Rumpled Between The Sheets Read Online Free

cheered when you left this town."
    "Really?"
    "Yes, of
course." She flared her fingers to the surroundings. "As lovely as
this town is, the quirks get to you after a while. How was New York?"
    Dread filled
Mary. Could she be honest with Vivian about her runaway train of hell in New
York or focus on the few things she treasured about the experience? She shifted
on her bare feet. "I wasn't in the center of it all because I couldn't
afford it but my roommate and I walked Times Square almost every weekend. Driving
there is crazy. I always used public transportation." She decided not to
mention she'd sold her car to make rent within the first six months of living
there.
    "Tim has
taken me several times. Nothing quite like it." Vivian took Mary's hand in hers. "If you need anything, dear, I'm in town
for the rest of the week. Just ask the busybody at the desk of the hotel for
the red-headed hell-witch and they'll send a broomstick for me."
    Mary rolled her
eyes. "Are they still spreading those rumors?"
    "Honey, if
half the witches they claim roamed the streets of this town, we wouldn’t have
half the problems." She winked. "See you around town." With
that, Vivian left.
    The town thought
Mary was a witch. The moniker always got thrown at anyone that left town for
anything beyond vacation or college. Once a Beowulf Hollow
resident, always one. With another glance around, Mary felt at peace.
This shop, out of everyone in this messed up town, grounded her. She missed the
dream she’d left behind. No way would she go back to Paul. From under the
counter, she grabbed a pencil and notepad. In order to get the shop up to
snuff, she needed to make a list of essential cleaning supplies. If she wanted
to make amends for abandoning her mother, this place was a good start.
    Mary gnawed on
her lip, remembering her discovery in the back. After first checking the front
door to make sure it was locked, she headed back to the stockroom. She picked up
the dress form, setting it upright.
    "Sorry,
dancing buddy." She shifted it to a more secured spot before regarding the
rolling rack. With a heave, she tried to move it out of the way. It wouldn't
budge. Her eyebrows knitted. Pushing the near-finished dress aside, her hands
patted the wall where the archway was. To her surprise, she met bare wall.
    "I am
losing it."
    ****
    Back at her
mother's house, Mary breathed deep. She'd stayed with Father Mallard her first
couple of nights back home. The thought of staying in her old home without the
sights and smells of her mother fussing about saddened her to no end. According
to Father Mallard, her mother hadn't been home for almost six months. The
cancer had put her in the hospital as a permanent resident. Dust coated nearly
everything. Her neighbors had at least covered the furniture to spare it the
same fate.
    Going to the refrigerator,
Mary opened it. To her relief and dismay, the contents were pristine empty
shelves within. The cupboards held a few canned goods and not much else. She
had a few dollars. Certainly not enough to fill the pantry.
    "If only
that gold was real." She chuckled. A knock at the door drew her attention.
Still barefoot from her shoe fiasco, she smoothed her skirt of wrinkles. Maybe whoever
it was wouldn't notice her lack of footwear.
    Blowing out a
deep breath, she twisted the doorknob. On the porch stood her
mother's neighbor Betsy Macromere. Two paper sacks were balanced in her
dainty arms.
    "Well,
bless my heart you've changed." Betsy smiled. "I brought you a little
something, dear."
    "Thank you,
Mrs. Macromere."
    "Aw,
please, sugar. Call me Betsy. May I come in?"
    Mary
laughed." Yes, please. I'm sorry, this is all a
little too much right now." She moved to let Betsy pass. How the woman
managed to keep her southern accent when her family had migrated to Beowulf
Hollow over one hundred years ago, Mary never figured out.
    "It's taken
a toll on the whole town." Betsy rushed to the kitchen. "But don't
you worry. We take care of our