Devil's Lake (Bittersweet Hollow Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

mother brought over a chicken pot pie. It’s in the oven.”
    Her stomach lurched. She’d grown accustomed to hunger. Long periods of nothing. Then gorging on the fast food he’d bring her. “Okay. Maybe just a little bit. Did you tell her about me?”
    He shuffled his feet, looking embarrassed. “Sorry. I kinda did.”
    “That’s okay. I always loved your mother.” She tried to continue with the civil conversation, forcing the words from her mouth. “Thank her for me?”
    “Sure. I told her not to say a word, though the secretary at the doc’s office knows now, and you know how Penny talks.” He made a face. “It might not be long before everyone knows you’re back.” He straightened, stretching his arms toward the ceiling and covering a yawn. “Sorry. Been up since four.”
    She nodded, her eyes still on him.
    “When you’re up to it, there will be lots of folks who want to welcome you home.”
    She winced, and he noticed. He held his hand up as if to calm her. “Not now. Not ever, if you don’t want it. You call the shots.”
    Gratefully, she nodded toward him with a faint smile. “Thank you.”

Chapter 6
     
    A fter eating a good portion of Mrs. Hawke’s chicken pot pie, Portia dragged herself to the bathroom and gratefully accepted Boone’s suggestion that she soak in a hot bath. He’d run the water for her, steaming and sudsy, and left a few towels on the chair by the tub before disappearing back out to the barn to see to the horses.
    The flight from New York was delayed by half an hour, so she still had time to clean up a little and try to regain some semblance of control. Some semblance of normalcy.
    Normal? What is normal now?
    Normal had become the bizarre and horrific life she’d led for the past two years. Normal was being petrified all day long. Normal was being restrained, often tied to the bed. Normal was giving in to a monster, to stay alive.
    Stop it.
    She found a pink disposable razor in the cupboard below the sink, placed it on the side of the tub, then lowered herself into the hot water and luxuriated in the feeling of smooth porcelain and suds. Sweet-smelling soap bubbles tickled her nose. She sighed, dunked under the water.
    Warmth encircled her arms, legs, torso, and head. It felt so good. She popped out of the water again and stretched, reaching for the shampoo.
    She’d missed amenities like this. Shampoo and conditioner. Oil of Olay bath wash. Soft fluffy towels.
    The showers he’d forced her under had been swift and cold; the soap harsh. One big yellow bar for hair and body. Her hair hadn’t felt right the whole time she’d been with him.
    Now she lathered and re-lathered, scrubbing fingertips against scalp as if she could rub away the memories of him. She turned on the water again. Using a cup from the side of the tub, she rinsed her hair clean for the first time in years, and then carefully shaved two years of fuzz from her legs and underarms. It took a long time, and she had to get up soaking wet and find another razor to finish the job properly, but it felt so good to feel smoothness beneath her fingertips.
    Feeling better, she eased out of the tub, trying not to look down at her skeletal body. She wrapped her hair in a towel and dried off quickly, avoiding the mirrors. Feeling strangely privileged, she slipped into the pajamas Boone had found in her old dresser.
    Mom kept all my stuff. She knew I’d come home some day.
    She almost sobbed at the thought, but reminded herself one more time. I am home. Home.
    After finding her old toothbrush in the cabinet, she squeezed out a dollop of Colgate and furiously cleaned her teeth until her gums hurt. She’d have to get to the dentist soon, because there were a few spots she feared had started to turn into cavities. He hadn’t exactly provided her with the world’s healthiest diet.
    A commotion downstairs made her turn toward the window.
    Below stood her Dad’s Dodge Ram truck, headlights still shining onto the porch.