Forgivin' Ain't Forgettin' Read Online Free Page B

now because she’d taken on the weekly task of washing and braiding their hair. Trevor would never forget the way tender-headed Brandi screamed her misery the first and only time
he
attempted to comb through her coarse tresses. “So are we on for tonight?”
    “I’ll have to pass.”
    “Don’t tell me you have a date with Kirk.”
    “And if I do?”
    Trevor caught an earful of attitude. “Take it easy,” he soothed, not intending to go one-on-one with Penny over this month’s loser. Since her divorce, the quality of the men Penny chose to date balanced to zero. Yet Trevor had promised to keep out of her romantic affairs. He understood how vexing it could be when people angled their radar toward the love life of another. His wife had been gone only a little more than a year yet numbers had been slipped to him, names whispered, bouquets and baskets delivered. The bulk had been from fellow Charity Community Church parishioners ready to have their daughters or granddaughters, nieces or baby cousins, pursued, courted, and wed—and not necessarily in that order.
    “I’d love to go out with you and the kids,” Penny said, “but my throat’s sore. I think I’m coming down with something. I plan to order Chinese food and call it a night.”
    “Just make sure you’re all better by next Saturday, or else I’m dateless.”
    “I told you, I have several girlfriends who would
love
to escort my tall, so-finebrother.”
    “Not interested,” he mumbled. Then in a lighter tone, he added, “I have an errand to run. Then I’ll be over for the girls.”
    “Hey,” she stopped him before he clicked off. “If it isn’t too much trouble, bring a movie to go with my meal.”
    Asking what kind of film to rent was a waste of time. Penny appreciated a good love story as much as he did. In fact, brother and sister, born eleven months apart, were very much like twins. They looked alike, had the same food favorites, and they could talk about anything together. But Trevor rarely talked to Penny, Grace, or anyone about losing his wife. And he had not spoken once about the cowardly decision he’d made the day she died.

chapter two
    T revor crossed the video store, passing the New Releases section. He halted behind a man his height and cleared his throat. Kregg Lattimore turned, and a smile appeared on his dark-skinned, clean-shaven face as the men performed their rendition of a handshake, a little something they put together during their Central High School days. A few minutes into the conversation, Trevor wanted to know, “Did you solve your scheduling problem?” Last week, Kregg had divulged he was having trouble juggling a full-time accounting career, two graduate courses, and his new high-maintenance girlfriend.
    “I’m working it out.” Kregg slid a pack of gum from the breast pocket of a knit shirt. He held the pack out to Trevor, who shook his head no. Kregg dislodged a stick, then returned the pack to his pocket. “So how’s Penny? I haven’t talked with her this week.”
    “She’s coming down with a cold or something, but other than that, she’s okay.”
    “Is she still going out with that jerk Kirkpatrick?”
    Trevor grimaced. “Most likely. And for the record, the
jerk
prefers ‘Kirk.’”
    “I could care less what that cheating dog prefers.” Kregg yanked a romantic comedy from the shelf. “I don’t know why Penny can’t see it. Anytime a man tells you not to call his house and won’t give you a legitimate reason, it means another woman is the reason.”
    Trevor selected a movie he thought his sister might welcome. “Maybe if you’d shown more interest, Penny wouldn’t have gotten involved with Kirk.”
    “Like I’ve always said, I can’t date Penny. I’ve known her since she was in diapers. We’re like family.” Kregg looked down at the romantic comedy he was holding. Putting the film back on the shelf, he opined, “Romance is so overrated.”
    “Romance is a vital organ of the love