Grave Homecoming (A Maddie Graves Mystery Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

Grave Homecoming (A Maddie Graves Mystery Book 1)
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ponytail, and her lithe body was in a pair of jogging shorts and a tight tank top – one of those ones with a bra built in, so his imagination didn’t have to wander too far – but he knew it was her without even giving it a second thought.
    He didn’t care, Nick told himself. She hadn’t cared enough to keep in contact with him, and he certainly didn’t care about her return. She was nothing but an old friend. Despite himself, Nick found his pace increasing.
    When he crested the hill that overlooked Willow Lake, he almost crashed into her. She was standing, her fingers pressed to her neck as she checked her pulse, and she was oblivious to his presence. Her sea-blue eyes widened as he zoomed into view. She pulled to the side to avoid the imminent collision, and the change in his trajectory caused him to lose his footing and topple to the side.
    “Holy crap!”
    “I … .” Nick looked up at her from the ground, rubbing his knee ruefully as he regarded her. “What are you doing?”
    “What are you doing?”
    “I was out for my morning run,” Nick said, fighting to catch his breath. He wanted to believe he was gasping because of his workout, but he knew that wasn’t entirely true. She’d knocked the air out of him, like she always did. “What are you doing?”
    Maddie gestured to her tiny outfit. “The same thing you are.” She extended her hand to help him up.
    Nick took the proffered hand begrudgingly, and when he was back on his feet, he looked her body over with the studied eyes of a trained police officer. She’d had a fantastic body as a teenager, but age had only done favorable things to it. Her legs were long and toned, her midriff tight. And her breasts? He’d give anything to see what was under that tank top. Anything.
    “I didn’t know you liked to run,” Nick said after a beat.
    “Well, I like to eat,” Maddie said. “That means I have to run.”
    Nick pursed his lips. “I guess that makes sense.”
    Maddie rubbed a hand over her forehead, brushing the accumulated sweat from her brow. Her face was devoid of makeup, and just like when she was a teenager, Nick couldn’t imagine anyone ever accumulating enough beauty to touch her.
    “You look good, Nick.”
    He was surprised by the compliment. “You look good, too.”
    “So, um, how have you been?”
    Nick snorted. “Really? That’s your opening line?”
    “I’m not sure what you mean,” Maddie said, rubbing her hands over her midriff self-consciously.
    “You know, Maddie, I’ve been imagining what I would say to you – if I ever saw you again, that is – for ten years now,” Nick said.
    “And how is that going?”
    “Not good,” Nick said. “I had a lot of mean things stored up where you were concerned.”
    Maddie’s face fell. “I … .”
    “No, it’s my turn now,” Nick said. “You just cut me out of your life, Maddie. You pretended I didn’t exist.”
    “I got … I had a lot going on,” Maddie said lamely.
    “We both had a lot going on, Mad,” he said, shortening her name like he’d so often done during their childhood. “I still managed to pick up a phone.”
    “You don’t understand, Nicky,” Maddie said.
    Nick’s heart rolled painfully when she used the nickname only she’d ever been allowed to utter. “What don’t I understand?”
    “Life was always so easy for you,” Maddie said, her eyes flooding with tears. “Sure, we were both losers in elementary school, but when we got to middle school, everyone suddenly noticed you. I was just the geek you deigned to spend time with.
    “Even in high school, I could see the way all those girls looked at me,” she continued. “You were the big stud on campus. You were the quarterback, and point guard, and … whatever it was you did on the track team. I was just the ugly girl at your side, and no one could understand why you were friends with me.”
    Nick was incredulous. “Ugly?”
    “You saw how they looked at me, Nicky,” Maddie charged on. “I
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