-life events, is entirely coincidental. “Don’t Move” written and gifted by Nikki Lynn Barrett
Dedication:
To my mother who always encouraged me, I love you.
“Living, loving and laughter. In order to add substance to your life, you must be able to accomplish all three.” ~ Elma Baird
Acknowledgements
I want to thank my trusted Beta readers and my editor who helped me on my journey of creating this story of Leona and John. I couldn’t have done it with out you. Many thanks to my amazing cover artist Chantell for the perfect cover and to Nikki for Leona’s song.
Chapter One
Leona McCoy relaxed against the soft leather seat of the red Mustang convertible that belonged to her best friend Heather Frazier. She drummed her fingers on the armrest, keeping beat to the slow country song flowing from the speakers of the radio. The wind blew her wavy, amber hair back from her face. She closed her gray eyes as she belted out the last chorus of the song. The excitement of actually having a vacation away from the twenty-acre family farm in Abilene increased, along with the guilt of not going back to help out as she normally did.
“I still think you should have a summer fling this year, Leona. We’re in our fourth year of college now, and you’re the only virgin I know. Would it really hurt you to let go and have some fun?” Wisps of Heather’s black hair were coming loose from the long braid cascading over her left shoulder. Her cashmere brown eyes turned back to focus on the road for a second before she glanced back at Leona.
“Let it go. I don’t harp on you about your sleeping around. It’s my decision, and I’ll thank you to keep your nose out of it.” She didn’t understand why Heather harped on the subject so much. After all, the whole town knew Leona’s Aunt Jeanette had gotten pregnant at fifteen, married, and had four more babies in as many years before her husband up and left her. She didn’t want to end up like that.
Leona turned her head to watch the scenery fly by. She enjoyed the beach and couldn’t have been happier when Heather invited her to spend their summer break from college in a cottage on Fort Pond Bay. She’d never been to Montauk, New York before and was even more excited not to be going back home to Texas. Hopefully, she would get some down time and be able to write more lyrics. She was determined to have her own material to sing at the club when she graduated and went home next year. Maybe it would give her some much-needed exposure to move her dream forward.
Heather’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts. “They make birth control, you know. Shit, look at Hope and Alastair. They’ve been doing it for three years now, and she hasn’t been knocked up.” Heather’s hand arched into the air as it always did when she got excited.
Shaking her head at her friend’s crass comment, she scolded, “Do you always have to be so vulgar?” Her friends, Hope Reed and Alastair Wilson, had been together since high school, but what they did was their business and this was hers. Heather seemed to think with her zipper and loved to encourage Leona to do the same. Leona wasn’t sure why but suspected it was so she wasn’t the only one having sex all the time. “I’ve made it this far without sex and survived,” Leona responded, her voice full of resignation.
Heather rolled her eyes before switching subjects. She apparently got the hint. “Wait until you see the beach house my parents snagged for us. It’s perfect and secluded. There’s a sleeping loft and two bedrooms, just in case we get any ‘guests’ that decide to crash with us.” She bounced her perfectly arched eyebrows in her best Charlie Chaplin imitation.
Leona rolled her eyes. Some things never change. If only Heather realized the measures Leona had put into place so she wouldn’t do exactly what Heather was proposing. She’d purposely always surrounded herself with a group of friends so she wasn’t alone with any boys, especially Johnny Montgomery. Even when she was singing at one of the gigs, Leona made sure Heather and Hope were there. “Drop it, Heather. I really don’t want to spend my entire vacation talking about my virginity.”
“Fine,” Heather replied with a smirk, her cashmere eyes narrowed. She tossed her long black hair over her shoulder. “We’ll just have to find someone for you this summer, no talking necessary.” Her plump lips pursed as she made smooch-smooch sounds with her mouth.
Leona shook her head, reached over, turned the music up, and started singing along to “Girl Crush,” ignoring Heather’s last comment. She knew once she started singing, Heather would shut up and listen. She always did when Leona sang. Her voice seemed to have that effect on most people.
When they finally pulled up to the cottage, Leona was surprised at how secluded it was. The cottage was covered with Shaker Shingles of a deep reddish brown. A wooden porch led to a white front door with long windows on either side. She couldn’t wait to get inside, unpack, change, and head down to the beach.
Heather turned the car into the gravel drive, and they both got out and stretched. “Oh my God! I love the smell of the ocean, don’t you?” She inhaled deeply and spun around, bringing the image of her as a little girl to Leona’s mind.
“Mmmhmm. I love the sound of the waves crashing onto the beach. Feel that breeze?” she turned her face up towards the sky for a moment then turned to Heather. “Let’s go pick our rooms and get unpacked. I want to check out the beach.”
They grabbed their suitcases from the trunk and ran laughing up the porch steps. Leona’s thoughts drifted back to the first time she and Heather had met. Their connection had been immediate. Heather talked non-stop, hands and arms flying around as Leona listened, taking in everything she said. Heather’s family had money and lived closer to town. To Leona, she was someone to admire. Every time they would spend the night at one or the others’ home, it was always a race to see who would get to the room first. Even after all these years, that hadn’t changed.
The front porch held two whitewashed rockers and a lovely piece of driftwood, capped with a round glass top perched in between. Hanging pots held plants of a multitude of colors.
“Wow, we can sit out here in the evening, Heather. Look how beautiful it is.”
Heather nodded her head as she unlocked the door and waited for Leona to walk in.
Leona whistled. “Wow! This place is remarkable.” The living room was painted a pale robin’s egg blue, a white slip-covered sofa sat against the long wall to the left of the door, and two striped sea foam, slip-covered chairs sat facing the sofa. The coffee table was an old wooden trough filled with sand, seashells, and nautical items topped with a piece of glass. The driftwood end tables shared the same glass tops. Gauzy white curtains hung from the ceiling to the floor around the windows. Stainless steel carriage lights were placed strategically around the room.
The dining room held a white table and
six chairs. A lovely blue sideboard sat along the wall to the right, holding a bowl of sea glass and different sizes of old blue bottles. The kitchen was white, but the same blue from the living room graced the cabinet doors. Some of them had glass fronts framed in the blue. A stainless steel, six-burner gas stove, dishwasher, French door refrigerator, and dark marble counters completed the updated kitchen. One wall held four framed black and white prints of sailboats.
“That’s a sleeper sofa,” Heather said as she pointed to the piece of furniture, giving Leona a not so subtle hint before she laughed. “Come on. Let’s go check out the bedrooms.”
“Did you see that kitchen?” Leona asked, grabbing her suitcase off the floor.
“Why would I? I hate cooking. That’s your thing.” She smiled and bumped Leona with her shoulder. “I’m really glad one of us can cook. I didn’t see any restaurants close. They’re all on the other side of town.”
They stopped at the first bedroom on the left of the narrow hallway. The white room had a sliding glass door leading to a small balcony. In the center of the room sat an old iron bed that had been painted pale sea foam green. On it was a white spread, foam green pillows, and white accent pillows with pale yellow starfish. Over the headboard, hung a salvaged piece of old crown-molding that held different specimens of large fan coral. A white ceiling fan hung over the bed. The whole room screamed Leona’s name.
“I want this room. Please…” Leona stuck her bottom lip out, her hands together as she batted her eyelashes at Heather. “This is my favorite.”
Heather giggled and swatted her hands. “We haven’t even seen the other one yet.”
Leona stuck her bottom lip out further. She knew Heather would relent and let her have the room because it wasn’t her style.
“Okay, stop. You can have this one. Let’s go look at mine. If it’s better, you can’t change with me. No matter how much you beg.” She hooked her arm through Leona’s and pulled her along to the next bedroom.
“Oh, this room is so me! Look at that bed.” Heather squealed. A queen-size bed with a pale pink spread sat in the center of the room. A plethora of pillows in different sizes and hues of pink sat against the whitewashed headboard.
Leona laughed. “It sure is. Looks like someone puked Pepto everywhere.” She ducked as Heather turned to swat at her.
“Now who’s being mean?” Heather giggled.
“Serves you right for giving me crap all the way here.” Leona danced swiftly to the far side of the bed. “So when are Hope and Alastair joining us?”
“They aren’t sure. Something about a job interview he has. Did you talk to John? When’s he coming?” She set her suitcase on the bed and popped it open.
“When I called to invite him, he said he was meeting up with two of his brother’s friends from the military. He didn’t say where or for how long. I just told him to call me when he can.” She shrugged.
“When he calls, you should invite him to join us. You’re always more fun when he’s around,” Heather said, already unpacking her clothes.
“Now I can’t be fun unless Johnny is around?” Placing her hands on her hips, she playfully pouted. “Exactly why did you invite me along on this trip?”
Heather tapped her bottom lip with her finger. “Well, other than you being a great cook and our entertainment. Can I have a few minutes to think about it?” She winked.
Leona burst into giggles. “You are incorrigible.”
“Yep. And you love me because of it.” Heather’s eyes sparkled.
“Yeah, I do.” She pulled her into a big hug. “Thanks again for inviting me along. I’m going to go unpack.”
Leona placed her clothes neatly in the dresser drawers and hung her dresses in the closet. She placed her book of handwritten lyrics in one of the drawers, looked around the room, and thought again how lucky she was to have such a wonderful best friend. Heather kept her on her toes and entertained her with all her antics, but she kept them both grounded. They were the Ying and Yang to one another. She sighed as she wondered where Johnny was. He was the one person who would make this vacation even better. She really did have more fun when he was around.
John Montgomery had moved into the neighborhood when she was ten. He’d been a handsome young boy with dark brown hair and the most beautiful, glacial blue eyes she had ever seen. He was two years older and had taken on the role of her protector, quickly becoming as important to her as Heather.
Johnny always stuck with Leona and was the one person who encouraged her to sing and write her songs. He was the only one she had ever allowed to give her a nickname. He still insisted on calling her Leo. Heck, he would have stayed the night more often than Heather. She couldn’t count how many times her extremely angry mom had chased him out in the wee hours of the morning.
She started having romantic feelings for him when she was thirteen but had pushed them aside, not daring to think about them or say anything, not even to Heather. Every time those thoughts surfaced, she would remind herself of her aunt. After all, her mother and aunt had pointed out to her on a daily basis, what could happen if she fell for a boy.
When he’d moved to Boston to go to college, she missed him terribly. They talked as often as they could, though. He would either call her or she would call him, but it was never the same as just hanging out with him. Leona considered him her best friend next to Heather. She hadn’t seen him in over a year and a half now—an eternity—and hoped he would meet up with them.
“Leona! Are you just going to stand there?” Heather stomped her foot loudly in an apparent attempt to get Leona’s attention, her smile lighting her face.
Leona jerked before turning to frown at her. “What the hell did you do that for? You startled me.”
“I called you like three times, and you were just staring off into space. What were you thinking about?” She chuckled.
Leona rolled her eyes and shook her head. “What do you want?”
“I asked if you still wanted to go to the beach. Alastair called. He said there’s a splendid beach about fifteen minutes away.”
“What’s wrong with this beach?” Her forehead creased. “Can’t we just stay here?” She could hear the whine in her voice and hated it. She was tired from the drive and thought they were just going to relax today.
“This one’s not for swimming. Can’t you hear how hard the waves are crashing? Mom told me this beach is great for surfing and tanning.” She shrugged. “Today, I want to get wet.” She wiggled her eyebrows up and down. “Maybe in more ways than one.”
“Ew. Sometimes you are just so gross, Heather. Is there anything that doesn’t remind you of sex?” Leona drew her brows together. “I swear sometimes I think you should have been a man. It’s all you ever think about.”
“Not only is having sex fun, but it makes for some amusing jokes, too.” She raised her chin. “What is wrong with you today? I’m always like this, and you’ve never said anything before.”
“Nothing is wrong with me. It just gets old sometimes. Maybe you should try something else for a change.” Shaking her head, Leona picked up her bikini and strode towards the bathroom. “I’m going to change here since we don’t know anything about the beach you want to go to.”
Once the door was shut, Leona closed her eyes and counted to ten. What the heck is wrong with me? With a sigh, she quickly changed into her new suit.
After pulling her sundress over her head, she slipped her feet into a pair of sandals and headed for the living room. Heather was slouched on the sofa, her eyes closed and her arms folded over her chest. Her eyes popped open when Leona walked in. “Ready?” The tone in her voice implied she was not amused with Leona’s less than enthusiastic response to her teasing earlier.
Leona nodded. “Let’s go check out the other beach Alastair told you about. Are they going to be there soon?”
“Yeah, and they agreed to come over for a bit this evening. He was talking about building a fire out in the fire pit later. Hope was bringing
everything to make her ‘famous’ s’mores.” She made little air quotes.
“Great. I love those. It’s even better that we’re doing it here tonight. I love the sound of this beach, the way the waves are crashing.”
Heather got up, strolled over to Leona, and playfully swatted Leona’s butt. “Let’s go. Alastair is bringing his guitar tonight so you can sing for us.”
“I miss singing with him, and he knows my favorites. Let me grab my beach stuff real quick.” Going back into the bedroom, she grabbed her beach bag and hurried into the living room. “All right, I’m ready. Let’s get this show on the road!”
“Yay! Let’s show Montauk how two Texas girls party!” Heather threw her braid over her shoulder and wiggled her butt as she sauntered out the front door.
The corner of Leona’s mouth quirked up as she threw her fist up in the air. “Woot! Party time.” She closed the door and double-checked the lock then bounded down the steps to catch up with Heather. She climbed into the car and turned toward her friend. “So, are you looking for Mr. Right tonight?”
“You know it, girlfriend.” Heather threw her head back and laughed. “Maybe we’ll find Mr. Right for you, too.”
As they backed out of the drive, Leona felt her spirits lift. Crap, she was on vacation and there was no one to answer to but herself. She made up her mind to have fun and not let the guilty thoughts of her family intrude on that. Hope and Alastair would be meeting up with them, and Hope had a way of keeping Heather a little tamer. Tonight should be fun.
“Do you know where we’re going?” She grabbed the armrest as Heather hit the gas, the Mustang’s wheels spinning as she pulled out of the drive. “What the hell, Heather! Slow down.”
“I just wanted to open her up a little. Chill. And yes, I do know where I’m going. Alastair gave me directions.” She slowed down to the speed limit and glanced over at Leona. “You can let go and open your eyes now.”