Sweet Contradiction by Peggy Martinez Read Free Book Online Page A

need from the super market, you can pick up the produce from the outdoor market. Sound good?” Jen headed toward the store entrance without waiting for a reply. She knew I’d rather shop for the produce, so I stuck the list in my pocket, saluted her smartly, and headed to the open market down the street.
    The little side-of-the-road stand I remembered had changed drastically in the last four years. Mr. Peterson had more than tripled the size of the market, built brand new, brightly colored stands, and expanded the variety of produce immensely. Johnny Cash was playing softly in the background, a few children were running around the perimeter of the market, and in the middle of it all was Mrs. Peterson just as I remembered her. Her gray hair was pulled back into a bun and she wore a white, crisply ironed, half-apron with pockets and a ruffled hem. I smiled as I saw her handing a homemade cookie to a chubby toddler hanging on to the hem of his momma’s skirt near the cash register.
    Memories came rushing back … coming there every Saturday morning with Mrs. Collins and Jen to pick up fruits and veggies … but every kid in Salem knew that the best thing about the Peterson Family Market was Mrs. Peterson’s cookies. The little boy was making a proper mess of his face and clothes as his momma pulled him along to leave the market. I grabbed a basket and began picking out fresh fruit and veggies, extremely happy to sample a variety of freshly picked wild berries. I had visions of blackberry cobbler and homemade jam dancing in my head as I bought an unholy amount of the plump berries.
    Much to my surprise, Mrs. Peterson remembered me and was glad to ring up my purchases while catching me up on all the town’s upcoming events. There was going to be a barn dance, with a baking and pie eating contest, a small art exhibit at the local high school to raise funds for the new classes that would be offered the following fall semester, and a church meeting for ladies at the local church. I smiled kindly at her and promised to try and make it to some of the events while I was in town. I had even meant it about the barn dance. I was grinning from ear to ear when I left the stand with my overstuffed bags of produce. It only took one person to remind me exactly why I didn’t live in towns like Salem any longer, though.

was putting my bags in the back of my truck when Beau Montgomery whipped his Ford F-150 up next to my truck. I groaned out loud and silently cursed my luck—leave it to Beau to make my good mood evaporate in an instant. I leaned back against my truck, intending to ignore him while I waited for Jen to finish up her shopping. But, just as I figured, he wasn’t going to be able to just leave me alone and go on about his day.
    Beau came around his truck and pulled off his sun glasses and hung them on the collar of his red, western style, plaid shirt. A grin cracked across his face, but it wasn’t a friendly, glad-to-see-you grin, it was a cat-cornered-the-mouse kind of grin. I crossed my arms over my chest, aware his eyes were oogling my assets.
    “Damn, girl, you are looking fine today.” He whistled and walked over to lean back against his truck directly in front of me, his eyes were leering as they slid over my body, making me feel dirty standing fully clothed in front of him.
    “Go away, Beau, I’m not in the mood to be hassled today,” I snapped. I sent a silent plea for Jen to hurry up so we could split.
    “Don’t be like that, sweet heart,” he crooned, smiling even wider.
    “Don’t call me that. I’m not your sweet heart. I thought I made that clear back in high school, Beau.” I clenched my jaw and glanced over at the store entrance, willing Jen to walk through the doors.
    “We both know what you wanted back in high school. Bet you still want the same thing right now, huh?” He grabbed himself to drive his point home. My brain to mouth filtering system malfunctioned when I hit a certain level of anger