Blink Twice If You Love Me by Laurie Beach

Author:Laurie Beach
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance
ISBN: 9781959988519
Publisher: Tule Publishing Group, LLC
Published: 2023-03-17T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty

“I get my mean streak from my mama,” Birdie chattered to Scruggs over the counter at Tea and Tennyson as if there weren’t a store full of people there to listen. “And while we’re talking about it, my sass is from Seagram’s, and this here body is courtesy of biscuits. Now, get me some coffee so I can have myself a personality.”

“Coffee won’t help with what you’ve got going on, Miss Biscuits.” Scruggs was already in the process of making her a very caffeinated, very chocolatey, Early Birdie Special.

“Krista,” Birdie said, using her finger to motion her in. “We have got to talk.”

It took half an hour before Krista was able to take a break. By then, Birdie had chatted it up with almost every person in the room. The locals, that was. All outsiders were pointedly ignored.

“Sit here, child,” Birdie said, pointing to a corner table and looking around to make sure everyone else was out of earshot. “Now, we all know that once the funeral is over, people aren’t gonna be inclined to give you grace much longer. They’re gonna think you’re playing the victim if you keep with the sad face. It’s awful, I know, but it’s the gall-danged truth.”

Krista was grateful to sit, no matter what Birdie had to say. It had been an early morning, and she hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before. She still owed Emma an apology, and she would have no peace until she did.

“I’ve been paying special attention to the stories about Virginia and her new man,” Birdie said, “and I am sorry to say that she appears to be winning the fight.”

Krista sighed. “I can only hope that the truth will win out, I guess.”

“Those are sissy words. You have got to fight back.” Birdie was leaning in so close that she could smell the coffee on her breath. “Virginia cannot be allowed to spread lies about you in order to get herself out of hot water. I’ve been doing what I can, but I can’t handle it all by myself.”

“I don’t have the energy to fight the gossip, Birdie. It will pass if we give it enough time.” She had too much on her plate to spend time worrying about Virginia Buchanan. “I just want to be left alone.”

“Well, alone is exactly what you’re gonna be, my dear. And trust me, this is not the passing kind of lie, this is the reputation kind. Just when you were starting to make a good name for yourself in this backward town, all your hard work is going straight down the commode. Your little explosion at Emma didn’t help you none, either. I heard a damn bank teller talking about your little temper tantrum. Now—” She pulled a folded piece of paper from her purse and opened it. “I have come up with a plan. You’re not gonna like it, but if you follow it, everything will be right as rain.”

She wanted to tell Birdie to go away, to mind her own business and stop telling everybody what to do.

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