Acquiring Trouble

as she turned back toward Marcy and Paige. She was totally lost. Miles had played the perfect date but the last time she saw him he’d been irate. Who knew with men?
    “Morgan! Don’t you look beautiful! I’m so glad you came , ” Annie smiled warmly as she came to stand next to her. Morgan smiled a real smile and felt such gratitude she was sure Annie could read it in her eyes.
    “It’s a beautiful wedding. I’m so glad Miles invited me. I’m just sorry I’m late.”
    “Too busy painting the water tower?” Paige mumbled.
    Morgan felt Annie tense up and knew the woman would jump in and defend her if Morgan wanted. She didn’t have a chance though. Kenna and Dani came to stand with them and everyone turned to coo over Kenna’s sweet little d aughter .
    “Morgan, ” Miss Lily said softly from bes ide her. Morgan jumped a little. S he hadn’t heard Miss Lily and her Easy Spirits coming. “I wanted to ask you something.”
    Suddenly her peppy little group went quiet. Even little Sienna, Kenna’s daughter, stopped laughing and twirling around nearby on the dance floor . “Yes?” Morgan turned to Miss Lily and hoped to keep the conversation private. She was sure she was going to be reminded of trampling Miss Lily’s roses and subsequently getting thwacked with her broom.
    “I was wondering, that night I caught you in my roses,” Morgan suppressed the desire to clench her teeth together. “W hat were you doing in my yard?”
    Morgan thought about it for a minute and then decided she had nothing to lose. She’d just tell the truth. “My father kicked me out of the house for something I didn’t do and I had no place to put my things I stole out of my house before I could hitchhike to Lexington later that night.”
    “After you committed vandalism and blamed it on my brother,” Paige mumbled again.
    Morgan drew herself up and looked Paige right in the eye, “Yes, that’s right. I did. I couldn’t stand to let a chance to get back at Stacy pass me by . It was lame, childish , and wrong. However, I was eighteen , and I’m not eighteen anymore.”
    Before Paige could respond, Miss Lily put her wrinkled hand on her arm and drew her attention. “I believe I —w e —m ay have been too hard on you . You know, there’s nothing wrong with being a rebel. Lord knows I gave my parents a shock once or twice. There was the time I was caught skinny dipping with the hunk next door that turned their hair gray .”
    Morgan felt her jaw drop and then laughed as she noticed that everyone was star ing at Miss Lily slack- jawed. She was still giggling when John Wolfe, the town’s most no torious gossip approached them.
    “You ladies all look lovely tonight. Miss Lily, will you do me the honor of a dance ? ” John asked , somewhat embarrass ed .
    “I’d love to.” Miss Lily started to walk away when she turned over her shoulder and gave the group a wink.
     
    Miles followed Pierce into the darkness of the far side of the yard. He had never seen his brother so serious. Miles got a sense that times were changing. Pierce was no longer the gangly band geek from high school. He was a full- grown man now , equal to his older brothers. It was going to be a big adjustment, but Miles realized he needed to start treating Pierce as such.
    “What’s going on Pierce? Why did you say Morgan was my date?”
    “Did you know she had a crush on you in high school?” That wasn’t the question he expected.
    “I knew. Why?”
    “Why didn’t you date her?”
    “I’m wasn’t into girls with multiple arrests. I was more into good wholesome girls then.”
    “What if I told you Morgan was a good wholesome girl ? ” Miles just raised one eyebrow. “Okay, not all the way, but underneath the harsh exteri or. W hat if I told you she was nice, good , and loves you?”
    “I’d tell you to start talking.” Miles crossed his arms over his chest and list en ed to Pierce tell him about the conversation he had with Morgan.
    Miles felt his blood boil as he clenched his fists. Morgan had been bullied her whole life and set up as the troublemaker. She had the guts to stand up to her bullies who then in turn would just get her in more trouble. No wonder she fled Keeneston as soon as she could.
    He thought back to his time with Stacy. She had joked about and teased Morgan constantly. He didn’t think much of it at the time, but then he’d heard of the pranks they had pulled on her and when he told Stacy how horrible they were