up and realizing you only have one more night in your safe haven really makes you want to go back to sleep. Alas, such luxuries aren’t something a gal like me is privy to. Now it’s nearing lunch and I’m sitting on a park bench, people watching and wondering what the hell I’m going to do next.
Lost in thought, I don’t notice the woman approaching until she drops onto the bench beside me. “Hi, do you mind if we share your bench?” she chirps, and I can’t help but smile at her bubbly demeanor.
I nod, careful to keep my wave of hair covering the majority of my face. “Of course!” I say, scooting closer to my edge.
“I’m Shelly, and this is my son Logan,” she introduces herself and the small boy hiding behind her shyly.
“Mama, can I go play?” Logan begs.
Shelly nods. “Stay where I can see you. And no talking to strangers!” she yells after him as he takes off toward the playground.
She laughs under her breath. “That boy.”
Shelly keeps her eyes firmly on Logan as she continues to talk. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
I clear my throat, a little uncomfortable that she’s seated on my scarred side. “Oh, sorry about that. I’m Oakley, nice to meet you.”
Shelly glances away from her son and flashes me a wide grin. “I freaking love your accent.”
I grin. “My mama always said, you can take the girl out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the girl.”
“Ya darn tootin’.” Shelly tries in the worst southern accent I’ve ever heard and we both burst out laughing.
A comfortable silence follows as we watch the playground in front of us. Logan grabs hold of a bright yellow rope ladder and hauls himself up to the second level of the fort. With his hands gripping the side rail, he calls out for his mama and waves frantically. Shelly waves back, smiling like Logan is the brightest star in the sky.
A gust of wind blows through the field and before I can reach to hold it down, my shield of hair is lifted, revealing the right side of my face to my bench mate.
My gasp catches in my throat and I turn away from Shelly, giving her my back as I struggle to pull my hood over my head. A soft touch to my arm halts my movements.
My heart hammers in my chest. There’s no way she didn’t see my face. No way she would want to look at me again. I can’t turn around now. I don’t want to see the look of disgust on her face. I should just leave.
“You don’t have to hide,” she whispers, and tears burn my eyes.
“It’s better this way,” I mumble. “I don’t want to scare anyone.”
Shelly releases my arm and from the corner of my eye I see her make a show of looking around. “I don’t see anyone running scared. Do you?” Before I can answer her, she reaches around and gently pushes my hair behind my ear.
Her smile is blinding. “There, that’s better.”
Doubt is chased away and hesitant hope settles in. In the years since I was burned, finding people who aren’t skittish of my scars has been few and far between. Angels Cove is the first place I’ve been where I feel comfortable enough not to constantly hide.
“Please let me know if you’d like me to cover it before Logan gets back,” I offer.
Shelly’s button nose scrunches. “Why would you need to do that?” Her question is genuine.
I shrug. “Sometimes it makes kids uncomfortable.” That’s a lie. It always makes kids uncomfortable. Hell, most of the time it makes adults uncomfortable too.
“It’s sweet of you to offer, but you don’t have to worry about that with him. Logan’s a sweet boy and I’ve done my best to teach him to see that what’s on the inside of someone is what makes them beautiful, not what’s on the outside.”
Before I can burst out into tears, Shelly glances at her lap before meeting my eyes again. Her gaze turns sheepish. “I need to admit something. I work at Corrupt.” She lets out a heavy sigh. “Well, that came out quicker than I expected.”
My back stiffens at the name of the strip club I approached over a week ago about a position they had available. It’s definitely an experience I’ll unfortunately not be forgetting anytime soon. Without fail, every time I begin to settle into my skin, something or someone is there to