Page 7 of Unforgotten

Because she’d won, now she would have to do a year’s worth of appearances and participate in the Miss Kentucky pageant. All while watching everything she ate, exercising as much as possible, and telling her parents how grateful she was for the money they spent on her dresses, shoes, highlights for her hair, and acrylic nails.

And somehow hoping that the creepy stranger who’d started sending notes to her social media pages would stop. And by now he wasn’t exactly a stranger anymore; she didn’t know him, but now she recognized him on sight. Until he started appearing—online and in person—she’d never seen him in her life.

The problem was that she didn’t know how to get rid of him.

“I’m feeling very blessed,” she said instead of any of that. “Thank you for being here.”

“I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else,” Bethanne said. “You know, I didn’t think I would find this beauty pageant stuff all that interesting, but I was wrong. I liked all the parts of it, and especially your speech about the importance of children’s literacy. That’s so very important.”

Her cousin’s expression and tone were so sincere that tears started to form in Candace’s eyes. She blinked. “You really are the best, Bethy.”

“Hardly that.” Visibly pushing some of her usual apprehension away, Bethanne added, “Would you like to maybe get a Coke or something? My treat.”

“You know what? I—”

“Candace, what’s keeping you?” Her mother’s sharp question startled her. “Oh. Hello, Bethanne.”

“Hiya, Aunt Dora,” Bethanne said softly. “It’s gut to see ya.”

After giving Bethanne a quick hug, Candace’s mother scanned Bethanne’s blue dress, bare ankles, and black tennis shoes before meeting her eyes. “It’s lovely to see you too, dear, but I have to admit that I’m surprised you’re here.”

“I couldn’t not be here.” Smiling at Candace, Bethanne added, “I wanted to cheer my cousin on.”

“That’s sweet of you, honey. Even more importantly, I’m glad you’re getting out more often. I’m proud of you.”

“Me too.”

“Before we know it, you’ll be back to your old self.”

Bethanne averted her eyes, leaving Candace feeling both embarrassed and frustrated. She loved her mother and knew she meant well, but sometimes she mentioned things that didn’t need to be mentioned. “Sorry,” she mouthed to Bethanne.

Her cousin’s cheeks pinked, signifying that she’d read her lips. Loud and clear. In response, Bethanne shrugged, but then, like always, she kept most of her thoughts to herself and was perfectly proper. “How are you, Aunt Dora?” she asked. “I trust you and Uncle Wayne are well.”

“We’re fine. We’re busy as ever. I’m sure your parents feel the same. I am so glad to see you. Tell your parents hello for me. Also, tell your mamm that I’ll give her a call soon to make plans for your father’s big birthday party.”

“Mamm will be grateful for the help. Somehow the guest list keeps getting bigger and bigger,” she joked.

Her mother chuckled. “They always do. Well, like I said, tell her that I’ll reach out in a day or two. Not only can we plan, but we’ll catch up on everything. I miss my sister.”

A genuine smile appeared on Bethanne’s face. “Jah, I’ll do that. Mamm misses you too.”

“Thank you, sweetie.” She enfolded Bethanne in one more quick hug. “Now, I don’t want to be rude, but I’m afraid your cousin has a great many things to do right now.”

“Like what?” Candace asked.

“Candy, what’s between your ears? Don’t you remember that the newspaper is waiting to interview the new Miss Crittenden County?”

She had forgotten. She’d also secretly hoped the reporter had changed his mind about interviewing the new Miss Crittenden County. “I’m sorry, Mom. I’ll speak to them now.”

“Don’t forget to talk about your platform.”

“About children’s literacy?”

“Yes, and how you want to offer support for victims of violence?”

That was also something she was passionate about. She just hadn’t wanted to mention it in front of Bethanne. “I won’t forget.”

Bethanne had taken a couple of steps away. Not wanting her to ever feel unimportant, Candace closed the distance and reached for her hand. “Bethy, I’d love to see you another day. Maybe we can plan something?”

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