Built To Last (Saltwater Springs #1) (6 page)

S
carlett finished curling
her hair and then ran her fingers through it, leaving the ebony strands to hang in long waves down her back. Wanting to make a good impression after being gone so long, she took the time to apply make-up, completing her look with a pale lip gloss. Smoothing down the front of her red and navy plaid button-up shirt, she made her way to the front door to slip on her favorite brown leather lace-up boots.

As she finished tying them, two short honks came from the driveway outside. Scarlett raced down the stairs to the kitchen and pulled her bottle of white wine from the fridge, grabbed her purse, and headed out, locking the door to her rental home behind her.

She climbed into the back seat, sitting in the middle so she could see both of the women in front of her. “Hey, girls.”

“Hey, sweets,” Shelby said.

Madison twisted in her seat to face Scarlett, her strawberry blonde hair whipping around her shoulders when she did. “Hey, you! I can’t believe you’re back.”

“It’s good to be home.” Seeing how happy both the girls were to see her eased some of her nerves about attending the party.

“We have to get caught up tonight. I want to know everything you’ve been up to, and I have to hear about those city boys.” Madison rubbed her hands together as if juicy details were a given.

Shelby caught Scarlett’s eye in the rearview mirror as she backed the car down the driveway. “I already told her she needs to dish about why Luke’s helping out at her new shop.”

Scarlett rolled her eyes. The girls were going to be sorely disappointed when they learned she had nothing much to say. There were still feelings, at least for her, but there was no torrid affair going on—nor would there be.

“Nothing to tell.”

“Mmmhmm,” Shelby murmured, and it was clear she didn’t believe a word Scarlett was saying.

“Are you looking forward to seeing the old gang tonight?” Madison asked.

“I’m excited…it’ll be great to catch up with everyone, but I’m a little nervous, too.” Scarlett felt her chest tighten as she thought of all the inquiries she was sure to be bombarded with at the party. Why had she left town so abruptly? Why had she sold the family home? Why had she returned to Saltwater Springs? And the most popular subject lately…what was going on with Luke?

She inhaled a deep breath and then let it go. It would be okay. She could keep things light, surface level—bring it all back to the fact that she’d returned to Saltwater Springs to open a bakery. With any luck, she’d be able to pique their interest enough for them to stop by and check it out once it opened.

“No need to be anxious,” Madison assured her, pulling Scarlett from her thoughts. “Everyone will be happy to see you.”

Scarlett only hoped that would prove true. “Whose house are we going to, anyway?”

“Buckie’s. He got a place on the outskirts of town and he throws shindigs pretty often. There’s a fire pit in back and some horseshoe pits, too.”

“Sounds fun.”

Fun.
It felt like a foreign concept to Scarlett lately, but she was determined to change that…starting tonight. Come hell or high water, she was going to have a good time.

A
couple of hours later
, Scarlett had settled in for a night of fun. She’d made a point of cycling through the party to say hello to everyone and catch up on their lives, mentioning her new endeavor at every turn. They all welcomed her with open arms and seemed happy to see her return to her roots. Clusters of people were scattered around the home—some out back sitting around the fire pit, others in the great room relaxing on the leather couches, a bunch of the guys were playing pool in Buckie’s “man cave,” and some, like her, were hanging out in the kitchen.

Scarlett had seated herself on one of the high stools around the center island when Buckie approached with a bottle of Jack in one hand and a beer in the other. He was still built like a linebacker, his dark blond hair and bright blue eyes making him less scary and placing him firmly in the big teddy bear department.

“All right, girl, seems you still got a little city in you.” The two bottles clinked on the counter when he set them in front of her.

“What are you talking about?” Scarlett asked with amusement.

“This here…” He picked up her wine glass and turned to set it on the counter by the sink, grabbing a pair of shot glasses from one of the cupboards before he returned. “This here is a socialite drink. That’s not how we roll.”

She laughed and took the beer from him when offered. “And this?” Scarlett nodded toward the half-empty bottle of Jack.

Buckie wrapped a large fist around the neck of the bottle. “This here will put hair on your chest and have you breathing fire, doll.”

“I’m pretty sure I don’t want any hair on my chest,” she said through her laughter.

“Can’t say I blame you. It’s a mighty fine chest.” He waggled his eyebrows.

Scarlett reached out and smacked Buckie across the upper arm. “Behave.”

He grinned at her then removed the lid of the whiskey bottle and filled the shot glasses with the amber liquid. He pushed one across the granite countertop to Scarlett before lifting his own. “To having you home where you belong.”

Scarlett hadn’t really realized how much she’d missed home until that moment. Despite having run away scared a decade earlier, the call of Saltwater Springs had been too hard to resist.

She smiled at Buckie and brought the shot to her lips, tossing it back. Scarlett squelched the urge to beat her chest to relieve the fire burning a path down to her stomach.

Buckie smiled at her like a proud father. “Nice. Wouldn’t have thought you had it in you to take that back without complaint. Let’s do another.” The smile spreading across his face now only meant one thing—
trouble
.

A half-hour later, Scarlett was still in the kitchen, sipping on a beer and laughing at something Shelby had said, when she felt the presence of someone to her right.

Looking to her side, she was surprised to see Phoebe standing there. Every muscle in Scarlett’s body tensed. The last words the two of them had spoken to each other had been hostile, to say the least. But Phoebe’s mother had said she’d asked after Scarlett so maybe it was old news— dead and buried.

Scarlett smiled, attempting to make it appear genuine. “It’s good to see you. How have you been?”

“Scarlett, it’s been so long.” Phoebe leaned in to give her a fake kiss on each cheek. Then she pulled back with a thin smile on her face.

“Your mom mentioned that you’re a lawyer now. Congrats.”

Phoebe shrugged with a smirk and kind of rolled her eyes, a gesture Scarlett instantly recognized. It was Phoebe’s signature move when she was acting like something wasn’t a big deal, but really loved every minute of the attention being paid to her.

“Seems all that time I spent with my nose to the grindstone really paid off.”

Scarlett gave her most sincere smile she could muster and opened her mouth to say something, but Phoebe beat her to it. “I understand you’re opening a bakery on Main Street. How cute.” Phoebe tilted her head and shrugged one shoulder in a completely demeaning gesture.

Scarlett let her hand drop from the cool granite countertop and fall to her side, where she balled it into a fist. “I am. You and Jackson will have to come by once it’s open to check it out.”
Scarlett sent up a silent prayer that Phoebe wouldn’t follow through on the invitation.

“Oh, definitely. I wouldn’t miss seeing what all the fuss is about.” Phoebe’s lips formed a fake smile. “I heard Luke’s helping you.” She raised one of her over-plucked eyebrows.

This again? Scarlett wasn’t even sure how she felt about the whole thing, never mind trying to explain it to everyone else. But on the bright side, at least people were talking about her bakery. All publicity was good publicity, right?

“He’s been a big help, yes.” Scarlett brought her beer to her lips and took a sip, looking for any excuse to put an end to the conversation.

“Trying to rewrite history?” Phoebe laughed and Scarlett got the distinct impression it was at her expense.

“We’re friends. I hired him to do a job is all.” Her grip tightened on the beer bottle and she took a larger sip this time.

“Good, then there’s no hard feelings about the whole Luke thing that happened after you left town.” She waved her hand in front of her like she hadn’t just lobbed a grenade at Scarlett—with the pin out.

Scarlett narrowed her eyes. “What Luke thing?” she asked, her voice low.

“Well, after you dropped Luke like a hot potato, he and I started something up.” She grinned, clearly enjoying every minute of their encounter.

Scarlett said nothing, choosing instead to toss back a couple of unladylike mouthfuls of beer that would have her mother turning in her grave. No matter, she needed the cool liquid to subdue her rising temper and her suddenly parched mouth.

“Once I was with him, I understood why you two were always making out every time I saw you.” She tossed her head back and laughed.

“Shouldn’t you go find your
husband
, Phoebe?” Shelby said in a scathing tone. “I’m sure he must be missing you right about now.”

“I suppose I should,” she said breezily, like she had no idea the emotional upheaval she’d just caused. “He gets so cranky when I disappear at these things. It was good seeing you, Scarlett. Don’t be a stranger.”

Scarlett only managed to purse her lips in a small smile before Phoebe fluttered off like she didn’t have a care in the world. And she probably didn’t.

Before Shelby could say anything, Scarlett pushed back on her stool and stood. “I’m gonna run to the bathroom.” Scarlett heard Shelby call after her, but she was already exiting the room, rushing toward the powder room near the front door. Thank God no one was inside, because she wasn’t sure she could hold off the tears much longer.

Luke had dated Phoebe? He’d
been
with her? How could he?

Yes, Scarlett had up and left him with no explanation, but why
Phoebe
? He knew all the ways she’d tried to make Scarlett’s life miserable. It was wrong and completely illogical, but Scarlett couldn’t help but feel like Luke had somehow betrayed her.

As she locked the door behind her and slumped down against it, fat tears began rolling down her cheeks. She’d reached the breaking point. Scarlett could no longer pretend her feelings for Luke didn’t run deep. Phoebe’s callous statements had found the aquifer buried deep below the surface, dug in, and caused a tidal wave of emotion to spring free.

L
uke arrived
at Buckie’s place with a six-pack in hand, wishing he were home in his bed. He’d been running himself ragged these past few weeks between keeping up with his business, helping Scarlett at the bakery, bringing his mother to and from her appointments, and helping Denise with Gabbie. What he really needed was some sleep…not to be partying with his buddies. But sometimes you needed to blow off a little steam, which was exactly the reason he found himself trying to carve out a place for his beer bottles in Buckie’s fridge.

Someone smacked him on the back as he was bent over, moving things from one shelf to the other. Luke stood up straight and turned around.

“Hey, man. Wasn’t sure you were gonna make it. Haven’t seen hide nor hair of you lately,” Buckie said.

Luke pushed his hand out and caught Buckie’s, then pulled him in for a man hug. “Yeah, well, I got Gabbie down for the night at my mom’s and she insisted I get out. It’s been all work and no play lately, so I could use a break.” With a beer in hand, Luke closed the door behind him and twisted the cap off.

Luke glanced around the kitchen to see who else was there. Recognizing almost everyone, he gave small waves and head nods where appropriate. Shelby motioned him over to where she sat at the center island.

“Hey, Shelby. How’s it going?”

Her eyes were wide and she glanced around the room for a second before responding. “Listen, the reason I called you over here was to tell you that Scarlett came with Madison and me.” She appeared worried, lines creasing her forehead.

Though Luke felt like someone had punched him square in the chest, he tried to pretend like nothing was out of the ordinary. Shrugging, he said, “Okay, thanks for letting me know, I guess.” He lifted his beer to his lips and took a sip.

Shelby pinned him with a stare that let Luke know she wasn’t happy with his response. “I’m telling you because she’s upset. Phoebe got her more worked up than a rattler with a tin can on its tail. She ran off just a minute ago. I think she’s in the powder room.”

Phoebe’s name caused Luke’s man-parts to clench and unease stole over him. That girl had always been trouble. Who knew what she might have said to upset Scarlett? It wasn’t unlike Phoebe to hit below the belt.

“Why are you telling
me
this?” Luke asked. He wasn’t sure what Shelby expected him to do about it—it had nothing to do with him. Wasn’t this female territory or something?

“I was thinking you could find her and make her feel better.” Shelby gave him a ‘duh’ look as if it were obvious.

Luke shook his head. “I’m probably one of the last people she would want consoling her.”

“Can you just try? Please?” Shelby might be small, but she was good at twisting your arm behind your back until you cried uncle.

Luke blew out a breath. “Fine. I’m telling you though, I’ll only end up making it worse.” He set his beer down on the counter and turned to head to the bathroom, knowing in his gut this was a bad idea. Upset women weren’t his forte. Just the sight of a woman crying was enough to give Luke hives.

He walked down the hall then stood outside the door to the bathroom for a minute or two, trying to figure out what he should say. The door suddenly flew open and Luke found himself face-to-face with one very pissed-off Scarlett. Her eyes were a little puffy and bloodshot like she’d been crying, but apparently that sentiment had been brushed off and replaced with anger when she’d spotted him—if the glare she was giving Luke meant anything.

“What are you doing here?” she asked in a tone that made it clear she wasn’t happy he’d opted for fun instead of sleep tonight. Scarlett cocked a hip and crossed her arms over her chest. Luke couldn’t help but notice how great she looked dressed casually in a snug pair of dark jeans and a plaid button-up shirt that clung to her ample chest in all the right places.

He didn’t want to poke the bear but figured the best course of action would be to just get whatever had pissed off Scarlett out into the open so they could deal with it. “Is everything okay? Shelby said you were upset.”

She gave a humorless laugh. “She did, did she?”

What was he supposed to say to that? “Um…yeah.” Luke brought his hand up to the back of his neck.

Scarlett took a step forward, and then another, which had him backing up toward the wall behind him. “Well, let’s just say I had a nice little chat with Phoebe.”

This game of cat and mouse was starting to get to him. “If there’s something that’s bothering you, tell me. What’s the point of beating around the bush?”

“Okay, you want to know what she told me?” Scarlett jabbed him in the chest with a fingernail, her eyes flashing. “She told me she was happy there were no hard feelings between us since you two were a thing and all after I left town.”

Jesus. Luke pushed a hand through his hair. “Lettie, I can explain—”

If it were physically possible, he was pretty sure smoke would’ve been pouring out of her ears. Her face was red and her mouth twisted in disgust. “Don’t you dare Lettie me! Phoebe? Of all people.
Phoebe
?” she said, her voice rising. “You know how horrible she was to me. How could you?”

How could
he
? Anger heated his cheeks. Where did she get off scolding him for something he’d done—albeit a completely stupid thing—when she was the one who’d dumped his ass without even blinking? “Wait a minute. You’re pissed at me because of something that happened
after
you ditched me and took off without a word? I haven’t seen or heard from you in ten years, woman.” Luke gave a humorless chuckle. “That’s bullshit.” He shook his head at her, his jaw tight. “I was free to do whatever and
whoever
the hell I wanted. You made damn sure of that.”

Scarlett’s hands dropped to her side, tears pooling in her eyes. “I still can’t believe…” She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before pushing past him and taking off down the hallway.

Luke let her go. Damn Phoebe was always stirring up shit. That woman would never change. And despite what he’d just led Scarlett to believe, he only dated Phoebe out of spite. Even though Scarlett hadn’t been around, knowing it would hurt her as much as she’d hurt him if she ever did find out had brought him some type of perverse pleasure.

It hadn’t been hard to get Phoebe to agree to go out with him. He’d been an older guy from the wrong side of the tracks, sure to raise any parent’s eyebrows when they found out their daughter was dating him. To a teenage girl, that combination was like catnip to a kitten.

Luke smashed the side of his fist against the wall. If he’d been in his own home, he’d have made sure to hit it hard enough to punch a hole.

He’d promised himself he’d maintain his cool with Scarlett until he was finished working for her, then they’d only ever have to see each other in passing. That little argument had brought old scars to the surface, ensuring they were going to have to face the past. Luke didn’t think that was something he was ready for—regardless if it had been a decade in the making.

Damn women.