Secrets in the Sand by Carolyn Brown

            He had known that she wanted more than just waiting for him at the creek. He would drive up, get out of his car, and find her right there, no questions asked, and they would make love under the tree branches. Afterward they usually went skinny-dipping in the warm water, sometimes to return for another session of insatiable teenage sex, sometimes to dry off and go home. He would drive her home, always by the back roads but never down Main Street, because someone might see him with her and report it all back to his folks.

            “Penny for your thoughts.” He dug in the pocket of his slacks and put a shiny copper penny at her fingertips.

            “Cost you more than that.” She cocked her head to the side in a gesture that had always been endearing to him. “You better eat hearty and get ready for the big golf match, because you’re goin’ to lose. And did you already buy wine? If not, get two bottles, because I really like good wine.”

            “I’ll buy enough to fill the bathtub, my lady, for just one pretty smile.”

            She pasted on a smile and said, “Let’s talk business, as in why you aren’t working for Red.”

            “First you tell me about Conrad Oil Enterprises again. There’s not an oil well anywhere near that lonesome old pumper on your property.” He tipped the glass of iced tea back and guzzled more than half of it before coming up for air.

            “Everyone thought I was crazy as old Cletus.” She laughed. “Remember him? He used to walk up and down the streets in Tishomingo, and he wore at least five watches on each wrist and blue plaid shorts.”

            “And a yellow checked sports coat and a big, wide tie with purple polka dots,” he finished for her. “Gee, I hadn’t thought about him in years. Remember how he used to hang around in front of the Armstrong Clothing Store? One day I asked him why he just stood there doing nothing, and he told me it was so everyone in town could see him. I didn’t even crack a smile. I just nodded and went on.”

            “Everyone thought I was crazy to sink a well on this land.” Her eyes sparkled in the candlelight. “Allie was ready to throw me out in front of a semi on a four-lane highway, and she was my best friend. She said that I could dig to China with a teaspoon and not find a tablespoon of corn oil, let alone crude. But I followed my hunch and it paid off. The president of the bank in Denison told me the only reason he was loaning me the money was because he’d always wanted a little place in the country, and when the bank foreclosed on my mortgage, he was buying it.”

            “Good Lord!” Clancy exclaimed. “You sure had a lot of adversity.”

            “Yep.” She nodded.

            The waiter brought their food and refilled their glasses, then disappeared again as Angel continued. “I was fresh out of college and no one offered me a job, so I took my savings and hired a driller. That’s how I started Conrad Oil. I could’ve gone to work for Red and Anna after that. Red said he’d pay big bucks for me to sit behind a desk and tell him when I had a hunch, but I wanted more than that. I wanted a business so all my friends could work together. I worked hard, and now I’ve got my dream. The next year we incorporated Conrad Oil Enterprises. I hold the majority stake in the company and the girls all own shares too,” she said between bites. “This is good food. I told you I was hungry. I can eat like a field hand, and I’m not one bit bashful about it,” she added.

            “Good.” He nodded. “I like a woman who isn’t afraid to chow down.”

            “What about you? Are you happy teaching? Funny, I always thought you’d go into the oil business somehow. When we talked, you were going to be an engineer, or a geologist just like I wanted to be.”

            “Red’s been after me for a while to work for him. Says I shouldn’t waste my science degree. I thought about it, but I don’t know. Teaching is fun. I like the kids and I like having summers off so I can fool around.” He winked at her. “I don’t have to depend on a salary for my major income, thanks to the investments my dad left me. Do you want me to go to work for your competition?” he asked.

            “Do whatever you want to do,” she said. “Right now, I just want you to finish eating so we can play golf and drink wine,” she told him.

            It was after eleven when they finished the second round of golf. True to her word, Angel won the first round. Clancy barely came out the victor of the second game, and he prided himself on both his miniature and golf games. His ex-wife, Melissa, had hated both. She had never wanted to learn any game that took her outside where it was hot—where she might chip a nail or break a sweat.