Secrets Everybody Knows (4 page)

“I gave him a detailed list. He’s going to be at the grocery store anyway.” Beth shrugged. “It’ll take him half the time it takes me.”

“You asked the manager of the grocery store to get your groceries for you.”

“Yes.”

“Bob.”

“Yes.”

“To put the groceries in the basket for you.”

“Yes.”

“And ring them up.”

“All right already!” Elaine shouted, leaping to her feet. “Lily, get it through your head. Bob is getting Beth’s groceries for her so all she has to do is pick everything up on the way home. How hard is it to understand?”

Lily stared at Elaine for a beat, then turned back to Beth. “Michael’s father.”

Elaine stomped into the kitchen. “Christ. Lily, do you have any wine around here? Beer? Rum? Vodka? Rubbing alcohol?”

“Yes, Michael’s father, but they’re Nonie’s groceries. Elaine, don’t drink rubbing alcohol. It’ll make you go blind,” Beth called.

Elaine opened every cupboard in the room. Lily actually was a teetotaling schoolteacher. She didn’t even have cooking sherry. Elaine yanked open the fridge. Potato salad, lunch meat, the decimated remains of a rotisserie chicken, brown bottles. Elaine pulled one out. Beer. It might work. After opening all the drawers, she finally found a bottle opener.

Elaine walked back in making a face as she swigged from a bottle. “My God, this stuff is awful.”

“That’s Guinness, you cretin. I got it for that cheese soup I made for in-service day last spring.” Lily tapped her pencil on her notepad.

“It is the second worst thing I’ve ever had in my mouth,” Elaine said.

“What was the worst?” Lily shot back.

Elaine froze at the edge of the living room. Her heart paused between one beat and the next as her brain assaulted her nose with the scent of crushed grass and water. The memory seemed to want to grab her bodily and transport her back in time. Tears welled up in her eyes, and heat welled between her legs. All this time later and her body responded the same. He wasn’t even here. Beth stood up. “Now that that’s behind us, can we get down to work? Lily, why don’t you call George and see what he thinks about that steam table?”

“Why me?”

“Because you have a gift.” Beth grabbed Elaine by the arm and hauled her into the kitchen. “What is wrong with you?”

“Nothing.”

“And it shows. Come on, Elaine, we’ve been friends since we were kids. I’ve never seen you act like this. John’s going to be fine.”

Elaine chewed her lips. She studied Beth’s eyes, trying to decide how much her friend could handle. Beth’s dirty secrets were common knowledge, but Elaine had never been touched by scandal. If Beth knew–if she knew–

But Beth had so much to deal with. Elaine couldn’t burden her with something she should have told her years ago. Fourteen years ago. “I don’t want to add to your stress. Dealing with Nonie and Jean and having that guy visiting. Don’t worry about me. I can pull it together.” She set the beer on the table and took the notebook out of Beth’s hands. Studying the list, she tried to pretend she was the together person everyone thought she was. “I wonder if we could borrow a bus from Billingsville.” She sat down at the table and plucked a pen from the cup in the center. Beth had been right about this. Having something to do helped. It meant she only thought about Johnny every five seconds instead of every two.

Chapter 3

Three days after getting her first kiss from Johnny, Elaine found an excuse to go back to his house. Sue’s mother had announced that the silver should be polished. Then she took a bottle of whiskey and went upstairs. Dinnertime came and went while they finished the chore with no sign of an adult and no suggestion from Sue that they should prepare any food. Elaine was about to invite Sue to her house for dinner when she heard a car park out back and Johnny walked through the door.

“Mom?” he asked.

Sue pointed up.

“Dad?”

Sue shrugged.

“He left the garage two hours ago.”

Sue shook her head.

“Dinner?”

Sue shrugged again.

Johnny’s eyes flickered toward Elaine with the flat disinterest an older brother would have for his sister’s friends. “Fan-fucking-tastic.” He checked the wall clock. “All right, I guess it’s Burger King.”

Elaine stood up, clutching her hands behind her back. She wasn’t sure what to expect from Johnny. He couldn’t grab her in his arms and swing her around, but did he have to act like she was invisible? “I don’t have any money.”

Johnny shrugged. “I got it. Can you drive?”

Elaine shook her head.

“No learner’s permit even?”

Elaine looked at the floor. She suspected it might be part of the argument her parents were having, so she hadn’t brought it up.

“I guess I have to drive too.” He glared at Sue. “Shoes.”

Sue ran up the stairs.

“I better put mine on too,” Elaine muttered, walking into the kitchen where she’d left her shoes by the door.

“Hey, I talked to Greg and those guys. I told them I’d break them in half if anything happened to your sister.” Johnny trailed her to the table and stood over her.

“Thanks.” Elaine pulled on her sneakers. Her chest hurt. She didn’t know how she was going to eat. When had she become so stupid that she thought Johnny McMannus had any interest in her?

“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing. Maybe I should just go home.”

“Why?”

Elaine wrapped her arms around herself. “I don’t want to be in the way.”

“In the way? You think I’m ignoring you because I want to?” Johnny cupped her cheek. “Elaine–”

Sue’s footsteps thundered on the stairs.

“After dinner, in the barn.” He took a step back and leaned on the counter with his arms crossed. “How long does it take you to put on shoes? I’m starved,” he said to his sister.

“I wasn’t gone that long,” Sue complained. “I call shotgun.”

Elaine sat in the backseat, torn between relief and terror. Cute Johnny McMannus, the boy every girl in town drooled over, liked her. He’d said she was pretty and he’d kissed her. On the other hand, reprobate Johnny McMannus, the boy who had a felony record for statutory rape, liked her. The felony was bogus, but the fact that he had already had sex made her nervous. It opened a whole range of questions Elaine wasn’t sure she could ask.

But when he kissed her, he’d been so nice. She didn’t live in a cave. He could have done a lot more than he did. That indicated some kind of respect. Plus, he did her a favor, warning those boys away from Kathy. That explained why Kathy stayed home last night.

As they ate, she observed him. He took up one side of the table while she and Sue shared the other. His eyes stayed on his food. Sue asked a few questions about the garage, which he answered in as few words as possible. When Sue ventured that their father was probably at the bar, Johnny arched one eyebrow at her. Elaine only spoke when spoken to, other than to thank Johnny for dinner, and he grunted in response.

“Dad’s going to come home drunk,” Sue said as they climbed into the car.

“I know. Just camp out in your room like you usually do.”

“Maybe we should take Elaine home first.”

“Why?” Johnny started the engine.

Sue squirmed in her seat. “She might see Dad drunk.”

“She’s going to see it eventually.”

Elaine clasped her hands in her lap. Thus far she had not seen Mr. McMannus drunk. She didn’t look forward to that initiation into Weaver’s Circle citizenship. In his own home, he could only be worse. Should she invite Sue to stay at her house tonight? That would mean not getting to talk to Johnny, but it would get her friend out of her father’s reach. Elaine coughed.

Johnny glanced at her in the rearview mirror.

“Um, Sue, do you want to stay at my house tonight?”

“No,” Sue said. Her voice was so forbidding Elaine wanted to shrink back in her seat.

Johnny caught her eye again in the mirror. There was nothing readable in the look.

“Let’s just take Lanie home,” Sue suggested again.

“I don’t want to. She walked over, she can walk back.”

Sue folded her arms. “You’re a jerk.”

“I worked all day. What did you guys do? Polish silver? Wait ’til next year when you have to get a job.”

Sue pouted. “When are you going to teach me to drive?”

“When I get around to it. God, you’re worse than Dad.”

Elaine folded her hands in her lap. They were shaking and sweating. Her parents encouraged her to spend time with Sue. They referred to her as a “poor girl” and said she needed to be around someone like Elaine. They said the same thing about Beth Wilson. Would they feel the same way about Johnny? That he needed a nice person around him? Somehow she doubted it.

Johnny parked his car behind the house. Elaine crawled out of the backseat and then didn’t know what to do. He was walking toward the kitchen door. Hadn’t he said he’d talk to her in the barn when they got back? Had he changed his mind?

“You better go home before my dad gets here,” Sue told her.

“I’m gonna take a shower,” Johnny announced.

“So? Like anybody cares.” Sue followed him inside, letting the door slam behind her.

Elaine stared at the back door for a minute. Then she turned and started toward home. Passing the barn, she glanced at it. Maybe he wanted her to wait. He’d just spent all day working in the heat and there had been no reason for him to announce he was taking a shower. If anyone else found her here, she could say she wanted to see the car.

Light leaked through the gaps in the walls, casting weird shadows. She took her hair out of its ponytail and combed her fingers through it, wondering as she did why she wanted to look pretty for Johnny. As her eyes adjusted to the dimness, she ran her hand along the rear fender. The engine sat on sawhorses beside it. Opening the passenger door, she touched the cracked white leather. The outside looked good other than needing tires. She had no idea how Johnny planned to fix any of it. Or what he planned for her.

The door squealed open.

Elaine spun around.

“Elaine?” Johnny asked.

“Yes.”

“Good. I didn’t know if you knew I wanted you to hang around.” Johnny walked toward her, but then pulled up short right in front of her. His hair was wet and his shirt stuck to his damp body. “Hi.”

“Hi.” Elaine tried to smile, but it crumbled.

“I’m sorry I upset you before. I couldn’t let on to Sue that anything happened between us. Nobody can find out.”

“Something happened between us?” Elaine didn’t know what answer to hope for.

“I thought it did.” Johnny brushed her cheek with his thumb. “Elaine, you are such a pretty girl. I don’t know how I missed it, but all the sudden, you’re beautiful. I always thought you were nice. I understand if you don’t want any part of me.”

“You really like me?”

“Yeah, baby.”

“Not just because nobody else will go out with you?” Elaine clenched her fists. “Don’t answer that.”

“Why?”

“Because if you’re just spending time with me out of desperation, I don’t want to know.”

Johnny laughed. “What makes you think that?”

“You haven’t dated anyone since you got arrested.” Elaine’s lower lip started to quiver.

“I haven’t dated anyone because I haven’t wanted to.” Johnny put his arms around her shoulders. “Believe me, there are lots of girls calling. I want to be with you because I like you, not because I have no choice.” He spun away, leaving Elaine grabbing for the car to catch her balance. “Now that I find somebody I really like, she’s underage and I’ve got a record and Myers is still on my ass just waiting for me to screw up.”

“That’s why you couldn’t say anything in front of Sue.” Elaine clutched the car. She liked it better when he was holding her.