The Romance Challenge, Complete Series Box Set: BBW Hot Alpha Billionaire Romance Read Online Free Page A

decent clothes.
Jeans and a long-sleeve t-shirt today, neither article wrinkled or dirty. She
and Vicky did laundry together. I'd made sure the apartment she rented came
with a washer and dryer, since I knew Michelle wouldn't go out. The place was
always clean, too. Vicky took care of running a mop over the floor and making
sure dishes didn't stack up in the sink. I sent a thank-you prayer for the
CNA's excellent skills handling my sister.
     Michelle wore her long hair either
straight down or pulled back in a ponytail. Not dirty, but messy-looking. I
studied her as I filled our plates, without being obvious. It looked like she'd
lost weight. Maybe it was my imagination. I could never talk her into getting
on a scale.
    "I'm going away for a week on a
business trip, starting next Sunday. Vicky will come in on the two Sundays and
the Wednesday I'm gone. I'll call you though, okay?"
    Michelle ate with her head bent over her
plate, shoveling in the food. Today she had her hair down and used it like a
curtain to hide her face. I reached out and gently pulled it back.
    "Hey, you in there?"
    "No, Michelle has left her body.
She'll return your call soon."
    I dropped my hand and sat straight up in
my chair. WTF? Had my sister gone loco? To my complete surprise, she giggled,
then tucked those wayward hair strands behind her ear.
    "It's a joke, silly. Of course I'm in
here."
     I whooshed out a breath of relief. "Very
funny. Did you hear what I said?" Trying to keep the annoyance out of my
voice.
    "Yes, I heard you. Fine. Where are
you going?"
    "To Key Largo. To assist the owner of
Cameron Industries with a resort he bought. That's where I work, Cameron
Industries."
    "I know that. The owner, Nathan
Cameron, right? Rich guy, really cute."
    Well smack my ass and call me Sally.
"How do you know about him?"
    "I remember him from the paper a
couple of years ago. I looked him up as soon as you got the job at Cameron. He
had trouble with his fiancé."
    Wow. My sister investigated Cameron? 
"I never saw that in the papers, and I checked out the company."
    "In my special papers; that's where I
read it."
    "You mean those gossip tabloids? Oh,
come on. They're full of crap."
    I should have known. Since Michelle had
locked herself away for the past eighteen months, she'd devoured those
magazines. Maybe she lived her life vicariously through the rich and famous, or
imagined she might become one of them. Who knows? Even before her attack, she'd
read those silly papers now and then. More often and more thoroughly than I
thought, clearly.
     Michelle resumed eating, but I couldn't
let the subject drop. For one thing, this was the most animated I'd seen her in
a while. She made a joke! For another, a teeny little part of me wanted more
info about Nathan. Gossip or not, there was usually a nugget of truth in those
tabloid stories.
    "So, what about his fiancé?"
    "She died in a car accident a few
years ago. Something about drugs. Not much got reported, I don't think. Guess
they couldn't get a whole lot on him. He has a bunch of money, you know
that?"
    "I figured. Cameron Industries does well."
Hmmm. I might have to track that story down. Becca or Shannon must have details.
"Anyway, you'll be okay here without me for a little while, right?"
    "I guess." The hair curtain was
back in place. "You'll come back though, won't you?" Her voice
trembled.
    My throat tightened and my eyes teared up.
I put my hand on her shoulder, but she pulled away. "I will, I promise.
And I'll keep trying to find that man. The cops will catch him soon, and put
him away for a good long time. Right?"
    Silence.
    "Right?"
    "Right." A tired sigh.
    "Hey, look at me a minute."
    She tilted her head, and before I could
stop myself, I stuck my tongue out and blew my lips. The confused expression on
her face made me burst out laughing.
    "That's for teasing me earlier."
    A slow grin spread across her face.
"You got spit on me."
    "I'll get more if you don't watch it.
What do you want me to bring