curse of the alpha - episode 03 & 04 Read Online Free Page A

he waited to see what she would do next.
    She squeezed his massive bicep, then sailed down the stairs before anything could go
    wrong.
    C H A P T E R
    7
    T he late summer air pressed on Ainsley. No trace of a breeze stirred, and she thought she might be able to wring the moisture out of the humid air like a sponge if she tried.
    The scent of an approaching storm teased her with the promise of a cooling downpour.
    Despite the heat, Ainsley savored the walk to Grace’s house. How many times had she
    taken this familiar trip over the years of their friendship? She looked down at her Jimmy Choos and remembered looking down at the same sandstone sidewalk blocks, slapped by
    the flip flops she’d skipped in at ten, and slouched over in the Uggs she’d worn at 17.
    The tree canopy arched gracefully overhead. She loved the way the trees from either
    side of the street met in the middle, entwining their branches. Birds sang their last notes of the evening as the cicadas buzzed in the distance. The smell the of night jasmine
    opening filled the air.
    Maybe it wasn’t so hard to imagine why someone would want to stay in Tarker’s Mills.
    The lights were on at the Cortez house on Harvard. Their wide front porch held
    several wooden rocking chairs and two gigantic wine barrels of tomato plants. In the fall, Grace’s mother would carve pumpkins and cover the porch with them.
    “Ainsley!” Grace called. Just like old times, she was waiting on the porch swing where the front porch wrapped around to the side of the house.
    “Hi!” Ainsley took the steps two at a time to join her friend on the swing.
    They sat in silence for a few minutes, swinging lazily and looking over the Cortez’s
    yard into the neighboring trees and gardens. It was like no time had passed and they
    would soon hurry in for homework. For a few minutes, Ainsley lost herself in those
    carefree days.
    “Come on,” Grace said, breaking the spell. “My mom is dying to see you.”
    They entered the center hall. It was still covered stem to stern in ancient William
    Morris wallpaper depicting vines and fruit.
    “Ainsley?” Eva Cortez embraced Ainsley in a warm hug. She still smelled like fresh
    baked bread.
    “Hi, Mrs. Cortez!”
    “Hi yourself! Where have you been? You went to New York, not the moon! You can
    come to visit, you know? Did you get my card?” Mrs. Cortez gently scolded her as she
    patted her on the arm and guided her to the kitchen.
    Oh god, the card.
    Ainsley reddened. Mrs. Cortez’s sympathy card had been handmade and absolutely
    lovely. And the message inside was so warm and loving it had made Ainsley want to
    disintegrate with unworthiness. So she had tucked it away and forgotten to even
    acknowledge it.
    “Your card was…”
    “Yes, yes, you got it. I meant what I said, Ainsley. You’re my daughter now. So I’m
    expecting phone calls. Okay? And visits. I made you a room here, just like I said I would.
    Gracie will show you. You can come home as often as you like, but I expect to see more of you.”
    Home.
    Ainsley was overwhelmed. Tears threatened to spring in her eyes. But Mrs. Cortez
    knew Ainsley too well to think that she would want to have a hug and a good cry.
    “Right now, I need help with dinner, so we’ll talk more about that later. Ainsley, I
    assume you can still peel cucumbers for the salad?”
    Ainsley nodded gratefully. The cucumbers were small and tender, obviously fresh from
    the garden out back. She settled into the bench seat and began to peel them onto the
    cutting board. Grace sat next to her and cut them up as fast as Ainsley could peel.
    Mrs. Cortez kept up a steady stream of news and gossip as they worked.
    She was part of a core group of women in town who had left their careers to have
    children and then decided to take on the town instead of returning to their previous fields once the kids were in school. Between them they ran the parent-teacher association,
    organized all the annual fairs and festivals,