Vicious Carousel (Suncoast Society #25)(46)

And she did feel attracted to them.

But she would have to first get a place of her own before she could ever commit to them as more than a play partner or friend. She needed to live on her own once more, prove to herself that she could do it.

Now if she could get a job to make that happen.





Betsy awoke Friday to an e-mail from Kenny’s mom, telling her she had an interview appointment with the company she worked for at one o’clock Monday afternoon. When Betsy read that on her phone, she let out a squeal that must have terrified the poor men, because they came bolting from their room with sopping wet hair and towels wrapped around their hips.

She held up the phone when they ran into the kitchen. “Mom says I have an interview Monday!”

“Hey! That’s great!” Kenny gave her a one-armed, slightly damp hug, followed by Nolan. Kenny’s mom had stopped by several times for dinner or just to visit with her, to check on her and see how she was doing.

Calling her Mom felt right, even if she did now have her own mom back in her life.

Her own mom couldn’t hug her from Virginia, but Michelle could.

The men were just getting ready to leave when Betsy received a notice on her phone of a new e-mail.

She let out another squeal of delight.

The men turned. “Yes?” they said.

“I have an appointment at three today at a real estate place on Longboat Key!”

“Great!” Kenny said. “Make sure you tell us how it goes.”

“I will!” She hugged them both, already thinking about what she’d wear. With heavy makeup and her hair loose, it concealed the worst of what damage still remained. She’d decided she would tell most of the truth, because if a prospective employer ran a Google search on her name, it would come up tied to Jack’s case.

The Tilly-approved short and sweet version was that she was in the process of leaving her abusive ex to move in with friends when he beat her up. It was honest, it was close enough to the truth to garner sympathy without getting into gory details, and hopefully would let interviewers know she had extricated herself from that situation and it wouldn’t prove a distraction to her doing her job.

If they asked about the BDSM accusations on Jack’s part, Ed gave her the perfect out there—because it was a pending legal case, her attorney had advised her not to comment on any aspects of it other than what she’d just said.

She called Loren to let her know about it in case that would mess up her schedule. Betsy really wanted the job where Kenny’s mom worked, but she would take any job at this point.

Just the fact that she was getting interviews now gave her a renewed sense of hope and purpose.

And when she Skyped with Tilly a little later, Tilly had not only given her a virtual high-five via webcam, but had also helped her pick which outfit to wear.

“If I get the job out there, I’m not sure what to do about transportation,” she said. “I don’t think the county bus service goes out there.”

“Don’t sweat it. Lucas and Leigh offered to buy you a car.”

Betsy shook her head. “I appreciate that, and please tell them that for me, but that’s too much. I need to be able to afford a car and the insurance on my own. You all have already done so much for me and now it’s time for me to stand on my feet as much as possible. My parents offered to co-sign a car loan for me, and even that is something I’d rather avoid if I can.”

“I can respect that. But if you change your mind, the offer’s open.”

“Thanks.”

“I don’t suppose you’d accept borrowing my car, either, would you? It’s just sitting there in my driveway.”

“Thank you, but I can’t. No insurance.”

“Ah.”

“If I need to, I’ll see if I can work out a deal with everyone here for a few weeks, give them gas money and extra money for their time, until I get a couple of paychecks. I’ll even take a five-hundred-dollar beater without AC. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve driven a car?”

Tilly frowned. “How long?”

“Months. Since he made me sell mine. I wasn’t allowed to drive.”

“Wow.”

She fingered her necklace. “Promise me you’ll smack me hard in the bad way if you ever see me making stupid decisions like that again, please?”

Tilly held up a hand. “I swear. Except there might be a line in front of me.” She smiled.

“That’s fine.” They fell silent for a moment.

“This is good change,” Tilly told her.

“That’s freaky.”

“I could see the fear in your expression. You’re worried, probably for a lot of reasons. The worst that can happen today is you don’t get the job.” Tilly shrugged. “You’re no worse off if that happens. But the best-case scenario is you get the job and it’s that next step to you getting Elizabeth Lambert back on course.”





The guy who interviewed her at the real estate office didn’t come right out and ask her about the court case, but Betsy could tell from the questions he did ask and the way that he talked that he was aware of it. Things like her current relationship status, her current living arrangements. Personal questions that had nothing to do with her previous job experience or work skills.