Counting Stars (A Donnelley Brother's Novel) Read Online Free

seem to sum up the actual guilt I tended to feel
when I experienced a fleeting moment of happiness. Since Derek
died, the guilt made me feel almost better, because I truly felt
that I deserved it. I wished so badly that I hadn’t kissed him
again that morning. I should have told him to go to work. I should
have told him I would see him later—but I hadn’t. I’d kissed him.
Again, and again, and again. And now he was gone.
    Shaking the thought from
my mind, I took a deep breath and I set to replying to Gracie’s
email.
    To: [email protected]
    Subject: Getting to know you . . . getting to know me . .
.
    From: Reese James
    Gracie,
    I will
try to answer your questions to the best of my ability.
    I am
twenty-three. I work as a freelance writer/editor from home (I feel
as though I have it made). I don’t have children. I’m a city girl
born and raised, but I’ve always had a love of nature. I’ve always
enjoyed taking long walks and visiting the mountains during both
the summer and winter seasons.
    I
honestly don’t know where I see myself ending up, but lately the
city is unsatisfactory for me (I suppose that’s why I’ve found
you). And no, I don’t have a criminal record (I’m pretty
straight-laced—some would even say boring). I don’t have any
animals. One day I would like to have one (or six) but I haven’t
gotten around to it yet. And currently, I do own a house. However,
I have just recently put it up for sale.
    I
would love if you answered the same questions you asked
me!
    Reese
    Her reply was almost
instantaneous.
    To: [email protected]
    Subject: Getting to know you . . . getting to know me . .
.
    From: Gracie Donnelley
    I’m
delighted to find that you’re not a criminal! I will be certain to
assure John first thing in the morning!
    However, I noticed a few oddities about your reply. You said
you own a house. (Do you not consider this house yours)?
    And I
noticed that you completely missed answering my question of
marriage? Is this a no-go subject?
    About
me . . .
    I am
fifty-seven. I know, I know, I’m old. Or so that’s what people tell
me. But I believe you’re only as old as you allow yourself to be.
So, until I can’t walk anymore I’ll keep telling myself I’m
young!
    As you
know, I’m married. I’ve been married to John since I was eighteen
and he was twenty. He’s the love of my life (even though sometimes
I want to strangle him). He gave me four wonderful boys.
    For a
living . . . well, you know what I do. I’m a wild-land tour guide!
And I love it!
    I’ve
always been a country gal. In my opinion, there’s no other way to
live life. My husband and I own a nice chunk of land. Our four boys
also live on the land with us. They’re all country boys—strong
muscles and even stronger heads! Gotta love em!
    We
also have a little farm going on. (Or that’s what it seems like
sometimes). Between the lot of us, we have seven dogs, ten cats, a
few geese, and twenty-four horses.
    On the
property, we have multiple cabins we rent out for different periods
of time. We offer the option to ride our horses as a complimentary
part of the package. It’s a country retreat. I’m so very proud of
what we have here.
    Also,
I have no criminal record. (Thank goodness no one’s caught me
streaking!) By the way, I’m kidding. Sort of.
    Gracie
    Again, reading her email
made me laugh. The woman was truly a breath of fresh air and she
knew nothing about me. She didn’t know I was sad. She didn’t know I
had loved and lost. She didn’t know that at the delicately young
age of twenty-three, I was a widow.
    The thought numbed me
and the sound of my laughter died on my lips.
    . . . I started thinking about you. Thinking about how
little Gracie knows about me makes me think of how much you knew.
You knew everything. You knew that I
hated cotton underwear—only lace or silk will do. You also knew
that I dislike wearing those fancy, sexy bras. A comfortable little
sports bra or nothing is how I