LITMIR.BIZ

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I suppose I could back out,” she told them. “But the truth is that I want to do something that stretches my limits, something fun. Waiting on tables at Wharton’s doesn’t qualify. And, if I’m being totally honest, neither does the idea of teaching kids their ABCs. I majored in education because it was a solid, safe career choice.”

      Raylene, who’d been silent up until now, nodded. “I think she should go for it. Sarah needs to prove to herself that she is so much more than that little Stepford wife Walter and the Prices wanted her to be.”

      “Amen,” Sarah said.

      Annie still looked concerned, but eventually she nodded, too. “Since I’ve been telling you ever since you got back to town that you’re much more intelligent and talented than Walter ever gave you credit for being, I suppose I can’t take it back now. Go for it.” She shot a dire look toward Jeanette. “If Travis gets out of line, the rest of us will have your back.”

      Sarah laughed at the protective note in her voice. “I don’t think you need to worry about that. Somebody who’s a player when it comes to women isn’t going to take a second glance at me.”

      Dana Sue reached over and squeezed her hand. “Oh, sweetie, don’t sell yourself short. Obviously, he already has.”

      Rory Sue’s visit home had been an exercise in frustration for Mary Vaughn and Sonny. She had no job lined up. Nor did she seem all that concerned about finding one. She’d flatly refused to consider anything Mary Vaughn or Sonny suggested about moving back home. Her opinion of Serenity seemed to be summed up in one oft-repeated word: boring. Mary Vaughn was at her wit’s end. Sonny was even more exasperated.

      “You’d think raising one child, especially a girl, would be easier than this,” he said as he and Mary Vaughn climbed into bed on Sunday evening after their precious little girl had headed back to Charleston to spend more time with her friends.

      “I’m sorry we never had the boy you wanted,” Mary Vaughn told him. “But you have to admit, there’s something about a girl and her daddy that’s special. Sometimes I felt like an outsider when you and Rory Sue would team up.”

      “That was true when she was nine or ten, but once she reached her teens, she didn’t have much use for either one of us.”

      “And then we hit her with the divorce,” Mary Vaughn recalled. “She never entirely forgave me for that.”

      “I’m the one who asked for a divorce,” Sonny said. “I told her that repeatedly.”

      “But she knew you never would have filed for it if I hadn’t done something wrong.”

      “Well, we’re back together now, just the way she always wanted. It’s not going to feel right if she’s living somewhere else. It’d be nice to be a family, at least for a little while longer,” he said wistfully. “One of these days she’s going to get married, and then things will change forever. I want her to be happy, but I can’t say I’m looking forward to that day.”

      “It’s a funny thing,” Mary Vaughn said, “but when she was away at college and you were gone, too, I still didn’t feel like one of those empty nesters you read about. It all felt so temporary. Then, sure enough, you and I got back together, but without Rory Sue under the same roof, it doesn’t feel quite right. I finally see what all those articles I read were talking about. It’s like a piece of us is missing.”

      “Exactly what I was saying,” Sonny said. “So, how do we get her home?”

      Mary Vaughn considered the question thoughtfully, or as thoughtfully as she could with Sonny beginning to lazily caress the curve of her hip.

      “I think we have to give her a little more time at her friend’s place in Charleston,” she finally conceded. “You know she’s not job-hunting the way she should be, or if she is, she’s finding out just how tough things are out there.”

      “I guarantee she’s not too worried about it,” Sonny admitted. “She knows we’ll keep supporting her for as long as it takes.”

      “That’s the thing. We can’t do that,” Mary Vaughn said, figuring it was going to be up to her to take the tough line. Sonny was putty in their daughter’s hands. “We have to give her a deadline. At the same time, I’ll give her an alternative.”

      Sonny’s gaze narrowed. “What alternative?”

      “She can come home and work with me.”

      “Why not with me?” he said at once. “She’ll inherit that car dealership one of these days. Despite what’s happened to the auto industry, we’re still doing well. She ought to at least know the basics of running it.”

      “Can you see Rory Sue getting excited about selling cars? All she cares about is driving the latest, fanciest car on your lot. And given today’s market, she’s not going to make the kind of money she’s expecting with that high-priced degree of hers.”

      “And she will in real estate?”

      “She will working with me,” Mary Vaughn said confidently.

      Sonny finally nodded. “Okay, then, we have a plan.” He met her gaze. “Now I have a few ideas of my own.”

      Mary Vaughn reached for him at once. “Why, Mr. Lewis, I do believe we’ve been thinking along the same lines.” Even as she settled into her husband’s embrace, she was struck by reality. “You do know, don’t you, that if she comes home for good, we’re going to have to start behaving ourselves around here. No more skinny-dipping in the pool, for one thing. No afternoon quickies in the middle of the living room.”

      Sonny looked into her eyes, but it wasn’t alarm or even dismay she saw there. It was excitement.

      “You’re taking that as a challenge, aren’t you, Sonny Lewis?”

      A grin spread across his face. “You know, I am. The fear of getting caught could add an interesting edge of danger to these trysts of ours.”

      She laughed. “I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure how much more excitement I can stand.”

      His touches became more intimate. “Why don’t we experiment a little and find out?”

      Before she could reply, Mary Vaughn completely lost her train of thought. Whatever she’d been about to say couldn’t possibly be more important than the way Sonny made her feel whenever he put his mind to it. And lately, to her delight, he’d been putting his mind to it quite a lot.

      Chapter Six

      Until Sarah walked through the door at the radio station on Wednesday after her shift at Wharton’s, Travis hadn’t been totally convinced she’d show up. He figured, based on what Jeanette had told him about some screwy ritual called a Sweet Magnolias margarita night, that Sarah had probably had second and third thoughts by now.

      He hadn’t expected his reputation with women to come into play at all, but apparently it had. He’d been tempted a couple of times to tell Sarah he’d put that life behind him, but he doubted she’d believe him, especially since he’d been flirting with her since the day they’d met.

      When she stepped into the office at the back of the station, he was overwhelmed by relief. He couldn’t seem to stop the grin that spread across his face.

      “Well, look who’s here. It’s our morning deejay,” he said, standing up to move the pile of papers from the seat of the only remaining chair in the cramped space. “Welcome aboard, sugar. Have you met Bill Roberts?”

      She shook her head. “I did see you at the press conference, though.”

      “Well, Bill’s the one who’s going to make sure we don’t go on the air and make fools out of ourselves,” Travis said.

      Sarah gave him a weak smile. “Then you’re probably going to have your work cut out for you. This is all new to me.

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