Unwed 💍

Chapter Seventeen: It's Only Make Believe

"I'm just an average girl," Izzy said, shifting under his gaze. She could brush that one off as more of a wish than a solid lie. "I've just graduated, and I'm hoping to attend college. Hopefully somewhere far away from Michigan, and the brutal cold."

It was halfway true. She did want to leave. Going home would never be the same. She would never be the same. Donnie's mother had a knack for gossip. For all she knew, the woman would have spread her dirty secret to the whole town by the time she returned. The thought twisted her stomach.

Wes sat back in his chair. "That's great! I think more women should go to college."

Gene chuckled, nudging Hank. "All of the sudden he's a regular feminist."

Wes kicked him from under the table. "What will you study?" he asked.

Izzy knew that the notion of attending college was as farfetched as her becoming a Hollywood movie star. None of the girls in her old school had a chance at attending a university, much less Izzy. Women were supposed to marry, and settle down into their role as a housewife, and a mother. They were not supposed to insult their future husband's manhood by rivaling his education.

"Perhaps nursing," she said on a whim, thinking of Mara.

The patio door opened and Judd strolled in, his tie slightly crooked. He set the newspaper down on a plant stand. Izzy was immediately put at ease by his kind face. He stopped and smiled as his eyes met Izzy's. "Well hello there, I don't believe we've met."

'I'm Izzy," she said. "I, uh."

"She's the girl I told you about the other day," Wes cut in.

"Izzy. Nice to meet you. You can call me Judd." Judd pulled out a chair and sat at the table. He glanced between Wes and Izzy. "Do you live near here?"

"My family owns a cabin on the island," Izzy said, feeling she was sinking deeper and deeper in her lies.

Judd's brow wrinkled as he adjusted in his chair. "Funny, I've never met your family before, with as long as I've been on the island, I thought I knew everyone. What's your last name, my dear?"

"Twiss," said Izzy, choosing at the last minute to offer her real name. Her heart silently racing as she fought to maintain her composure. "My parents aren't much for social gatherings when they come to the island. They enjoy the solitude."

"Well," said Judd, crossing his legs and straightening his tie. "It just shows that I'm not here often enough anymore. Everytime I go to California, it takes longer and longer to return. One day I'll retire completely and spend every summer here."

"As long as you wait until we've hit it big first," Gene said. "You've gotta hang in there for us."

"That's right," Hank said. "We've got a real run for our money with that hip swingin' cat—what's his name again?"

"Elvis," offered Wes, "Elvis Presley."

"That rookie's got nothing on Wes and the Flames!" Gene said indignantly. "You just watch, as soon as our record hits the radio, everyone will forget he ever existed."

Wes chuckled, "You've got to admit, he's got some catchy tunes."

"What he's got is rock and roll," Judd boomed, scootching his chair forward excitedly. "It's the next big thing." He turned to Izzy, realizing she'd been left out of the conversation. "So how did the two of you happen to meet again?"

"I just happened to bump into her on the beach," Wes said. "I was walking near that big old building you were talking about the other day."

"St. Mary's Home for Unwed Mothers?" Judd asked.