Matt arrived at the back door at eight sharp and Clydie, appropriately dressed in jeans, jack boots, a long sleeved tee shirt, and her favorite black cocoon cardigan, was waiting for him. She'd pulled her hair back into a pony tail to keep the wind from tangling it, added a thick scarf around her neck for extra warmth, and with her cell and her keys in her back pocket, she felt prepared to face a few hours on the beach.

And she was determined to stay out for at least a few hours, in order to give her parents the space she knew they wanted.

"Hey, Clydie!" Matt greeted as she stepped out of the kitchen door and into the chill night air. "You look like you dressed for the weather."

And it looked like he had not, as he was wearing nothing but a button down over his tee shirt.

"I did," she replied, trying to work some enthusiasm for the outing. Trying, anyway...

"The fire's going and the food should be nearly ready by the time we get down there," Matt said, starting her across the back garden and toward the steps leading down to the beach, and Clydie kept close beside him, finding his presence rather comforting with the darkness pressing in all around them...and the stand of evergreen trees looming just on the edge of her vision.

Though, the gazebo that was now sitting there, taking up some of that shadowy space, did serve to lessen the ill ease swirling through her belly.

They made it down the rickety steps and out onto the hard packed sand, putting some distance between themselves and the property, before she was able to fully appreciate how lovely a night by the sea actually was. There was an enormous full moon hanging low overhead, lighting up the world with a silver-white glow. The sea itself was transformed into a darkly sparkling looking glass that reflected not only that lovely paper moon, but also the countless glimmering stars twinkling alongside it. The winding strip of dark sand running out ahead of them appeared like an unending ribbon of milky satin and there was a fine mist hanging in the air, just above them, dancing and preening through the evergreen boughs like the ghostly forms of those long forgotten.

The wind whipping in off the sea, brisk and briny, and the sea itself, were whispering of all the eerie, long forgotten tales that could only be shared in the dark of night. And far down the shoreline, behind the shroud of diaphanous mist, the blazing bonfire could be seen, burning like a small beacon, summoning all weary wanderers to come and find their rest by the warmth of the flames.

"Its really lovely out here at night," she said to Matt, feeling as if her voice was all but swallowed up by the sea and the darkness.

"Yeah. I guess it is," Matt said offhandedly. He'd seen the view so many times, it was probably old hat to him, but she found it captivating. "Thanks for coming with me tonight, by the way."

"You...you don't have to thank me," she told him. He made it sound as if she was doing him a favor by being there.

"I do. I usually have to go to these things by myself and that starts to suck after a while," confessed Matt.

She felt surprise flow through her. "Why do you have to go by yourself? Why don't you just ask somebody to go with you?"

Surely, someone as handsome as Matt Tanner would have absolutely no trouble finding a date for the evening.

"Eh, I'm not really interested in going out with most of the girls in town," he shrugged.

"Why?" she asked, fully aware that she was prying where she had no business.

But, oh well. He'd been up to his elbows in her toilet for most of the day, so she figured they were at least friendly enough for that.

"I dunno. I grew up with everybody around here. We've all known each other since pre-school. I know everything about them, including things I don't really want to know," he told her plainly.

"Like what things? Bad things?" she wondered, wishing she could stop asking questions, but her mouth had other plans.

"Some bad things. Some dumb things. Some gross things. Basically, all of the things," Matt replied easily. "I've seen too much. Its really hard to have any kind of feelings for a girl when you've seen her picking her nose or getting so blasted drunk she doesn't even remember that she has legs."

Hmm. Those things could put a bit of a damper on the romance.

"Besides, no one really wants to go out with the handyman," he revealed. "The girls around here are all looking for a guy who can get them out of this town and that's not me. I'll probably die here."

A waft of sadness hit Clydie, but she didn't quite know what to do with it, so she shoved it to the side. "So, what do people do at these bonfires?" she asked, changing the subject.

"Nothing much. Everybody sits around, drinking and eating and bullshitting and telling the same stories that we've all heard about ten billion times. But, its something to do to break up the monotony of not having anything to do."

That sounded...fun?

"What did you do back home?" Matt wondered.

"Nothing much. Its a pretty small town, so there wasn't much going on most of the time. I...went out for coffee a lot," she shrugged. "My sister always seemed to find something to do, though. She was always signing up for some committee or heading up some kind of group activity."

"A joiner, huh?" asked Matt, sounding sympathetic.

"Yeah. She was always helping with a float for a parade or wanting to clean up the local parks. It was actually...really obnoxious," she said, finding herself wanting to smile...and that jarred her so that she flinched and her steps faltered.

"Clydie? You okay?" Matt asked, reaching out and taking hold of her arm.

For a second, she found it hard to catch hold of her voice. "I-I'm okay. I'm...okay."

"Is it...is it about your sister?" questioned Matt worriedly.

She shook her head, but then nodded. "I-I...I don't know. I don't usually talk about her."

And she hadn't ever had any sort of fond feelings regarding her sister. Every single memory, even fun or happy memories, were tainted with heaviness and sadness. And an incredible amount of fear. Certainly, smiling and the thought of Sam...did not go together.

"Its okay. Haylie has been gone for a while and its still hard for me to talk about her," he stated consolingly.

She nodded, but didn't speak. She wanted to let the conversation drop, feeling that speaking of Sam might somehow summon her up and that was the last thing she needed.

"We don't have to talk about this," Matt announced, releasing his grip on her arm. "So, are you hungry? Did you eat dinner?"

"No. My mom was making eggs and toast and I...I just couldn't," she said, grimacing.

"Its that bad, huh?" Matt wondered, grimacing himself even though he'd never had the misfortune of tasting those food items.

"Its worse. So much worse," she told him, thinking of those little knobs of egg that were grey and...bouncy....

"I-I don't mean to be rude, but how does your mom expect to open a bed and breakfast? Doesn't that involve cooking?" asked Matt.

"Well, I'm hoping she'll hire somebody to do the cooking. Or at least let me help her with it. Otherwise, we'll go bankrupt pretty fast."

One taste of Ella Weston's food and the guests would probably run away screaming in terror. Unless they dropped from food poisoning, which would probably stick her mom with several personal injury lawsuits. Either way, it wouldn't end well for her mother's businesses venture.

"Well, there's probably a ton of food waiting, so you can get something in your belly," assured Matt.

She'd never had a roasted clam before, but she had no qualms about trying one. She'd eaten things from her mother's kitchen that had long since taken away her fear of tasting something she might not like.

The bonfire was looming bright just up ahead and the chill air was scented with smoke from the fire and the aromas of cooking food. She could see shadowy figures illuminated by the dancing flames, which were reaching high into the air. There were quite a few of those figures there, enough so that she began to regret her decision to join Matt. But, it was too late to turn back now. If she made a fool of herself, she'd just have to suffer through it and move on.

Worse come to worst, she could always blame anything that happened on a bad trip, which a group of drunken, late night partiers would probably have no trouble believing.

As they finally reached the bonfire, which was popping and cracking and sending sparks high up into the air, she could see just how many people were actually gathered there, sitting on big driftwood logs or in folding chairs or lying on blankets spread out over the sand. There were at least thirty or more bodies scattered about.

She suddenly felt herself slowing down and digging her heels into the sand, but Matt wouldn't allow it. He put a hand on her back and ushered her forward, toward the leaping flames and the people all packed around them. Voices were lifting on the air and some of them seemed a bit overly loud, even over the din of the hissing waves, letting her know that a few among the group had probably gotten a head start on the night's festivities.

On the opposite side of the bonfire, she saw that a smaller fire had been lit, and several people were hovering around it, fiddling with whatever food was being cooked. Quite an array of coolers were lined up next to the fire, assumedly holding all the beverages and accouterments that went along with the food offerings.

"Hey, Matt! Are you seriously here with a date!" a deep voice called out from the shadows. "How much did you have to pay her to show up here with your ugly mug!"

Matt let out a gruff sound. "Eat me, Tyler!" he called back.

If Clydie had been certain exactly where that voice had come from, she would have thrown up a most unlady-like hand gesture. How much did Matt pay her? Bah! Why did guys have to be so stupid?

"Just ignore anything that comes out these morons' mouths," Matt sighed. "We've all known each other for so long, there's nothing intelligent left to say."

She could understand that. But, she hadn't grown up with anyone in Cedar Cove, so she'd expect not to be accused of being a bought woman!

Matt led her past the bonfire, which was radiating its blissful heat outward across the sand, and over to the smaller blaze. "Hey, Jax. What's on?" he asked one of the young men hovering there, busily tending the food.

"The usual," came the response. "We've got little necks, burgers and dogs. And there's cold beer and all that. Dig in."

Matt took that advice and before too long, both he and Clydie were holding plates that were heaped high with burgers, hot dogs, and little neck clams on the half-shell. They found a seat on a driftwood log by the massive bonfire and sat down to stuff themselves, which she did with wild abandon. Edible food wasn't easy to come by int the Weston household, so having it right in front of her and not having to worry about hurting Ella's feelings, allowed her to eat her fill and then some. She even ate the clams, doing it the way Matt showed her, and though they weren't the best thing she'd ever eaten, they certainly weren't the worst, and she wound up snarfing down half a dozen of them.

Once their bellies were filled near to bursting, Matt tossed the paper plates into the fire and went for a couple of bottles of water. And it seemed that nearly the instant Matt rose from his seat, she was descended upon by all the people who'd been lurking in the shadows. A small horde was suddenly surrounding her, a horde made up of young men, and before she could blink, they were pressing in on her from all sides, sitting beside her on the driftwood log and dropping down in front of her on the sand. The influx was so abrupt, she couldn't do anything but sit there and gape.

"Hey there, sweetie. What's your name?"

"You're really cute. You got a boyfriend?"

"I heard someone moved into the old Harrison place. Is that you? Can I come over and see inside?"

"Are you dating Matt? If you're not, I'm single!"

"Are you religious? Because you're the answer to all my prayers."

The questions were firing at her so fast, she couldn't keep up. And she wouldn't have answered them anyway. But, it was still overwhelming enough to bring her right up onto her feet. She had spent absolute zero time with anyone who wasn't her parents or a medical professional in the last two years and suddenly having so many random strangers right in her face made her want to run for the hills.

"What the hell are you guys doing! Back up off her!" Matt's deep voice barked.

Clydie saw his large form coming toward her and she felt relief sweep her. She suddenly felt like a piece of raw meat that had been dropped right into the midst of a pack of hungry wolves.

Matt swooped in and took hold of her arm, pulling her forward, through the bodies surrounding her, and tucked her up against his side. "What are you guys doing! You're acting like you've never seen a girl before!"

"We've never seen this girl before," one of the young men pointed out.

"Yeah. Back off, Matt! Give the rest of us a shot!" another grumbled.

"A shot at what!" Matt demanded. "She's not a target, Shane! She's an actual human being!"

"That's even better!" Shane quipped.

Matt let out a hard breath. "I'm sorry, Clydie. I didn't know they'd start circling like vultures."

"Its...its okay," she replied as he led her a short piece away from the fire and over to another driftwood log. "I really don't have to stay too long—"

"But, I want you to stay for a while. I mean, it can't hurt you to get out of the house and socialize for a while. Even if it is with a bunch of troglodytes," he said, handing her a water bottle as they took a seat on the log.

She wasn't sure it was possible to socialize with a pack of hyenas. And speaking of which, it seemed most of that pack had followed along right behind her.

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your hot friend, Matty?" one of the young men asked as they all gathered.

Matt looked up at the wall of bodies suddenly looming before them. "Where's your girlfriend, Ryan? Is she coming tonight?"

That reminder shut Ryan up fairly fast, but the other young men apparently had no such concerns. "I'm Jason. I don't have a girlfriend," one of them said, moving to drop down beside her.

"Neither do I," another one added. "But, I'm looking for prospects."

Clydie, abruptly awash with irritation, decided that the best way to deal with the situation was head on, otherwise she'd likely be pestered to death. So, setting her water bottle aside, she was back on her feet, facing the wall of young men. "I'm Clydie Weston," she introduced herself, extending her hand toward the first person in line.

The young man accepted the gesture, his face revealing overt male appreciation, even through the shadows and flickering firelight. "Craig Martin. Your name is really Clydie?"

"It is. Its an old family name," she answered, moving onto the next person.

She was introduced to Ryan, Jason, Brad, and Shep, finding a bit strange that anyone was questioning her name when there was a Shep amongst the group.

"So, where are you from, Clydie Weston?" Shep wondered, following her as she moved forward toward the leaping flames of the bonfire.

"Summerville, West Virginia," she responded.

"West Virginia? Well, that explains that cute accent of yours," Shep said, grinning hugely.

"I have an accent?"

Shep nodded his head full of sandy curls. "You have just a little bit of that Southern thing going on. Its kind of hot."

Hmm. She hadn't ever thought about her own accent. But, speaking of hot accents did bring up a vision of someone with hard grey eyes and a dripping cowboy drawl.

"So, you really moved into the old Harrison place?" questioned Shep. "Don't you know that place is haunted?"

Clydie heard the thread of humor lacing his words, but she felt herself stiffen.

Matt rushed in that point, elbowing Shep aside. "Don't start that bullshit, Shep. I've been working in that house for two days and its just a normal old house."

Yeah. The house was normal. It was the new occupant that was haunted.

"What bullshit? Everybody knows that old place has ghosts in it. I've seen one myself, standing in the backyard!" Shep argued, now sounding rather a bit offended.

But, his words brought Clydie's heart lurching up into her throat. She'd seen someone in the backyard, too.

"Fucking drop it, bro," Matt warned and the seriousness of his tone caused Shep to go quiet.

Taking her hand, he pulled her away from the fire, leading her across the sand and down toward the waves that were hissing against the shoreline. Matt had lapsed into silence and she knew it was because he didn't know what to say to her. And she could sympathize, especially after all the things she'd told him.

From behind them, several people started whooping and hollering and a few minutes later, a few shapes darted past them, rushing straight out into the waves. Clydie, a bit started by the pale bodies there were completely exposed to the bright moonlight, quickly glanced away from the young men and women frolicking just out in the water, splashing and wrestling with one another. She certainly hadn't expected to see anyone skinny dipping right out in full view of the general public. But, perhaps a bit of alcohol in the system might make that kind of behavior seem like a good idea?

"You okay, Clydie?" Matt asked after a while.

"Yeah. I'm fine," she replied, lifting her gaze up to the perfectly ripe moon that almost seemed to be hanging low enough to touch. "You don't have to babysit me, you know. You can go and talk to your friends. I'll be okay."

"I didn't bring you here just to ditch you," said Matt. "I brought you here so you could relax and have a little fun."

Fun. That concept had been dangled in front of her a couple of times now...and yet, it had not manifested. How could it? No matter where she went, that heaviness inside her was always there, weighing her down, getting in the way of even the slightest bit of enjoyment.

"So, you know what might be fun?" Matt hedged.

"What?" Drowning herself in the sea sounded like a viable option.

Matt bent and began pulling off his sneakers and then unbuttoning his jeans, making Clydie stiffen. "Jumping in and seeing how long we can take it!"

"Matt, no. I-I can't—"

"You can. You don't have to strip all the way down, but you do have to get in!" Matt told her, pulling off his jeans and dropping them onto the sand.

Clydie balked. She had no desire whatsoever to get practically naked in front of a group of total strangers. And beyond that, she wasn't a terribly strong swimmer, so she usually chose to remain on dry land.

"Get nekked, Clydie! Its a right of passage!" urged Matt, going for his boxers, but the sharp gasp that flew out of her caused him to swiftly change his mind.

"I-I'm not a very good swimmer! And...and there might be sharks!" she tossed up that notion as she moved backward, away from the water.

"There are no sharks up this far. And its not the right time of year for jellyfish, so you'll be fine!" Matt assured, coming out of his shirt. "And I promise, I won't let you drown. That'd be bad for my paycheck, don't you think?"

"Matt, I-I really don't want to—"

"Come on, Clydie! Live a little! I know you're not afraid!" Matt cajoled, now standing before her in nothing but his boxers, which forced another gasp up out of her.

Holy crap, Matt Tanner was ripped! He  was so ripped, he actually looked like an airbrushed underwear model!

"You're going in, Clydie," he stated firmly, reaching out and taking hold of her sweater, trying to pull it down over her shoulders. despite her swatting at him.

"No, I'm not! We-we don't even have a towel! And its freezing cold! We'll die of hypothermia!" she argued, trying to wrestle his hands off her, but she was very swiftly out maneuvered and freed of her sweater, allowing the chill air to sweep over her.

"We won't die of hypothermia," Matt brushed away that concern, as if it wasn't perfectly valid. "The water isn't as cold as the air this time of year. And the fire will warm you up after!"

"Come on, Clydie! Don't be a chicken!" one of the young men called to her as he streaked by, his backside flashing white. "If you wanna fit in with us locals, you gotta do this!"

"Yeah! Get in here, new girl! Don't be a stuck up cunt!" a distinctly feminine voice called out.

Damn. She did not want to get into a frigid, black as night body of surging water wearing nothing but her underwear, but then again, she didn't want to be accused of being a stuck up cunt, though that accusation didn't actually sting overly much.

But, when it came down to it, hadn't she decided shake things up a little? Do things she might not ordinarily do? While she had the opportunity to do them... And this was something she would not ordinarily do. Besides, a perk would be that if she got eaten by a shark or if she succumbed to hypothermia, her troubles would be well over.

Huffing out a breath, she shooed Matt's hands away from her and quickly unlaced her boots, stepping out of them before she changed her mind. "If I freeze to death, it'll be on your head. And your conscience," she told Matt.

"You won't freeze to death. Trust me," he responded.

Trust had nothing to do with it. It was pure science. The human body could suffer the effects of hypothermia in as little as five minutes, under the right conditions. Of course, her mother being a nurse, she might be the only person in the group who was aware of that fact.

As quickly as she could, she shrugged out of the rest of her clothes and suddenly...found herself standing in her underwear, in front of a group of a strangers, the majority of whom were staring at her with judgmental gazes and sardonic grins. And somehow, finding herself at this moment in her life...didn't seem all that surprising.