What are people saying?”
“Well,” Sue Ann began, “you
know I hear what most folks say on pretty much all subjects, because they talk
to me when they come into the cafe, so I have a pretty good idea of the variety
of takes on the situation that most people have, and here's the breakdown.
“First of all, some people
are saying that Justin just came down here for the will reading, to find out if
Parker left him any money, and that before you know it, he'll be up and gone
again.”
“That's not a concept
without precedent,” Amanda said regretfully.
“Well, that's the minority
opinion, to tell you the truth,” Sue Ann continued firmly, “to hear most folks
tell it, they think Justin will be around a good long time. They think he's
come home where he belongs, and that it's for good.”
She put her arm around
Amanda's shoulder and said quietly in her ear, as if to keep the juicy
observation just between the two of them, “And I'm sure their convictions were
more than strengthened after watching the way he's been looking at you all day.
Heavens, I'm certainly convinced he's sticking around for good after watching
him moon after you for the past couple of hours.”
Amanda chuckled slightly,
“From your lips to God's ears, Sue Ann.”
“Honey, I'll pray for Justin
to stay around with you all day long if you want me to, but mark my words –
those would be wasted breaths. That boy is out of his head for you, and there's
no bringing him back down from that. That boy loves you.”
Amanda smiled to herself.
Maybe Sue Ann was right. And, hey, maybe Sue Ann was wrong. But there was one
thing Amanda knew for sure, and that was that the words “that boy loves you”
sounded oh so very sweet to her ears.
Chapter 10
Karina walked up to Justin
at the food table, where he was loading a plate with a towering pile of food.
She smiled and said, “I was going to give you my usual shoulder-to-shoulder
bump greeting, but I'm afraid if I jostle your arm even a tiny bit, enough
roast beef to feed a small nation will come cascading off your plate.”
Justin laughed, “I know. I'd
blame it on the mountain air, but I've been living in the mountains, so that
would be BS. I don't know what to tell you. I'm a pig.”
Karina barked out a short
laugh, “Nice segue, and you didn't even know it.”
Justin furrowed his brow in
a puzzled expression, “Segue?”
“Yes,” Karina smiled, “I
wanted to talk to you about something, and it's actually about the possibility
of you being a pig, or possibly not, although in a different sense than you just
meant.”
Justin groaned. “Lemme
guess. Is this the 'don't hurt Amanda' speech?”
Karina nodded, “You bet your
ass it is.”
Justin sighed, “OK, go
ahead.”
Karina looked at him
sharply, “Hey, Justin, I know we kid around a lot, but I'm serious about this.
Amanda's one of my best friends. I love her to death. I'm not joking right
now.”
He nodded, “You're right.
Come on, let's sit.” They moved over to one of the park benches and sat,
putting their plates down between them.
Justin began, “Look, Kar, I
know you're serious about protecting Amanda. I want to protect her too. I take
that seriously. I only groaned because it seems like you're the thousandth
person to come up and warn me about the exact same thing tonight. 'Don't hurt
Amanda!' It's like the theme of the day.”
“Good, I stand behind that
theme one hundred percent,” Karina affirmed.
“And, believe me, it's not
like I want to hurt her. My God! That's the last thing I want. I just don't get
it.”
“What don't you get?”
Justin shrugged, “Well, I
mean...I know that the town loves Amanda. Like how they say so-and-so is
'America's Sweetheart' – Amanda is Hope Falls' Sweetheart. So they're
protective of her, I get that.
“I also get that her Dad
just died, so everyone knows she's feeling vulnerable, so they would be extra
eager to protect her, and warn me off if they thought I might hurt
“Well,” Sue Ann began, “you
know I hear what most folks say on pretty much all subjects, because they talk
to me when they come into the cafe, so I have a pretty good idea of the variety
of takes on the situation that most people have, and here's the breakdown.
“First of all, some people
are saying that Justin just came down here for the will reading, to find out if
Parker left him any money, and that before you know it, he'll be up and gone
again.”
“That's not a concept
without precedent,” Amanda said regretfully.
“Well, that's the minority
opinion, to tell you the truth,” Sue Ann continued firmly, “to hear most folks
tell it, they think Justin will be around a good long time. They think he's
come home where he belongs, and that it's for good.”
She put her arm around
Amanda's shoulder and said quietly in her ear, as if to keep the juicy
observation just between the two of them, “And I'm sure their convictions were
more than strengthened after watching the way he's been looking at you all day.
Heavens, I'm certainly convinced he's sticking around for good after watching
him moon after you for the past couple of hours.”
Amanda chuckled slightly,
“From your lips to God's ears, Sue Ann.”
“Honey, I'll pray for Justin
to stay around with you all day long if you want me to, but mark my words –
those would be wasted breaths. That boy is out of his head for you, and there's
no bringing him back down from that. That boy loves you.”
Amanda smiled to herself.
Maybe Sue Ann was right. And, hey, maybe Sue Ann was wrong. But there was one
thing Amanda knew for sure, and that was that the words “that boy loves you”
sounded oh so very sweet to her ears.
Chapter 10
Karina walked up to Justin
at the food table, where he was loading a plate with a towering pile of food.
She smiled and said, “I was going to give you my usual shoulder-to-shoulder
bump greeting, but I'm afraid if I jostle your arm even a tiny bit, enough
roast beef to feed a small nation will come cascading off your plate.”
Justin laughed, “I know. I'd
blame it on the mountain air, but I've been living in the mountains, so that
would be BS. I don't know what to tell you. I'm a pig.”
Karina barked out a short
laugh, “Nice segue, and you didn't even know it.”
Justin furrowed his brow in
a puzzled expression, “Segue?”
“Yes,” Karina smiled, “I
wanted to talk to you about something, and it's actually about the possibility
of you being a pig, or possibly not, although in a different sense than you just
meant.”
Justin groaned. “Lemme
guess. Is this the 'don't hurt Amanda' speech?”
Karina nodded, “You bet your
ass it is.”
Justin sighed, “OK, go
ahead.”
Karina looked at him
sharply, “Hey, Justin, I know we kid around a lot, but I'm serious about this.
Amanda's one of my best friends. I love her to death. I'm not joking right
now.”
He nodded, “You're right.
Come on, let's sit.” They moved over to one of the park benches and sat,
putting their plates down between them.
Justin began, “Look, Kar, I
know you're serious about protecting Amanda. I want to protect her too. I take
that seriously. I only groaned because it seems like you're the thousandth
person to come up and warn me about the exact same thing tonight. 'Don't hurt
Amanda!' It's like the theme of the day.”
“Good, I stand behind that
theme one hundred percent,” Karina affirmed.
“And, believe me, it's not
like I want to hurt her. My God! That's the last thing I want. I just don't get
it.”
“What don't you get?”
Justin shrugged, “Well, I
mean...I know that the town loves Amanda. Like how they say so-and-so is
'America's Sweetheart' – Amanda is Hope Falls' Sweetheart. So they're
protective of her, I get that.
“I also get that her Dad
just died, so everyone knows she's feeling vulnerable, so they would be extra
eager to protect her, and warn me off if they thought I might hurt
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