All Chapters of Shortcake: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The house was full of music, and more than half the town. Gemma Havley’s family had gone all out for her going-away party. She was leaving small-town Florence, Oklahoma, for college in Bronson, Colorado. It was already going to be a big change for her, and she hated change. But her English teacher, Mr. Grant, had worked hard to get her into the creative writing program at Morton College.She made her way through the crowd, stopping to talk to this cousin or that, not even sure who was who anymore in the stream of faces. Her cousin Marie grabbed her in a hug and yelled, “Oh, Gemma! I can’t believe you’re getting out of here. The things you’re going to do, girl!” The giggling coming from Marie was part excitement for Gemma and part beer fuzz.Her brother Kyle had provided the drinks for the party. He and his best friend, Tony Bennet, owned the only bar in town—KT Spirits. It had been a long, hard road for them. They’d had to do a lot of work to the place, but they made it the spot to be

When they pulled over for fuel and snacks, the reality of Dee's planning set in; they wouldn't be eating any real food until they reached the hotel. "You know we can't mess with Mom's schedule," Kyle remarked as he climbed back into the U-Haul, tossing a bag of chips to his sister.Gemma held the bag up, staring at it completely unimpressed. "Seriously? No barbecue flavor?""Barbecue for breakfast?" Kyle replied. "Aren't you afraid of getting heartburn? Or at the least bad breath?""This is coming from the guy who pairs chili with beer at ten in the morning?" Gemma shot back with a laugh. "And you're lecturing me about heartburn?""That was a one-time thing," Kyle chuckled, joining in her laughter. "I certainly learned my lesson, and I think the bathroom is still in recovery."Their laughter faded quickly, leaving the nervous knot in Gemma’s stomach exactly where it had been. By the time they finally pulled into the hotel parking lot that evening, it was almost nine o'clock. As Don an

Tony stood at the bar, filling a mug of beer. He topped it off and sent it sliding down the counter, then leaned back, his eyes fixed on the door. Matt came up behind him, his voice low. "She’s not coming through that door anytime soon.""Who?""Whatever, dude. You know exactly who I’m talking about." Tony tried to move around him, but Matt wouldn’t budge. "Dude, don’t act like you don’t know.""Gemma? She’s just Kyle’s kid sister. That is it," Tony replied."You are so full of it," Matt said, throwing a bar rag over his shoulder. "Tell me this: if she went to school closer, where would you be? At Kyle’s—and not because of Kyle."Tony remained silent, shifting his gaze back to the rows of bottles behind the bar. He didn't know what to say to Matt because it was no secret how he felt; everyone could see it plainly. Admitting it out loud, however, was a hurdle he wasn't ready to clear, even to himself."Would you knock it off? There’s nothing between me and Gemma." Tony’s phone buzzed w

The first bar they hit was loud and sticky, the air buzzing with music and laughter. Freddy hustled them into a game of darts with two frat boys—Chase and Ethan, both cocky in their backward caps and college hoodies.Freddy squinted at the board and let her dart fly. It bounced off the edge and landed in someone’s abandoned nachos.Ethan howled with laughter. “A bold strategy, Freddy!”“Guess I’ll try to keep it on the board.”Gemma tried not to laugh. She stepped up, feeling the familiar weight of the dart in her hand, the memory of a hundred slow nights at KT Spirits sharpening her aim. She threw—bullseye.Ethan whistled. “Beginner’s luck?”Gemma shrugged, a sly smile tugging at her lips. “Wanna bet?”Three throws later, the boys were groaning and Freddy was laughing. “Damn, girl,” Freddy said, slinging an arm around Gemma’s shoulders. “You are full of surprises.”Gemma just grinned, a blush warming her cheeks. She’d never been the center of attention like this before—at home, she’d

Instead of going back to sleep after Freddy left, Gemma called her mom. Dee picked up on the second ring. “Hey, honey, is everything good?”“Just seeing if you guys made it home.” Gemma didn’t want to admit she just needed to hear her mom’s voice.“We just pulled into Florence a few minutes ago,” Deb replied. “Your dad and Kyle took turns driving on the way back—and I think they did a lot more than the speed limit when they caught me napping.”“Sounds like them. Try riding on the back of a motorcycle with Kyle sometime,” Gemma replied, rolling her eyes fondly.Dee laughed. “No thank you. That’s all you, sweetheart. Hang on, let me put you on speaker so you can say hey to your dad and brother.”“Hey, Bug,” her dad called.“Hey, Dad. Better slow down before you get a ticket,” she teased.Then came Kyle’s voice. “Thanks a lot, Gemma. Now I have to give Tony fifty bucks.”“Serves you right,” she shot back, grinning. She could practically see him close his eyes, pretending to be aggravated