Welcome to Serenity

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“Agreed,” she said, amused.

Her oddly upbeat mood lasted until she spotted Mr. and Mrs. McDonald—surely it had to be them—emerging from a shiny black car almost the length of a city block. They’d parked across the square from the town hall, which put them some distance away, but she knew in her gut she wasn’t mistaken about who they were. Her horrified gaze barely skimmed over the man, but the woman…she would recognize her anywhere. An image of that artfully colored blond hair, pale complexion and the arrogant lift to her surgically perfected chin was burned into her memory.

“Those are your parents?” she asked. “Over there, getting out of that limo?”

Tom shot a quizzical look at her. “Yes. Why do you look like that? You’re pale as a ghost.”

“I can’t meet your parents,” she whispered, frantically trying to get him to release her hand so she could bolt. Why hadn’t she made the connection before now? It wasn’t as if she’d never heard his last name or didn’t know he was from Charleston. She just didn’t believe in coincidences, that was all. Or she hadn’t wanted to believe in this one. It had been too awful to contemplate.

Tom was still staring at her as if she’d lost her mind. “Why can’t you meet my parents? Jeanette, what’s wrong? Is it the car? They have money. So what?”

“It’s not the car,” she said in an oddly choked voice. “Believe me, that car is the least of it.”

“Then, what? Tell me quick, because they’ve seen us, so it’s too late for you to run.”

“It’s your mother, Tom,” she said, still struggling to break free. “I know her. And you do not want us face-to-face. You need to trust me about that.”

He stared at her blankly. “You know my mother? How?”

“Do you really want to waste time chitchatting about the details? I need to go before they get over here. I can explain later.”

“Tell me now,” he said tightly.

“I know her from Chez Bella’s in Charleston. I gave her a facial once.”

He still looked blank. “Are you embarrassed about that for some reason? You shouldn’t be.”

“It’s not about being embarrassed,” she said indignantly. “She sued Bella. Claimed I almost destroyed her skin. That suit could have cost me my job, my reputation. The only reason it didn’t was because Bella had heard that she’d done the same thing at another spa in town. She’s allergic to some ingredient. Her dermatologist has explained it to her, but for some reason she refuses to accept that she can’t have the same treatments that all her friends have, so she just moves from spa to spa, raising a ruckus along the way. She freaks because her skin breaks out in hives. Now, will you let me go before she and I have this out right here?”