have two years of high school left. Have you thought about your plans for college?”
Shelby sighed. “First off, I don't know where I'll be finishing high school. I wouldn't mind staying here for it.”
"The former mayor, my friend, Eleanor, knows all about the school, and truthfully the whole town!” Alice thought a moment. “We could also talk to Joann. She was an English teacher there and said it has a top-notch curriculum."
"I don't think my mom would let me stay. Although, I don't know when and if she's even coming back."
“Of course your mother's coming back. We never know when, though."
They both laughed.
"I'm so glad I came," said Shelby. “This is already my best summer ever.”
"Me too,” Alice said. “Now, let's get you home. Put on one of those cute bathing suits, and you march right down to the beach."
As if they had radar that homed in on Shelby in her vulnerable moments, the teenage girls from the beach appeared, dripping with shopping bags. Except for Emily, who she recognized from Redd’s Ice Cream Parlor, the girls were all made up and wearing perfect little outfits. They snickered as they walked by, seeing Shelby sitting with her grandmother.
Shelby sighed. "I can’t escape those girls anywhere." She’d even tried to be nice to one of them that morning.
"Those girls?” Alice asked, watching them saunter by.
“This is not the first time they’ve acted like this to me. Remember that movie? Maybe you saw Mean Girls."
"Oh, yes," Alice said. "I recognize the tall, pretty blonde one. Her name is Madison. She always has a posse of girlfriends with her."
Shelby nodded in assent.
"I’ve heard about them from Eleanor," Alice said. "She complains that her niece who lives here, Emily, is not the same girl when she hangs out with Madison every summer.”
“So, they don’t live here all year?”
Alice shook her head and Shelby was relieved. “They have one of those architectural homes right on the lake,” Alice said. “They don’t interact much with the locals. Their friends tend to arrive by boat or fly in. Madison seems like an unhappy girl. She never looks up or says hello."
Shelby hadn’t thought about Madison’s personality reflecting her own unhappiness. "Yeah. Well, she sure knows Logan."
"Logan across the street?" Alice said.
“He’s the lifeguard down at the lake.”
"Oh, that's right,” Alice said. "What about him?"
“Madison and Logan seem to have a thing."
"Well you'd think that boy would have better taste,” Alice said, her eyes amused.
Shelby squelched a laugh. "Oh, Grandma."
"You don't let those girls bully you," Alice said. "You're the prettiest of them all.”
A voice from behind them said, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?”
Shelby turned to see a tall, elegant white-haired woman carrying two large shopping bags from the fanciest department store within a hundred miles.
Her grandmother stood. “Eleanor,” she said. “Come join us. This is my granddaughter, Shelby, who I mentioned to you the other day.”
Eleanor extended a perfectly manicured hand to Shelby. “Well, hello,” she said. “I remember you from the funeral. You looked so young then, and now look at you, a little over a year later and a lovely young woman. With those long legs and glossy hair, you could be a model.”
A warm flush moved up Shelby’s face. “Nice to meet you too,” she said.
Eleanor, in a cream-colored sheath dress, laid her shopping bags in one chair and pulled another up to join them at the table. “My feet are killing me,” she said. “I had to shop for two events. One at my husband’s golf course and the other with the city council. Now I need a gallon of iced tea.”
“It’s on me,” Alice said, pushing her chair back. “Black or green?”
“Black, please, and no sweetener.” As Alice walked away, Eleanor turned to Shelby. “Your grandmother tells me you’re going to be here for the summer and have started a little business. Good for you. Tell me more about your dog walking service.”
“Well,” Shelby said, “I’ve just started and already have a few customers and others interested.”
“That’s because it is a very needed service here at the lake. Smart girl. In fact, I hate leaving my little puffballs Dixie and Ruby alone when I’m gone so much.” Eleanor lifted up her sleek white iPhone from her matching purse and presented pictures of her dogs to Shelby. “Aren’t they just the sweetest things ever?”
Shelby couldn’t help but smile at the two perfectly groomed, pure white Pomeranians with black button eyes and noses, smiling into the camera. “Adorable,”