Home In Carolina

She sounded so woebegone that Ty sank down beside her on the sofa. “I can’t believe you don’t have plenty of friends without doing something like this. You’re pretty and smart and funny.”

“I have braces and I’m too smart,” she countered.

“The braces will only be on a few more months, and there’s no such thing as too smart,” Ty told her.

“There is if you like Dougie Johnson. He calls me Brainiac—and he doesn’t mean it in a good way.”

“Then Dougie Johnson is an idiot and not good enough for you,” Ty declared emphatically.

“But he’s sooo cute,” Katie said plaintively. “I’ve liked him since second grade.”

Ty hid a smile. “Then it’s time you met someone new. Why don’t you come with me to the ball field today? I’ll bet there’s someone on one of the teams who’s cuter and smarter than Dougie Johnson and who’ll think you’re awesome.”

She hesitated, her expression thoughtful. Eventually, she said, “There is this one guy who plays on Tom’s team. He’s at least fifteen and way cuter than Dougie. I asked Jeanette at the spa—she’s married to Tom now—if she could find out if he had a girlfriend, and she told me he doesn’t. I’ll bet if he finds out I’m your sister, he’ll pay attention to me.”

At last, a way to use his fame for good, Ty thought with amusement. He’d be his little sister’s teenage boy magnet. Of course, if one of the little punks even looked at her cross-eyed, Ty would be forced to beat the daylights out of him, but he’d cross that bridge later.

“Let’s go hook up with Cal and the little guys,” he said. “Then we’ll put this operation into action.”

Katie grinned at him. “You’re the best big brother ever.”

He waved the fistful of money under her nose. “Let’s not tell Mom why you think so,” he warned. “You need to give this money back, okay? Promise me.”

“Do I have to?”

“If you want me to find you a cool guy, you do.”

“Okay,” she said grudgingly. “But this guy better be worth it. I was saving up for a new iPod. I lost my old one, and Mom says I have to replace it myself so I’ll learn to be more responsible.”

Ty draped an arm across her shoulders. “Growing up and being responsible sucks, doesn’t it?”

Katie sighed dramatically. “You’re telling me.”

Annie was working with one of her regulars when Sarah came in, twenty minutes early for her appointment.

“You must be really eager to get started,” Annie said, surprised not just by the early arrival, but also by the spark of excitement in Sarah’s eyes.

“Forget the workout. I heard something this morning, and I couldn’t wait to get in here to tell you. It’s going to make your day.” She grinned at Annie’s client. “I’m sorry to interrupt your session, but could I borrow her for just one minute?”

“If it means I can stop this torture while she’s gone, take your time,” Marijo Butler said.

Annie gave her a stern look. “Just for that, do ten more reps while I’m gone.”

She walked to the side of the room with Sarah. “What’s this about?”

“Ty,” Sarah said, then held up her hand when Annie would have turned right around and walked away. “I know he’s bound to be a sore subject with you, but this will cheer you up. It was the hot news at Wharton’s this morning.”

She described how Katie had been selling admission to her friends to catch a glimpse of Ty. “So the word is already all over Wharton’s, and then he and Katie walk in to join Cal Maddox. The whole place erupts with wolf whistles and catcalls. Ty about died right on the spot.”

Despite herself, Annie couldn’t help chuckling. Served him right.

“I swear I don’t think I’ve ever seen anybody so embarrassed in my whole life, except maybe you after you passed out in his arms while you were dancing at his mom’s wedding to Coach Maddox.”

Annie flinched. “I’d really rather not think about that,” she said. It was a memory she’d tried to bury, though Dr. McDaniels dragged it out every once in a while as a reminder of when she should have realized just how bad her eating disorder had gotten.

Sarah regarded her intently. “But the story was worth it, wasn’t it? You’re not mad at me for mentioning Ty?”

“I’m not mad.”

“One of these days we’re going to have to sit down so you can tell me how things between the two of you got to be such a mess. I saw the tabloids in the supermarket a few years back and couldn’t believe my eyes. What on earth was that man thinking?”

“We’ll have to wait till I figure that out myself,” Annie said. “Now, since you’re here early, there’s no point in wasting time. Go spend the extra few minutes on the treadmill until I can get to you.”

Sarah looked distraught. “You are mad at me, aren’t you?”

“No, I’m being a good friend by making you do what you came to me for. You did hire me to see that you had a hard workout, right?”

“Something I could come to regret,” Sarah grumbled, but she dutifully went off and climbed onto a treadmill, leaving Annie to gloat quietly to herself over the scene Sarah had described in Wharton’s.

Then she thought of sweet little Katie doing such a thing in the first place and her smile spread. Maybe she wasn’t going to have to do a thing to humiliate Ty and have her revenge for the pain he’d caused her. At this rate, his family might make him suffer quite nicely without her help.

Because she couldn’t help herself, Annie lingered at the spa after closing to see if Ty would show up for his workout. She was still in her office when Elliott walked in.

“You know Ty’s going to be here soon, right?”

She grinned. “I’m counting on it.”

Elliott looked taken aback for an instant, then chuckled. “Oh, you heard about the teen version of show-and-tell, didn’t you?”

Annie nodded. “I hear it’s the talk of the town.”

“And you intend to rub it in,” he guessed.

“Just a little.”

“As long as you’re hanging out, anyway, you could take over his session and I could get home to Karen,” Elliott suggested slyly. “I hate having a wife I hardly ever see.”

“Don’t pull that pitiful act with me. I happen to know that Karen works at the restaurant on Saturday nights, anyway, so you’re not missing out on alone time with her.”

Elliott sighed dramatically. “What was I thinking, trying to put one over on her boss’s daughter?”

“I think you were just trying to throw me together with Ty,” she told him. “And it’s not going to work. All I want is a few minutes of gloating time, and then I’m out of here.”

Just then Ty appeared in the doorway. Clearly he’d overheard her remark, because there was a telltale blush on his cheeks. “I gather you heard.”

“I did. You’re now the poster boy for the young teen girls in Serenity. How does it feel?”

“Ridiculous,” he muttered.