Page 18 of Good Girls Beg

Okay, I could think of a few things, but when it came down to it, if they were willing to help save the bar, I'd do almost anything.

CHAPTER SEVEN

TEDDIE

I winced at the grinding my car’s engine made as I pulled into the parking lot and chose an empty space. I was going to have to her seen to, but it couldn’t be a priority at the moment. Loams was more important. In the meantime, I really should look into that bicycle.

I killed the engine before it died of its own accord and glanced through the windshield in the direction of the park.

The sound of children shouting and calling out to each other, came through my half-open window. Laughing in that carefree, effortless way kids had. Not a care in the world apart from what game they were going to play next.

I smiled to myself.

Nothing brought life back into perspective better than the sound of kids having fun, playing and learning about their world. I could watch them all day.

Instead, I scanned the park for three men. They'd stand out in a place like this just by being here. Recognizing them should be easy enough. Of course, they'd recognized me; they'd seen my face. I might look a little different in person, without a backdrop of a resort in the Bahamas, but they'd know it was me.

I couldn’t see any sign of them, but I opened the door and stepped out, lowering my sunglasses onto my face against the midday glare. The air held a hint of spring warmth. Before long, it was going to be unbearably hot, except for the breeze off the ocean. I couldn't wait.

Fortunately for everyone concerned, I didn't spot a film crew. No one peered out from between the trees, ready to laugh at me. No one so much as glanced my way as I approached the picnic tables on the beach side of the park.

Faded wood, decorated here and there with graffiti, hadn't changed since I was a kid. I used to spend summer afternoons here, eating a hurried lunch before running off to jump in and out of the ocean. Both of my fathers constantly reminded me to put on more sunscreen, and to keep my hat on, even when the wind kept blowing it off. I could almost see them sitting on the bench opposite me, sharing sandwiches and bottles of water, sneaking smiles at each other and me. Grateful to be our own, little family.

I slipped onto a bench and watched the waves crash against the sand, lulled by the rhythmic sounds of nature. Seabirds wheeled overhead. One dove in, coming back up a moment later with its catch; some kind of fish I couldn't identify from here.

The tang of salt was as heavy in the air as the nostalgia. I'd spent a lot of time in the last couple of weeks thinking back over my whole life and how lucky I was. How much I didn't want to lose any part of it.

I took in a deep breath, inhaling the smell of my childhood. If I could bottle it, I'd carry it with me everywhere.

I let my gaze wander down the beach and back up to the high-rise apartments that lined the shoreline further down. A hundred years ago, this was little more than a fishing village. Now, it was a thriving city. Busy even when it wasn't the height of tourist season. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. Didn't want to imagine it. Saltgrave wasn't perfect, but it was home.

“Theodora." A voice spoke behind me before three men stepped around, into my line of sight, jostling for space on the bench opposite me.

"Teddie," I said automatically, before I caught sight of their masked faces.

They were taking this whole keeping-their-identities-a-secret thing seriously, weren't they? Once again, I wondered if I should have brought my mask. Of course, that would have been pointless. They already knew who I was.

Still, if masks were what we were doing, shouldn't I be wearing one too? Not that I'd ever cared about being on trend. I had my own style, including being maskless in broad daylight.

Like the other night, they sat with Blondie on the left, Mr. Bored on the right, and the intense man in the middle. The one I'd come to think of as the spokesman of the group. It was him I concentrated my attention on. If I was going to get any straight answers, they'd come from him.

"For a minute, I thought you weren't coming," I said lightly.

The breeze blew their scent in my direction. I recognized Blondie's black cherry and leather. Sandalwood and musk must be coming from the other two, mixed with the ocean. The combination was intoxicating.

Shhh, I told my clit.

"Why wouldn't we be coming?" Mr. Bored said. He liked his innuendos, didn't he? That one in particular. Honestly, it was a favorite of mine too, but coming from him, it hit different. Hotter. He was trying to get to me and it was working.

Don't let him get to you, I told myself. They'll take full advantage of you if you do. I couldn't afford for that to happen. I needed to be focused and in control. Of myself if not of the situation.

"You might have changed your mind," I said.

"Why would we do that when coming here is so much fun?" Mr. Bored asked, stretching out a hand toward me, palm up.

I eyed his hand, then back up to his masked face, still trying to place his voice. Was he in any of my classes? Did I work with him? He might be a customer of the bar. We could have met while I was helping out there. Wherever it was, I couldn't pin it down. Not right now. I pushed it to the back of my mind to let it simmer. At some point, I'd figure it out.

I ignored his comment and said, "This whole situation is weird. I'm sure you understand I might think it's some kind of setup." They wouldn't be surprised by that, surely? People had pulled lesser pranks than this.