Six Months Read Online Free Page B

and I used to worry that she’d never settle down. I’d made a silent bet with myself that she’d return in five months and it would be the two of us again. Maybe a tiny part of me was jealous that she’d found someone else to share her life with. Rose had never had to take on the responsibilities I’d been forced to shoulder as the older child, and what a blessing that was for her.
    I sat down, dressed in just my underwear, twirling a deck of cards in a circle. “Let me know if you need anything, Rose. I’m really happy for you. I’ve just had a long day, so I didn’t mean for it to come out that way. Shane’s a good catch and you know I’m always here if you need anything.”
    “Aces,” she said with a giggle. “Gift cards are fab, but we’re not doing the big wedding gig. Shane wants to drive to Vegas and have one of those drive-through weddings. Gotta run. We’re heading out to the honky-tonk tonight. What kind of mess is that? I thought I’d left Redneckville and all they do out here is two-step.” She giggled again and I knew Shane was in the room with her.
    “You guys have fun and stay out of trouble! I love you, Rose.”
    “I’ll have fun for the both of us, April. As usual .”
    I set the phone down and sighed thoughtfully as I lifted a heavy pot of water from the floor. Stupid rain. Water leaked in through a skylight and some dents on the roof and I had no clue how to fix them. The trailer was pretty old and my grandma had mentioned a tree branch falling on it years ago during a storm. She had done some work on it since then, but hadn’t seemed concerned with a little water damage.
    I was lingering in front of the sink in my cherry-red bra and panties, dumping out a pot of water, when a knock at the door startled me. The thick brown curtains were closed, so I stood still and waited another second. Nobody ever came over unannounced, and I wasn’t on speaking terms with my loopy neighbors. The insistent knock sounded again.
    “Is there an April Frost in there related to Ginny Frost? I have business matters to discuss with you of an important nature.”
    “Can you come back in the daytime?”
    “I came by this afternoon and again around seven. I can tell you right now that sunshine doesn’t make me any prettier to look at. Your grandma owes me some money. I don’t have time to figure out what your schedule is, and my time is your money.”
    Oh, crap . “Um, just a minute.”
    I grabbed a white sweatshirt and pulled it over my head. The only pants I could find were yesterday’s jeans, so I yanked those on and answered the door barefoot.
    A man wearing a hat looked up at me with steel eyes—one boot in the mud and the other on a step.
    “You can call me Maddox,” he said in a burly, Southern drawl.
    Maddox looked to be a seasoned man in his late forties. He wore a scruffy beard that was silver and brown. His wavy hair rested on the tips of his shoulders, and his faded brown boots matched the color of his hat. It wasn’t a traditional cowboy hat, but more like what the guys in the Australian outback wore. Maddox looked like he’d stepped out of a time machine.
    “Can I help you?” I said through the crack in the door.
    “I’m going to cut to the chase. Ginny Frost owed me fifty grand and I know you’re her granddaughter. Open up and let’s have a friendly chat about business. I won’t take but five minutes of your time.”
    I drifted away from the door and stood by the sink. Maddox ducked his head and moved inside, shaking water off his hat.
    “You mind if I sit?” he asked, motioning toward the sofa on his immediate right. I shrugged and he sat down with his knees apart and forearms resting on them, leaving the door open. “Ginny was pretty good about settling her small loans. I know she died a ways back, and let’s just say I have a soft spot for women and decided to give you a grieving period.” Maddox stared at the hat in his hands. “One thing I’ve got is time. But