There were two young women in the store when Dan Jacobs entered.
He found them both attractive. He had been planning to stay in the small town but a few days, but he had already changed his mind. He had already seen a number of attractive women.
"Who is that?" Carolyn Merrit asked.
Julia Johnson tried not to look interested in the man who had just walked in. It was all right for Carolyn to act so crazy. Everyone in town, even her husband, knew that Carolyn was a big flirt.
But Julia had only been married a few weeks and it wouldn't do for people to notice her being interested in other men. Still, it was hard to keep her eyes from straying to the handsome features of the stranger.
"I don't know," Julia said sharply. "And you shouldn't be looking."
"Bosh," Carolyn said. "It's all right to look. I bet Jimmy does a lot of looking when he's not around you."
"I doubt it," Julia said.
Carolyn pouted. The pretty little blonde didn't look as if she believed Julia about Jimmy not looking at other women, but then Carolyn didn't know what a prude Jimmy was. He would seldom look at her completely naked and Julia knew she had a good body.
"Damn," Julia said softly.
She had been picking a can off the shelf and it slipped out of her fingers. Carolyn bent to pick it up and Julia was glad. Julia didn't want her friend to see the pained expression that crossed her face.
She didn't know for sure but she believed that Bobby and Carolyn's relationship was the perfect one. Carolyn seemed so free about sex talk and sometimes made crude remarks about men and their abilities.
Julia wondered what kind of crude remarks Carolyn would make if she knew the truth about Jimmy.
"That does it," Carolyn said. "Are you about ready?"
Julia had not finished half her shopping but suddenly she was in a hurry to be out of the store. Twice she had caught the stranger looking at her with obvious interest.
The two girls paid their bills and left the store. They packed the groceries in the back of Julia's station wagon.
"Just a second," Carolyn said. "I forgot something. I'll be right back."
Julia gave her friend a suspicious look, but Carolyn was already going back into the store.
Carolyn's heart was pounding as she walked back into the store again.
She didn't really know why she felt she had to get to see the man again, but she knew she had to. She knew it could never amount to anything serious. She flirted with other men but she had never carried it any farther than that. This was going to be another flirting episode and she just didn't want Julia around spoiling her fun.
