Read String Beans (The Girls of Beachmont #2) for Free Online

released as he raised a brow. It would have been easy to give in, but my
head and heart were still a mess…not that he was offering his heart.
    “Listen, Wyatt, you’re
charming…really. But let’s just say that I’m not a fan of men at the moment.”
    He studied me for a
moment as if deciding what to say, and when no words came, I dropped my
attention back to the book in my hand.
    “Ah. I got ya. So
you speak fluent Lebanese,” he said.
    I don’t know the
last time I laughed that hard, but his knowledge of chick-flick speak was
impressive.
    “No. I don’t, but
after what I’ve been through…it doesn’t sound bad,” I answered through my
laugh. “My life’s a little crazy right now, and I’m currently of the mindset
that your gender is everything wrong with the world.”
    He leaned forward
and smiled conspiratorially. “I can overlook crazy.”
    “What?” I asked,
both shocked and impressed by his tenacity. “Okay, well you must be
certifiable…and I don’t overlook
crazy.”
    “What’s your
definition of crazy?”
    I pretended to
think and then lifted my hand at him. “You.”
    He laughed, and
though I tried, I couldn’t hide my smile.
    “I take it you’re
new here?”
    “Wow, you are relentless,”
I chuckled. “Yes, Mr. Earp. I just moved in down the road—starting a
whole new life.”
    “Earp?” he smiled.
“Never heard that one before.”
    “I find that
surprising,” I quipped.
    “Whole new life,
huh? Sounds fun,” he said without a hint of sarcasm.
    I closed the book
on my lap and gave him my full attention. “How so?”
    “Not sure what
you’re starting over for…but the way I see it, you get to make your own path,
do anything you want, and not have to answer to anyone. Can’t be all that bad.”
    I mulled over his
statement, unsure if I agreed. Sure, I could do whatever I wanted, whenever I
wanted, but the circumstances that had brought me the newfound freedom weren’t
something I was celebrating. Before I could say anything, he tapped my knee
lightly and I looked at him again.
    “So what do you
do?”
    “I
teach…taught…music,” I said, missing my students. Alex understood my reasons
for leaving, though I knew I left him in a bit of a lurch.
    “Then you should
come out. We have open mic night every week,” he said
as he stood up. “I mean, if you want an excuse to come here to see me.”
    “These lines don’t
really work, do they?” I teased.
    “Not sure. Is it
working now?”
    “No such luck.”
    He was too natural
in his delivery for it to be a first; still, a part of me liked his flirting.
    Before he walked
away, he pointed to the book in my lap. “You could always join the book club.
They meet here twice a week.”
    “I’m not big on
book clubs,” I shrugged. “But I’ll think about it.”
    “Nice meeting you,
Viola. Welcome to the neighborhood.”
    I was attempting to
read the book again when I heard a voice shouting, though it sounded muffled. I
started feeling around, trying to locate my phone and when I did, I lifted it
to my ear and laughed.
    “Sorry, I forgot,”
I said.
    “Yeah, yeah.
Whatever. That voice. Is he as cute as he sounds?” Jolie asked, forgiving me
for my memory lapse.
    “Depends. How cute
did he sound?”
    “Like he’d make a
great addition to my ex-boyfriend list.”

 

Chapter 4
    When my parents
heard about the divorce, I waited for the inevitable “I told you so,” but it
never came. They were surprisingly sensitive and supportive to my plight, and
though a part of me wished I’d listened to them when they’d argued against it,
I knew I’d never regret marrying Will.
    It’s all a part of
discovering yourself, right? Blah. Blah. Blah.
    It was all
bullshit. Nothing about marrying and divorcing was a learning experience, other
than I learned that men were the spawn of the devil and no matter what, they
were put on this earth to completely and utterly destroy the opposite sex— ME!
    I was the epitome
of the