A Summer Romance Read Online Free

that Aaron
had set the plant on the counter near the kitchen window. He then
retrieved a small bowl and filled it with water from the sink. He
placed the bowl of water at his feet and the cat happily began to
lap it up. Then he looked at Maggie, holding her gaze for a brief
moment and stealing her breath once again.
    “Well, it was a pleasure meeting you,
Ma’am,” he said with pure southern hospitality as he tipped his
head and began to make his exit.
    “Wait! Aren’t you going to take the cat?”
Maggie asked desperately.
    “Nah, looks like he’s making himself quite
at home.” Aaron nodded in the direction of the cat and Maggie
looked to see that he had curled up on the kitchen floor and fallen
fast asleep.
    “But I don’t know how to take care of a
cat,” Maggie admitted. She’d never had a pet. Perhaps that was why
she’d developed the admittedly odd habit of naming inanimate
objects.
    “They pretty much take care of themselves,”
Aaron assured her. “Just give him food and water,” he instructed as
he opened the back door to leave. Maggie scrambled to think of
something else to say, something clever and charming.
    “Alright…” was all she came up with. Aaron
smiled and nodded his goodbye, then he was gone. She looked down at
the mangy creature sleeping on the kitchen floor and wondered if
you could give a cat a bath.

~4~
     
    As Maggie pushed the shopping cart up and
down the aisles of the small grocery store she could feel people’s
eyes on her. She was an outsider in a small town and she definitely
felt the part. She self-consciously rubbed her arms, which were now
covered in cat scratches. Apparently, cats in fact did not like baths. Her arms were visual proof of that. She’d considered
putting on a long sleeve shirt to cover the evidence but one step
outside into the Georgia heat was enough to make her willing to
risk a few extra stares at her bared and battered arms.
    She pushed her well stocked cart to the
register and smiled hesitantly at the girl behind the counter.
    “Welcome to Sweetwater.” The cashier smiled
genuinely as she began scanning the items from Maggie’s basket.
    “Do I stick out that much?” Maggie laughed
nervously.
    “When you grow up here you learn the faces.”
The girl shrugged. “I’m Andi,” she added with another kind
smile.
    “Maggie,” she introduced herself and
returned the friendly smile.
    “You’re stayin’ at the Devereaux place for
the summer, right?” Andi asked casually.
    “How’d you know?” Maggie found it odd that
anybody would know where she was staying.
    “I’d heard Ms. Devereaux had brought in
another stray,” Andi said offhandedly and then quickly realized her
words may have been offensive. “Oh… I didn’t mean…” she
faltered.
    “No, that’s alright. I guess that kind of is
what I am.” Maggie shrugged, smiling at her reassuringly. She
thought of the stray cat that had intruded on her morning, and her
heart softened to him a little.
    “Well, we’re glad to have you!” Andi said a
little too enthusiastically, obviously still trying to make up for
any slight. “So’d you run into a mountain lion or something?” she
quickly changed the subject gesturing to Maggie’s scratched up
arms, reminding Maggie of why she was still mad at that stupid
cat.
    “Let me give you some advice,” Maggie
instructed her seriously. “Never try to give a cat a bath.”
    Andi began laughing loudly and Maggie
couldn’t help but laugh with her. An old woman in line behind
Maggie cleared her throat impatiently.
    “Did you find everything you were looking
for?” Andi asked, slipping back into her role of cashier.
    “Actually, I was hoping to pick up a bottle
of wine but didn’t see any.” Maggie thought of the claw foot
bathtub waiting for her back at Devereaux Manor. She missed the
place already. Sweetwater felt too much like the real world. She
wasn’t ready for the real world.
    “You can’t buy any here,” Andi