Eyes Only Read Online Free Page A

Badly. She was missing her husband, Charles, and remembering things that were better left alone. She watched as Myra swiped at her eyes, then yanked at the pearls around her neck. She scowled at what she was seeing, and for one brief minute she wished Charles Martin was standing in front of her so she could plug him right between his eyes.
    Annie reached for the tray and tried to erase the vision behind her eyelids. What good was a dead Charles Martin? What good was a live Charles Martin? She couldn’t come up with an answer.
    â€œWhat took you so long?” Myra sniffed.
    â€œWell, Miss Smart-Ass, I was watching you cry through the kitchen window, and I spent all that time trying to figure out how I could plug Charles right between the eyes. That’s what took me so long. You happy now?”
    Myra laughed. “Annie, Annie, whatever would I do without you? I’m allowed my little pity parties from time to time. Today, in all its perfection, is one of those days. Plus, our girls and boys will be here soon. Like old times, minus Charles. I did love him, you know. I’m not sure what I feel these days. Can we drop this now and have a cigarette?”
    The two women sat and coughed, hacked, and sputtered as they attempted to blow smoke rings, which the dogs tried to catch.
    â€œThese really are an abomination, Myra. No wonder people die from them. Do you want another one?”
    â€œSure.” Myra laughed. “Only because the dogs love chasing the smoke rings.”
    â€œThe tea is good,” Annie said.
    â€œIs that your idea of small talk, Annie? A diversion? To take me away from my thoughts?”
    â€œYep.”
    â€œOkay, it worked. Can we move on here? How excited are you that we’re all going to be going to Spyder Island?”
    â€œI am. I think we need to do some PR work, to let the people on the island know I am arriving with a full retinue. My own plane, my own yacht to follow. Maybe on the yacht, I’m not sure about that yet. The only woman to own property on Spyder Island. Then we sit back, ignore any and all invitations, which will most assuredly come our way, and let things develop. Yes, I am excited. I think in my other life, Myra, I could have been an actress. By the way, we’re taking the dogs, right?”
    â€œYes. We’ll call them guard dogs.”
    Annie looked over at the pups and at Lady. They were all sound asleep. Some guard dogs! She started to laugh and couldn’t stop.

Chapter 2
    â€œI don’t know about you, Annie, but today I am a happy camper,” Myra said as she pointed at the boisterous group on her terrace. “All our chicks are here in the nest. They look happy and are enjoying each other. It’s been too long since we were all together. Sometimes I feel like our little family is slipping away from us.” Her voice was so fretful sounding that Annie patted her shoulder and clucked her tongue like a mother hen.
    â€œTime doesn’t stand still. You know that, Myra. We have to take each day as it comes and work from there. And as much as I hate to have to say this, we’re all getting older. I’m not saying we still don’t have some spit and vinegar left in us—we do—but we might need to add a couple of shots of that fine old Kentucky bourbon you keep locked up in the cellar. Tell me again why you’re saving it.”
    Myra laughed. “I’d tell you if I could remember. It was Charles who came by it somehow and said we needed to save it for a special occasion. I seem to recall his saying we’d know when it was time to break out a bottle. Do you remember his saying that, Annie?”
    â€œYou see, that’s the thing. Why save it? What if there are no special moments, or if there are, and we miss them? What then? I say we either break it out after we eat, or we save it till everyone is gone. And then you and I get tanked. I think we’re overdue for a two-person party.