Serena looked at her watch. “Sure.”

  “It will just take a minute,” Charlotte replied, and stepped into the condo. She slipped off her shoes and strode into Serena’s space.

  Serena set the box of scones on the counter. “I can make us a cup of tea.”

  “That’s okay, I’m totally caffeinated,” Charlotte smiled, and held out her hand. “I’m practically jittering.”

  Serena could actually see the tremor in Charlotte’s hand and smiled.

  Charlotte pointed to Serena’s smile. “Whoa, I see you haven’t been able to get in to see the dentist yet.”

  Serena shrugged. She had forgotten about her tooth. “I’ve had other stuff to do. Please, have a seat.” Serena gestured to her sofa.

  Charlotte turned and sat down, while Serena leaned on a barstool. They hadn’t built up what Serena would call a solid rapport and it felt awkward to have Charlotte in her home. Charlotte smoothed out her dress and tucked one ankle behind the other. “Freddie is miserable.”

  “Good,” Serena replied, and then clapped her hand over her mouth. Dammit, why couldn’t her brain think faster than her mouth could speak?

  “I get why you feel that way. I really do, but there are so many misunderstandings that need to be cleared up between you two.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that.” Serena had her guard up. “I thought that we had something real. Turns out we didn’t. There’s no misunderstanding that.”

  Charlotte sighed. “Freddie means the world to me, so I’m going to share something with you that I think will help.” Charlotte cleared her throat and rubbed her hands on her thighs, she seemed nervous. “First of all, I know about the deal with Sidney’s. Freddie, that idiot, didn’t read the contract and brought it to me to interpret for him. I know about non-disclosure agreements and how important they are, so we agreed to keep it a secret.”

  Serena flashed back to the first night at Charlotte’s house. Now it made sense that she was not shocked by the engagement news. “I thought that you were actually supportive of us.” She didn’t know why, but it felt like a betrayal, both from Charlotte and Freddie.

  Charlotte sighed. “At first, I was just playing along, but then I saw it, the chemistry, probably before you two did. I know Freddie. He’s kind and genuine and wears his heart on his sleeve. There’s no way he could’ve pulled off that charade as long as he did without actually having feelings for you.”

  “Even if that’s true, Freddie still cheated on me.” Serena studied the marbling in her granite countertop, unable to meet Charlotte’s eyes. Serena folded her arms in front of her. “I know that I really have no right to be jealous, our relationship…” she raised her hands to indicate air quotes, “wasn’t really real—”

  “Stop.” Charlotte interrupted. “It was real and he didn’t cheat on you. Stacy…” Charlotte’s nose wrinkled in disgust, “…picked up Freddie hitch-hiking and he forgot his glasses in her car. That’s what Freddie wanted to tell you.”

  Serena snapped her head up to face Charlotte. “What? Why would she make something like that up? And why wouldn’t he tell me?”

  Charlotte’s eyes flashed. “Well, that first part is easy. She’s a damn liar. Always has been, always will be.” Charlotte stood up and shook out her hands like she was a boxer prepping for a fight. “Listen, I don’t tell many people this, but Stacy and I have a bit of history.”

  “What kind of history,” she prodded.

  “It’s a long story, one that I’ll tell you over a bottle of wine someday, but Stacy hates me. She thinks that I stole Logan from her way back in high school. She started all sorts of terrible rumors about me, and when I came back to Chance Rapids, she tried to get in between us again. When that didn’t work, she switched her sights to Freddie. She’s been trying to get her hooks into one of the Brush brothers for years.”

  “Really? I can’t picture either of them with her.”

  “You think?” Charlotte laughed. “Trust me, Freddie wouldn’t touch Stacy with a ten-foot pole. She saw you as competition and she did what she does best… made up a story.”

  Serena couldn’t believe that she hadn’t questioned it, and hadn’t given Freddie the time to explain. It still didn’t excuse the fact that he didn’t stand up to Logan on her behalf.

  “Freddie loves you, but believe it or not, I think he’s scared that you’re going to hurt him. He doesn’t think you could live in our town and is saving himself from what he sees as inevitable heartbreak.”

  Serena’s shoulders slumped. “Why did I rush out of there? Why didn’t I wait to talk to him?”

  “You were angry. I get it,” Charlotte replied. “And the idea of my man with the town tramp wouldn’t sit well with me either. Now, get your ass back to Chance Rapids and give that man the chance to explain everything to you.”

  Serena felt like speeding through the mountains and back into the arms of Freddie, but then she remembered the cruel things that Logan had said to her and sat back down.

  “You might not know the whole story,” she said. “Logan hates me and said some nasty things to Freddie about me.”

  “Logan can be a dick, but he was just looking out for Freddie.” Charlotte quipped. “And now Logan knows about the contract too. Freddie got drunk and spilled the beans.”

  Serena couldn’t believe it. “And now Logan is okay with me?”

  “Logan feels terrible, and of course, he can see that you two are meant to be together, but like his damn brother, he’s too proud to do anything about it.”

  “So he sent you?”

  “He sent me, yes. But, he owes you a major apology and he knows it. I think he’s waiting to see if you’ll actually come back to town before he admits how much of a buffoon he was.”

  Serena’s head was spinning with all the news; this was a misunderstanding of epic proportions. She didn’t have to question whether or not to forgive Freddie. There was nothing to forgive, but he hadn’t tried very hard to set the record straight. More importantly, he hadn’t fought for her. No, she wasn’t going to rush back to Chance Rapids for someone who would just let her go like that.

  Her cell phone rang, interrupting the conversation. She tilted the device and saw that it was the clinic. “I have to take this,” she said.

  “Do you need some privacy?” Charlotte asked.

  “It’s okay,” Serena gestured for Charlotte to sit and answered the call with a lump in her throat. “Hello,” she answered. She tried to keep her end of the conversation neutral so that Charlotte wouldn’t be able to discern what was going on. Her favorite nurse was on the other end of the phone, and all she would say was that the doctor had an important update for her.

  “I’ll be there in twenty minutes.” Serena clicked off the phone, hopped up, and grabbed her purse. “I have to go.”

  “Is everything okay?” Clearly, Charlotte had picked up on the tone of the conversation.

  “It’s my dad,” Serena said, as she hurried to grab a sweater from her bedroom. She thrust her hand into her purse to try and find her car keys as she rushed to the door. They weren’t there. “Shit,” she muttered.

  “Serena,” Charlotte said. “Is your dad okay?”

  Serena stopped. “My dad has been in a coma. He woke up the day I left Chance Rapids. They won’t tell me what’s going on, only that it’s urgent,” Serena said, and as the words left her lips they were accompanied with tears. “And I can’t find my fucking car keys,” she said, shuffling the papers around on the table by her door. She flew into the bedroom, tossed the clothes off her bed and frantically patted down the duvet.

  “I’m parked out front. Let’s go.” Charlotte held up the keys to her SUV.

  Charlotte didn’t have to say it twice. Serena grabbed her by the wrist and the two of them rushed down the pathway to the car.

  * * *

  While they were driving, Serena told her the details about the accident and revealed that her dad was the reason that she had pressured Freddie into accepting the contract.

  Charlotte listened intently until they screeched up to the entrance of the clinic. “I’ll park the car and wait. You call me when you’re ready and I’ll come and get you.”

  “Thank you so much, Charlotte,” Serena said, her hands were shaking and she pulled Charlotte in for a hug, surprising them both.

  “Serena, you will be okay. No matter what happens,” Charlotte said. She looked like she was holding back tears too. Charlotte gripped her hand, Serena squeezed it back and then stepped out of the vehicle.

  Charlotte found a parking spot in the shade and pulled out her laptop to work on a deal. She was thankful that she could work from anywhere, and she knew better than anyone the anguish that comes with having a parent in the hospital. She was prepared to wait hours if need be, so was surprised when only one hour later her phone chimed. Serena was ready to be picked up.

  Serena pulled the door open and hopped inside the car.

  “He’s talking,” she gushed.

  “That’s amazing,” Charlotte replied as she pulled out of the parking lot. “I wish they would tell you that it’s something good over the phone. It’s so cruel the way that they leave you hanging.”

  “I know,” Serena had been picturing the worst. “He’s made such good progress; they haven’t seen anything like it.”

  “I’m so happy for you Serena.”

  Serena couldn’t hold in a gulping sob and the wail escaped through her lips. She clapped her hand over her mouth, embarrassed.

  “What’s wrong?” Charlotte pulled the car off the road and turned to face her.

  “I’m so tired of lying to everyone,” Serena buried her face in her hands and let the tears flow freely. They streamed through her fingers and trailed down her forearms.

  “What do you mean?” Charlotte turned off the engine of the car. She rubbed Serena’s back until her tears had subsided enough so she could speak.

  “The nurses showed him my social media posts. They said the news of my engagement perked him up so much. You should’ve seen the smile on his face. He couldn’t say too much, but he did tell me he can’t wait to walk me down the aisle.”

  “Oh,” Charlotte said.

  “Yeah,” Serena sobbed. “I couldn’t break it to him.”

  * * *

  Charlotte dropped Serena off at her condo and the two shared another hug. This time neither of them were surprised by the embrace.

  “I know that you don’t ever have to see Freddie again. You’re free to finish your contract and forget all about Chance Rapids. However, I hope that you don’t.”

  “Thanks, Charlotte,” Serena replied. “But Freddie didn’t fight for us. I’ve got a lot to think about.”

  The two said goodbye and Serena headed home. She sat down at her makeup table and looked in her mirror. The reflection that stared back at her wasn’t pretty. Her eyes were rimmed with red from crying and she looked like a rabid dog who had lost a tooth in a fight.

  She pulled out her phone and scrolled through the photos, seeing them as her dad would’ve. She looked like she was glowing. After the heavily edited photos came the ones that hadn’t made the cut. She paused on the photo with her raccoon eyes, the one where she looked like a drowned rat. These raw pictures brought emotion to her belly. That disheveled girl was her – and that girl was smiling at Freddie for real.

  All day she had stopped herself from reaching out to Freddie or jumping in her car and high-tailing it straight to Chance Rapids. Freddie didn’t even try to win her back. Why should it be up to her? She pulled her laptop out of her computer bag and her missing keys jangled as they slipped out. The two items, the laptop and set of keys, seemed to be staring at her, urging her to make a choice.

  She paused for a minute and then grabbed the keys, but instead of rushing to the car, she hung them on the hook by the door. Then she sat down on her bed and opened her laptop. She typed fast and furiously while the tears flowed freely down her face as she typed. When she was finished, she slammed her computer shut and held it to her chest. She had never felt more vulnerable, or free, in her entire life.

  Twenty-Seven

  Freddie pulled the curtain back and stared at the audience of screaming women. He heard that women from at least three towns over had made the trek to Chance Rapids for the Search and Rescue fundraiser.

  He wiped his sweaty palms on a towel as he watched Ray strut his stuff across the community center stage. When the audience roared in appreciation, he elbowed Mike, one of the volunteer firefighters. “Geez, how much booze have these women had?”

  “Beats me, but they must have their beer goggles on. Someone just bid two hundred bucks on Ray,” Mike dropped the curtain. “Can you believe that?”

  “I really can’t,” Freddie replied.

  The event coordinator, who also doubled as the town librarian, Julia, grabbed Mike and pulled him to the entrance. “Good luck, man,” Freddie said.

  Mike turned to him, “I better go for more than Ray,” he grinned and then did his best John Travolta strut across the stage, whipping the crowd up into an even bigger frenzy.

  The auctioneer started the bidding at $25. The date with Mike quickly escalated and as he exceeded two hundred dollars, he turned and smiled at Freddie, who gave him a thumbs up.

  Julia had let all of the bachelors choose their entry song, and Freddie picked the first song that jumped into his head, Sharp Dressed Man, by ZZ Top. He had debated between wearing his Freddie standard uniform of jeans and a t-shirt, but to stand out from the rest of the Rapidians, he pulled out his expensive suit, rationalizing, when else am I going to wear this thing.

  The bidding for Mike topped out at four hundred dollars and he strutted off the stage. Freddie’s pulse began to race and as the raucous guitar licks filled the room, he whipped back the curtain and stepped into the stoplight. Freddie was no wallflower and as the walls vibrated from the audience screams, he sauntered over to the podium and undid the top button on his shirt before grinning and doing his best Michael Jackson kick-spin move. He strutted to the front of the stage, slid out of jacket, and tossed it over his shoulder. He finished facing the audience and tipped his new sunglasses down his nose.

  The emcee started the bidding and Freddie continued posing and playing to the audience. ‘They’re eating this up,’ he thought. The women were bidding fast and furiously, but once the amount surpassed one thousand dollars, the competition had whittled down to two or three women.

  “Do I have thirteen hundred, thirteen hundred?” The auctioneer scanned the audience.

  “Thirteen hundred!” A raspy voice screamed out.

  “Do I have fourteen hundred?” A hand went up from the back of the room. The emcee pointed. “We have fourteen hundred.”

  Before she could continue, the raspy voice yelled out again, “Fifteen hundred.”

  Freddie’s heart sank, he knew that husky smoke-a-pack a day voice… Stacy. He turned to face the auctioneer and mouthed, ‘Help me.’

  He shrugged empathetically. “Do I have sixteen hundred?” The crowd murmured. “Sixteen hundred?”

  Freddie’s heart was thumping in his chest and he felt like he was going to throw up. He was going to have to go on a date with the woman who had just ruined his life.

  The metal door to the community center banged open and the woman silhouetted in the entrance yelled out, “Ten thousand.”

  Charlotte smiled at Freddie. Whoever that woman was, she had just saved him from a terrible night.

  “Ten thousand in the back.”

  All eyes turned to face the rear of the room, but the anonymous bidder was cloaked in the shadows.

  “Going once, going twice… Sold, for ten thousand to the woman in the back.” The room erupted in applause.

  Freddie jogged off the stage and high-fived Mike. “Ten grand?” Mike’s eyes were wide. “What kind of magic do you have in those fancy pants of yours? Who was that?”

  “All I know is that it wasn’t Stacy,” Freddie said, and sat down on a folding chair.

  As the auction wrapped up, Julia reminded everyone of the next community fundraiser, the Snowflake Ball, and instructed the winning bidders to stick around and have their checks ready.

  Charlotte was standing backstage when he got there, “I think it was the suit,” she winked.

  “It had to have been,” Freddie grinned. “I may have just gotten myself a sugar momma.”

  Charlotte rolled her eyes. “Freddie, before you go out there and meet this lady, I really think that you should take a look at this.”

  Charlotte held out her phone. “It’s Serena’s latest post.”

  Freddie sighed. “Charlotte, I don’t care what she has to say.”

  “Just look at it,” Charlotte said and thrust the phone into his hand. When Charlotte put her hands on her hips, the woman meant business, so Freddie trained his gaze on the screen.

  He couldn’t believe his eyes.

  It was his Serena, not the Serena that the world knew.

  For a moment he didn’t recognize the woman on the screen. Both eyes were ringed in black and she looked like she had been punched, her hair was wet and stringy, but that smile, that giant gap-toothed grin, he’d recognize anywhere.

  “I can’t believe she posted that photo,” he murmured.

  “I know. I didn’t recognize her,” Charlotte said. “But read what she wrote.”

  Freddie narrowed his eyes and focused on the text, it read:

  Dear friends,

  I don’t know many of you and you don’t know me, but I owe you an apology.

  Recently, a young girl told me that she wished her life could be more like mine.

  And it broke my heart.

  What you see here isn’t real.

  I spend hours editing photos. I take hundreds of photos a day and post ONE.

  It takes hours to make a minute of my life look breezy and effortless.

  I’m tired of pretending.

  Someone special took this picture and I freaked. I wanted to delete it.