Free Summer Rental by Mary Kay Andrews

sandwich.”
    “Peanut butter and jelly? At the beach? Are you nuts?” Julia said.
    “I prefer to think of it as being thrifty,” Dorie replied. “I mean, c’mon, Ellis, aren’t you the tiniest bit worried about your situation? I know you’ll get another great job, but I just think I’d be crazy worried if I were you.”
    “I’ve got some irons in the fire,” Ellis said blithely. “But I’ll be all right. As long as I’m sensible about my spending, which I usually am anyway.” She opened the refrigerator door, secretly relieved at the twenty dollar bill she’d save by eating lunch at home. “Look, I stopped at the seafood place up the street when I got in yesterday and picked up some shrimp. They claimed it was right off the boat. And I brought a can of Old Bay seasoning. We can steam some shrimp in beer.”

    “What else have you got in there?” Dorie asked, leaning in to look. She held up a head of romaine lettuce, a cucumber, and a tomato. “Great. I’ll throw a salad together while the shrimp are cooking.”
    “Oh, all right,” Julia relented. “We’ll stay in for lunch. But tonight, we’re going out for dinner so I can get my fried grouper fix. And it’s my treat, so don’t even try to argue.”
    They took turns showering, and when lunch was ready, they sat companionably around the enamel-topped kitchen table. They discussed plans for the afternoon, while Ellis checked her e-mail.
    “Hey,” she announced. “Old man Culpepper finally answered my e-mail. A pest-control guy is coming over to spray the house at two. But he says we’ve got to stay out of the house for a couple of hours afterwards.”
    “Suits me,” Julia said. “I’ve got a new book, and the beach is calling me back.”
    “Guess I’ve had enough sun for one day,” Dorie said, holding out her sunburnt arm.
    “Me too,” Ellis agreed. “I saw a movie theater up the street. Why don’t we catch a matinee?”
    “A chick flick!” Dorie’s green eyes lit up. “I’ll bring my biggest pocketbook and we’ll sneak in our own Diet Cokes like we did in junior high. And we can stop and buy a giant box of candy at the Dollar Store.”
    “Well…” Ellis said. “You know they always have those big signs that say ‘outside food and drink prohibited’.…”
    Julia set her beer bottle down on the countertop. “Who cares? They just put those signs up so you’ll have to buy their five-dollar Cokes and seven-dollar tubs of popcorn. Nobody pays any attention to those signs.”
    “I do,” Ellis said stubbornly. “What if we got caught? How embarrassing would that be?”
    “Who’s going to catch you?” Julia wanted to know. “It’s not like they have ushers in movie theaters anymore. And even if they did, what do you think is going to happen if they catch you sneaking in your own stuff? Huh? You think they’re gonna revoke your driver’s license? Seize your jujubes as contraband?”
    “Never mind her, Ellis,” Dorie said. “I’ll carry the Cokes and Milk Duds in my purse.” She paused then, remembering that her redrawn budget had no room for movies—let alone seven-dollar boxes of popcorn.
    Ellis noticed Dorie’s sudden look of concern. She opened the manila folder again. “I went online and downloaded some Movie Lover’s passes. If we get there before 1:30, our tickets are only two bucks. And there’s one for each of us.”
    Julia rolled her eyes. “What is with you two with the coupons and early-bird specials? We’re on vacation. We’ve all worked hard and we deserve to be good to ourselves. If you’re that hard up for money, just say so.” She grabbed her pocketbook.
    Ellis saw Dorie bite her lip and look away. “Thanks anyway. We’ll pay our own way,” she said, her voice deliberately even. “And if you don’t want to be seen with a couple of coupon-clippers, we’ll understand.”
    “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t mean … well, you know.” Julia hastily craned her neck to look out the kitchen