Page 6 of More than Fiction (Misty Springs #1)

Sophia

This flight was sponsored by alcohol, screaming loud music, steamy romance novels, and the comforting anonymity of a closed window shade.

After landing at Misty Springs Regional Airport, there was a very brief taxi to the gate. I popped out my earbuds, my ears ringing slightly at the sudden absence of yelly music.

My muscles ached, and I gingerly stretched out my arms in front of me and rolled my neck.

The plane stopped, and the seatbelt light turned off with a loud ding as the cabin sprang to life.

I didn’t plan to see 1B again, but I knew the chances of running into him in a town like Misty Springs—especially if he stayed the night—were fairly high. There was only one hotel in town, and I just happened to work there.

Maybe it wasn’t fair for me to call him an asshole. In my defense, I’d been flying all day, and the only food I had eaten was currently colliding with my stomach acid in what I assumed was about to be an epic battle.

Still, it wasn’t in my nature to be rude to people, especially people I didn’t know. I could try to be just a little nicer.

I shifted toward 1B and gave him a “bless your heart” smile. “Good luck with the business you have in Misty Springs.”

He stared at me, mouth slightly open like he wanted to say something but didn’t know what. I preferred his silence, so it was the perfect goodbye .

I eyed the flight attendant as she moved toward the boarding door .

Excellent timing.

I quickly formulated an escape plan—one that hinged on the fact that, thanks the turbulence, he still hadn’t received his jacket from the flight attendant.

But before exiting, I couldn’t resist adding one last remark as I stood and lifted my bag onto my shoulder.

I met his gaze head-on. “For the record, Misty Springs is pretty damn charming once you give it a chance.”

With that, I trotted off the plane and rushed up the jet bridge, heading straight for the nearest ladies’ room. If I timed this right, I could avoid crossing paths with 1B altogether.

It felt a little absurd—I didn’t have a solid reason to steer clear of him, except for the strange mix of attraction and irritation he managed to spark.

After washing my hands, I turned my phone off airplane mode, and a single text flashed on the screen.

Devyn: Here! Outside door #2. Trunk is open.

I planned to pay Hank, our town’s only taxi driver, for a ride, but Devyn insisted on picking me up.

At 5’3”, Devyn was a tiny, terrifying force to be reckoned with—tough-as-nails on the outside, with a heart of gold. She had a fierce edge, but once you were in her circle, you had a protector for life.

After wrangling my overstuffed suitcase from baggage claim, I walked outside to a crisp autumn evening.

The sun was drooping low in the sky, and off in the distance, the rich woodline of trees beamed with red, yellow, and orange leaves.

As good as it was to see Penny and her family, I missed the colorful forest scenery and the chilly fall air while I was away.

I missed home.

As I took in the sights and smells around me, a pair of cheery horn bursts snapped me out of my thoughts, pulling my gaze to Devyn’s little black car.

“You look tired,” Devyn stated matter-of-factly as she helped me drop my suitcase into her trunk.

“I can always count on you to keep me humble, Dev,” I replied with a smile, bringing her in for a tight hug .

“In the mood for a drink? The night is young, and I missed celebrating your birthday with you.”

“I would, but I’m beat. Plus, I have to be at Elijah’s early,” I told her over the top of the tiny car.

“Boo. I missed you, and I’ve got some serious Theresa drama to share.”

Theresa—Devyn and my boss at Boomer’s, and the woman I’d seen entirely too much of the day I walked in on her writhing underneath my fiancé.

The familiar scent of the cherry car air freshener and tiny hula dancer on Devyn’s dash greeted me with a nostalgic embrace as we plopped into her Corolla.

“Well, we’ve got five minutes until we get to my place. Can you spill it on the way there?” I was intrigued, but my exhaustion crept in, pulling me toward the edge of sleep.

“Alright, alright. Let’s just say she’s moved on. Quickly and often.”

She shifted the car into drive, and we eased away from the airport curb.

“Oh boy. Who’s the unlucky guy now? Is he engaged? Married?” I assumed since it seemed like taken was Theresa’s type.

“A couple of out-of-towners first, then—wait for it—she locked in on Fredrick friggin’ James.”

Devyn rarely cussed, but when she was angry enough to, it was always in Spanish. And if it reached that point, you’d better tuck and run.

“Fredrick?! My daddy owns a Jaguar dealership, Fredrick?”

“Guess Landon got the axe,” Devyn continued.

“And I guess that explains the uptick in the late-night texts to me lately.”

Maybe Landon didn’t understand how small-town gossip worked. I knew he was still with Theresa after our split, and now I understand why he was trying so hard to suddenly get me back.

Poor, lonely Landon got a taste of his own medicine.

“He’s texting you?” Devyn asked, anger seeping into her tone.

I waved a hand in dismissal. “It’s nothing you need to worry about. He’ll get bored of trying and move on.”

She side-eyed me, her lips in a tight line .

“What?” I asked, despite knowing full well what that look on her face meant.

“You need to tell him off. Guys like him will never get the message from your kind rejection. He needs to hear it loud and clear.” Her smile turned devious. “And if that doesn’t work. I know some people who could take out his kneecaps for us.”

Devyn was so animated. Anytime she spoke, her whole body spoke with her.

I chuckled, knowing… well, hoping she was joking. Sometimes, when it came to her, I couldn’t be sure.

“I’ll keep you posted,” I said with a laugh. “I think I just need to move on. Maybe he'll get the message if he sees me with someone else.”

“Goody! Then you’ll be happy to know that Cassie, Lana, and I have created the perfect Tinder profile for you as a birthday present.” She dug out her phone and veered a little off the shoulderless road we were on.

“Devyn! Give me that!” I snagged the phone out of her hand so she could focus on driving, trying not to wince at the fact that the girls were scheming behind my back.

Cassie and I had been thick as thieves since we were kids, spending summers running barefoot down the gravel roads, daring each other to jump into the creek no matter how cold the water was.

Devyn found us our freshman year of high school, bold and bright, crashing into our lives like a firework. She won us over when she snuck extra cupcakes from the cafeteria into study hall.

Lana came along senior year, shy and wide-eyed after her family moved to Misty Springs. We won her over with friendship bracelets and late-night talks about everything and nothing.

Since then, it’s been the four of us—stitched together by a thousand little memories, still holding tight.

“I created it on my phone. Open up the app. Sam was initially concerned, but I showed him it was for you. He and the guys helped me curate the perfect profile that would captivate the male audience.”

Sam was Devyn’s boyfriend. They were the perfect contrast—like fire and ice. Devyn, feisty, short-tempered, and fiercely passionate, was perfectly balanced by the tall, calm, easygoing Sam.

“I dunno,” I whined .

“You need to get out there, Soph! Don’t you know the best way to show someone you’re over them is to reverse-cowgirl somebody else.”

“I don’t think that’s how the expression goes.”

“It does in my book,” she said with a wink before returning her eyes to the road.

I opened the app with nervous tension. Saying I was ready to put myself out there and actually doing it were two different things.

An image popped up of me behind the bar at Boomer's, one of my two jobs, shaking a cocktail shaker.

I looked carefree and happy, and my makeup was pretty on point, too.

Come to think of it, that was the day Lana, Devyn, and Cassie had hijacked me, forced a makeover on me, and took me to dinner before my shift.

An act I now suspect was based on ulterior motives.

There were two other photos. One showed me sitting in Lana’s coffee shop by the large front window, iced coffee in hand, with "Sophia" scrawled on the cup in front of me. I couldn’t remember when it was taken—one of the girls must have snuck the shot while I was distracted.

These little deviants must have been planning this for a while.

The last photo was of Cassie, Lana, Devyn, and me, taken by our friend Trevor. I remember laughing when he yelled for us to kiss right before he snapped it.

It was my favorite picture of us. I had it framed on a wall in my apartment. Even looking at it now, my heart fluttered.

These girls were my everything, and this picture? It was perfect.

“So I’m okay with the pictures,” I relented, as the screen turned blurry through my misted eyes.

“Yes! See! Okay, now read the bio.”

I followed her orders and scrolled down .

Sophia 24 - Misty Springs __________________________

Loves : Coffee Bar Food Gin Music Tall, dark, and mysterious men

Three songs to describe me : With a Little Help from My Friends - The Beatles Beautiful Day - U2 White and Nerdy - “Weird Al” Yankovic

“Okay… where do I even begin?” I said, still staring at the screen, a little dumbfounded. “Let’s start with tall, dark, and mysterious... and end with White and Nerdy?”

“Well, we figured Landon was blonde and not that tall, plus an obvious tool. We were going for an opposites thing.”

“Sure. But White and Nerdy ? The other two songs are great choices, but c’mon!”

“It highlights your love of music and shows how funny you are at the same time. Besides, you always have your nose buried in books—total nerd material. You’re like Princess Belle, hot and well-read. We just need to find you a hot beast of a man to rub—”

“Okay, Dev. I get it. I get it,” I said through a laugh.

She’d never stop if I let her keep going. Devyn was always ready to share her opinion, whether good or bad. The plus side? I always knew exactly where I stood with her.

On the other hand, Penny and I danced around serious topics, only scratching the surface of how we truly felt. I think we both closed ourselves off after my parents’ accident, and neither of us has been quite the same since.

Devyn pulled into my apartment complex and threw the car in park. She turned to me, her bronze skin glowing despite the darkening evening light, her face serious. “We just want you to be happy, and you said it yourself: you need to move on from Landon.”

“I don’t hate it. I love you guys so much for doing this for me. I just—”

“Say no more.” She gave me a wink, exaggerated by her long lashes and large honey-colored eyes.

She jumped out and helped me wrestle my bag from her trunk, the car squeaking in protest as we tugged it free.

“I missed you.” She wrapped her arms around me, squeezing my waist. “Boomer's wasn’t the same without my P.I.C. working alongside me.”

“I missed you, too,” I replied, pulling away from her. “And I am back to being your partner in crime tomorrow night.”

I made my way up my apartment's stairs while Devyn watched from her car. Once I wrangled the lock and opened the door, I gave her a wave.

She tooted her horn a few times—lighthearted, like a salute.

I smiled as she pulled away, the sound of her engine fading into the distance.

I loved her. I loved all my friends.

With people like this in my life, being single, broke, stuck working two dead-end jobs, and nerdy didn’t feel so bad.