Take Me Home (9781455552078) Read Online Free

she’d agreed to become his wife, his ring circling her finger, when it hit her like a punch to the stomach.
    Do you love him?
    Olivia hated to imagine what Billy would think if he could see her face now.

Chapter Two
    I DONE TOLD YOU I weren’t drinkin’!”
    Even from where Olivia sat, ten feet from the jail cell that held Sylvester Eddings, she could tell that he was lying; the unmistakable scent of alcohol wafted across the room, strong enough to cut through the aroma of a freshly brewed pot of coffee. Sylvester leaned awkwardly against the cell’s steel bars, looking as if he could collapse at any moment. In his midfifties, he appeared older, aged by his love of drinking; white whiskers peppered his bloated cheeks and his eyes were wet and bloodshot. His shirt was stained and wrinkled, likely worn for days.
    â€œI ain’t touched the stuff!” he insisted.
    â€œIf you haven’t been drinking, you mind telling me how your truck ended up hitting that telephone pole?”
    Huck Perkins leaned back in his chair, his feet up on his desk, flipping through the newspaper with an amused smile on his face. For as long as Olivia could remember, Huck had been her father’s deputy, working alongside John Marsten as he settled disputes, made the occasional arrest, and kept the town safe and sound as best he could. Just like his boss, Huck was fair but tough. Almost sixty now, the years had begun to show; his gray hair was thinning and his belly had grown plump enough to strain the buttons of his uniform. Everyone in Miller’s Creek was familiar with the sound of his booming voice.
    â€œOne a my tires must’ve blown,” Sylvester answered.
    Huck’s deep laugh echoed around the room. “Pert near everything on that truck got wrecked,” he said. “The radiator’s cracked, the windows are all busted out, and the fender’s bent up sideways and back, but somehow not a one of them four tires got popped.”
    â€œThen it was a deer that done run out in front a me!” the drunk man declared, undeterred in his desire to provide an explanation that didn’t involve a bottle of alcohol.
    â€œI don’t doubt that you saw something in the road,” the deputy explained with a hearty chuckle, “but I bet it was a gremlin. I hear those darn things are mighty common among folks who like tippin’ back the whiskey.”
    Sylvester scowled. “I reckon you think you’re funny! Probably fancy yourself a regular Bob Hope!”
    Huck laughed so hard his belly shook; Olivia wondered if he wouldn’t jiggle himself right out of his chair.
    Olivia could only give their back-and-forth a quick smile before her thoughts once again returned to Billy. For the rest of her day at the hardware store, her mind had twisted and turned, unable to believe that she’d actually agreed to become his wife. Her work showed her distraction; she’d filled orders wrong, struggled to count back change, and Henry Pickford had caught her absently staring out the window. The ring that Billy had placed on her finger felt so strange, so out of place, that she’d tried to keep it hidden away from everyone she met, maybe even from herself. When it came time to close the store for the day, she’d hurried over to her father’s office, hoping that he might be able to make her feel better. Unfortunately, he’d been out; since she’d decided to wait for him to return, she’d had to listen to Sylvester and Huck’s banter.
    â€œPsssst! Hey! Psst!”
    Olivia looked up to find Sylvester staring at her. He’d pressed a finger to his lips, as if he wanted her to be quiet. “Olivia, darlin’,” he said in what he thought was a whisper; he was still so drunk that he didn’t realize that he was talking loud enough for Huck to hear every word. “You gotta get me outta here. How ’bout grabbin’ them keys and openin’