Small Town Romance Collection: Four Complete Romances & A New Novella

by Brown, Carolyn

  "Drunk?" Her eyes were round with awe. "You?"

  "Yep, me," he said. "Mother, I've got something I want to tell you. The summer after my senior year I was sneaking around with Angela Conrad . . ."

  "Not Dotty Conrad's granddaughter," she looked at him seriously.

  "Yes, that's the one." He nodded. "I fell in love with her but I was too young and stupid to realize it. Besides, I couldn't tell you and dad . . ."

  "But, why? Dotty might not have had money, but she was a fine woman. And Angela was probably the nicest little girl I ever met. Remember, Dotty used to clean house for me? Angela came with her lots of times. But then maybe you didn't know that. That was when you and your dad usually went to Texas to do 'boy things.' Anyway, Angela didn't come with her after she was about sixteen. Dotty said she was cleaning somewhere else so they could make more money."

  "Good grief, you mean she was our hired help?" Clancy exclaimed.

  "Sure. She dusted and ran the vacuum lots of times for Dotty," his mother said.

  "Mother, she was pregnant at the end of the summer," he said bluntly, "and I ran out on her. I was scared she'd embarrass me and you and dad."

  "You did what?" His mother's brown eyes sized him up and Clancy suddenly felt all of two feet tall. "I didn't raise you to be uncaring and selfish."

  "No, you didn't," he agreed. "I did it on my own."

  "Do I have a grandchild?"

  "No, my son was stillborn. I didn't find out about it until this week, and now I realize I'm still in love with Angela. Of course, she doesn't want anything to do with me!" he said miserably.

  Meredith Morgan had never seen her son so unhappy. Of all the crazy twists life could take. She'd been worried about what everyone in town would say when they found out she'd begun dating again, and now the buzz at the beauty shop tomorrow morning would undoubtedly center on Clancy.

  "Since you've been honest with me . . ." his mother held her breath for a minute. "I've been seeing a man."

  Clancy jerked his head around to stare at her. His dad had been right up there next to the angels in Clancy's eyes and the very thought of someone else with his mother made his stomach knot up. He'd dreaded this day since the day of his dad's funeral when he overheard two local gossips saying something about his mother being young enough, pretty enough, and Lord knew, rich enough to find another husband before long. "You what? Who?"

  "Tom Lloyd," she said.

  "You're kidding me," he gulped.

  "I'm quite serious."

  "But, Mother, he's beneath you," he said. "He's—"

  "Right." She nodded. "Tom's the maintenance supervisor at the cemetery. His wife died the same year your father did, and he's been lonely, too. Clancy, I don't need money and I really don't give a damn about hanging around that fancy country club. What I want is someone to love me and to spend time with me."

  Clancy blinked away years of snobbery in a few seconds. "Then why don't you ask him to dinner while I'm here?" he said.

  "Thanks, son." She patted his arm. "Maybe I will. Guess you're more like me than I thought. Now, tell me, where again is it that Angela lives? And how did she get so rich as to own an oil company? Did you tell her that we used to own part of Texanna Red until your dad died and Red bought back the shares?"

  "Hell, no!" he said. "And I didn't tell her that Red wants me to work for him, either. But I don't want to work in oil, and I love teaching, even if my paycheck isn't nearly what my oil investment check is each month. I don't love Conrad Oil. Like you said, I don't need money. I need Angel. . . and I've realized it too damned late!"

  Six

  Patty had had all she intended to put up with by the next Monday morning. Angel hadn't mentioned Clancy from Tuesday through Friday and Patty knew he hadn't called once all that week. But Angel's green eyes were as sad as they were the day they had gathered around the black hole in the Kemp cemetery that was her grandmother's final resting place. It was time for Angel to either kiss him or kill him and get on with living her life, and if no one else was going to prepare his wedding or his funeral, then Patty would take matters in her own hands—even if it made Angel mad.

  Even facing her best friend's anger would be better than this damned cloud hanging over their heads while Angel went around sighing and saying she had buried all her memories and told her first love they didn't have a future together. But it was clear that she couldn't stop thinking about him, and Patty was pretty sure Clancy was thinking about Angel, too.

  She crossed one long, stockinged leg over the other one, and tugged the bottom of a lemon yellow miniskirt down to cover at least another inch of her muscular thigh. She pushed the red button on the intercom at the edge of her desk. "Mayday," she whispered, and four other women stopped what they were doing and ended up in the conference room on the second floor.

  "What's up?" Allie looked a little green above her upper lip. The doctor said she could expect the morning sickness to stop in three months and she sure hoped he knew what he was talking about. If this nausea lasted the whole nine months, Tyler could accept the idea of an only child or have the next one himself and see just how much he enjoyed feeling like he was going to hurl his food at any given time. "Where's Angel?" She rolled her eyes at the chocolate chip cookies on the table.

  "She's having breakfast with Red and Anna to talk about their company moving their main office back here. Red would like to talk her out of this building. Says his crew hates Louisiana and wants to come home to Texas," Patty said. "Sit down and let's make a decision. We don't have all day. She'll be back in a little while. We all know Angel is out of it these days. Lord, I can't work with her in this weird mood another day. It's like living with a zombie. I vote we send her on a vacation."

  "Sure." Susan ran her hands through short red hair and laughed. "It'd be easier to set up a snow-cone stand in hell."

  "We could run the company for two weeks, but she'll never go away." Bonnie did a rat-a-tat-tat on the table with her long fingernails. "You got something in mind, Patty?"

  "Well, I do," Mindy butted in. "I vote we give her two weeks off for an early birthday present. She'll be twenty-eight at the end of the month and we've retired the band, so there's no reason she can't go. Now, where were you thinkin' about sending her, Patty?"

  Patty smiled, and her eyes twinkled with excitement. "Panama City Beach, Florida. I know it's not as fancy as New Orleans or Paris, France, but it's calm down there. Remember when Ronald and I were keeping company and went there for a weekend. Lord, it was wonderful. And so quiet."

  "Sounds like a great place for two people to fall in love all over again," Allie giggled. "I hope to hell Angel can't see through you as well as I can," she said.

  Patty gave them all an innocent look. "Me? Why, I just thought our dear friend needs to relax. But not by herself." She smiled. "Suppose a tall, handsome fellow who filled out his jeans real well, and who just happens to know her from high school. . . well, what if he happened to show up on the beach at the same time that she did? Angel couldn't blame me for that now could she?"

  "And it's time she took him back or set him free," Allie said. "She'll be here in a few minutes. Let's take her to dinner and tell her it's a done deal. You already got the plane tickets and plans made, Patty?"

  "I'll do it," Bonnie said. "I can have everything ready at six o'clock. Let's go out for Italian food, and tell Angel she can have tomorrow to get things packed and ready. She can fly out of Dallas Wednesday morning, and we'll even let her take a laptop. But she can only call in once a day unless it's a dire emergency. Who's informing Clancy?"

  "Not me," Susan said. "I'm no good at tellin' lies or keepin' secrets."

  "Well, this is too important to leave to amateurs," Bonnie said. "I'll call him and then if she ever finds out, I'll blame it on Red."

  All four women turned to look at her questioningly. She shrugged. "I found out Clancy's father was in the oil business with Red at one time. And I can keep a straight face when I lie." She smiled. "After
all, I deal with the IRS."

  "Why are we doing this?" Allie asked. "We've wanted to shoot Clancy dead for ten years and now here we are making arrangements to tell him where Angel is for two weeks. Not one damned bit of this makes a whole lot of sense to me."

  "Angel's not happy," Patty said. "And the only thing that's goin' to make her happy is getting him either out of, or into, her heart. It's a love-him-or-leave-him kind of situation. So we're just helping her get her life straightened out so we can get on with ours. We've got a baby to birth in a few months, a wedding to stage, and a divorce to finalize. I move we get Angel's love life back on track, so we can do all that and more. And get back to running this oil business, too."

  "I second the motion," Susan said. "Let's all agree before anyone chickens out. Meeting adjourned. See you all later." She passed the window looking down on Main Street as she moved toward the door. "Here she comes up the street. Better look sharp now and get back to work."

  At five-thirty, they closed the front door and walked three blocks down Main Street to the Italian restaurant. When the waitress seated them at the back of the restaurant and brought a menu, Angel's funny feeling surfaced again and she knew that there was something going on and everyone else at the table knew all about it. She looked at Susan's face first, knowing full well she couldn't keep a secret in a bucket with a lid on it. Angel couldn't remember the last time Patty's eyes twinkled like that, as her friend tried to hide behind the menu, and just as she shifted her gaze to Mindy, she caught her winking at Allie. Bonnie was the only one who didn't act like she was sitting on a keg of dynamite with a short fuse.

  Angel had to smile. "Okay. 'Fess up. What's going on?"

  They all looked at Bonnie, who produced a big yellow envelope. "Surprise!" she said with a grin. "We've got an early birthday present for you. Lord knows you deserve it, but you wouldn't think of doing it for yourself, so we bought it for you. You're going to Panama City Beach, Florida, for two weeks, to a deluxe beachfront motel. Your room has a balcony overlooking a lake which is full of turtles, so you can feed them for excitement. And if your heart doesn't fail you after a thrill like that, you can put on your bathing suit, walk across the street to the beach and bask on the sand until some knight in shining armor comes racing dawn the beach on his big white four-wheeler and steals your heart away. But remember, it's only for two weeks. If he wants you to run off to a castle in France, the answer is no, because at the end of two weeks, you've got to come back to Conrad Oil and go back to work!"

  Angel's eyes misted and her heart melted.

  "You're all sweethearts." She wiped her eyes with the big white cloth napkin. "But the answer is no. I can't stand to be away from you all for that long."

  "Bull," Patty said. "And we didn't ask a question so you can't answer no. You're goin' to be on that plane if I have to hogtie you and hire Mel Gibson to come throw your body over his shoulder and put you in the plane seat. You need to unwind. There's plane tickets, reservations for the motel, and I took your business papers out of your briefcase and put in three trashy romance novels. You're goin' home tonight to pack and we don't want to see your face at the office until two weeks from Wednesday. I'll even drive you to the airport."

  "Everything's taken care of." Bonnie handed her the envelope. "Happy birthday, Angel. Go down there and find a handsome guy to make your eyes sparkle and your heart float. You've got all the money you'll ever need, so you don't have to look for a rich man. A gorgeous beach bum that thinks your bottom is gold-plated will do."

  "Thanks a lot," Angel said wryly.

  Angel had never been on a vacation that didn't involve the oil business. She'd flown all over the United States and abroad, but had never dreamed of doing anything this self-indulgent. Lie on a beach somewhere with a trashy book and read to her heart's content? It was all too tempting after the emotional upheavals of the past week, but impossible.

  "Now you know I love you all—" she started.

  "Good," Allie butted in. "That's all the thanks we need to hear. I vote we order a bottle of sparkling wine now to celebrate. Even if I can't drink it. I'm taking two weeks off when this baby is born and I betcha Bonnie's going to ask for a couple of weeks off for a honeymoon soon, so now it's your turn and you can't say no. We love you, too," she finished, a little out of breath.

  Angel suddenly decided to give up arguing. She reached for the envelope and promised herself mentally that she would indulge her well-meaning friends and go—but she'd only stay until Sunday and fly back home in time for work on Monday morning.

  "Okay, okay. You're all wonderful and I guess you won't let me refuse," she said ruefully. "Just tell me what color hair and eyes this gorgeous beach bum should have."

  "Black hair and blue eyes, and he has to worship you like you're a goddess," Bonnie said seriously. "I think I'll have the lasagna, and to hell with my diet for tonight. I may eat fried ice cream afterwards, too."

  "Hear, hear!" Allie raised her water glass in a toast. "Well, I'm eating for two even if y'all can't tell yet. So I'm having rigatoni and hot bread and I hope it doesn't come right back up!"

  Angel's hunch wasn't satisfied. Something still wasn't right with this picture. She and her friends never kept secrets from each other and yet Susan's expression told her there was something she still wasn't telling. Why did they want her out of the office for two weeks?

  It was midnight when Bonnie dialed the number she'd found in the old Texanna Red files. The phone rang five times before an older woman answered in a sleepy voice.

  "Clancy Morgan, please," Bonnie said in her most businesslike tone.

  "Who is this?" Meredith asked bluntly. "Do you realize it's midnight?"

  "Yes, ma'am," Bonnie said. "Sorry about that. Unavoidable circumstances, you see. And this phone call involves Angel Conrad. Could I talk to Clancy or would you please give me his phone number?"

  "My son's here and I'll wake him," Meredith said. "Has something happened to Angela?"

  "No, ma'am," Bonnie said, but didn't offer more. In a few minutes, Clancy answered the phone.

  "Angel?" his voice was taut with fear.

  "Hello, Clancy. This is Bonnie," she said. "We met at the office. I'm the one in the accounting division."

  "Is Angel all right?" he asked.

  "She's fine except her heart is still broken after ten years. Lord, she should've gotten over you a long time ago, but she hasn't. Much as we'd like to, we can't fix her heart for her. Shooting you wouldn't even fix it," Bonnie said.

  "Why are you calling me?" Clancy asked.

  "I'm calling you to tell you that Angel is going on a two-week vacation to Panama City Beach, Florida. Get a pencil and take down this information. She'll fly out of Dallas on Wednesday morning at seven. Got that?"

  "Why?"

  "Why what?"

  "If you hate me so much, why are you telling me this?" Clancy grabbed a pen and jotted down the information on the back of the telephone book on the nightstand beside his bed.

  "Because we love Angel and she's got to either kiss you or kill you. And we want her back . . . with you if that's what it takes to make her happy. . . . Or without you, if she can shake you out of her heart once and for all. But all you've got is two weeks, and what happens is up to you. We don't really give a damn about you, Clancy. We just want Angel to be happy, and we think this is the only way we can make that happen," Bonnie said. "And if you tell her about this call, I'll swear you're lying. And I don't have to tell you which one of us she'll believe."

  "Thanks," Clancy said, his heart beginning to feel lighter than it had in several days. "I'll catch a plane out of Oklahoma City on Wednesday morning, and I'll call for reservations in the same motel. And I'll do my best."

  "Two weeks, Clancy. That's all you've got." Bonnie hung up the phone with a bang.

  Seven

  Angel parked her rented Ford Taurus in front of the motel, yanked one of the three suitcases from the backseat and stopped to smell the salt breeze that floated
across the water and whipped her unruly brown curls around her face.

  The sky was pure blue and there wasn't even one white cloud drifting over the water. The sand was as white as a new bride's veil, and suddenly she was glad she had agreed to a few days away from work, stress, and thoughts of Clancy. She was going to lie on the beach until dark, then soak in a tub of hot water and read one of the trashy books Patty put in her briefcase from beginning to end. And do nothing of importance.

  "Hello," she greeted the man behind the desk. "I'm Angel Conrad and I've got reservations for the next couple of weeks."

  "That's right." He smiled. "Room 214, upstairs, with a lake view at the back. Lots of turtles, but they keep quiet." He handed her the key and motioned to the colorful advertising flyers lined up neatly on the east wall. "Let us know if you'd like information about local attractions."

  "Thank you." She took the key but didn't stop to pick up any brochures. Playing miniature golf or renting a sailboat wasn't what this vacation was all about. She was here to say her goodbyes to memories which had haunted her for ten years. Before she left this place on Sunday night, she planned to stand barefoot in the sand and throw every single one of them into the ocean wind.

  Evidently she'd been guilty of wearing her heart on her sleeve these past days and her friends had realized she needed some time to straighten out her life. Well, it would be straight come Monday morning, and they wouldn't ever have to worry about her again.

  Angel went up the stairs to room 214 and plopped the suitcase down on the bed, then went back down to the car for the rest of her luggage. The office door was open and someone else was at the desk. She could hear the clerk telling him the same things he'd just told her with the same intonation, the same smile, the same wave of the hand, like a puppet on a string. The new guest looked vaguely familiar from the back, but she shrugged. She certainly didn't know anyone in Florida.

  She kicked the unlocked door open with her foot and wrestled the rest of her baggage into the room, past the galley kitchenette and onto the king-sized bed. She opened the door to the bathroom and turned on the hot water, shucked out of her clothes and took a long shower to ease the tension out of her muscles.