Foraged Love in a Berry Grove - Love Tales from Santa Margarita Island Book 1

Chapter 4 - The Mount Vesuvius of Pain

With her heart pounding and her limbs vibrating with excessive energy, Beth dismounted Apl D'apl, hitched her bridle to the tree right outside the container unit serving as her office. Rushing into the coolness of the interior, she felt a little lightheaded and slumped down onto one of the arm chairs.

What an emotional rollercoaster that was! She had seen that handsome stranger staring at a raspberry, trying to decide whether to bite into it or not. He definitely grabbed her attention with his tall, muscular frame and chiseled profile. He had a scruffy jaw, aviators shading his eyes, and the most casual of outfits – a faded gray shirt, worn cargo shorts, and Birkenstocks. She thought he looked like a younger Gerard Butler, and wasn't it funny that she had just been swooning over the actor while watching PS I Love You the night before?

The attraction made her even more skittish than usual. It took all her willpower to not flee, which had been her knee-jerk reaction. After a minute of berating herself for her anti-social compulsions, she finally talked herself into approaching him and letting him know it was okay to eat as they picked.

The guy, Gage, was even more handsome up close. She wished she could see his eyes, but his sunglasses were mirrored, so all she saw was herself looking distorted and grungy. He was so nice though, albeit a little confused to find himself berrying, it seemed to her.

They got to talking and she was thrilled to learn that he also had a VW minibus. There was definitely a feeling of kinship blossoming, aided by their mutual acquaintance, Mang Leo. The Kombi world was a small one, especially on the island.

It was going swimmingly until the world got too small for comfort. Of course, he had to be friends with Patrick and Wandy. Just, you know, of course! And by the looks of it, he was also dating Nikki Schulz. Well, good for him. Nikki was beautiful, pleasant, and loaded, so good choice, Gorgeous Gage. Next time, Beth would be sure to give in to her instinct and walk the heck away. Her staff can just take care of the schmoozing.

She refused to think about Patrick. Her chest had tightened upon seeing him. Invisible hands squeezed at the organs within it. Her heart and lungs still felt pretty wrung out. Did that mean she still loved him? It had been close to four years. She was so sure she was over him. A couple of years back, it felt like she'd finally stopped hurting. But maybe it was just the lack of contact that made the pain dormant. It certainly leaped to vibrant life at first sighting. Perhaps she had been wrong to hide away. Or perhaps she should have just been better at hiding.

People. Why do there have to be people? Okay, she was a business owner; she needed people to come. She just needed to curl into this arm chair for an hour. Or a day. She just needed to stay still until her heart rate returned to normal.

Or she just needed to get a grip. She had beat this in the past. She had been mortified to learn she was getting borderline agoraphobic, and worked to sharpen her mettle and boost her gumption. She had bounced back. Okay, it wasn't quite such a springy comeback. It was quiet and hesitant, her day-to-day life carefully skirting her lurking anxiety.

That's how they found her, in the armchair, curled in a fetal position, napping.

"Ate!" Voices. Concerned voices.

"Ate Beth." Somebody gently shook her shoulder. It was Lisa. She used to babysit Lisa. Now, Lisa helped out some Saturdays when she didn't have to be at the library. She did it for a basket of produce to take home at the end of the day. Lisa's good people. She trusted Lisa.

There were three of them though. She blinked and focused on the crowd huddled over her. There was Jordan, her brother, and there was Iñaki, her cousin and farm manager. The men, along with Lisa, looked worried. Beth slowly straightened and put her legs on the floor, pins and needles pricking them.

"Are you okay?" Iñaki queried.

"Yeah, just getting the blood moving again in my legs."

"No, I meant are you okay after your encounter with certain people?" Her cousin clarified.

Beth had to chuckle. "You can name him – them. They're not Voldemort."

Lisa clucked her tongue. "I bet they're like dementors though. Want some chocolate?" She thrust a muslin bag at Beth.

"Well, I'm not about to say 'no' to Sandy's fantastic fudge, especially since it's almost lunch time and I'm starving." Sandy was the farm's kitchen overlord, also a professional pastry chef and Lisa's older sister. Beth took a square of brown delight from the bag and bit into it. Pure heaven.

"Good, good," Jordan nodded approvingly and rubbed his hands. "Because we don't have time for lunch if we want to get going now."

"Oh! The vintage car show!" Their youngest brother, Zion, was working the event, exhibiting his own 1970 Dodge Charger along with other cars from Mang Leo's restoration shop. The car show was a big deal. It was their country's answer to Woodward Dream Cruise. Car nuts from the other islands and beyond show up for it. Mang Leo's reputation has traveled far and wide throughout the archipelago and then some. "Yeah, I want to see Zion. Are Mom and Dad going to be there? Carmel and Noel?"

"Mom and Dad went this morning. Noel's still there. I'm not sure if Ditse Carmel is going, even if she's actually already there." The Yacht Club was right beside the marina where Carmel's boat was docked. If Beth was reclusive because of her social anxiety, Carmel was reclusive because of her wrath for the human race. She avoided people because she was ornery and thought they were stupid. She was a liveaboard, so she was usually on the water, painting seascapes, something she was doing really well with as an artist.

"I'll text her to show up. Zion would appreciate the support." With careful nonchalance, she glanced at the other two. "Can you guys make it?"

Iñaki shrugged. "If things over there are still hopping after five, I might."

They all looked at Lisa, who turned a tad pale. "Can't. I'm meeting with my reading group."

They all knew her reading group met at eight so she had time to pop by the car show, but they let it go. She couldn't very well have said that she'd rather hang out with a cockroach than see Zion, right? Unfortunately, Beth's youngest sibling wasn't Lisa's favorite person.

"Okay then," Brushing chocolate from her hands, Beth slowly stood up. "If you'd all disappear, I'd shower and change. Meet you at your truck in 15?" She raised her eyebrows at Jordan.

"I'll give you 30. Make yourself extra spiffy," Jordan grinned with a teasing glint in his eyes. "Lots of rich guys are bound to be there."

"Yes, I'll be on the prowl for a sugar daddy," Beth deadpanned before ushering them to the door.