A Magnolia Kiss, Novella

Scarlet

I'm just trying to survive. The gelato shop my grandmother left me is struggling and I can't help but feel like a failure for letting things get this bad. When the annual fishing tournament starts up in Magnolia, I'm determined to win.

My plan is perfect, until my rival shows up. Not only is he back in our hometown, but he's set up his fishing gear right next to me.

Despite my efforts to ignore him, I can't help but be roped into his ridiculous proposition. If I win, he'll leave and never come back. And if I lose?

A single kiss.

Dive into this sweet, small town novella that is part of the Red Stiletto Book Club series.

Scarlett

“So, you’ll be gone from tonight until Monday?” Maggie asked as
she followed after me. We were across the bridge, in Newport, at a grocery
store to get fixings for some new gelato flavors I wanted to try out. Since
Maggie needed to pick up an order of sheets, we’d decided to make it a group
outing that included a quick stop at Macy’s Seafood Bar and Grill for lunch.

It was a perfect July day with the breeze coming off the ocean and
filling my nose with the sweet smell of water and salt. The sun was warm, and
it beat down on my shoulders as we grabbed a cart and wheeled it through the
sliding doors of Mom and Pop’s Grocery.

Ice-cold air conditioning hit me, causing me to shiver. I
tightened my grip around the shopping cart handle and tucked my arms in tighter
to my chest. Maggie wandered over to the oranges and I followed her.

“Yep. To participate in the challenge, you have to dedicate the
entire weekend to the pier. I’ve already got my spot marked off, and it’s the
primo spot.” I brought my fingers to my lips and kissed them like an Italian
chef would do when they created the perfect pasta dish.

Maggie chuckled as she filled a plastic bag with oranges. “Well,
I’m excited for you. I hope you win.”

I nodded. Not only would I receive the coveted Magnolia fishing
trophy—which had been the wish of my grandfather who passed away four years
ago—but I would also win five thousand dollars. Which, for my struggling gelato
shack, would mean a lot. I didn’t want to admit it, but there was a small
chance that I might have to close the little shop’s doors at the end of the
season.

I didn’t want to—it was a legacy my grandmother left me—but if I
couldn’t get sales up and steady, I would have to turn over the keys to the
bank.

I sighed as Maggie and I walked through the store. I grabbed a
frozen bag of cherries for a rum black cherry flavor I wanted to test out plus
a giant bottle of multi-colored sprinkles for a confetti cake flavor. Once my
cart was full of what I needed, we checked out and climbed back into my 1986
Chevy pickup.

When I turned the key, the engine roared to life.

Maggie and I chatted all the way back to Magnolia Inn. She was
excited because, this weekend, the inn was completely booked for the first time
since she opened a few months ago. She and Archer had been working nonstop to
bring the inn back to its former glory. They needed it to work if they were
going to prove to Maggie’s mom—the owner of the inn—that it was more profitable
to keep the inn than it would be to sell it.

I nodded as I listened to her talk. She’d been kind enough to
allow me to provide the gelato for the inn’s guests when she heard I’d been
struggling during our last Red Stiletto Book Club meeting.

I wanted to hide it. I didn’t want people to know how bad things
had gotten, but it had tumbled out, and before I could hurriedly backtrack,
everyone in the group had their attention on me. At that point, there was no
use hiding it, so I told them everything.

Every last embarrassing, soul-crushing detail.

One of the great things about living in a small town, people rally
around you to help if they sense your struggle. Soon I was getting orders from
the inn, from the diner, and orders for personal drop-offs to people’s homes. I
doubled my sales in just a few short weeks, which was nice, but I doubted the
longevity of it.

Which was why winning the annual fishing competition was so
important to me. I could get out from under the stress of my finances for a few
months and come up with a game plan for what my future would look like.

I didn’t like being backed into a corner where I was expected to
decide what was going to happen to me with only irrational emotions as my
guide. I wanted to be wise and make decisions based on logic. Having the funds
from the fishing competition would help me decide the best route for me to
take, because I would have time to think about it.

“This competition has been a godsend for us,” Maggie said as she
stretched her arms out and curved her back. She smiled over at me, and I just
nodded. “It seems everyone is renting a room at the inn so they can
participate.”

I pushed on my blinker and turned into the inn’s parking lot. I
found the only empty space and pulled in.

“Wanna come in for a quick coffee?” she asked.

I thought about agreeing but then shook my head. “I’ve gotta go
get ready. Tonight marks the start of the weekend madness. I need to be there
at five p.m. sharp.”

Maggie chuckled as she pulled open the passenger door. “Well, good
luck. I’m sure you’re going to kill it.” She hopped onto the ground and then
turned to smile at me. “If you need anything, just call.”

I gave her a quick salute and then waited as she pulled the bags
of sheets from the bed of the truck and hurried across the parking lot and up
the front stairs of the inn. I pulled out of the lot and watched as Archer
opened the door and took the bags from Maggie. He gave me a quick wave, and I
returned the gesture as I drove past. And just before I cleared the parking
lot, I saw someone who I thought had moved on from Magnolia.

My entire body halted, and somehow, my foot found the brake. I
came to a screeching halt loud enough to make the one person I didn’t want to
see turn around and stare straight at me.

Benjamin Williams.

I was right. He was there, standing in front of me. All his
six-foot-something of annoying handsomeness. He’d cut his hair from its
previous shaggy length, complete with a beard. It still had some length as it
fell across his forehead in an annoying way that made me want to brush it off.
His eyebrows rose as I felt his gaze sweep over me. Then he smiled. In his
annoying, cocky way.

My skin heated as I gathered my wits and gripped the steering
wheel until I was pretty sure it would yelp in protest.

In Magnolia, the Browns did not get along with the Williams. Not
when the Williams clan blew into town and opened a rival ice cream chain. My
grandmother was forced to shut down all but one of her gelato stores because of
their undercutting her prices. They had since sold their company and moved out
of town, but not before their work did its intended damage.

Damage to me and my family.

I glowered at him as I drove past, making sure there was no
questioning my feelings toward him. Ben studied me before turning to focus on
Levi, his best friend and lackey while he’d lived here. Levi was talking, and
whatever he said must have been funny because, just as I pulled out of view, I
saw Ben let out his signature full-hearted laugh.

It rang in my ears as I drove all the way back to the small gelato
shack off of Magnolia Beach. I felt agitated as I grabbed the bags of
ingredients and hopped out of the truck. Heat pricked at my neck as I shoved
all the items into spots where they would fit and then sat down on the barstool
that sat against the far wall and took in a deep breath.

So many questions were running through my mind as I stared off
into the distance.

What was Ben Williams doing back in Magnolia?

Was he here for good?

And was I going to have to interact with him?

I scrubbed my face with my hands as I tried to calm my emotions
down. Whatever he was here for, it wasn’t for me. So I needed to try my best to
not let it bother me. My goal for the weekend was to win the competition so I
could figure out where things were going from here.

It wasn’t my goal to get caught up in my emotions over seeing
someone who I thought had moved on and who I’d rather forget. I stood and
headed toward the small one-bedroom apartment behind the gelato shop. I hurried
to shove a few pieces of clothing into my backpack along with my toothbrush, hairbrush,
and deodorant.

It wasn’t required that you stay the night at the pier, but I was
determined to win. The biggest catch was mine to reel in. I wanted to be there
as long as I possibly could to make that dream a reality.

I glanced down at my watch and saw that I had thirty minutes to
get to the Magnolia pier. After throwing up the closed for the weekend
sign, I grabbed my phone charger and beach chair and threw them into the bed of
my truck. I climbed into the cab, and my wheels spun as I peeled out of the lot
and onto the main road.

When I came to a stop sign, I hurriedly gathered my curly red hair
up into a messy bun at the top of my head and returned my hands to the wheel. I
pressed on the gas and made it to the pier’s parking lot with minutes to spare.

I pulled the keys from the ignition and opened my door. I jumped
down, shoved my keys into my back pocket and made my way to the back to grab my
stuff.

I could hear the mayor testing the microphone, and I peeked over
my shoulder to see that a crowd had already gathered in front of the small
stage that bands played on during weekend farmers markets or evening parties. I
slung my backpack over my shoulder followed by my beach chair, which was in a
small bag with a strap.

I grabbed my water bottle and took a giant sip. Just as my mouth
filled with water, a very familiar voice sounded from behind me. It startled
me, and before I could stop myself, before my brain could register what Ben had
just said to me, I tipped my head up and spit the water that had been inside my
mouth all over him.

All over him.