Page 12 of Fight For Her
She sounded like an excited little kid. It made my shriveled heart grow a few sizes like The Grinch when he realized the true meaning of Christmas.
“I think I saw it too.” I didn’t, but I wanted to see her smile.
Shawn gazed out the window before bringing his attention back to the road. “Those clouds look a little menacing. I hope we don’t get shitty weather.” He reached his palm out and settled it on Mia’s thigh. They were so touchy feely and cute. I wished I brought a barf bag.
Avery piped up from beside me, looking up from her phone. “I checked the weather before we left, and it said something about a storm, but they weren’t sure if it was going to blow out to sea.” She pushed her sunglasses onto her cropped pink and brown hair and scooted closer to her window.
I stared up at the clouds again. “Let’s hope so. Jill and Mike can’t have a beach wedding in a storm.”And I couldn’t get my poolside drink on either.
Seabirds swooped and dove catching fish in their beaks. Who would have thought I’d have seen this much nature from a truck window? Feeling relaxed already, I willed myself to keep these images with me so I could conjure them whenever I was stressed.
“Weren’t you and Coby planning a trip to the Keys at one point?” Mia asked while she twisted a loose strand of hair around her finger.
I winced at the use of his name.
“I don’t know. Maybe? Why are you bringing him up?”And breaking best friend code in the process.She glanced at Shawn before looking back out her window.
“No reason. Just making conversation.”
We went quiet again, each of us watched the waves out the window until Mia chimed in again.“I wonder how Coby’s doing. You haven’t heard from him have you, Avery?” Avery removed an earbud from one ear while I clenched my jaw.
“What did you say?” Avery asked.“Sorry, I’m listening to a podcast about the history of this bridge.”
“Never mind. Sorry to bother you.” She waved her hand and plopped her feet on the dash, tapping her toes to the music.
I knew my best friend better than I knew anyone else, so that meant I knew she only used her high squeaky voice in certain situations. She was either in customer service mode or hiding something, every single time. Mia pulled the visor down to fix her bun, but I caught her eyeing me in the mirror—suspicious as hell.I narrowed my eyes at her letting her know I was on to her. I didn’t know what she was up to, but I was paying attention.
After pulling off our exit and driving through the quaint seaside town, we finally pulled up to a huge Queen Anne Victorian style home. The sign that hung above the wide set of steps read Marin Inn and Restaurant in paint worn down by years of sandy wind. The estate was a beautiful shade of Tiffany blue with white shutters and a wraparound porch on its ground floor and upper level. Tall palms stretched up toward the second story and rich green shrubbery lined the walk. It reminded me of a bed and breakfast out of a black-and-white movie.
We parked and got out of the truck, stretching our knotted-up limbs. There seemed to be quite a few vehicles already parked in the small adjacent lot. “This wind is fierce,” I called out to Mia as we dragged our suitcases up the path with the ocean breeze blowing our hair in front of our faces.
She looked out past the main road and toward the shore. “Yeah, it’s probably because we’re so close to the beach.”Nodding, I followed them up the creaking steps into the lobby.
“Wow, there’s a lot of people in this place. You think they’re all here for the wedding?” I asked my group of friends. There had to be at least twenty smushed around the single mahogany desk all clutching garment bags and propping their wheelie suitcases against any random wall space. Buildings this old were not meant to hold this many people in one space at one time.My eyes momentarily met the frantic faced young woman behind the desk, and I knew I had to jump in and help out.
“Mi, can you hold onto my bag?” I didn’t wait for a response as I maneuvered my way through the crowd toward the stressed-out concierge.
“Excuse me,” I bellowed in my best PR voice. When all eyes turned to me, I continued. “Is everyone here for Jill and Mike’s wedding?”
I’d only just arrived, but I didn’t see anyone from class, not yet at least. No sign of the bride or groom in this throng either.
A chorus of yeses filled my ears, some sounded more huffed than necessary. I turned toward the employee and noticed her nametag read Bethany. Up close I could see that her dark hair was most defiantly dyed black and the red dots of a missing eyebrow ring were noticeable. She looked to be in her early twenties, and as her wide eyes took me in, she adjusted her posture.
“Hi, Bethany, I’m Kendahl Edwards. Sorry to take over. It looked like you could use a hand. Are you the only one working at the moment?” The line of wedding guests continued to talk among themselves.
Bethany gulped and responded, “Yes, my parents own the inn. I live on the third floor. They were supposed to be here for check-in. Uncle Mike told them guests would be showing up.”
I sighed. “Let me help you. I’m sure it can’t be too hard right?” Bethany bobbed her head, her eyes still the size of saucers.
She walked me through how to check-in. While they did the majority of the processing via a computer program, the inn still used old-fashioned keys. They were large enough to peek out of a normal sized pocket and each one had a keychain attached with a hand painted sea animal.
“These are cute.” I gestured to the rack of keys. At first glance it looked like this place had about thirty rooms, which was bigger than it looked.
She grimaced. “Yeah, that was my mom’s idea. She’s cheesy like that. Guests seem to like it though.”
With Bethany manning the computer and me handing out keys and itineraries, we made quick work of the line. Most of the guests cooed over her, saying they remember when she was born and then asking eighty-five questions about her parents. I guess Mike had a big family comprised mostly of senior citizens.
I looked up from the row of keys to see Mia beaming at me, hand in hand with Shawn. “Girl, that was amazing how you took charge.”
