financial piece right. Sometimes she studied the numbers until she felt almost physically ill.
When the knocking started, she straightened from her desk in the back, assuming it was one of the stylists who’d forgotten her key. Instead the front door swung open to reveal two pairs of angry eyes glaring at her.
“How’d you do it?” Annabeth Sullivan asked, pushing past her into the salon without an invitation. Annabeth had been in the same high-school class as Julia, a girl Julia would have referred to as a “band geek” back in the day. She hadn’t been kind, and Annabeth, who now managed the bank reviewing Julia’s loan application, hadn’t let her forget it. Annabeth’s younger sister, Diane, followed her inside.
“Morning to you, ladies.”
“He never goes on more than three dates.” Annabeth held up three plump fingers. “Never.”
“Can I see the ring?” Diane asked, her tone gentler.
Reluctantly, Julia held out her hand. “It’s perfect,” Diane gushed.
“Kind of small,” Annabeth said, peering at it from the corner of one eye. “I figured you’d go for the gaudy flash.”
Julia felt her temper flare. “You don’t know me, then.”
Annabeth took a step closer. “I know you, Julia Morgan. I know you had your minions stuff my locker with Twinkies the first day of freshman year. And made my life hell every day after that. I spent four years trying to stay off your radar and still you’d hunt me down.”
The truth of the accusation made Julia cringe. “I’m sorry. I tried to make amends when I came back. I was awful and I’m truly sorry. I offered you free services for a year to try to repay a tiny portion of my debt.”
“A year?” Diane turned to her sister. “You never told me that.”
“Be quiet, Diane. That doesn’t matter now. What I want to know is how you cast your evil spell over Sam Callahan.”
“I’m not a witch. No spells, no magic.” She paused then added, “We fell in love. Simple enough. Is there something else you need?” She took a step toward the front door but Annabeth held up a hand.
“Nothing is simple with you. Sam is a good man. He went on three dates with Diane.”
“Almost four,” Diane added. “I thought I’d made it past the cutoff. But he got called to a fire and had to cancel our last dinner. After that, he told me he wanted to be just friends.”
“So, how come you two are all of a sudden engaged when no one even knew you were dating?”
“Even Abby was surprised and she knows everything about Sam.” Diane clamped a hand over her mouth as Annabeth leveled a scowl at her.
As Julia understood it, Abby Brighton had moved to Brevia to take care of her elderly grandfather. She was the police chief’s secretary and dispatcher. She didn’t know about Abby’s relationship with Sam, but the way Annabeth was looking at her sister, there was more to the story.
“Plus, you’re a little long in the tooth for Sam,” Annabeth stated, getting back to the business at hand.
Her mom had just said she was no spring chicken and now this. Lucky thing she’d chucked her ego to the curb years ago. “I’m thirty-two, the same age as you, Annabeth. We’re not quite over the hill.”
Annabeth pulled a small notebook out of her purse. “That’s old for Sam. He usually dates women at least four years younger than him.”
“And how old is that?”
“Don’t you know how old he is?” Diane asked.
Julia met Annabeth’s shrewd gaze. Calculated error on her part. “Of course. What I don’t understand is why you carry a notebook with Sam’s dating stats in it.”
Annabeth snapped the notebook shut. “I don’t have his dating stats, just a few pertinent facts. He and Diane seemed closer than any of the other women he dated. I want my sister to be happy. She had a chance before you came into the picture.”
Julia studied Diane and couldn’t begin to picture the dainty woman and Sam as a couple. “Did Sam break your heart?”
Diane scrunched up her nose. “No,” she admitted after a moment. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s supercute and such a gentleman. But he’s a little um...big...for me.”
Julia’s mouth dropped open. “Big?”
“Not like that,” Diane amended. “He’s just...with the uniform, all those muscles and he’s so tall. It’s kind of intimidating.”
“I know what you mean,” Julia agreed, although Sam’s size appealed to her. She was five-nine, so it took a lot of guy to make Julia feel petite, but Sam did it in a way that also made her feel safe.
“You have real feelings for him.” Annabeth interrupted her musings.
“I... We’re engaged. I’d better have real feelings.”
“Frankly, I thought this was another one of your stunts to show up the other single women in town. Prove that you’re still the leader of the pack and all that.” She glanced at Diane. “I didn’t want my sister to fall prey to you the way I did.”
“I’m not the same person I was. I can apologize but you’ll need to choose whether to forgive me. I don’t blame you if the answer is no, but it’s your decision. My priority is Charlie. I want to live a life that will make him proud. I don’t intend to re-create the past. You’re married now, right?”
The other woman nodded. “Five years to my college sweetheart. He’s my best friend.”
“Why is it so strange to believe that I might want that for myself? My parents had a great marriage and you probably remember my sister recently married the love of her life, who just happened to be my high-school sweetheart. They’re happy and I want to be happy. Last time I checked, that wasn’t a crime in this town.”
Julia pointed a finger at Diane. “If your sister wants to find a man, she will without you hunting down potential suitors for her or tallying lists of how far ahead of other women she is in the dating pool. Sam is a real person, too. I don’t think he intended to become such a hot topic of gossip. He’s living his life the best way he can. We both are.” She stopped for breath and noticed Annabeth and Diane staring at her, eyebrows raised.
She realized how much she’d revealed with her little tirade and tried to calm her panic. Maybe she didn’t want to be known as the town’s head mean girl anymore, but she had a reputation to protect. She made people think she didn’t take things seriously so that they’d never notice when she got hurt. She plastered a smile on her face. “What? Was that a little too mama grizzly for you?”
Annabeth shook her head, looking dazed. “I didn’t realize that’s how you felt about things. Sam is lucky to have you.”
“I’m not sure—”
“I’m sure.”
The three women turned to see Sam
