Wanting to Remember, Trying to Forget (Meet the Shepards, #1)

July

Danny shifted in her seat as Max parked the car. A nervous knot had developed in her stomach during the drive to the conference venue. She was so scared that she had maybe missed something and the function was going to be a flop, like the sponge cake she had tried to bake last week. There were going to be over two hundred people there tonight and she didn't want it to be an epic fail.

She pulled down the visor on the passenger side and checked her make-up in the small mirror. That looked fine. It was her hair that was the problem. It was an awkward length now, long enough to cover the scar but still too short to actually style it. She had trimmed it a bit yesterday to get rid of the edges that were curling in all directions. With her short hair and small boobs, she could definitely pass as a boy if she wore the right clothes. She didn't wear the right clothes, though, so tonight she looked like a boy in a dress.

Max kept telling her that she looked beautiful, but his opinion was a little biased. She still felt incredibly self-conscious. Every dress in her cupboard had a low-neckline. Add the scar to the boy in a dress look and she beginning to regret coming to this dinner.

Max walked around to the passenger side and opened the door. She slowly stepped out into the warm summer air. There was no need for a cardigan on a hot night like this, but she pulled it on anyway and began buttoning it up.

"Don't cover it," he said, placing his hand over hers.

His fingers slowly moved over scar and Danny could only smile. He had the oddest fascination with that thing. The only person in the world who could see beauty in something so ugly. She relented, though, and pulled off her cardigan, because she realized then that his opinion was the only one that actually mattered.

She took his hand and walked with him into the venue. What had looked like clown vomit just two days ago, now looked like a properly themed carnival. Two popcorn machines stood right at the entrance and the heavenly smell mingled with that of syrup-dipped donuts.

"It looks amazing," Max commented as his eyes scanned the colorful room. "I'm proud of you."

The words filled her with a warm, fuzzy feeling. She had rearranged the tables to make room for a decent sized dance floor. There was a clown on there now, circling around on his unicycle.

Danny led Max to the back of the room to a table that was reserved for them, Amber and Charlie. Amber was already there, looking breathtakingly beautiful in a deep green dress which accentuated her perfectly tanned skin and auburn hair.

"You did it again," she said, waving her hand around the room. "It looks amazing. And these starters are divine."

"Thanks," Danny said, sitting down beside her. "I can't cook, but at least now I know people who can."

Charlie arrived a few minutes later. "Amber," he said, taking a seat, "you're looking lovely this evening."

"Why, thank you, Charlie."

He looked over at Danny. "You, too, Sat— uh, Danny."

Danny smiled. Charlie slamming brakes mid-sentence had not gone unnoticed. "What were you about to call me?"

"Just an old nick-name," he responded with a shrug. "Old habits die hard."

"I get the feeling you don't like me very much."

Charlie nodded. "Your feeling would be correct. But how about we start afresh? I've called you Satan. You've said that I look...old and now that everything is out in the open we can begin to heal. Let's just put all that behind us, shall we?"

Danny laughed at the dramatic flair he had added to his words. "Sure, Charlie."

The waiters came around, serving dinner which was surprisingly more delicious than the starters. There were a variety of options but they had all ordered lamb shank on a bed of mashed potatoes accompanied with steamed green beans and carrots.